Diary of a Taekwondo Master


Book Description

Marcus Atkinson is a taekwondo master (not!). But his dad is convinced that Marcus has magic in his kicks. Marcus is a Maths whiz who is not good at sport. His dad is a self-help author who thinks Marcus can achieve anything he sets his mind to, with hilarious results. In illustrated diary format, Marcus's gentle, satiric humour and comic drawings will have readers laughing out loud while learning a surprising amount about taekwondo.




A Life Discarded


Book Description

"An unorthodox investigative literary biography of a mysterious graphomaniac whose nearly 150 diaries are rescued from a dumpster by the author"--




A Hangman's Diary


Book Description

From 1573 to 1617, Master Franz Schmidt was the executioner for the towns of Bamberg and Nuremberg. During that span, he personally executed more than 350 people while keeping a journal throughout his career. A Hangman’s Diary is not only a collection of detailed writings by Schmidt about his work, but also an account of criminal procedure in Germany during the Middle Ages. With analysis and explanation, editor Albrecht Keller and translators C. Calvert and A. W. Gruner have put together a masterful tome that sets the scene of execution day and puts you in Master Franz Schmidt’s shoes as he does his duty for his country. Originally published more than eighty years ago, A Hangman’s Diary gives a year-by-year breakdown on all of Master Schmidt’s executions, which include hangings, beheadings, and other methods of murder, as well as explanations of each crime and the reason for the punishment. An incredible classic, A Hangman’s Diary is more than a history lesson; it shows the true anarchy that inhabited our world only a few hundred years ago. Skyhorse Publishing, as well as our Arcade imprint, are proud to publish a broad range of books for readers interested in history--books about World War II, the Third Reich, Hitler and his henchmen, the JFK assassination, conspiracies, the American Civil War, the American Revolution, gladiators, Vikings, ancient Rome, medieval times, the old West, and much more. While not every title we publish becomes a New York Times bestseller or a national bestseller, we are committed to books on subjects that are sometimes overlooked and to authors whose work might not otherwise find a home.




The Diary of Mr. Poynter (Fantasy and Horror Classics)


Book Description

M. R. James was born in Kent, England in 1862. James came to writing fiction relatively late, not publishing his first collection of short stories - Ghost Stories of an Antiquary (1904) - until the age of 42. Modern scholars now see James as having redefined the ghost story for the 20th century and he is seen as the founder of the 'antiquarian ghost story'. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions with a brand new introductory biography of the author.




War Diary Of The Master Of Belhaven 1914-1918


Book Description

Includes 29 maps. “The author of this diary is an artillery officer who served on the Western Front from 1 Sep. 1915 till his death in action on 31st March 1918, and it is one of the best, ranking alongside Old Soldiers Never Die and The Journal of Private Fraser. Following two brief spells in 1914/1915 with the BEF during the first of which he was injured when his horse fell on him, he arrived in France on 1st Sep. 1915 as OC ‘C’ Battery, 108 Brigade RFA, 24th Division and before the end of the month he was in the thick of it at Loos. His description of the scene is graphic. He writes about trying to get his guns forward on roads jammed with traffic, trying to find the infantry brigade he was supposed to support, floundering about in the dark under heavy shellfire in an enormous plain of clay having the consistency of vaseline, devoid of any landmark or feature, covered in shell holes...Later he gives a vivid account of the German gas attack at Wulverghem on 30 April 1916, when a mixture of chlorine and phosgene was used causing 338 casualties in the division. During Aug. and Sep. 1916 his division took part in the bitter fighting for Delville Wood and Guillemont, and the diary entries for this period provide some of the most powerfully descriptive writing recorded in any memoirs...He was in action at Messines in June 1917 and a month later at Third Ypres. In Aug. 1917 he was finally given command of a brigade, 108th Brigade RFA still in the 24th Division. When the Germans struck on 21st March 1918 Hamilton was on leave in the UK, but he quickly managed to get back to his brigade, which was in action near Rosieres, a few miles east of Amiens. On 31st March he was killed when a shell burst under his horse just as had happened in Oct. 1914; on that occasion he got away with an injury, this time there was no reprieve...”-Print Ed.




