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Книги издательства «Oxford University Press»
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This authoritative dictionary covers all aspects of Hinduism, including practices, festivals, beliefs, gods, sacred sites, languages, and religious texts — everything from Tantra to temples, from bhakti to Divali. The most wide-ranging dictionary of its kind, it features almost 2,800 clear, concise, up-to-date, and fully cross-referenced entries, including many biographical entries for key thinkers, teachers, and scholars. Its detailed appendices include maps, a useful pronunciation guide, a chronology, a list of principal sources, suggestions for further reading, and links to relevant websites. With accurate and easy-to-understand definitions that cover everything from the origins of the religion to Hinduism in the modern world, this dictionary is essential for students and teachers of Hinduism, theology, Asian studies, or philosophy, as well as the related disciplines of history, sociology, and anthropology. It is also a valuable source of information for all practicing Hindus and for anyone with an interest in Indian religions and culture. |
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'We were dumped at a roundabout with our labels on. People pulled and tugged at the children they wanted. It was a bit like a cattle market... people just waded in. I went with a lady and her daughter — she was like a second Mum'. Alexander King, evacuated aged eleven Based on the stories of thirteen children and adults, Churchill's Children tells the often moving story of the evacuation of schoolchildren in Britain during the Second World War, from the first mass evacuations of 1939 through to the lesser-known but equally important evacuations of 1940 and 1944. John Welshman skilfully captures the experience of evacuation — the happiness or sadness, excitement or boredom, resentment or acceptance, love or abuse that the children experienced during their time away from home. Along the way, the book addresses some of the fundamental questions raised by evacuation. How were relationships between children and parents affected by the long periods apart? What happened when brothers and sisters were separated? And how did the children feel when they went home? But the book looks at the adults too — at how the officials in charge of billeting and teachers got caught up in events, and at how civil servants and researchers became involved in the ensuing debates. As Welshman shows, the evacuation was to have a significant impact on shaping attitudes in the post-war world to everything from reconstruction and state intervention to poverty, social class, and the welfare state. However, the analysis aside, what this book perhaps offers above all is a highly evocative portrait of a very different Britain, reminding us just how much has changed in the seventy years since the Second World War. |
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Hitler claimed that his years as a soldier in the First World War were the most formative years of his life. However, for the six decades since his death in the ruins of Berlin, Hitler's time as a soldier on the Western Front has, remarkably, remained a blank spot. Until now, all that we knew about Hitler's life in these years and the regiment in which he served came from his own account in Mein Kampf and the equally mythical accounts of his comrades. Hitler's First War for the first time looks at what really happened to Private Hitler and the men of the Bavarian List Regiment of which he was a member. It is a radical revision of the period of Hitler's life that is said to have made him. Through the stories of the veterans of the regiment — an officer who became Hitler's personal adjutant in the 1930s but then offered himself to British intelligence, a soldier-turned-Concentration Camp Commander, Jewish veterans who fell victim to the Holocaust, or of veterans who simply returned to their lives in Bavaria — Thomas Weber presents a Private Hitler very different from the one portrayed in his own mythical account. Instead, we find a Hitler who was shunned by the frontline soldiers of his regiment as a 'rear area pig' and who was still unsure of his political ideology even at the end of the war in 1918. In looking at the post-war lives of Hitler's fellow veterans back in Bavaria, Thomas Weber also challenges the commonly accepted notion that the First World War was somehow a 'seminal catastrophe' in twentieth century German history and even questions just how deep-seated Nazi ideology really was in its home state. |
