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  A Journey of Little Profit -...

  John Buchan

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  The Scottish novelist John Buchan enjoyed a remarkable career as politician, historian and Governor General. He was born John Buchan on 26th August 1875 and later added 1st Baron Tweedsmuir PC GCMG GCVO CH to his name.  
  Buchan studied at Hutchesons’ Grammar School, Glasgow and at seventeen won a scholarship to the University of Glasgow to study classics. There he began to write poetry. In 1895 he transferred to Oxford to continue his study of Classics and in 1896 ‘Sir Quixote of the Moors’ was published followed by the non-fiction ‘Scholar-Gipsies’. His prolific literary output now hardly faltered. 
  He graduated in 1900 and became the private secretary to Alfred Milner, the High Commissioner for Southern Africa and other colonies. Buchan found the same inspiration in the African landscape as he had in the Scottish Borders, and would later set many works here. Returning to London he became a partner in a publishing house, and garnered an editorial role at The Spectator. He also completed his law studies. He was called to the bar in 1901 but never practiced.  
  On 15th July 1907 Buchan married Susan Charlotte Grosvenor, the cousin of the Duke of Westminster. In 1910 he wrote ‘Prester John’, the first of a series set in South Africa.  
  In 1911 Buchan entered politics as a Unionist candidate in the Scottish Borders advocating the support of free trade, women’s suffrage, national insurance, and reducing the power of the House of Lords.  
  The Great War saw Buchan writing for the War Propaganda Bureau and as Times correspondent in France. In 1915, he published ‘The Thirty-Nine Steps’, his most famous book and a follow-up Richard Hannay novel, ‘Greenmantle’, in 1916.  
  In 1916 Buchan enlisted in the Intelligence Corps which included writing speeches for Sir Douglas Haig. By 1917 he was Director of Information under Lord Beaverbrook. Buchan called it “the toughest job he ever took on”. He somehow found time to assist in a history of the war magazine. This was later published in 24 volumes: Nelson’s History of the War. 
  After the war his writing focused on historical studies. In 1927 Buchan became the Unionist Party Member of Parliament for the Combined Scottish Universities. In a speech to Parliament he said “I believe every Scotsman should be a Scottish nationalist. If it could be proved that a Scottish parliament were desirable… Scotsmen should support it.”  
  Over the next decade he continued to distinguish himself politically and in literature.  On the 1st June 1935 he became 1st Baron Tweedsmuir of Elsfield in the County of Oxford.  
  He was now also given the position of Governor General in Canada and resolved to travel all over Canada to gain a better insight of the country. Having crossed both length and breadth he saw the cultural shift between areas and their common ground and helped bring about a clear national Canadian identity. 
  On the 6th February 1940 he collapsed from a stroke and sustained a very serious head injury in falling. Two rounds of surgery to stabilise his condition were unsuccessful and Buchan died on the 11th February. After a state funeral in Ottawa his ashes were returned to his estate in Oxfordshire.

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  Jim Morrison Rare Words -...

  Cyril Taylor-Carr

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  James Douglas Morrison was an American singer, poet, and songwriter who was the lead vocalist of the rock band the Doors. Due to his wild personality, poetic lyrics, distinctive voice, unpredictable and erratic performances, and the dramatic circumstances surrounding his life and early death, Morrison is regarded by music critics and fans as one of the most iconic and influential frontmen in rock history. Since his death, his fame has endured as one of the popular culture's most rebellious and oft-displayed icons, representing the generation gap and youth counterculture. 
   
  Together with pianist Ray Manzarek, Morrison founded the Doors in 1965 in Venice, California. The group spent two years in obscurity until shooting to prominence with their number-one single in the United States, "Light My Fire", taken from their self-titled debut album. Morrison recorded a total of six studio albums with the Doors, all of which sold well and received critical acclaim. Morrison was well known for improvising spoken word poetry passages while the band played live. Manzarek said Morrison "embodied hippie counterculture rebellion". 
   
  Morrison developed an alcohol dependency throughout the band's career, which at times affected his performances on stage. In 1971, Morrison died unexpectedly in Paris at the age of 27, amid conflicting witness reports. His premature death made him a member of the infamous 27 club. Since no autopsy was performed, the cause of Morrison's death remains disputed. 
   
  Kristoffer Kristofferson is a retired American singer, songwriter, and actor. Among his songwriting credits are "Me and Bobby McGee", "For the Good Times", "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and "Help Me Make It Through the Night", all of which were hits for other artists. 

