Relicts of a Beautiful Sea PDF Download

Author: Christopher Norment
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469618664
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 284

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Relicts of a Beautiful Sea: Survival, Extinction, and Conservation in a Desert World

Author: Christopher Norment
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469618672
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 284

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Book Description
Along a tiny spring in a narrow canyon near Death Valley, seemingly against all odds, an Inyo Mountain slender salamander makes its home. "The desert," writes conservation biologist Christopher Norment, "is defined by the absence of water, and yet in the desert there is water enough, if you live properly." Relicts of a Beautiful Sea explores the existence of rare, unexpected, and sublime desert creatures such as the black toad and four pupfishes unique to the desert West. All are anomalies: amphibians and fish, dependent upon aquatic habitats, yet living in one of the driest places on earth, where precipitation averages less than four inches per year. In this climate of extremes, beset by conflicts over water rights, each species illustrates the work of natural selection and the importance of conservation. This is also a story of persistence--for as much as ten million years--amid the changing landscape of western North America. By telling the story of these creatures, Norment illustrates the beauty of evolution and explores ethical and practical issues of conservation: what is a four-inch-long salamander worth, hidden away in the heat-blasted canyons of the Inyo Mountains, and what would the cost of its extinction be? What is any lonely and besieged species worth, and why should we care?

Author: Christopher Paolini
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 1250762901
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 848

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Now a New York Times and USA Today bestseller! Winner of Best Science Fiction in the 2020 Goodreads Choice Awards! To Sleep in a Sea of Stars is a brand new epic novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author of Eragon, Christopher Paolini. Kira Navárez dreamed of life on new worlds. Now she's awakened a nightmare. During a routine survey mission on an uncolonized planet, Kira finds an alien relic. At first she's delighted, but elation turns to terror when the ancient dust around her begins to move. As war erupts among the stars, Kira is launched into a galaxy-spanning odyssey of discovery and transformation. First contact isn't at all what she imagined, and events push her to the very limits of what it means to be human. While Kira faces her own horrors, Earth and its colonies stand upon the brink of annihilation. Now, Kira might be humanity's greatest and final hope . . . The Fractalverse Series To Sleep in a Sea of Stars Fractal Noise At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Author: Cynthia Jean Hahn
Publisher: Penn State Press
ISBN: 0271050780
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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"A study of reliquaries as a form of representation in medieval art. Explores how reliquaries stage the importance and meaning of relics using a wide range of artistic means from material and ornament to metaphor and symbolism"--Provided by publisher.

Author: Tom Lathan
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 1529047935
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 377

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In Lost Wonders Tom Lathan tells ten powerful stories of species that have lived, died out and been declared extinct since the turn of the twenty-first century. 'Timely, elegiac' Daily Mail 'Superb storytelling . . . an exhilarating and vital book' - Charles Foster, author of Cry of the Wild Many scientists believe that we are currently living through the Earth’s sixth mass extinction, with species disappearing at a rate not seen for tens of millions of years – a trend that will only accelerate as climate change and other pressures intensify. What does it mean to live in such a time? And what exactly do we lose when a species goes extinct? In a series of fascinating encounters with subjects that are now nowhere to be found on Earth – from giant tortoises to minuscule snails the size of sesame seeds, from ocean-hopping trees to fish that wag their tails like puppies – Tom Lathan brings these lost wonders briefly back to life and gives us a tantalising glimpse of what we have lost within our own lifetime. Drawing on the personal recollections of the people who studied these species, as well as those who tried but ultimately failed to save them, and with beautiful illustrations, Lost Wonders is an intimate portrait of the species that have only recently vanished from our world and an urgent warning to hold on all the more tightly to those now slipping from our grasp. Illustrated by Claire Kohda

Author: Jose Maria Eca de Queiros
Publisher: CUA Press
ISBN: 0813236592
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 404

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The Relic tells the story of an orphaned young man, Teodorico Raposo, who is brought to Lisbon from a provincial town in Portugal to live with his aunt, a rigid, stern—and oftentimes—forbidding Catholic. Her devout circle of acquaintances is made up almost entirely of priests, many of whom are more concerned with appearances than spirituality, and seeking her and their approval, Teodorico is driven to attend Mass, say rosaries, and frequent churches, all the while awakening to sensuality, women, and the material life in conflict with “Auntie’s” devotions, which are—inwardly—devoid of the charity preached by Christ. When Teodorico obtains a degree from the University of Coimbra, Auntie sends him to the Holy Land to search for a relic to cure her ills. He meets up with a learned German author and, after a sojourn to Egypt, the two make their way to the land trod by Jesus. It is there that Teodorico has the dream that takes up nearly one third of the novel: he witnesses the travails that lead to the Passion and Crucifixion, as well as the aftermath of Christ’s death. Faced now with his mission, Teodorico embarks on a search. He soon comes upon an item, a “true” relic authenticated by his German friend, the sanctity of which will send Auntie to the heights of spiritual bliss, so much so that she will make him her heir. But when Teodorico returns to Lisbon with it, deception awaits her as the result of a simple mistake that had been made, and disinheritance awaits him as a result of Auntie’s anger and vindictiveness.

