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The Book of Matthew: A Macabre Novel of Suspense
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: White, Thomas, PUBLISHER: McBooks Press, A series of frightening murders plagues San Francisco. To solve the crimes, Homicide Inspector Clemson Yao enlists the help of Angie Strachan, a Realtor who once tried--and failed--to become the city's first female homicide inspector. The two face off against a ghoulish, black-humored serial killer who whimsically refers to his grotesque murders as "messies." Gripped by macabre obsession for a decade, he's evolved into a grandmaster of slow, anguished death, roaming the globe to catalog the most despicable methods of execution and keeping his research in dozens of leather-bound notebooks. Clem and Angie slowly unravel the murderer's clues, but their quarry is always one step ahead of them and even an FBI profiler can't help them pin down the twisted mind behind the crimes. It's a desperate race against time, for the killer has an agenda. His next victims are already picked out--and it seems no one can stop him.
My Lawman
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: James, Deana, PUBLISHER: Zebra Books, Peach Smith spends long days cooking and cleaning for Scurlock's Hotel in Coffeyville. It's a hard, lonely life that makes her long for escape, but she's sensible enough not to trust Bob Dalton's sweet promises of a future together in Brazil if she helps his gang rob the town bank. Lawman Will Wesley knows the Dalton gang means trouble -- and that Peach Smith, with her big innocent heart, may be caught smack in the middle of it. He's right. The big robbery finds the Daltons shot in cold blood, innocent citizens dead...and Peach holding stolen money. Desperate and afraid, Peach begs Will to find out who tipped the law to the gang's plot, and caused the death of the only man who half-way cared about her. It's a job that puts Will on the razor's edge between duty and raging desire. And when passions flare between him and Peach, he's determined to wipe out all thoughts of the outlaw from her mind.
The Malice of Fortune
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Ennis, Michael, PUBLISHER: McClelland & Stewart, A sweeping, intense historical thriller starring two of the great minds of Renaissance Italy: Niccolo Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci. Based on a real historical mystery, and involving serial murder and a gruesome cat and mouse game at the highest levels of the Church -- it was the era of the infamous Borgias -- A Most Beautiful Deception""is a delicious treat for fans of Umberto Eco, Sarah Dunant, and Elizabeth Kostova. This brilliant novel is an epic tale exploring the backdrop of the most controversial work of the Italian Renaissance, The Prince. Here, Niccolo Machiavelli, the great "scientist" of human behaviour becomes, in effect, the first criminal profiler, while his contemporary and sometime colleague, the erratic genius Leonardo da Vinci, brings his observational powers to the increasingly desperate hunt for a brilliant, terrifying serial murderer. Their foil and partner is the exquisite Damiata, scholar and courtesan. All three know their quarry is someone who holds enormous power, both to tear Italy apart, and destroy each of their most beloved dreams. And every thrilling step is based on historical fact.
Women and Children Last: The Burning of the Emigrant Ship
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Clark, Charles R., PUBLISHER: University of Otago Press, A sea voyage in the nineteenth century was not for the faint-hearted. The hazards were many and accidents commonplace. Of the ways a ship might meet its end, destruction by fire was perhaps the most feared. Wooden sailing vessels were particularly vulnerable. Without breathing apparatus, it was next to impossible to fight a fire below decks. This period saw a number of catastrophic shipboard fires, but that involving the New Zealand-bound emigrant ship Cospatrick was certainly the most destructive. When she burned and sank off the coast of Southern Africa in , nearly 500 people lost their lives. Tragic events included a desperate battle to quench the fire, a huge death toll as the vessel was being abandoned, and acts of cannibalism in the one lifeboat that remained afloat. Women and Children Last based on research carried out in Britain, New Zealand, and Australia presents a compelling well-written history of the Cospatrick and the nightmare survival of only three people, while also looking at the larger picture of safety at sea.
