20 Years of Tomb Raider: Digging Up the Past, Defining the Future


Meagan Marie - 2016
    Rediscover Lara Croft's greatest moments with fascinating coverage of the smash hit Tomb Raider movies, fiction, comics, and collectibles, and be enthralled by the legacy of Tomb Raider across the decades.Packed with exclusive art, photographs, and interviews covering all facets of the Tomb Raider franchise, 20 Years of Tomb Raider is the essential guide to this game's action-packed history and a must-have for every Tomb Raider fan.

Colored Pencil Solution Book


Janie Gildow - 2000
    Successful colored pencil artists and teachers, Janie Gildow and Barbara Benedetti Newton answer the most commonly asked questions about colored pencil techniques.Over twenty easy-to-follow, step-by-step demonstrations show you how to:- Select the right tools, as well as set up your workspace to optimize efficiency and comfort - Effectively express yourself through color and value to create light, shadow and mood - Use and master basic essential colored pencil techniques - Create the look of realistic metal, including brass, copper and silver - Create glass that sparkles, mirrors that reflect and water that distorts - Create realistic texture, from slippery satin, fuzzy peaches and velvety roses to coarse linen and the bumpy surface of corn - Fix common mistakes and problems with easy-to-use solutions Whether you already enjoy working with colored pencils or are looking to try this exciting medium for the first time, this book will provide you with all the information you need to create your own colored pencil compositions.

Titanic Facts: 200+ Facts About the Unsinkable Ship


Barb Asselin - 2014
    Inside, you will find over 200 facts about the Titanic. There are facts about: • Building the Titanic • Crew of the Titanic • Passengers of the Titanic • Interior of the Titanic • Maiden voyage of the Titanic • Sinking of the Titanic • Survivors of the Titanic • Museums of the Titanic • Movies about the Titanic • Titanic’s legacy Ready? Let’s go back to Titanic…

The Zentangle Untangled Workbook: A Tangle-a-Day to Draw Your Stress Away


Kass Hall - 2013
    Now in The Zentangle Untangled Workbook, you'll get enough Zentangle instruction and inspiration to last all year long. Filled with dozens of new tiles and four never-before seen tangles designed especially for this book, you'll be using Zentangle in ways you never dreamed. Create shapes, letterforms, borders, even Zendalas as you master each new tangle, all while reducing stress through the intentional act of creating repetitive patterns. Perfect for artists of all levels, this workbook will immerse you in a daily meditation of Zentangle. Insides you'll find: Seven step-by-step demonstrations to help you get started. Inspiration and guidance on how to use those tangles to create unique and beautiful tiles throughout the year. More than 400 blank or partially started tiles so you can practice all year inside this book and without the fear of the blank page. It's time to tangle!

Secrets of the Samurai: The Martial Arts of Feudal Japan


Oscar Ratti - 1973
    An essential work for anyone with an interest in Japanese battle techniques or military traditions.

Aikido and the Harmony of Nature


Mitsugi Saotome - 1986
    Mitsugi Saotome examines the spiritual philosophy of the Founder, the warrior ideals of feudal Japan as the basis of his martial arts philosophy, and the scientific principles underlying the philosophy of Aikido technique. The author shows that the physical movement of Aikido is the embodiment of principles of the spirit. Negative force is not countered with aggression but is controlled and redirected through the power and balance of spiral movement. This is the shape of Aikido and the dynamic shape at the foundation of all energies of existence. Aikido movement can only be understood from its roots in universal law and the processes of nature. The sincere practice and study of Aikido deepens our appreciation for the perfection of nature's balance and brings us back into harmony with our environment, other people, and ourselves. Abundantly illustrated with the author's drawings, diagrams, and calligraphies, as well as photographs demonstrating Aikido techniques, the book also offers a history of Aikido, personal anecdotes about the Founder, and translations of several of his lectures.

