Christmas, A Very Peculiar History

Christmas, A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: Fiona Macdonald
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 1908759038
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
Just when you thought it was safe to take a sneak peek into your stocking, it's 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History'. Taking an unbiased view of the myth and mystery surrounding the origins of the yuletide season, this book introduces mindbending facts about the holiday season and shatters the myths surrounding some of Christmas' most treasured and well-known facets: When exactly was Jesus born? Why is Santa's outfit red and white? Where do we get Christmas trees from? What's the snow in a snowglobe made of? What's Boxing Day all about? 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History' takes a sideways look at bizarre yuletide customs and stories from around the world, such as Santa's evil sidekick, the terrifying Krampus, and the Scandinavian celebration of Saint Lucy. So leave the mince pies on the mantlepiece if you've been good and block up your chimneys if you've been bad, because 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History' is here.

Christmas, A Very Peculiar History

Christmas, A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: Fiona Macdonald
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 190875902X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 109

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Book Description
Just when you thought it was safe to take a sneak peek into your stocking, it's 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History'. Taking an unbiased view of the myth and mystery surrounding the origins of the yuletide season, this book introduces mindbending facts about the holiday season and shatters the myths surrounding some of Christmas' most treasured and well-known facets: When exactly was Jesus born? Why is Santa's outfit red and white? Where do we get Christmas trees from? What's the snow in a snowglobe made of? What's Boxing Day all about? 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History' takes a sideways look at bizarre yuletide customs and stories from around the world, such as Santa's evil sidekick, the terrifying Krampus, and the Scandinavian celebration of Saint Lucy. So leave the mince pies on the mantlepiece if you've been good and block up your chimneys if you've been bad, because 'Christmas: A Very Peculiar History' is here.

Mummies

Mummies PDF Author: Nathaniel Harris
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780531143544
Category : Embalming
Languages : en
Pages : 48

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Book Description
Overview of mummification and embalming including ancient beliefs regarding life after death, rites, rituals, and ceremonies, and the latest in the science of cryogenics.

Charles Dickens, A Very Peculiar History

Charles Dickens, A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: Fiona Macdonald
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 1908759011
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 189

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Book Description
Taking a unique look at one of the most acclaimed and best-loved English writers of the nineteenth century, 'Charles Dickens, A Very Peculiar History' asks why, what, where, how and who the Dickens was Charles Dickens? Why did he keep a pet raven that pecked at his children's shins? Why did he have a tunnel built under the road in front of his country house? Was his dying corpse really carried from his mistress's house where he collapsed to his family home, so that he could die 'respectably'? Find out the answers to these questions and even more bizarre ones throughout the book, which features quirky stories and fascinating trivia about this singularly complex man and consummate artist.

Kings and Queens

Kings and Queens PDF Author: Macmillan Library Reference USA.
Publisher: Macmillan Reference USA
ISBN: 9780028653754
Category : Kings and rulers
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Profiles notable monarchs, past and present, from around the world.

Queen Elizabeth II, A Very Peculiar History

Queen Elizabeth II, A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: David Arscott
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 190875933X
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
EIIR Queen Elizabeth II, 60 Years a Queen, A Very Peculiar History' uniquely explores the life and times of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as we approach her 2012 Diamond Jubilee. The story that unfolds is one of doughty determination - the story of a young monarch who finds herself thrust into a new world of relentless public exposure, whose own family turns out to be as frail as everyone else's, but who somehow, for a full 60 years and counting, manages to steer the institution through the choppy waters intact. David Arscott provides an eccentric account of the trials and tribulations that have beset the Queen's reign, from the glamour of her coronation, through the gloom of her 'annus horribilis' to the impending dawn of her Diamond Jubilee.