Education of a Wandering Man
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: L'Amour, Louis, PUBLISHER: Bantam, From his decision to leave school at fifteen to roam the world, to his recollections of life as a hobo on the Southern Pacific Railroad, as a cattle skinner in Texas, as a merchant seaman in Singapore and the West Indies, and as an itinerant bare-knuckled prizefighter across small-town America, here is Louis L'Amour's memoir of his lifelong love affair with learning--from books, from yondering, and from some remarkable men and women--that shaped him as a storyteller and as a man. Like classic L'Amour fiction, "Education of a Wandering Man" mixes authentic frontier drama--such as the author's desperate efforts to survive a sudden two-day trek across the blazing Mojave desert--with true-life characters like Shanghai waterfront toughs, desert prospectors, and cowboys whom Louis L'Amour met while traveling the globe. At last, in his own words, this is a story of a one-of-a-kind life lived to the fullest... a life that inspired the books that will forever enable us to relive our glorious frontier heritage. "From the Paperback edition."
A Tendering in the Storm
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Kirkpatrick, Jane, PUBLISHER: Waterbrook Press, Emma Giesy, a strong-willed German-American, believes her young family will thrive in the light of their newfound freedom, after she and her husband branch off from their close-knit and repressive religious community in the spring of . A Story of Tender Truths About a Woman's Desperate Efforts to Shelter Her Family Determined to raise her children on her own terms, Emma suddenly finds herself alone and pregnant with her third child, struggling to keep her family secure in the remote coastal forest of the Washington Territory. With loss and disappointment as her fuel, she kindles a fire that soon threatens to consume her, making a series of poor choices that take her into dangerous relationships. As clouds of despair close in, she must decide whether to continue in her own waning strength or to humble herself and accept help from the very people she once so eagerly left behind. Based on a True Story Rich with historical details and vivid characters, "A Tendering in the Storm" poignantly gives voice to a mother's fears for her family and a woman's search for her truest self.
Ends Of Our Tethers: Thirteen Sorry Stories
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Gray, Alasdair, PUBLISHER: Canongate Books Ltd, The Ends of Our Tethers is the first work of fiction in seven years by Alasdair Gray. Wonderful and often very funny, this new collection reaffirms Gray as a master of the short story. In "No Bluebeard," a reclusive man, the veteran of three marriages, meets a disturbed and eccentric woman desperate to remain hidden from her family. In "Job's Skin Game," a man develops a skin condition in response to losing his two sons in the Twin Towers and his fortune in the dot-com meltdown. The exquisite pleasure he derives from scratching and peeling his dead epidermis becomes his sole preoccupation. "Well-being" offers a politically charged dystopian vision of a future Britain as seen through the eyes of a once-revered writer. He is now homeless yet stubbornly refuses to move to a more hospitable country: "There are better ways of living than being happy but they require strength and sanity." Beautifully produced and illustrated throughout with Gray's distinctive drawings, The Ends of Our Tethers is vintage Gray-accessible, experimental, mischievous, wide-ranging, beautifully written, and wise.
The King of Lies
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Hart, John, PUBLISHER: Minotaur Books, Jackson Workman Pickens-- known to most as " Work" -- mindlessly holds together his disintegrating life: a failing law practice left to him when his father, Ezra, mysteriously disappeared, a distant wife who shares their loveless marriage, and an estranged sister who bore the brunt of their childhood trauma. And then Ezra's body is discovered. Set to inherit his father's fortune, Work becomes a prime suspect. But so does his sister, Jean. As much as Work's life was overshadowed by his domineering father, Jean's life was nearly destroyed by him. But does that make her capable of a vicious murder? Fearing the worst, Work launches his own investigation, crossing paths with a power-hungry detective, a string of damning evidence, and the ugly rumors that swirl within his small, moneyed Southern town. Desperate for the redemption that has eluded him for so many years and stripped of everything he once valued, he fights to save his sister and clear his name-- in this poignant and thrilling anatomy of a murder and its ripple effect within a family and a community.