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Language is not fixed, but evolves over time, and exploring the routes taken by the words can lead us on fascinating journeys. How to Read a Word, written by the noted lexicographer Elizabeth Knowles, shows us how to explore the origins, associations, and evolution of words, focusing in particular on two points: what questions can be asked about a word? And how can they be answered? How to Read a Word offers clear guidance on how to explore the various aspects of words, with chapters on pronunciation, spelling, date of first use, etymology, regional distribution, and meaning, all spiced with intriguing examples. For instance, Knowles offers a fascinating account of how the word scientist originated in a public debate in 1834, explains The Economist's jocular suggestion that fish and chips be spelled ghoti and tchoghs, and weighs in on the nuclear-nucular controversy. Knowles also discusses the ever-expanding range of sources available to the curious word-hunter, from general and specialist dictionaries to websites devoted to areas of language, from Project Gutenberg and Google Book Search to various online newspaper archives. Knowles shows readers how to use this sometimes overwhelming mass of resources to get the best result, and how best to interpret the evidence retrieved. We learn, for example, how to use Google News to search the phrase thin as a as used today, uncovering hundreds of variants, from thin as a supermodel to thin as a lizard. Thought-provoking and practical, this guide provides readers with the essential tools to confidently interrogate the words by which we are surrounded. How to Read a Word is the perfect gift for anyone who is fascinated by the development and intricacies of the English language. |
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The power of words in politics is well known, and Lend Me Your Ears, the fourth edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations, brings together both words of wisdom and things that might have been better left unsaid. This unique reference book not only charts the most influential political events of recent times via the things people said about them — including an international financial crisis and a watershed in American presidential politics — but also digs deeper than ever into the rich heritage of political history from around the world. A mouth-watering collection for anyone with an interest in history and politics, Antony Jay (co-author of the famous TV series Yes Minister and Yes Prime Minister) has assembled both a crash course in political wisdom past and present and a treasure trove of politicians' cock-ups and put-downs, with more than 300 new quotations and over 90 new authors, from Sarah Palin to David Cameron by way of Silvio Berlusconi. Lend Me Your Ears includes an essay by the political journalist Matthew Parris and keyword and subject indexes to help in tracing just the right quote. New quotations include: 'The inherited and permanent fact that North America speaks English'. Otto von Bismarck, when asked what was the greatest political fact of modern times 'British jobs for British workers'. Gordon Brown 'If I misspoke that was just a misstatement'. Hillary Rodham Clinton 'You never want a serious crisis to go to waste'. Rahm Emanuel 'A prince never lacks legitimate reasons to excuse his failure to keep his word'. Niccolo Machiavelli 'We are not going to give up our country for a mere X on a ballot. How can a ballpoint pen fight with a gun'? Robert Mugabe. 'We will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist'. |
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In No Turning Back, Paul Addison takes the long view, charting the vastly changing character of British society since the end of the Second World War. As he shows, in this period a series of peaceful revolutions has completely transformed the country so that, with the advantage of a longer perspective, the comparative peace and growing prosperity of the second half of the twentieth century appear as more powerful solvents of settled ways of life than the Battle of the Somme or the Blitz. We have come to take for granted a welfare state which would have seemed extraordinary to our forebears in the first decades of the century, based upon the achievement of a hitherto undreamed of mass prosperity. Much of the sexual morality preached if not practised for centuries has been dismantled with the creation of a 'permissive society'. The employment and career chances of women have been revolutionized. A white nation has been transformed into a multiracial one. An economy founded on manufacturing under the watchful eye of the 'gentlemen in Whitehall' has morphed into a free market system, heavily dependent on finance, services, and housing, while a predominantly working class society has evolved into a predominantly middle class one. And the United Kingdom, which once looked as solid as the rock of Gibraltar, now looks increasingly fragile, as Wales and especially Scotland have started to go their separate ways. The book ends with an assessment of the gains and losses that have resulted. As this makes clear, this is not a story of progress pure and simple, it is a story of fundamental transformation in which much has been gained and much also lost, perhaps above all a sense of the ties that used to bind people together. Paul Addison brings to it the personal point of view of someone who has lived through it all and seen the Britain of his youth turn into a very different country, but who in the final reckoning still prefers the present to the past. |
