J. B. Ellis – författare

Set at the time of the Third Crusade (1189 - 92), The Betrothed is the first of Scott’s Tales of the Crusaders. The betrothed is Eveline, daughter of a Norman noble, who is a victim of the Crusade in that her intended husband is required by the Church to fulfil his vow to join the war and departs for three years. The full horror of an arranged marriage, and of being a possible prize as men seek to gain possession of her is vividly realised—the heroine is never free; her fate is always determined by the agency of men. And being set on the Marches of Wales, it is not just men but differing cultures that strive for mastery over her.The Betrothed is a problem novel: as Scott was writing he himself was arranging the marriage of his elder son. It is a problem novel too in that it was deeply disliked by Scott’s printer and publisher who forced significant changes. What Scott was required to do to meet their objections has been confronted for the first time in this, the first critical edition of the novel.

The second of Tales of the Crusaders, The Talisman is set in Palestine during the Third Crusade (1189 - 92). Scott constructs a story of chivalric action, apparently adopting a medieval romance view of the similarities in the values of both sides. But disguise is the leading theme of the tale: it is not just that characters frequently wear clothing that conceals their identity, but that professions and cultures hide their true nature. In this novel the Christian leaders are divided by a factious criminality, and are contrasted to the magnanimity and decisiveness of Saladin, the leader of the Moslem armies. In a period when the west was fascinated with the exotic east, Scott represents the Moslem other as more humane than the Christian west.The Talisman is one of Scott’s great novels. It is a superb tale. It is also a bold departure as, for the first time, Scott explores not cultural conflict within a country or society but in the opposition of two world religions.

Urban Discharges and Receiving Water Quality Impacts covers the proceedings of a seminar organized by the IAWPRC/IAHR Sub-Committee for Urban Runoff Quality Data, as part of the IAWPRC 14th Biennial Conference. The book presents papers that discuss the methods and procedures for the control and management of urban discharges. The topics covered in the text include the impact of the quality and quantity of overflow on receiving water; impact of nonpoint pollution on a great lakes freshwater harbor-estuary; and microbiological impacts of storm sewer overflows. The book also tackles hydraulic performance and control of pollutants discharged from a combined sewer storage overflow; urban stormwater reduction and quality improvement through the use of permeable pavements; and water quality indices for the management of surface water quality. The text will be of great use to researchers and professionals concerned with effects of urban discharge on aquatic environment.