Character-19

  The Battle of Shiloh during the American Civil War was devastating, with many casualties and nearly 2,500 fatalities. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. Almost from its inception as a new nation, it became apparent that the United States was becoming two very different nations. In the North, a seemingly endless influx of cheap immigrant labor combined with the new machines of the Industrial Age to produce a growing economic superpower. In the South, agriculture remained the life blood, “King Cotton” reigned on his throne, and the Southern agrarian system was supported by Eli Whitney’s ingenious cotton gin and by the sweat and toil of African-American slaves. For decades, American Presidents, Congressmen, judges, newspapermen, and common people struggled to find a way to reconcile the two sections and, in doing so, perhaps increased the terrible toll when war finally came.  As America added new territories, the key issue became how to admit each to the gro...

Doris Day had a special connection with Rock Hudson. Their first movie together was Pillow Talk in 1959. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. No one personified the hopes and dreams of post-war America more than Doris Day. She was ranked the biggest box-office star for four years (1960 and 1962-1964) and ranked in the top 10 for 10 years (1951-1952 and 1959-1966, became the top-ranking female box-office star of all time , and is currently ranked sixth among the all-time top 10 box-office performers. Having graduated from dance-band singer to Hollywood queen in 1948, Doris quickly became the nation’s big-screen sweetheart. Her movie career also featured two Oscar-winning songs – ‘Secret Love’ from 1953’s Calamity Jane and ‘Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)’ from The Man Who Knew Too Much . Yet she impressed British director Alfred Hitchcock by being able to deliver the intensity of performance he wanted without guidance. Indeed, some critics went so far as...

JFK and Jackie are mobbed by an enthusiastic crowd as they arrive at Dallas airport, on November 22, 1963. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. When Ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy fell out of favor with the Democratic Roosevelt administration, due to appeasement, the political baton in the Kennedy family went to Joe Jr. He was killed in World War II in 1944 and, from that time on, Joe Sr. focused all his attentions on his second son, John F. Kennedy. The young Kennedy experienced some celebrity as a war hero and having written a modest bestseller, JFK was keen to pick up the baton. He was a willing and enthusiastic candidate who, following a life in the military, was anxious to make his mark on Congress.  Having served as a Senator, he found himself in a race for the White House in 1960 with Republican, Richard Nixon, appearing on the first televised Presidential Election debates. It was a close run race, but JFK was assured of the Presidency with less than 100,000 ...

A carrying party of British troops take a batch of duck-boards across marshy ground, during the Battle of the Somme. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. Now also a paperback from Amazon or Barnes & Noble As soon as Lord Tennyson rhymed the word “Blunder’d” with “the six hundred” in his famous poem The Charge of the Light Brigade, the word became a byword for a ghastly military error – and a few short years later, following the first publication of Alice in Wonderland, the Crimean War was mischievously dubbed “Britain in Blunderland” by clever journalists. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, and when we look back at some of the world’s most damaging military blunders it seems unbelievable that rational men could have made such crass decisions and fatal errors. What could make hundreds of horsemen charge well-prepared heavy artillery? How could more than 50,000 French knights and soldiers fail to overcome an exhausted British force, whom they outnumbered by over fo...

Film fisticuffs always appear so real and deadly but the roundhouse right James Stewart is throwing to John Wayne looks like the perfect form for a perfect punch, in fact, Stewart missed him by a mile. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. Swagger, sex appeal, on magnetism – yes John Wayne (the Duke) had most of it during his peak in moving making. It all started from humble beginnings as silent movies gave way to the “talkies” and paved the way for a record breaking career as a leading man. Wayne was lucky to be paired up with Director John Ford in the movie Stagecoach and this provided the platform he needed after a string of less successful B-movies.  This would set the scene for years to come, with the Western genre becoming his forte. The all-American hero Wayne had the drawl and the on screen presence in other movie formats too – especially war films. His connection with John Ford would also play a major part in his success – making many more films together....

London Heathrow Airport, 13 July 1985. Singer Phil Collins & wife Jill about to board a Concorde flight so he can perform at Live Aid, JFK Stadium in Philadelphia USA. Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. This is the story of one of the most distinctive aircraft of its time, known simply as Concorde. This iconic supersonic airliner made its mark in the field of commercial air transport and was the result of a remarkable collaboration between the governments and aviation industries of Britain and France. It charts how the aircraft was taken from the early drawing board ideas after World War II to the prototype versions built at the production lines of Filton and Toulouse. Concorde went on to have its maiden flight in British prototype 002 in April 1969 which was followed by the French prototype 001 in October 1969 reaching Mach 1.5 speeds. Concorde had all the makings of a game-changing new way of flying but noise pollution and expensive running costs made airl...

A Valentino long, flowing coat in white satin with designs in black satin and beads inspired by the Wiener Werkstätte (Vienna Workshops). Available now as an ebook from all major ebook stores. From haute couture to ready to wear, fashion designers influence what women wear every day, to work, to play, and even to relax on a beach. Fashion has become a huge, global industry as women opt for designer brands for everything from sunglasses to sneakers. Now you can read the story of how influential fashion houses and their designers around the world created a market and helped liberate women to create their own style. It chronicles developments from the early chemise dresses that promoted mobility, to the capsule wardrobe for the working woman, and contemporary eco-friendly lingerie that helps save the environment.  Packed with information on what has inspired top designers to create their own aesthetic, with photographs of landmark styles and key designs from leading fashion houses, th...