His Last Duchess
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Kimm, Gabrielle, PUBLISHER: Sourcebooks Landmark, That's my last duchess painted on the wall... Seduced by the hot sun and blinding passions of Renaissance Italy, sixteen-year-old Lucrezia de' Medici sees a gilded life stretching ahead. Her wealthy new husband handpicked her to be his bride, and his great castle in Ferrara will be her playground. But Alfonso d'Este, Duke of Ferrara quickly proves to be just as dangerous and mysterious as he is dark and handsome, and the stone walls of the castle seem to trap Lucrezia like a prison. Only the duke's lover Francesca seems able to tame his increasing fury, as his desperate need to produce an heir drives him deep into precarious obsession. With her head full of heartbroken dreams, Lucrezia flees from him down a dangerous path that may cost her everything. Step into the elegant world of the Robert Browning poem "My Last Duchess," as imagined by Gabrielle Kimm, where she brings to life the passions and people of sixteenth-century Tuscany and Ferrara. It is a chilling story of forbidden love and dark decadence that will haunt you.
Blueprints for Love
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: D'Angelo, J. E., PUBLISHER: Dolce Publishing, Kare Wallace is desperate to prove to her ailing grandmother that the family business is in competent hands. To achieve this, she makes an unorthodox request of Alex - a proposition that leaves him torn. Should he accept? Or run for his life? The latter would probably be the wise decision, since his job - if not his sanity -- could very well be in jeopardy, but would Alex be able to resist the taste of her lips? The warmth of her touch? Working as Executive Assistant to Director at the prestigious firm of Wallace Architectural, Alex Callahan secretly yearns for the women he calls 'boss', the vivacious, pretty, and engaged Kate. Kate has always known her handsome assistant to be unrivalled in his loyalties to the firm as well as to her, but due to a recent discovery, Kate now sees him in a different light. She finds herself tormented by honesty and deceit, but nothing can stop the tremor of excitement racing through her when Alex agrees to go along with her plan; a plan that will lead them into exciting soul-stirring passion, whirlwind adventure and scathing betrayal.
Game Changer
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Haddix, Margaret Peterson, PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, A talented teen athlete questions reality--and the role she plays in it--when a mysterious injury upends her world. Athletics are everything for eighth-grader KT Sutton. She's a softball star, and she's on track to get a college scholarship and achieve international fame. Then one day during a championship game--in the middle of an important play--she suddenly blacks out. When she wakes up, she's in a different world. One where school is class after class of athletic drills, and after-school sports are replaced by popular academic competitions. One where KT is despised for her talent, and where her parents are fixated on her brother's future mathletics career rather than KT's softball hopes. KT is desperate to get back to reality as she knew it, but bits and pieces of disturbing memories and dreams make her wonder if something truly awful happened there. What if she's lost something a lot more important than a softball game? From New York Times "bestselling author of Sent "and Sabtaged," an engaging and highly relevant exploration of society's debate of smarts versus sports.
The Breadwinner
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Ellis, Deborah, PUBLISHER: Groundwood Books, The Breadwinner brings to life an issue that has recently exploded in the international media the reality of life under the Taliban. Young Parvana lives with her family in one room of a bombed-out apartment building in Kabul, Afghanistan. Because he has a foreign education, her father is arrested by the Taliban, the religious group that controls the country. Since women cannot appear in public unless covered head to toe, or go to school, or work outside the home, the family becomes increasingly desperate until Parvana conceives a plan. She cuts her hair and disguises herself as a boy to earn money for her family. Parvanas determination to survive is the force that drives this novel set against the backdrop of an intolerable situation brought about by war and religious fanaticism. Deborah Ellis spent several months talking with women and girls in Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan and Russia. This suspenseful, timely novel is the result of those encounters. Royalties from the sale of The Breadwinner will go toward educating Afghan girls in Pakistani refugee camps. A potent portrait of life in contemporary Afghanistan, showing that powerful heroines can survive even in the most oppressive... conditions. Booklist
Game Changer: Margaret Peterson Haddix
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Haddix, Margaret Peterson, PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster, A talented teen athlete questions reality--and the role she plays in it--when a mysterious injury upends her world. Athletics are everything for eighth-grader KT Sutton. She's a softball star, and she's on track to get a college scholarship and achieve international fame. Then one day during a championship game--in the middle of an important play--she suddenly blacks out. When she wakes up, she's in a different world. One where school is class after class of athletic drills, and after-school sports are replaced by popular academic competitions. One where KT is despised for her talent, and where her parents are fixated on her brother's future mathletics career rather than KT's softball hopes. KT is desperate to get back to reality as she knew it, but bits and pieces of disturbing memories and dreams make her wonder if something truly awful happened there. What if she's lost something a lot more important than a softball game? From New York Times "bestselling author of Sent "and Sabtaged," an engaging and highly relevant exploration of society's debate of smarts versus sports.