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Under the editorship of Roy Foster, a team of distinguished Irish historians has produced a challenging assessment of Ireland's history, providing a lively and accessible synthesis of Irish history from pre-Christian times to the present-day troubles. Their approach stresses the ancient, rooted nature of Irish culture, but also looks beyond received ideas of Irish history to explore the patterns of fragmentation and change which have been characteristic of Ireland's past. The long-contested question of Irish identity and its relation to language is also examined, and the book is lavishly illustrated with over 200 pictures in colour and black and white. |
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From the formation of the Russian state in the 14th century to the political power struggles of the 1990s and the uncertainties of the new millennium, this new history offers a fresh and systematic account of Russian history across six tumultuous centuries. With greater access to previously unobtainable material, and with the gradual depoliticization of what was once an intellectual Cold War battleground, historians are now able to tell the story of Russia more dispassionately and with greater precision than was formerly possible. Drawing on the best contemporary scholarship, and informed throughout by the latest archival research into previously classified sources, thirteen international experts here reassess and reinterpret the history of one of the world's great powers. What emerges is a powerful sense of national destiny — of repeated themes, unchanging conditions, and cycles of circumstance. Throughout Russian history, all-powerful autocrats like Ivan the Terrible or Stalin have maintained their authority through brutality; but their omnipotence was always under threat, circumscribed by geography, compromised by bureaucratic incompetence, pervasive corruption, and resistance from below. A curious combination — a veneer of omnipotence, a void of operational power — has periodically dissolved into 'times of trouble', as in 1598, 1917, and 1991, when the impotence of the regime became transparent to all. Russian rulers have also had to contend with the same immense physical challenges — a hugely dispersed population, a perennial dearth of means and men to govern, a primitive infrastructure. Plagued by natural disasters, hamstrung by structural problems, the Russian economy — whether pre-revolutionary capitalist, Soviet socialist, or post-Soviet semi-capitalist — has had enormous and disruptive difficulties adapting to the competitive world of international markets. Another immutable, elemental fact has been Russia's multinational composition, which continues to generate discontent and disorder. Yet Russia is a great survivor, as the years from 1995 show, charaterized by economic recovery, institution-building, and a new mood of self-assertion in world politics. For too long Russian history has been dominated by myths and counter-myths, concocted by those seeking either to legitimize the existing order or to destroy it. This book — containing many little-known illustrations — represents an important attempt to rethink Russian history and to provide a new understanding of Russia's complex but ever-fascinating historical development. A compelling story in its own right, it is also essential reading for anyone with a private or professional interest in Russia and its place in the world. |
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Drawing on the unique resources of the Oxford English Dictionary and offering coverage of over 6,000 slang words and expressions from the Cockney 'abaht' to the American term 'zowie', this is the most authoritative dictionary of slang from the 20th and 21st centuries. Stone the Crows: Oxford Dictionary of Modern Slang is a fascinating and entertaining collection, packed with illustrative quotations and providing full details of origins and dates of first printed use. The text contains expressions from around the English-speaking world such as 'dork' and 'cockamamie' (North America) and 'giggle-house' and 'Jimmy Woodser' (Australia). As well as the A-Z listing of terms, the book contains a comprehensive thematic index, enabling users to home in on particular areas of interest, such as the body, food and drink, and human behaviour. Full of surprises, Stone the Crows is an essential read for word lovers and anyone with an interest in language. |
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Harvey Cheyne is the over-indulged son of a millionaire. When he falls overboard from an ocean liner he is rescued by a Portuguese fisherman and, initially against his will, joins the crew of the We're Here for a summer. Through the medium of an exciting adventure story, Captains Courageous (1897) deals with a boy who like Mowgli in The Jungle Book, is thrown into an entirely alien environment. The superstitious, magical world of the sea and the tough, orderly, physical world of the boat form a backdrop to Harvey's regeneration. Kipling describes the fascination skills of the schooner fishermen who would soon be made redundant by the twentieth century, and makes the ship function as a convincing model for a society engaged in a difficult and dangerous task. The introduction to this edition examines its place among other maritime novels and among Kipling's own work, and explanatory notes clarify the seafaring terms and historical and geographical references. |
