The Orchid Thief

The Orchid Thief PDF Author: Susan Orlean
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307795292
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK A modern classic of personal journalism, The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s wickedly funny, elegant, and captivating tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii—a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named John Laroche leads Orlean on an unforgettable tour of America’s strange flower-selling subculture, through Florida’s swamps and beyond, along with the Seminoles who help him and the forces of justice who fight him. In the end, Orlean—and the reader—will have more respect for underdog determination and a powerful new definition of passion. In this new edition, coming fifteen years after its initial publication and twenty years after she first met the “orchid thief,” Orlean revisits this unforgettable world, and the route by which it was brought to the screen in the film Adaptation, in a new retrospective essay. Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more. Praise for The Orchid Thief “Stylishly written, whimsical yet sophisticated, quirkily detailed and full of empathy . . . The Orchid Thief shows [Orlean’s] gifts in full bloom.”—The New York Times Book Review “Fascinating . . . an engrossing journey [full] of theft, hatred, greed, jealousy, madness, and backstabbing.”—Los Angeles Times “Orlean’s snapshot-vivid, pitch-perfect prose . . . is fast becoming one of our national treasures.”—The Washington Post Book World “Orlean’s gifts [are] her ear for the self-skewing dialogue, her eye for the incongruous, convincing detail, and her Didion-like deftness in description.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A swashbuckling piece of reporting that celebrates some virtues that made America great.”—The Wall Street Journal

The Orchid Thief

The Orchid Thief PDF Author: Susan Orlean
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307795292
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 322

Get Book Here

Book Description
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK A modern classic of personal journalism, The Orchid Thief is Susan Orlean’s wickedly funny, elegant, and captivating tale of an amazing obsession. Determined to clone an endangered flower—the rare ghost orchid Polyrrhiza lindenii—a deeply eccentric and oddly attractive man named John Laroche leads Orlean on an unforgettable tour of America’s strange flower-selling subculture, through Florida’s swamps and beyond, along with the Seminoles who help him and the forces of justice who fight him. In the end, Orlean—and the reader—will have more respect for underdog determination and a powerful new definition of passion. In this new edition, coming fifteen years after its initial publication and twenty years after she first met the “orchid thief,” Orlean revisits this unforgettable world, and the route by which it was brought to the screen in the film Adaptation, in a new retrospective essay. Look for special features inside. Join the Random House Reader’s Circle for author chats and more. Praise for The Orchid Thief “Stylishly written, whimsical yet sophisticated, quirkily detailed and full of empathy . . . The Orchid Thief shows [Orlean’s] gifts in full bloom.”—The New York Times Book Review “Fascinating . . . an engrossing journey [full] of theft, hatred, greed, jealousy, madness, and backstabbing.”—Los Angeles Times “Orlean’s snapshot-vivid, pitch-perfect prose . . . is fast becoming one of our national treasures.”—The Washington Post Book World “Orlean’s gifts [are] her ear for the self-skewing dialogue, her eye for the incongruous, convincing detail, and her Didion-like deftness in description.”—Boston Sunday Globe “A swashbuckling piece of reporting that celebrates some virtues that made America great.”—The Wall Street Journal

Tretchikoff

Tretchikoff PDF Author: Vladimir Tretchikoff
Publisher: Jonathan Ball Publishers
ISBN: 9781868424351
Category : Kitsch
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
"While Vladimir Tretchikoff (1913-2006) is undoubtedly one of South Africa's most controversial artists, much maligned in the 1960s and onwards by several members of the established arts community, there can be no doubt that he has become a cultural icon and remains a favourite artist to many South Africans. Despite this, there has been almost no serious assessment of Tretchikoff’s legacy. In his heyday Tretchikoff's exhibitions drew record audiences at his home and abroad and he was considered to be one of the richest artists, with earnings comparable to Picasso. He pioneered the idea of selling affordable copies of his works, enabling working class people to own art which they proudly displayed above their mantelpieces. This retrospective exhibition aims to examine Tretchikoff anew and place him in contemporary perspective. Many iconic works such as the Chinese Girl and The Dying Swan will be on display."--Publisher website.