Kendo: The Definitive Guide


Hiroshi Ozawa - 1997
    Kendo: The Definitive Guide is the first book in English to provide a practical and truly comprehensive approach to the subject. Everything that the novice needs to know, from basic information about purchasing, wearing, and maintaining essential equipment to competing in international tournaments, is explained in simple, straightforward language. Step-by-step explanation of fundamental techniques needed to be mastered to attain black belt level is illustrated in easy-to-follow line drawings. With appendices giving the rules at international competitions and important information about Kendo clubs outside Japan, Kendo is the definitive guide for all non-Japanese Kendoists. A special section about the history and development of this martial art and guidelines for running practice sessions also make it a unique resource for all teachers of Kendo.

ESPN College Football Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Game


Michael MacCambridge - 2005
    On any given Saturday, in dozens of stadiums across America, you will find crowds in excess of 75,000 gathered to root on their teams. This book is their Bible???a rich and comprehensive reference guide to the game??'s history, tradition and lore. Based on three years of research by the nation??'s foremost football experts, the book features: ???? ???? ??Capsule histories for each of the 119 Division 1-A programs, the Ivy League schools and teams from the SWAC, MEAC and historically black colleges ??????????????Year-by-year schedules and records ??????????????Statistical leaders from every school ??????????????Fightsong lyrics ??????????????Box scores for every bowl game ever played ??????????????4-color insert illustrating the evolution of each school??'s helmet design ??????????????Weekly polls dating back to 1936 ??????????????Essays by the game??'s top wordsmiths (Dan Jenkins, Beano Cook, Chris Fowler, Gene Wojciechowski) ??????????????Plus a lively round table discussion with ESPN??'s popular Game Day Team (Fowler, LeeCorso and Kirk Herbstreit) Packed with tables and charts and designed in an easy-to-read style, the updated ESPN College Football Encyclopedia will continue to dazzle even the most knowledgeable fan.

The Art of My Neighbor Totoro


Hayao Miyazaki - 2005
    in Japan.

Prabhakaran: The Story of his struggle for Eelam


Chellamuthu Kuppusamy - 2013
    This book provides an account of the life of LTTE chief Prabhakaran, who led an armed struggle against the Sri Lankan state to create Eelam, a separate nation for the Sri Lankan Tamils.The book begins from Prabhakaran’s childhood days in the aftermath of India’s and Sri Lanka’s independence from Britain. The Sri Lankan Tamils were following Gandhi’s non-violent methods to fight for their rights as citizens of Sri Lanka. Prabhakaran, an ardent fan of Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose, felt that non-violence would not work against a Sinhala dominated government and began experimenting with violent acts against the Government to send a message. His initial success became the nucleus for the formation of LTTE, which became the quintessential guerrilla organization fighting the State.The book details various incidents of Prabhakaran’s life including terror attacks, assassination of politicians, heads of States and militant leaders; India’s role in the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict; Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka; the Eelam wars, negotiations, betrayals and elections; through to his killing in May 2009.

Drawing Dragons: Learn How to Create Fantastic Fire-Breathing Dragons


Sandra Staple - 2008
    You’ll discover how to draw all types of dragons using nothing but a pencil. Drawing Dragons shows how to bring to life fierce warriors and bearded ancients as well as baby hatchlings and protective mothers. It also features a special section on adding claws, scales, horns, jewels and other unique details to your dragons.Learn to draw:• Ferocious, attacking dragons•Graceful sea dragons•Fire-breathing flying dragons•Wise, thoughtful dragons

The Essence of Karate


Hirokazu Kanazawa - 2010
    In The Essence of Karate, Funakoshi creates, in his own words, a narrative of modern karate. He explains the philosophical and spiritual underpinnings and includes memories of his own training, as well as recollections of other karate masters and the history of the martial art. He also discusses the importance of winning without fighting, and the reason why many great martial artists improve with age.The preface has been contributed by Hirokazu Kanazawa, President of the Shotokan Karate-do International Federation (and Funakoshi's disciple). He fondly writes of his memories of Gichin Funakoshi during his youth and what he learned from the master. In the afterword, the founder's great-nephew, Gisho Funakoshi, shares previously unknown personal anecdotes about his "Uncle Funakoshi."

