Author: Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 32
Book Description
A Voyage to Holland; Or, the Dutchman Describ'd
Author: Why the Dutch are Different
Author: Ben CoatesPublisher: Nicholas Brealey
ISBN: 1473645298
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336
Book Description
Stranded at Schiphol airport, Ben Coates called up a friendly Dutch girl he'd met some months earlier. He stayed for dinner. Actually, he stayed for good. In the first book to consider the hidden heart and history of the Netherlands from a modern perspective, the author explores the length and breadth of his adopted homeland and discovers why one of the world's smallest countries is also so significant and so fascinating. It is a self-made country, the Dutch national character shaped by the ongoing battle to keep the water out from the love of dairy and beer to the attitude to nature and the famous tolerance. Ben Coates investigates what makes the Dutch the Dutch, why the Netherlands is much more than Holland and why the color orange is so important. Along the way he reveals why they are the world's tallest people and have the best carnival outside Brazil. He learns why Amsterdam's brothels are going out of business, who really killed Anne Frank, and how the Dutch manage to be richer than almost everyone else despite working far less. He also discovers a country which is changing fast, with the Dutch now questioning many of the liberal policies which made their nation famous.
Don't Shoot the Albatross!
Author: Jonathan EyersPublisher: A&C Black
ISBN: 1408132133
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 97
Book Description
Sailors are a notoriously superstitious lot - even if some won't admit it. Years of taking to the water, at the mercy of uncontrollable (and sometimes deadly) forces, have led even the wisest to seek ways of influencing the gods or fate. From bad omens and odd rituals to lucky tokens and forbidden words, the superstitions of the sea are legion. Many of these superstitions have refused to go away and quite a few have entered the general public consciousness. Some are amusing in their own right, others have fascinating origins, whilst for many there are bizarre anecdotal incidents which would appear to lend credence to these arcane beliefs. Illustrated with quirky cartoons, this book explores nautical superstitions from all over the world in an informative yet entertaining way. Includes superstitions about: Boatbuilding, naming and launching; Lucky and unlucky dates to sail; People, things and animals not to let on board; Signs and portents at sea; Words not to say (and their alternatives); Predicting the weather; Fishing; and much, much more!
A Collection of Old and Rare Books of ... English Literature ...
Author: Pickering & ChattoPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : English literature
Languages : en
Pages : 1136
Book Description
The Embarrassment of Riches
Author: Simon SchamaPublisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 9780520061477
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 724
Book Description
In a brilliantly inventive work, bestselling author Simon Schama explores the enigma of 17th-century Holland, a nation that attained an unprecedented level of affluence, yet lived in constant dread of being corrupted by prosperity. Drawing on a vast array of period documents and sumptuously reproduced art, THE EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES throbs with life on every page. 314 photos & illustrations. Copyright © Libri GmbH. All rights reserved.
Society and Sentiment
Author: Mark Salber PhillipsPublisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 1400823625
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 390
Book Description
A deepening interest in both social and interior experience was a distinguishing feature of the cultural life of eighteenth-century Britain, influencing writers in all genres from fiction to philosophy. Focusing on this interplay of ideas and genres, Mark Phillips explores the ways in which writers and readers of history, memoir, biography and related literatures responded to the social and sentimental concerns of a modern, commercial society. He shows that the writing of history, which once concentrated exclusively on political events, widened its horizons in ways that often paralleled better-known developments in the contemporary novel. Ultimately, Phillips proposes a new model for the study of historiographical narrative. Countering tropological readings identified with Hayden White, he offers a more historically nuanced approach that stresses questions of genre and reception as a guide to understanding how narratives were reshaped by new audiences and new social needs. Drawing inspiration from both the social analysis of the Scottish Enlightenment and the sentimental aesthetics of the contemporary novel, historical writing began to explore the areas of social experience and private life for which there was no place in classical historiography. The consequence, Phillips argues, was a significant reframing of historical thought that expressed itself through new themes, including the histories of commerce, manners, literature, and women, and through some lively experiments in narrative form. This book offers a rich picture of historiography that will interest students of history and fiction alike.
Holland as Seen and Described by Famous Writers
Author: Esther SingletonPublisher:
ISBN:
Category : Netherlands
Languages : en
Pages : 436
Book Description
The Island at the Center of the World
Author: Russell ShortoPublisher: Vintage
ISBN: 1400096332
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 418
Book Description
In a riveting, groundbreaking narrative, Russell Shorto tells the story of New Netherland, the Dutch colony which pre-dated the Pilgrims and established ideals of tolerance and individual rights that shaped American history. "Astonishing . . . A book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past." --The New York Times When the British wrested New Amsterdam from the Dutch in 1664, the truth about its thriving, polyglot society began to disappear into myths about an island purchased for 24 dollars and a cartoonish peg-legged governor. But the story of the Dutch colony of New Netherland was merely lost, not destroyed: 12,000 pages of its records–recently declared a national treasure–are now being translated. Russell Shorto draws on this remarkable archive in The Island at the Center of the World, which has been hailed by The New York Times as “a book that will permanently alter the way we regard our collective past.” The Dutch colony pre-dated the “original” thirteen colonies, yet it seems strikingly familiar. Its capital was cosmopolitan and multi-ethnic, and its citizens valued free trade, individual rights, and religious freedom. Their champion was a progressive, young lawyer named Adriaen van der Donck, who emerges in these pages as a forgotten American patriot and whose political vision brought him into conflict with Peter Stuyvesant, the autocratic director of the Dutch colony. The struggle between these two strong-willed men laid the foundation for New York City and helped shape American culture. The Island at the Center of the World uncovers a lost world and offers a surprising new perspective on our own.
Catalogue
Author: Pickering & ChattoThe Running Dutchman
Author: Diederik van HoogstratenPublisher:
ISBN: 9780692245774
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 216
Book Description
Diederik van Hoogstraten struggled with a pack-a-day habit. His expanding waistline and poor health depressed him. Then, this Dutch writer living in New York returned to an old childhood love: running. He found a way to quit smoking, and as he hit the streets he made friends and found himself again. There's nothing miraculous about this turnaround of body and mind. It took work and commitment. But gradually, his life changed as he embraced the joy of movement -- and a three-hour marathon. The author travels all over the United States, lacing up wherever he finds himself. In the process he has written a compelling ode to both running and the country he loves.