DIARY OF A NAPOLEONIC FOOT SOLDIER


Book Description

A grunt’s-eye report from the battlefield in the spirit of The Red Badge of Courage and All Quiet on the Western Front—the only known account by a common soldier of the campaigns of Napoleon’s Grand Army between 1806 and 1813. When eighteen-year-old German stonemason Jakob Walter was conscripted into the Grand Army of Napoleon, he had no idea of the trials that lay ahead. The long, grueling marches in Prussia and Poland sacrificed countless men to Bonaparte’s grand designs. And the disastrous Russian campaign tested human endurance on an epic scale. Demoralized by defeat in a war few supported or understood, deprived of ammunition and leadership, driven past reason by starvation and bitter cold, men often turned on one another, killing fellow soldiers for bread or an able horse. Though there are numerous surviving accounts of the Napoleonic Wars written by officers, Walter’s is the only known memoir by a draftee, and as such is a unique and fascinating document—a compelling chronicle of a young soldier’s loss of innocence as well as an eloquent and moving portrait of the profound effects of war on the men who fight it. Professor Marc Raeff has added an Introduction to the memoirs as well as six letters home from the Russian front, previously unpublished in English, from German conscripts who served concurrently with Walter. The volume is illustrated with engravings and maps, contemporary with the manuscript, from the Russian/Soviet and East European collections of the New York Public Library. Honest, heartfelt, deeply personal yet objective, The Diary of a Napoleonic Foot Soldier is more than an informative and absorbing historical document—it is a timeless and unforgettable account of the horrors of war.




The Masters of the Revels and Elizabeth I's Court Theatre


Book Description

The Masters of the Revels and Elizabeth I's Court Theatre places the Revels Office and Elizabeth I's court theatre in a pre-modern, patronage and gift-exchange driven-world of centralized power in which hospitality, liberality, and conspicuous display were fundamental aspects of social life. W.R. Streitberger reconsiders the relationship between the biographies of the Masters and the conduct of their duties, rethinking the organization and development of the Office, re-examining its productions, and exploring its impact on the development of the commercial theatre. The nascent capitalist economy that developed alongside and interpenetrated the gift-driven system that was in place during Elizabeth's reign became the vehicle through which the Revels Office along with the commercial theatre was transformed. Beginning in the early 1570s and stretching over a period of twenty years, this change was brought about by a small group of influential Privy Councillors. When this project began in the early 1570s the Queen's revels were principally in-house productions, devised by the Master of the Revels and funded by the Crown. When the project was completed in the late 1590s, the Revels Office had been made responsible for plays only and put on a budget so small that it was incapable of producing them. That job was left to the companies performing at court. Between 1594 and 1600, the revels consisted almost entirely of plays brought in by professional companies in the commercial theatres in London. These companies were patronized by the queen's relatives and friends and their theatres were protected by the Privy Council. Between 1594 and 1600, for example, all the plays in the revels were supplied by the Admiral's and Chamberlain's Players which included writers such as Shakespeare, and legendary actors such as Edward Alleyn, Richard Burbage, and Will Kempe. The queen's revels essentially became a commercial enterprise, paid for by the ordinary Londoners who came to see these companies perform in selected London theatres which were protected by the Council.







The Diary of a Fishing Master


Book Description

- A near-death experience after falling into the frigid North Atlantic becomes high comedy. - The salvage of an abandoned yacht on the Grand Banks hints at mystery and intrigue. - A voyage to re-supply the Titanic expedition 400 miles southeast of Newfoundland leads to a harrowing experience with the fury of Hurricane Andrew. - All part of the life and times of an accomplished skipper. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the life of Captain Keith Bath. This book offers an important and interesting glimpse into the rhythms of a rural Canadian life lived by and on and with the sea.The book is for anyone who wants to better understand this vast country and the complexity of its people. KELLY TOUGHILL - former Atlantic Canada bureau chief for the Toronto Star




A Journey to the New World: The Diary of Remember Patience Whipple, Mayflower, 1620 (Dear America)


Book Description

Newbery Honor author Kathryn Lasky's A JOURNEY TO THE NEW WORLD is now back in print with a gorgeous new package!Twelve-year-old Remember Patience Whipple ("Mem" for short) has just arrived in the New World with her parents after a grueling 65-day journey on the MAYFLOWER. Mem has an irrepressible spirit, and leaps headfirst into life in her new home. Despite harsh conditions, Mem is fearless. She helps to care for the sick and wants more than anything to meet and befriend a Native American.