Saraband – serie

Illustrated edition of Darwin's Beagle journals, with commentary and features, on the observations that led to one of the most important breakthroughs in the history of science and human thought.

Explores how the art of the civilization can be the key to understanding the rites, thoughts and daily life of the mysterious ancient Egyptians. This book decodes fifty works, from wall paintings from Nebamun's tomb to Tutankhamun's grave goods, with hieroglyphs and symbols of ancient practices, beliefs, magic and religion.

Is it possible to 'send' thoughts into someone else's brain? Can random number generators predict future events? Why does a placebo work like a drug? Might our minds be components of a universal collective consciousness? Astonishingly, the answer to more than one of these questions might be 'yes'. The same goes for many more, every bit as fantastical-sounding. Such questions about the human psyche have inspired thinkers in the field of noetics to attempt to understand the individual mind and spirit and the collective consciousness in a remarkable range of new and amazing ways. Even in this age of neurological discovery, the mind is still largely uncharted territory. What if there is more to the power of thought than we have yet realised? Do these views represent a paradigm shift? Are we on the verge of a radically new way of looking at the world? Or are noetic scientists no more than charlatans or naifs? This enthralling introduction to a fascinating and relatively new field takes in an extraordinary breadth of topics, from well-established phenomena like the placebo effect and brainwashing to the possible effects of a global collective consciousness.Even-handed in its approach, it sifts fact from fantasy-and fraud-casting a searching, no-nonsense light into some of the most shadowy corners of contemporary thought. Whilst encompassing the ideas of the greatest minds in Western intellectual and scientific history-Aristotle, Descartes, Newton, Einstein and more-it ventures far beyond the confines of that tradition to address Eastern thought and other ways of knowing. Offering a unique tour through the mysteries of the mind as far as they are currently known, it also explores some of the enigmas that might conceivably be unlocked in the near future.

Centuries before European explorers 'discovered' the Americas, the ancient Maya flourished in thriving cities like Palenque and Chichen Itza, where they tracked the stars and created elaborate cosmic calendars, built temples to their gods, performed human sacrifices - and drank chocolate. Incoming priests did their best to stamp out the indigenous ways, but the sculptures, cities, murals and even books, highlighted in brilliant Mayan Blue, survived to tell the true story of a vanished civilisation. This lavishly illustrated book goes beyond the apocalyptic 2012 predictions surrounding the end of the Long Count calendar: it delves deep into the mysterious Maya world to uncover the true story of an empire by studying its artefacts. As the players on the cosmic ball court knew, the survivor is the winner.

Shortlisted for the prestigious Historical Writers' Association Debut Crown Award, 2014. Edinburgh, 1942. As war tightens its grip on Britain, Agnes Thorne discovers that her new husband's obsession with Home Rule in a time of national crisis is threatening to land him in prison. His stand against conscription makes Agnes a reluctant participant in the nascent nationalist movement. As hidden forces of state break cover and strain the marriage to breaking point, Agnes is caught up in a triangle of passion, politics and secrecy.

Scotland is a nation of dramatic weather and breathtaking landscapes – of nature resplendent. And, over the centuries, the people who have lived, explored and thrived in this country have developed a rich language to describe their surroundings: a uniquely Scottish lexicon shaped by the very environment itself. A Scots Dictionary of Nature brings together – for the first time – the deeply expressive vocabulary customarily used to describe land, wood, weather, birds, water and walking in Scotland. Artist Amanda Thomson collates and celebrates these traditional Scots words, which reveal ways of seeing and being in the world that are in danger of disappearing forever. What emerges is a vivid evocation of the nature and people of Scotland, past and present; of lives lived between the mountains and the sky.

'I'd always known that I was Brown. Black was different though; it came announced. Black came with expectations, of rhythm and other things that might trip me up.' Imani is a foundling. Rescued as a baby and raised by nuns on a remote Northumbrian island, she grows up with an ever-increasing feeling of displacement. Full of questions, Imani turns to her shadow, Amarie, and her friend, Harold. When Harold can't find the answers, she puts it down to what the nuns call her "greater purpose". At nineteen, Imani answers a phone call that will change her life: she is being called to Accra after the sudden death of her biological mother. Past, present, faith and reality are spun together in this enthralling debut. Following her transition from innocence to understanding, Imani's experience illuminates the stories we all tell to make ourselves whole.