Harpercollins The Battle of Maldon. Together with The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth Tolkien John Ronald Reuel

Два значимых произведения Дж. Р. Р. Толкина, впервые публикующиеся в особом коллекционном издании, которое включает и отрывки, никогда не выходившие в печати • В 991 году н. э. недалеко от Молдона, Эссекс, на берегу реки Блэкуотер, случилось жестокое сражение между викинагми и англо-саксами под началом герцога Беортнота. Для Англии оно считается одним из самых значимых событий X века, отчасти благодаря поэме «Битва при Молдоне» • Лишь небольшой фрагмент сохранился от поэмы, написанной чуть позже самой битвы, но и его значение невозможно переоценить, ведь это не просто героическая история, но и живой образец использования староанглийского языка, прославляющий идеалы верности и дружбы • Дж. Р. Р. Толкин считал «Битву при Молдоне» «последним сохранившимся фрагментом героической песенной традиции Старой Англии»

В 1920-1930-х годах, когда Джон Рональд Руэл Толкин с упоением осваивал мастерство создания аллитерационных стихов, он создал свою версию Старшей Эдды, изложив сюжет в двух тесно связанных поэмах: «Новом сказании о Вёльсунгах» и «Новом сказании о Гудрун» • Первая из них повествует о восхождении Сигурда, который победил прославленного дракона Фафнира и присвоил его сокровище. По его зову валькирия Брунгильда, спящая в окружении огненных стен, пробуждается и становится его женой. Придя ко двору принцев-Нибелунгов, он становится их кровным братом. В краю Нибелунгов Сигурда ждёт великая любовь и небывалая ненависть, вызванная колдуньей-матерью Нибелунгов, способной менять личины и знающей рецепт зелья, что лишает памяти • В водовороте драматических событий, перепутанных лиц, развеянной страсти, ревности и раздора, трагедия Сигурда и Брунгильды, Гунтера Нибелунга и его сестры Гудрун, приводит к гибели Сигурда от рук его кровных братьев, самоубийству Брунгильды и безутешному отчаянию Гудрун

Вновь доступная после долгого отсутствия в печати, эта книга является выдающимся критическим исследованием того, как мифы и легенды сыграли столь значительную роль в творчестве Дж.Р.Р. Толкина • "Песнь о Средиземье" по-новому смотрит на "Властелина колец", глубоко проникая в основы мира Толкина, чтобы раскрыть сложный гобелен истории и мифологии, лежащий в основе его рассказов • Обвинение в том, что творчество Толкина было просто производным - что он извлек элементы из других мифологий и включил их в свою собственную художественную литературу, - отвергается в пользу увлекательного изучения богатой исторической предыстории Средиземья • Книга на английском языке • Available again after being long out of print, this is the pre-eminent critical study, and exploration, of how myth and legend played such a significant role in the works of J

Once upon a time there were two geese called Mr and Mrs Plumpster. Each Spring they returned to the marshes of their ancestors, and Mrs Plumpster laid her eggs. Soon six fine young Plumpsters hatched: Archie, Freda, Jennifer, Oswald, Timothy and Borka. But Borka was different. Borka had no feathers and could not fly. When winter came the other geese flew off in search of warmer climates, leaving Borka all alone. But her adventure was only just beginning

The fourth volume in the acclaimed Emperor series, in which Conn Iggulden brilliantly weaves history and adventure to recreate the astonishing life of Julius Caesar • Caesar must fight his toughest battle yet – with Rome itself • Julius Caesar, fresh from triumph in Britain and Gaul, is marching on Rome with his legions of hardened veterans. His goal: to unseat Pompey, now dictator of the Empire • But waging war on your own people is never easy. And even after the city itself is taken and Julius, Brutus, Mark Antony and Octavian re-enter in triumph, there are many battles left to fight. For across the Empire – in Spain, Africa, Greece, across Asia Minor – there are legions loyal to Pompey. How will Caesar prevail? And at what cost? • ‘The Gods of War’ is the story of ambition and loyalty, of friendship and power, of love and war

