"A mesmerizing blend of old and new traditions, Japan is a country of diverse land, climate, and people ... Explore Japan's history and its creation of art forms including origami, calligraphy, and ikebana, the art of flower arranging."--Provided by publisher.

Demonstrates the diversity of the African continent by describing daily life in some of its fifty-three nations.

From the inimitable bestselling author Thomas Cahill comes another popular history -- this one focusing on how the innovations of the Renaissance and the Reformation changed the Western world. It is a truly revolutionary book. In Volume VI of his acclaimed Hinges of History series, Thomas Cahill guides us through the thrilling period of the Renaissance and the Reformation (the late fourteenth to the early seventeenth century), so full of innovation...

"Did you know the umbrella and toilet paper were both invented in China? Or that many ancient emperors believed they were descended from dragons? How about that kites were first used as warning signals in ancient China? Walk along miles and miles of the Great Wall, take a peek into terrific tombs, and stroll through some of the most amazing palaces ever built as you discover extreme facts about ancient China in this fun and kooky book"--

"Despite its ferociously wet climate of monsoons and cyclones, Asia contains less usable freshwater than any continent except Antarctica. Nevertheless, more than half the world's population calls Asia home. The struggle for water has been a driving force in modern Asian history. In [this book], historian Sunil Amrith boldly reimagines Asia's history through the stories of its rains, rivers, coasts, and seas--and of the weather-watchers and engineers,...

A biography of a great man and the period he embodied. We witness Voltaire's satiric work in the salons and the theater as well as his banishment to England. With him we view the complex relationships between nobility, clergy, bourgeoisie and peasantry in the France of Louis XV. We explore the music of Bach and the struggle between Frederick the Great and Maria Theresa of Austria. And finally we hear an imaginary discussion between Voltaire and Pope...

Join popular Egyptologist Bob Brier for a 24-lecture guide to reading, writing, and translating ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs. Lectures are 30 min. each.

"Before Dawn, What Dangers Lurk in the Darkness? For nine months, ever since a devastating solar flare caused a complete failure of the electrical grid, Shelby Sparks and her diabetic son, Carter, have been living at the ranch of Shelby's ex-high schoolsweetheart, Max Berkman. Mostly insulated from the chaos surrounding them, Shelby and Max discover that the Texas government has fled the capitol and is barely maintaining control of the state. The...