Scavenger
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Morrell, David, PUBLISHER: Vanguard Press, David Morrell's "Creepers" was a publishing event in , a powerful, edgy, dark thriller by a master of the genre. A "New York Times" best-seller, it won the prestigious Bram Stoker Award and earned numerous critical raves. "Scavenger," Morrell's latest novel, takes us in a harrowing new direction: a desperate high-tech scavenger hunt for a 100-year-old time capsule. Frank Balenger, the resolute but damaged hero of "Creepers," now finds himself trapped in a nightmarish game of fear and death. To save himself and the woman he loves, he must play by the rules of a god-like Game Master with an obsession for unearthing the past. But sometimes the past is buried for a reason. "Scavenger" is a brilliant, frightening hunter-hunted tale that layers modern technology over the dusty artifacts of earlier times. The result is a surreal palimpsest, one that contains the secret of survival for Balenger and a handful of unwilling players who race against the game's clock to solve the puzzle of the time capsule, only to discover that time is the true scavenger. Morrell's trademark action sequences are embedded with fascinating historical clues that make "Scavenger" a thrill-a-minute page-turner as well as a mesmerizing literary experience.
On the Firing Line: My 500 Days at Apple Computer
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Amelio, Gil / Simon, William, PUBLISHER: HarperCollins Publishers, Former CEO of Apple Computer Gil Amelio, who was replaced by Steve Jobs in the summer of , now chronicles his 17 months as head of Apple and reveals the inner workings of a company shrouded in myth and mystery. "On the Firing Line" is Gil Amelio's Up Close and Personal story that dares to unmask the personalities behind Apple Computer and lay bare the facts Apple fans don't know. It untangles the issues involved in Apple's desperate search for a CEO, describes how Steve Jobs claimed that Amelio was the only one who could save the company, and then shows how Jobs played a critical role in manipulating the board of directors to fire Amelio. In an engaging style, Amelio explores many of the problems he confronted as CEO and reveals how he constantly suffered a culture clash with the company and its people -- a clash he describes in terms of Brioni suits and oxfords meeting Levi's "TM" and Birkenstocks. A must-have for every Apple fan and computer world aficionado, this candid, often startling book takes readers inside the boardrooms and computer labs to reveal the way things really are at the company that has become an American icon.
Y: A Novel
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Celona, Marjorie, PUBLISHER: Free Press, For fans of "White Oleander "and "The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao," an exquisitely rendered debut about a wise-beyond-her-years foster child searching for a home, entwined with the heartbreaking story of the mother who abandoned her. "Y. The wishbone, fork in the road, empty wine glass. The question we ask over and over. Why?""My life begins at the Y..." so opens the story of Shannon, a newborn left at the doors of the local YMCA. Bounced between foster homes, Shannon endures neglect and abuse before she finally finds stability with Miranda, a single mother with a daughter of her own. But as Shannon grows, so do her questions. Who is her true family? Why would her parents abandon Shannon on the day she was born? The answers lie in the heartrending tale of her mother, a headstrong young woman with a flawed and desperate fate, trapped in a tragic series of events that will destroy her family and test the limits of her compassion and sacrifice. Sparkling with wit and surprisingly tender insights, Marjorie Celona's extraordinary novel offers a deeply affecting look at the choices we make and what it means to be a family. As the story builds, present and past converge to shape a unique and lasting story of identity and inheritance. "Y "marks the debut of an astonishing new talent.