The classic crime novel featuring blind detective Max Carrados, whose popularity rivalled that of Sherlock Holmes, complete with a new introduction and an extra short story • In his dark little curio shop Julian Joolby is weaving an extravagant scheme to smash the financial machinery of the world by flooding the Oriental market with forged banknotes. But this monster of wickedness has not reckoned on Max Carrados, the suave and resourceful investigator whose visual impairment gives him heightened powers of perception that ordinary detectives overlook • Max Carrados was a blind detective whose stories by Ernest Bramah appeared from 1914 alongside Sherlock Holmes in the Strand Magazine, in which they often had top billing. Described by George Orwell as among ‘the only detective stories since Poe that are worth re-reading’, the 25 stories were collected in three hugely popular volumes, culminating in a full-length novel, The Bravo of London (1934), in which Carrados engages in a battle of wits against a fiendish plot that threatens to overthrow civilisation itself

The ups and down of three plucky factory girls, set in Britain’s best loved wrapped chocolate factory • The Quality Street Factory is fizzing with the news that the King and Queen and the two young princesses, Elizabeth and Margaret Rose, are going to visit the Mackintosh Factory where the country’s favourite wrapped chocolate is made. The factory floor is heady with excitement but plans are dealt a blow when a much loved staff member is the victim of a poisoning incident • Everyone is under suspicion, which only adds to Reenie Calder’s woes, anxious that her new promotion has only made her stick out even more like a sore thumb. Can she and her friends, Mary and Diana, get their heads together and find the malicious troublemaker before something unthinkable happens?

The seven Chronicles of Narnia are brought together in this beautifully presented slipcase. The books and the slipcase feature the original artwork by Pauline Baynes • Enjoy the full majesty of the Chronicles of Narnia with this slipcased set featuring all seven novels

The brand new and final novel from the magical pen of 'the Godmother of Fantasy', Diana Wynne Jones; co-authored with her sister Ursula Jones. Now in paperback • How are you supposed to turn into a Wise Woman if your powers just won't show up? Aileen is convinced she'll never become as magical as her Aunt Beck • Then one day her aunt is set a seemingly impossible mission. She must go to the island of Logra and rescue the kidnapped High Prince from the enemy, and Aileen must go with her. They set off along with Ivar, Aileen's spoilt cousin, and Ogo his clophopping servant, recruiting on their way a huge and elusive cat, a monk with an uncannily wise parrot, and a boy inventor who keeps a pet lizard up his sleeve. But this is no band of mighty warriors, and the evil Lograns and their wizards have blocked their way with an invisible barrier in the sea

The first novel by one of the legends of the Harlem Renaissance, a classic in the annals of Black fiction • When Black lawyer Fred Merrit purchases a house in the most exclusive white neighbourhood bordering Harlem, he has to hire the toughest removal firm in the area to help him get his belongings past the hostile neighbours. The removal men are Jinx Jenkins and Bubber Brown, who make the move anything but straightforward • This hilarious satire of jazz-age Harlem derides the walls people build around themselves—colour and class being chief among them. In their reactions to Merrit and to one another, the characters provide an invaluable view of the social and philosophical scene of the times • First published in 1928, The Walls of Jericho is the first novel by Rudolph Fisher, author of The Conjure-Man Dies, whom Langston Hughes called ‘the wittiest of the Harlem Renaissance writers, whose tongue was flavoured with the sharpest and saltiest humour’

The armies of the Dark Lord are massing as his evil shadow spreads ever wider. Men, Dwarves, Elves and Ents unite forces to do battle against the Dark. Meanwhile, Frodo and Sam struggle further into Mordor in their heroic quest to destroy the One Ring • Третья часть известного фэнтезийного романа на английском языке

The author of the hit parody The Panda, the Cat and the Dreadfully Teddy draws on the simple, idyllic world of Beatrix Potter to shed light on some of the most pertinent issues of our time • Beatrix, a refined and gentle lady, decides to relocate to the countryside to escape the chaotic city and exorbitant house prices of London, in search of a simpler, more holistic life. Looking forward to painting cute rural animals and writing stories about their charming ways, she desires nothing more than to surround herself with nature and to practice mindfulness and kindness. But after months spent in isolation during 'hibernation', all the local wildlife emerge grumpy, sweary and having forgotten all their social skills - Jemima Puddleduck has even been cancelled