The Lost Mother

The Lost Mother PDF Author: Joon Kim
Publisher: iUniverse
ISBN: 0595441947
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
The Lost Mother is the memoir of Iltang, an acclaimed Korean/Japan painter whowas born in 1922. His Korean mother, Ilyeopwas a well-known feminist poetwho, after his birth, renounced the worldto enter into Buddhist monastic life. Iltang's father was the scion of an aristocratic Japanese family. Their relationship was romantic but ultimatelydoomed. In a life marked by war and disruption; Iltang finally attained both theartistic success he craved, and the spiritualenlightenment he sought in later life. The longing for his "real"mother never left him, however, and it provided him the psychological impetus to succeed in both the worldly andspiritual realms. Iltang's dramatic life story ismade even more vibrant by the chaotic historical context intowhich he was born. It is an interesting portrayal of a unique time and place and an inspiring look at one man's incredible ability to overcome adversity.

Orchid

Orchid PDF Author: Jim Endersby
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022642703X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
The prize-winning history of the orchid: “an engaging and enlightening account of one of the Earth's most mythologized botanical wonders” (Richard Conniff, author of House of Lost Worlds). At once delicate, exotic, and elegant, orchids are beloved for their singular, instantly recognizable beauty. Found in nearly every climate, the many species of orchid have had varying forms of significance in countless cultures over time. Following the orchid’s journey from Ancient Greek medicine to twentieth century detective novels, science historian Jim Endersby explores the flower’s four recurring themes: science, empire, sex, and death. Orchids were a symbol of the exotic riches sought by 19th century Europeans in their plans for colonization. They became subjects of scientific scrutiny for Charles Darwin, who investigated their methods of cross-pollination. As Endersby shows, orchids—perhaps because of their extraordinarily diverse colors, shapes, and sizes—have also bloomed repeatedly in films, novels, plays, and poems, from Shakespeare to science fiction. Featuring many gorgeous illustrations from the collection of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Orchid: A Cultural History was awarded the Watson Davis and Helen Miles Davis Prize by the History of Science Society. It is an enchanting tale not only for gardeners and plant collectors, but anyone curious about the flower’s obsessive hold on the imagination in history, cinema, literature, and more.

The Lost Amazon

The Lost Amazon PDF Author: Wade Davis
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN:
Category : Photography
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
Explore the uncharted Amazon with acclaimed botanist and pioneering Amazonian explorer, Richard Evans Schultes, guided by an intimate narrative that supplements his photography of indigenous tribes, hallucinogenic plants, stunning vistas, and much more.

Everybody's Magazine

Everybody's Magazine PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 888

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Book Description


The Open Road

The Open Road PDF Author: Clayton Holt Ernst
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 1026

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Book Description


The Garden Magazine

The Garden Magazine PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 902

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Book Description


Orchid Hunting in the Lost World

Orchid Hunting in the Lost World PDF Author: G. C. K. Dunsterville
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Gardening
Languages : en
Pages : 302

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Book Description


Blanche Ames Ames (1878-1969) and Oakes Ames (1874-1950)

Blanche Ames Ames (1878-1969) and Oakes Ames (1874-1950) PDF Author: Elizabeth F. Fideler
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
ISBN: 1666771910
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 193

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Book Description
Blanche Ames Ames and Oakes Ames advanced women’s suffrage, reproductive rights, artistic expression, and scientific knowledge, among other accomplishments, in the first half of the twentieth century. Blanche was part of women’s history for nearly seven decades and deserved to be better known for that and other reasons. Oakes’s contributions to the women’s suffrage movement and his extraordinary scientific accomplishments might have received greater recognition had he not avoided the spotlight so successfully. Their story is one of mutual enabling. Believing in gender equality, even if outside the bounds of what was considered socially acceptable, they named their home “Borderland” to represent boundary pushing. One lasting influence is found in the social justice arena. The Harvard professor of botany and supervisor of the university’s major botanical institutions and his sociable, highly independent wife were both active in the fight to secure the vote for women, with Blanche contributing original political cartoons to newspapers. Blanche led the Birth Control League of Massachusetts for nearly twenty years, then used her position and skills on behalf of the New England Hospital for Women and Children. Unity Church and Memorial Hall in Easton, Massachusetts, were family gifts, as was their home, now Borderland State Park.