The Kingmaker's Daughter
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Gregory, Philippa, PUBLISHER: Simon & Schuster Ltd, #1 "New York Times" bestselling author Philippa Gregory's stunning novel of conspiracy and a fight to the death for love and power at the court of King Edward IV of England. "The Kingmaker's Daughter" is the gripping story of the daughters of the man known as the "Kingmaker," Richard, Earl of Warwick: the most powerful magnate in fifteenth-century England. Without a son and heir, Richard uses his two daughters as pawns in political games, and they grow up to be influential players in their own right. In this novel, her first sister story since "The Other Boleyn Girl," Philippa Gregory explores the lives of these two fascinating young women. At the court of Edward IV and his queen, Elizabeth Woodville, Anne grows from a delightful child to become ever more fearful and desperate when her father makes war on his former friends. Only a girl she is married and then left widowed and fatherless, with her mother in sanctuary and her sister married to the enemy. She escapes by marrying Richard, Duke of Gloucester, but her choice will set her on a collision course with the power of the royal family, sacrificing the lives of those she loves most in the world, including her only son, Prince Edward. Ultimately, the kingmaker's daughter will achieve her father's greatest ambition.
Heart of the Dove
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Fobes, Tracy, PUBLISHER: Pocket Books, Brilliant new talent Tracy Fobes' first book, "Touch Not the Cat," received overwhelming critical acclaim. "Ms. Fobes' debut is a stunning novel...clever, evocative, and magical," said "Romantic Times." Her new book is as bewitching, a mesmerizing tale of magic -- and a love foretold centuries before.... Lucinda Drakewyck, one of a long line of Drakewyck witches, has foreseen her own death. Desperate for answers, she calls upon the magic in her cherished crystal dove, hoping for visions of the warrior whose love would first save her then destroy them both. When wounded Crimean cavalry officer Richard Clairmont walks into her secret forest glen, Lucinda recognizes him as her promised hero. Destiny has determined that only he can rescue her from a ghastly fate, and yet Lucinda fights the attraction between them, knowing if they love, both their lives are forfeit. Richard Clairmont doesn't believe in love, magic, or even himself. A captain in Her Majesty's Eleventh Hussars, he charged into the mouth of Hell and returned scarred forever. But from the moment he meets Lucinda Drakewyck, sunshine enters his life, throwing light on the shadows in his heart and making him question the possibility of magic. Together, they must stand against a malevolent presence and test the true power of their love.
Looking for a Hero: Staff Sergeant Joe Ronnie Hooper and the
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Maslowski, Peter / Winslow, Don, PUBLISHER: University of Nebraska Press, Widely acclaimed as the Vietnam War's most highly decorated soldier, Joe Ronnie Hooper in many ways serves as a symbol for that conflict. His troubled, tempestuous life paralleled the upheavals in American society during the s and s, and his desperate quest to prove his manhood was uncomfortably akin to the macho image projected by three successive presidents in their "tough" policy in Southeast Asia. "Looking for a Hero" extracts the real Joe Hooper from the welter of lies and myths that swirl around his story; in doing so, the book uncovers not only the complicated truth about an American hero but also the story of how Hooper's war was lost in Vietnam, not at home. Extensive interviews with friends, fellow soldiers, and family members reveal Hooper as a complex, gifted, and disturbed man. They also expose the flaws in his most famous and treasured accomplishment: earning the Medal of Honor. In the distortions, half-truths, and outright lies that mar Hooper's medal of honor file, authors Peter Maslowski and Don Winslow find a painful reflection of the army's inability to be honest with itself and the American public, with all the dire consequences that this dishonesty ultimately entailed. In the inextricably linked stories of Hooper and the Vietnam War, the nature of that deceit, and of America's defeat, becomes clear.