Pay the Devil in Bitcoin: The Creation of a Cryptocurrency and How Half a Billion Dollars of It Vanished from Japan (Kindle Single)


Jake Adelstein - 2017
     Even in hell, bitcoin talks. This modern take on an old Japanese saying still holds true. The cryptocurrency was supposed to do for money what the Internet did for information, but it didn’t work out that way. Its virtual existence unleashed real-world chaos—especially in the homeland of its mysterious creator, Satoshi Nakamoto. Tokyo was the center of the world’s largest bitcoin exchange, Mt. Gox, until that company collapsed with nearly half a billion dollars’ worth of bitcoin gone missing. It might be the greatest heist in history. If it was a heist. So what really happened? Here’s the true story of the humble-to-hot commodity, from the former geek website that launched the boom to an inside world of absent-minded CEOs, hucksters, hackers, cybercrooks, drug dealers, corrupt federal agents, evangelical libertarians, and clueless techies. You’ll discover bitcoin’s connection to the infamous Silk Road, learn why hell has nothing on Japan’s criminal justice system, and get the lowdown on the high cost of betting with the devil’s dollars. All of this for less than the price of a single bitcoin. ABOUT THE AUTHORS Jake Adelstein has been an investigative journalist in Japan since 1993. Considered one of the foremost experts on organized crime in that country, he works as a writer and consultant in Japan and the United States, writing for the Daily Beast, the Japanese economic monthly ZAITEN, and other publications. He has served as a special correspondent for the Los Angeles Times and is the author of Tokyo Vice: An American Reporter on the Police Beat in Japan (Vintage), which has been translated into twelve languages, and Operation Tropical Storm (Kindle Single). Nathalie Stucky is a freelance journalist in Tokyo and Europe. She was an assistant correspondent for the Japanese news agency Jiji Press in Geneva and contributed to the book Reconstructing 3/11. She has written for the Daily Beast, the Los Angeles Times, and several French publications.

Samurai Revolution: The Dawn of Modern Japan Seen Through the Eyes of the Shogun's Last Samurai