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  Bomb Season in Jakarta

  Grant Dooley

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  In the history of Australian diplomacy, the Jakarta post between 2004 and 2007 looms larger than any other. 
   
   In the span of just a few years, a terrorist bomb attack partially destroyed the Embassy compound, killing eleven; the Boxing Day tsunami wreaked havoc on an almost incomprehensible scale; a bombing in Bali killed twenty, including four Australians; Schapelle Corby divided public opinion; members of the Bali Nine were executed; and a Garuda flight crashed and exploded in Yogyakarta, killing twenty, including members of the Australian diplomatic corps. 
   
  Not only did Grant Dooley bear witness to these events, but he was also a first responder in the Embassy bombing and plane crash. And when he wasn't dealing with emergencies and constant terror threats, he had to delicately manage the nation's political leaders, from Alexander Downer to John Howard to Bronwyn Bishop. Somehow, Grant and his wife, Kristan, who worked on the consular staff, kept it all together for themselves and their young family. Or did they? 
   
  Bomb Season in Jakarta is an incredible up close and personal account of an unparalleled period in Australian diplomacy.

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  Justinian I - Biography of the...

  Kelly Mass

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  Justinian I, known to history as Justinian the Great, ruled as the Byzantine emperor from 527 until his death in 565. His reign is marked by a series of ambitious efforts to revive the grandeur of the Roman Empire, although many of these goals were only partially realized. This vision, known as the renovatio imperii or "reinstatement of the Empire," encapsulated his drive to restore Roman territories lost to barbarian invasions and to reassert imperial authority across the Mediterranean world. 
  One of the most prominent aspects of Justinian's renovatio imperii was the partial reconquest of the western provinces of the fallen Roman Empire. His military campaigns, led by the brilliant general Belisarius, achieved remarkable successes. Belisarius swiftly captured the Vandal Kingdom in North Africa, establishing Byzantine control over the region. Shortly thereafter, he, along with other generals like Narses, waged a series of successful campaigns against the Ostrogoths in Italy, eventually reclaiming key territories such as Dalmatia, Sicily, Rome, and much of Italy. This marked the end of the Ostrogothic Kingdom, which had ruled for over fifty years. Additionally, under the leadership of the praetorian prefect Liberius, the Byzantines reasserted control over the Iberian Peninsula, establishing the province of Spania. These victories re-established Roman dominance in the western Mediterranean and brought in substantial annual revenues, estimated at over a million solidi.

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  My Secret Life Vol 6 Chapter 15

  Dominic Crawford Collins

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  My Secret Life is the longest autobiography ever written. Penned anonymously during the 1800s by a wealthy and sex obsessed English gentleman who refers to himself simply as 'Walter', it offers an eye and thigh opening account of life behind closed doors in the Victorian era. Banned from publication for its extreme and explicit content for nearly a century, My Secret Life has now come to life as an immersive audiobook, narrated and scored by film composer Dominic Crawford Collins.
  
  Volume 6 Chapter 15
  With Janet next day. • On the Quays at night. • Very cheap amusements. • Chaffing the "Whures." • A feel for sixpence. • A fuck for a shilling. • I give luck. • Reckless whoring. • Two sisters again. • Bonnetless and barefooted. • Uprighters. • Sukey holds the stick. • Adjacent copulators. • "Our claes air nae clan." • Sukey on the bed. • More finger-stinking. • Bilked at E***b***h. • Introduction and explanation. • An episode of war. • A Paris acquaintance. • The lady of the captain. • Lushing and blabbing. • His disclosures. • My lust for her. • The lady's suspicions and anger. • Her interrogatories. • My admissions. • Her revenge. • On the sofa. • A clandestine visit. • The captain's country visit. • A locum tenens. • Sixty hours of love. • Difficulties with the servant. • The lady's beauties.

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  Summary: Kasher in the Rye - The...

  Brooks Bryant

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  DISCLAIMER: THIS IS NOT THE OFFICIAL BOOK. 
  This is a summary & it does not accompany the official. 
  "Kasher in the Rye" by Moshe Kasher is a hilarious memoir of the life of rising comedian Moshe Kasher, who survived a tumultuous journey through addiction, psychoanalysis, and a chaotic childhood. From his early drug use at age 12 to stints in mental institutions and a move to Oakland initiated by his unconventional mother, Kasher's life reads like a mix of Augusten Burroughs and David Sedaris, with a strong Jewish twist. Despite the harrowing experiences, the book finds humor in the darkest moments, offering a brutally honest and laugh-out-loud funny perspective on a turbulent life.

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