Vanished
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: MacGregor, T. J. / Tj, MacGregor / MacGregor, PUBLISHER: Pinnacle Books, T.J. MacGregor has everything it takes to be a star. She combines dazzling writing skill with breathtakingly original and provocative plots, complex and interesting characters, and the kind of relentless suspense that pulls readers in from the very first page and doesn't let go until the thoroughly satisfying end. "Vanished" is MacGregor's triumph, a riveting new novel that promises to propel her right to the top of bestseller lists everywhere. Hundreds of birds lined his maple trees. In his eighteen years as a country veterinarian, Max Thorn had never seen anything like them. They were watching, waiting until Max's wife, Ellen, left on her morning run. At the edge of their property, she turned to wave and began to fade before his eyes. One minute she was there, the next she had vanished, leaving no trace but a circle of dead foliage and birds. Presumed guilty of Ellen's murder, Max finds himself on the run, desperate to prove his innocence. But as he soon discovers, his wife's chilling disappearance is not an isolated incident. Across the nation, other strange vanishings have been reported, other mentions of the mysterious birds and scorched earth, and it's clear that nothing will ever be the same again. Now, it will take a man, a woman, and a child to discover the chilling truth, before all hope vanishes.
Pity the Nation: The Abduction of Lebanon
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Fisk, Robert, PUBLISHER: Nation Books, With the Israeli-Palestinian crisis reaching wartime levels, where is the latest confrontation between these two old foes leading? Robert Fisks explosive Pity the Nation recounts Sharon and Arafats first deadly encounter in Lebanon in the early s and explains why the IsraelPalestine relationship seems so intractable. A remarkable combination of war reporting and analysis by an author who has witnessed the carnage of Beirut for twenty-five years, Fisk, the first journalist to whom bin Laden announced his jihad against the U.S., is one of the world's most fearless and honored foreign correspondents. He spares no one in this saga of the civil war and subsequent Israeli invasion: the PLO, whose thuggish behavior alienated most Lebanese; the various Lebanese factions, whose appalling brutality spared no one; the Syrians, who supported first the Christians and then the Muslims in their attempt to control Lebanon; and the Israelis, who tried to install their own puppets and, with their invasion, committed massive war crimes of their own. It includes a moving finale that recounts the travails of Fisks friend Terry Anderson who was kidnapped by Hezbollah and spent days in captivity. Fully updated to include the Israeli withdrawl from south Lebanon and Ariel Sharon's electoral victory over Ehud Barak, this edition has sixty pages of new material and a new preface. Robert Fisks enormous book about Lebanons desperate travails is one of the most distinguished in recent times.Edward Said
Istanbul Passage
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Kanon, Joseph, PUBLISHER: Atria Books, From the acclaimed, bestselling author of "Stardust, " "The Good German, "and "Los Alamos"--a gripping tale of an American undercover agent in Istanbul who descends into the murky cat-and-mouse world of compromise and betrayal that will come to define the entire post-war era. A neutral capital straddling Europe and Asia, Istanbul has spent the war as a magnet for refugees and spies. Even American businessman Leon Bauer has been drawn into this shadow world, doing undercover odd jobs and courier runs for the Allied war effort. Now as the espionage community begins to pack up and an apprehensive city prepares for the grim realities of post-war life, he is given one more assignment, a routine job that goes fatally wrong, plunging him into a tangle of intrigue and moral confusion. Played out against the bazaars and mosques and faded mansions of this knowing, ancient Ottoman city, Leon's attempt to save one life leads to a desperate manhunt and a maze of shifting loyalties that threatens his own. How do you do the right thing when there are only bad choices to make? "Istanbul Passage" is the story of a man swept up in the aftermath of war, an unexpected love affair, and a city as deceptive as the calm surface waters of the Bosphorus that divides it. Rich with atmosphere and period detail, Joseph Kanon's latest novel flawlessly blends fact and fiction into a haunting thriller about the dawn of the Cold War, once again proving why Kanon has been hailed as the "heir apparent to Graham Greene" ("The Boston Globe").