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Translated for the first time into English, the Old French prose poem is a classic of European literature and has influenced such diverse figures as Dante, T.H. White, and the makers of the 1967 film Camelot. |
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This collection brings together seventeen of Kipling's early stories, written between 1885 and 1888, when Kipling was working as a journalist in India. Wry comedies of British officialdom alternate with glimpses into the harsh lives of the common soldiers and the Indian poor, revealing Kipling's legendary powers of observation and, in 'Baa Baa, Black Sheep' his own miserable childhood. From Mrs Hauksbee's Simla drawing-room to Mulvaney's cot in barracks, to the wild hills of Kafiristan, Kipling re-creates the India he knew in stories by turns ironic and sentimental, compassionate and bitter, displaying the brilliance that has captivated readers for over a century. |
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The moment I first met you, I noticed your pride, your sense of superiority, and your selfish disdain for the feelings of others. You are the last man in the world whom I could ever be persuaded to marry, said Elizabeth Bennet. And so Elizabeth rejects the proud Mr Darcy. Can nothing overcome her prejudice against him? And what of the other Bennet girls — their fortunes, and misfortunes, in the business of getting husbands? This famous novel by Jane Austen is full of wise and humorous observation of the people and manners of her times. |
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On a beautiful summer evening in the quiet town of Marlow, a young woman is walking home from church. She passes a man who is looking at the engine of his car. He turns round, smiles at her... and throws acid into her face. Then her father, the scientist George Ashton, disappears. And her sister, Penny, discovers that her husband-to-be, Malcolm, is a government agent. Why has Ashton disappeared, and why is Malcolm told to hunt for him? Who is George Ashton, anyway? And who is the enemy? |
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. Join Huckleberry Finn and runaway slave, Jim, as they escape from their tormentors and head down the Mississippi River. They have many adventures on the voyage and trouble is always close at hand. Throughout everything their friendship remains strong but will this be enough to give Jim his freedom once and for all? |
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. At half past sixteen, Anne is now ready to take her place in Avonlea society as a teacher at her old school. She is determined to inspire her pupils and this can sometimes involve some unusual teaching methods! But although Anne is growing up, she still manages to get into a number of scrapes... as only she can. This heartwarming tale is a welcome addition to the thriving Oxford Children's Classics series. |
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At Home With Handwriting 2 is a fun activity workbook for children, aged 5-7 years, to do at home. Using a variety of tasks such as filling in missing letters and copying, children will establish a comfortable and efficient pencil grip, write and join up letters correctly, and leave appropriate gaps between words. The illustrated step-by-step activities are simple enough for children to work through on their own, or equally perfect to do together with an adult giving encouragement. Useful tips support adults so that they can encourage learning gently — plus there are more than enough funky stickers to reward your child as they complete each activity! This book is ideal to build confidence in writing at primary school. |
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. When five children go exploring in the gravel pit they never expect to find 'It'... a Psammead who can grant them one wish per day. But this grumpy old Sand-fairy has to be in the right mood to grant wishes, and as the children discover having your wishes come true may sound like fun, but can actually turn into a whole heap of trouble... This charming tale is the latest addition to the Oxford Children's Classics series from the author of The Railway Children. |
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. Scientist Victor Frankenstein, is determined to create intelligent life. He works night and day on his experiment until at last he succeeds. Only then does he realize that what he has created is a monster. Abandoned by its maker and rejected by everyone it meets, the monster sets out to destroy Frankenstein and everything he holds dear. |
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If you love a good story, then look no further. Oxford Children's Classics bring together the most unforgettable stories ever told. They're books to treasure and return to again and again. When orphan Heidi is sent to live with her grandfather in the mountains, the two grow to love each other dearly. Heidi charms everyone she meets-but then her strict aunt sends her away again to live in the town. Despite a wonderful new friendship there, Heidi longs to return to her happy life in the mountains. Is there any way she can have both? |
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