Tudors

Tudors PDF Author: Jim Pipe
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781835871140
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description


A Peculiar People

A Peculiar People PDF Author: Elmer Schwieder
Publisher: University of Iowa Press
ISBN: 1587298481
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 215

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Book Description
Now back in print with a new essay, this classic of Iowa history focuses on the Old Order Amish Mennonites, the state’s most distinctive religious minority. Sociologist Elmer Schwieder and historian Dorothy Schwieder began their research with the largest group of Old Order Amish in the state, the community near Kalona in Johnson and Washington counties, in April 1970; they extended their studies and friendships in later years to other Old Order settlements as well as the slightly less conservative Beachy Amish. A Peculiar People explores the origin and growth of the Old Order Amish in Iowa, their religious practices, economic organization, family life, the formation of new communities, and the vital issue of education. Included also are appendixes giving the 1967 “Act Relating to Compulsory School Attendance and Educational Standards”; a sample “Church Organization Financial Agreement,” demonstrating the group’s unusual but advantageous mutual financial system; and the 1632 Dortrecht Confession of Faith, whose eighteen articles cover all the basic religious tenets of the Old Order Amish. Thomas Morain’s new essay describes external and internal issues for the Iowa Amish from the 1970s to today. The growth of utopian Amish communities across the nation, changes in occupation (although The Amish Directory still lists buggy shop operators, wheelwrights, and one lone horse dentist), the current state of education and health care, and the conscious balance between modern and traditional ways are reflected in an essay that describes how the Old Order dedication to Gelassenheit—the yielding of self to the interests of the larger community—has served its members well into the twenty-first century.

Scottish Words A Very Peculiar History

Scottish Words A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: Fiona Macdonald
Publisher: The Salariya Book Company
ISBN: 1908759631
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 194

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Book Description
What would you say if someone gave you a bap, a dap, or a garron? How would you feel if they called you a dux or a sneuter? Do you know what to do with a flane, a hushock, a kist, or tassie? Could you wear raploch or schort-hoozle? Eat a cake that was gibbery, or keggum? And, with your nearest and dearest, how would you fancy a spot of houghmagandie? North of the Border - it's not just the accent that's different, the whole language is not the same. In fact, there are several different ways of speaking in Scotland, from the Borders in the south to the northernmost Orkney and Shetland Isles. This book will look at them all, although it will focus on Scots — the traditional language of the majority of Scottish people for the past thousand years and more. Fact boxes, a full glossary, timeline and index make the book both fun and informative to use.

The Man Who Invented Christmas

The Man Who Invented Christmas PDF Author: Les Standiford
Publisher: Crown
ISBN: 0307449734
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 258

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Book Description
As uplifting as the tale of Scrooge itself, this is the story of how Charles Dickens revived the signal holiday of the Western world—now a major motion picture. Just before Christmas in 1843, a debt-ridden and dispirited Charles Dickens wrote a small book he hoped would keep his creditors at bay. His publisher turned it down, so Dickens used what little money he had to put out A Christmas Carol himself. He worried it might be the end of his career as a novelist. The book immediately caused a sensation. And it breathed new life into a holiday that had fallen into disfavor, undermined by lingering Puritanism and the cold modernity of the Industrial Revolution. It was a harsh and dreary age, in desperate need of spiritual renewal, ready to embrace a book that ended with blessings for one and all. With warmth, wit, and an infusion of Christmas cheer, Les Standiford whisks us back to Victorian England, its most beloved storyteller, and the birth of the Christmas we know best. The Man Who Invented Christmas is a rich and satisfying read for Scrooges and sentimentalists alike.

Wales, A Very Peculiar History

Wales, A Very Peculiar History PDF Author: Rupert Matthews
Publisher: Andrews UK Limited
ISBN: 1908759224
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 156

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Book Description
From the Roman invasion, through tall tales of Merlin and King Arthur, and right up to and beyond the incredible power of the mining industry, 'Wales, A Very Peculiar History' takes a quirky, sideways look at some of the slightly bizarre aspects of the home of welsh rarebit, Maelgwn the Dragon, and Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch. Featuring the full gamut of Welsh providence from the coal-mining years to its rebirth in the 1970s, this book tells a tale of ups and downs, of hills and valleys, and of hope and triumph against the odds, with a few leeks thrown in for good measure.