Star Wars Jumbo Kenner Action Figures 4 Pack Early Bird Set
40 years ago a generation of kids saw a movie that changed their lives. When they left the theater and went to the store to find action figures from their favorite new movie they did not exist. When the holidays rolled around and the kids wanted to find their favorite heroes, villains and droids under the tree, none could be found. The toy makers solution to this problem was The Star Wars Early Bird Kit. Parents, desperate for anything Star Wars to wrap for their kids, were sold a large cardboard envelope that had a fold out stand, some stickers, trading cards and a promise that WHEN the figures were made, they would be the first kids to receive them. Gentle Giant Ltd pays tribute to that classic Star Wars story 40 years later with the Star Wars JUMBO Early Bird 4-pack. This 4 pack of action figure is a great jumping on point to the Jumbo line for new collectors as well as bringing back some earlier, harder to find figures for current Jumbo connoisseurs. The Early Bird Jumbo figure 4-pack will come in a retro box mimicking the original Early Bird envelope, inside will be the familiar white mailer tray with Luke Skywalker (with his double telescoping lightsaber. The first DT saber in the Jumbo line!), Princess Leia (with white vinyl cape and blue blaster) Chewbacca (with greenish Early Bird crossbow blaster) and R2-D2 (with clicking head). Also included in the set will be larger reproductions of the stickers and a large foldout, replica display stand that will hold the original 12 figures along with the perforated cards attached to the front. Gentle Giant Ltd,s Jumbo line. Just like you remember, ONLY BIGGER!
Hitler's U-Boat Fortresses
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Bradham, Randolph, PUBLISHER: Lyons Press,.".. A most unexpected gift to our nation. I know veterans will want to read this; but I hope all Americans, especially the children, will read it so they understand the sacrifices their grandparents made..." --Sen. Ernest F. Hollings, D-South Carolina The French naval bases at St. Nazaire and Lorient, occupied by the Germans in June , quickly became the homes of massive U-boat fortresses--nearly indestructible submarine pens, built mostly by slave labor. From these bases, the U-boats struck merchant shipping at will from the Mediterranean to the North Sea. Thousands of vessels were lost, along with vital war material from the U.S. destined for Britain and the Soviet Union. The Royal Air Force began an all-out bombardment of the two ports. Despite their extensive efforts--and those of the Americans who joined them in --the fortresses would survive, surrounded by decimated French towns and countryside. The desperate battle was waged on land, air, and sea. Because the dock at St. Nazaire could house and repair Hitler's powerful warship, the "Tirpitz," British commandos carried out a daring raid to destroy it in March of . They succeeded, but with a great loss of life, and the Germans were able to quickly repair much of the damage. The defenses of these fortresses were so strong that General Eisenhower would ultimately decide to seek containment rather than destruction. The U.S. Army's 66th Infantry Division, on its way to take up the task, lost its troopship "Leopoldville" to a German torpedo, with 802 men going down with the ship. The French underground movement in the area would spawn a fighting force of men to fight alongside the Allies, and thesubsequent German reprisals would devastate many families in Brittany. Yet, the bases stood--and they continue to stand today.
Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing
ISBN: , SKU: , AUTHOR: Luttrell, Marcus / Robinson, Patrick, PUBLISHER: Little Brown and Company, On a clear night in late June , four U.S. Navy SEALs left their base in northern Afghanistan for the mountainous Pakistani border. Their mission was to capture or kill a notorious al Qaeda leader known to be ensconced in a Taliban stronghold surrounded by a small but heavily armed force. Less then twenty-four hours later, only one of those Navy SEALs remained alive. This is the story of fire team leader Marcus Luttrell, the sole survivor of Operation Redwing, and the desperate battle in the mountains that led, ultimately, to the largest loss of life in Navy SEAL history. But it is also, more than anything, the story of his teammates, who fought ferociously beside him until he was the last one left-blasted unconscious by a rocket grenade, blown over a cliff, but still armed and still breathing. Over the next four days, badly injured and presumed dead, Luttrell fought off six al Qaeda assassins who were sent to finish him, then crawled for seven miles through the mountains before he was taken in by a Pashtun tribe, who risked everything to protect him from the encircling Taliban killers. A six-foot-five-inch Texan, Leading Petty Officer Luttrell takes us, blow-by-blow, through the brutal training of America's warrior elite and the relentless rites of passage required by the Navy SEALs. He transports us to a monstrous battle fought in the desolate peaks of Afghanistan, where the beleaguered American team plummeted headlong a thousand feet down a mountain as they fought back through flying shale and rocks. In this rich, moving chronicle of courage, honor, and patriotism, Marcus Luttrell delivers one of the most powerful narratives ever written about modern warfare-and a tribute to his teammates, who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.