Author: Katherine Quinn
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781648981562
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 372

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One woman chosen by the God of the Sea. A king hellbent on saving his mysterious island home. And a forbidden romance that could destroy them all. Trapped in a society ruled by men, Margrete, daughter of a nefarious sea captain, accepts that the only way to escape her power-hungry father's cruel hand is to marry the wealthy Count Casbian. Cunning in her own right, Margrete yearns to craft her own fate, to flee to the sea, and to lose herself to the aquamarine waves that have called to her since birth. Bash, a devilishly handsome warrior seeking revenge, believes the beautiful daughter of his greatest enemy is the key to breaking a curse inflicted upon his people. On the day of Margrete's nuptials, Bash kidnaps the bride, whisking her away to an island where he reigns as king. Shielded from the mortal realm, Margrete finds herself on the fabled shores of Azantian-the birthplace of impossible magic... and a keeper of monstrous secrets. But secrets are not the only thing Margrete finds on the island, and Bash isn't the heartless rogue she once believed. Unable to hide her feelings, Margrete must choose between a forbidden love and a destiny spun for her by the God of the Sea himself-A god that has set his sights on Margrete... and the potent magic awakening inside of her soul. The first book of this exciting fantasy trilogy is perfect for readers who love high-seas adventures, swashbuckling heroes, and forbidden, steamy romance. Fans of Clare Sager's Beneath Black Sails and Sarah J. Maas's A Court of Thorns and Roses will be enthralled.

Author: John Strong
Publisher: Motilal Banarsidass Publishe
ISBN: 9788120831391
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description
Buddhism is popularly seen as a religion stressing the truth of impermanence. How, then, to account for the long-standing veneration, in Asian Buddhist communities, of bone fragments, hair, teeth, and other bodily bits said to come from the historic Buddha?Early European and American scholars of religion, influenced by a characteristic Protestant bias against relic worship, declared such practices to be superstitious and fraudulent, and far from the true essence of Buddhism.John Strong's book, by contrast, argues that relic veneration has played a serious and integral role in Buddhist traditions in South and Southeast Asia-and that it is in no way foreign to Buddhism.The book is structured around the life story of the Buddha, starting with traditions about relics of previous buddhas and relics from the past lives of the Buddha Sakyamuni. It then considers the death of the Buddha, the collection of his bodily relics after his cremation, and stories of their spread to different parts of Asia.The book ends with a consideration of the legend of the future parinirvana (extinction) of the relics prior to the advent of the next Buddha, Maitreya. Throughout, the author does not hesitate to explore the many versions of these legends and to relate them to their ritual, doctrinal, artistic, and social contexts.Read more

Author: Jotham C. Hoffmann
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
ISBN: 1493145134
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 245

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War consumes planet Earth, but this war is far different from any other in its extensive history of violence. Races from other planets have found their way to Earth and have begun to tear it apart. Sierra Vazie, leader of the feared Drone Legion, is determined to reach total dominance, but she has obstacles to overcome. One of these obstacles is Jason Lance. Jason is a teenage boy from New York City, who has no idea how important of a journey he is about to embark on. According to prophecy, Jason is destined to save the universe from an impending destruction. Follow Jason and his companions into a world of magic and adventure like never before.

Author: May McGoldrick
Publisher: Book Duo Creative
ISBN: 1960330071
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 845

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A pirate lord after his runaway bride. A Highland lass who tames the heart of a beastly earl. A shipwreck that leads to the romance of a lifetime. Fall in love with the heroes and heroines of USA Today bestselling author May McGoldrick's Scottish Relic Trilogy, which Library Journal called a "witty and winsome treat," together for the first time in a fabulous, low priced volume. MUCH ADO ABOUT HIGHLANDERS Highland warrior Alexander Macpherson has lost his wife. When he agreed to take Kenna Mackay as his bride to advance his clan’s power in the north, he expected a bit of an adjustment. He didn't expect the sharp-tongued beauty to run away on their wedding night. Kenna Mackay thought she was safe in a priory full of nuns learning the craft of healing, but when she is kidnapped by her own husband, the battle of wits begins anew. But even as passions ignite, a deadly secret from Kenna's past rises to the surface and put their new love in jeopardy. TAMING THE HIGHLANDER Innes Munro has the ability to "read" a person’s past simply by touching them, but her gift comes with a heavy price: her freedom. Forced to stay at desolate Castle Girnigoe, Innes never expects to be drawn to the wounded warrior who haunts its dark passages and challenges her at every turn. Conall Sinclair, the earl of Caithness, carries the scars of battles with the English and the lash marks of their dungeons, but the wounds that fester within give him even greater pain. Isolating himself from his clan and the rest of the world in a tower perched on the wild Scottish coast, Conall is reluctant to let the spirited Innes close to him, however neither can deny the growing passion that ignites with every look, every touch. TEMPEST IN THE HIGHLANDER Miranda MacDonnell is on the run. When she inherited a mysterious relic from her mother, she had no idea the dangers it would bring. Now hunted by a relentless foe who will stop at nothing to find her, she has one choice: stow away on the ship of the notorious privateer, Black Hawk. Rob Hawkins, the half-English privateer known as Black Hawk, has a mission from the Tudor king to find and kill the rogue commander, Sir Ralph Evers. To complete his quest, Hawk must find Miranda, a young woman Evers is pursuing. Caught in a tempest, he is shipwrecked with a "boy" who demonstrates an uncanny ability for saving him. But soon Hawk realizes the "boy" traveling with him is actually Miranda MacDonnell.