Romulus Hillsborough - 2014
    It transformed Japan from a country of hundreds of feudal domains under the hegemony of the Tokugawa Shogun, into a modern industrialized world power under the unifying rule of the Emperor. The shogun was head of the ruling Tokugawa family, and his regime was known as the Tokugawa Bakufu (Bakufu, for short).The first chapter of Samurai Revolution opens with the arrival of American warships commanded by Commodore Matthew Perry in 1853, sparking the revolution that would end with the fall of the Bakufu in 1868. The last chapter ends with the crushing defeat in 1877 of an army of former samurai who stood against the Imperial government they had created, marking the end of the samurai era, and with it the last vestiges of feudal Japan.The series of tumultuous events between 1853 and 1868 are collectively called the Meiji Restoration (i.e., the restoration of Imperial rule). The Meiji Restoration was Japan’s modern revolution. It was different from other great revolutions in that it was brought about by men of the ruling caste—i.e., samurai. It is a human drama of epic proportion, which is how author Romulus Hillsborough treats it in Samurai Revolution. And just as the Meiji Restoration was “the dawn of modern Japan,” knowledge of this history is essential for understanding the complexities of today’s Japan.The overthrow of the Bakufu in 1868 sparked a contained civil war that would have spread throughout the country, endangering Japan’s sovereignty, had Katsu Kaishu, as commander in chief of the fallen shogun’s still formidable military, not negotiated an eleventh-hour peace with Saigo Takamori, commander of the Imperial Army.While Katsu is a household name in Japan, Samurai Revolution, based largely on primary sources, is the first comprehensive English language treatment of the man’s life, mind, and important role in the Meiji Restoration, though Hillsborough has written about him in other books as well. And though the focus is on Katsu Kaishu, this book is more of a history than a traditional biography. In telling this history from the perspective of Katsu Kaishu, commissioner of the shogun’s navy and later supreme commander of the Tokugawa military, Hillsborough also portrays an array of other leading players in the Meiji Restoration drama – examining their values and social systems, their culture and ideals, their desires and fears, and their historical perspectives – against a backdrop of tumultuous events that would change their world forever.OverviewThe Introduction provides the historical and political background of Japan under the hegemony of the Tokugawa Bakufu. The body of Samurai Revolution (not including the Epilogue) is divided into two Books (published as one volume), comprising a brief Prologue and five distinct Parts in 37 Chapters, and ending with the lengthy Epilogue and Appendix.Book 1: The Fall of the Tokugawa Bakufu (1853-1868) covers the cataclysmic fifteen-year history of the fall of the Bakufu and the restoration of Imperial rule–i.e., the Meiji Restoration (1853-1868). The Prologue and Parts I through III comprise Book 1.Book 2: The Rise of Imperial Japan (1868-1878), comprised of Parts IV and V, chronicles the first decade of Imperial Japan (1868-1877) under the newly restored monarchy.The Epilogue summarizes the last two decades of Katsu Kaishu’s life (1879-1899).Throughout the volume, Hillsborough quotes Katsu Kaishu, a prolific writer, focusing on his journals, letters, histories, biographical sketches, and oral memoirs. (All citations are Hillsborough’s own translations of the original texts.) As such, Kaishu’s unique personality – the down-to-earth attitude, magnanimity, scathing humor, genius in overcoming adversity, and humanity – come forth.Fourteen of the thirty-seven chapters focus on historical events and sociocultural phenomena in which Katsu Kaishu had little or no direct involvement–but which nonetheless had a profound effect on him personally and on Japanese society and history overall. The remaining twenty-three chapters focus either on Katsu Kaishu or events in which he was directly involved.The revolution, broadly speaking, pitted three of the most powerful samurai clans – Satsuma, Choshu and Tosa – against the Bakufu and its allies, with the Emperor and his Court caught in the middle. Beside Katsu Kaishu, among the most prominent men are: Ii Naosuké, the boy-shogun’s dictatorial regent whose assassination in the spring of 1860 marked the beginning of the end of the Bakufu; Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the last shogun, whose rise and fall is integral to this history; Saigo Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi, who emerged, respectively, as the military and political leaders of Satsuma, the former the driving force behind the revolution, the latter the most powerful man in the early Imperial government; Yoshida Shoin, Takasugi Shinsaku, and Katsura Kogoro, respectively the spiritual/academic, military and political leaders of Choshu, without whom the revolution, as it happened, would have been unachievable; and the outlaw samurai Sakamoto Ryoma of Tosa, who, formerly Katsu Kaishu’s protégé, brokered the military alliance between Satsuma and Choshu to overthrow the government his mentor represented.Samurai Revolution is the first English-language presentation and analyses of these powerful and alluring personalities in one volume aimed at a general international audience.

Mahatma Gandhi and His Myths: Civil Disobedience, Nonviolence, and Satyagraha in the Real World (Plus Why It's 'Gandhi,' Not 'Ghandi')


Mark Shepard - 1989
    In this Annual Gandhi Lecture for the International Association of Gandhian Studies, Mark Shepard tackles some persistently wrong-headed views of Gandhi, offering us a more accurate picture of the man and his nonviolence.///////////////////////////////////////////////// Mark Shepard is the author of "Mahatma Gandhi and His Myths," "The Community of the Ark," and "Gandhi Today," called by the American Library Association's Booklist "a masterpiece of committed reporting." His writings on social alternatives have appeared in over 30 publications in the United States, Canada, England, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Japan, and India. ///////////////////////////////////////////////// SAMPLE I suspect that most of the myths and misconceptions surrounding Gandhi have to do with nonviolence. For instance, it's surprising how many people still have the idea that nonviolent action is passive. It's important for us to be clear about this: There is nothing passive about Gandhian nonviolent action. I'm afraid Gandhi himself helped create this confusion by referring to his method at first as "passive resistance," because it was in some ways like techniques bearing that label. But he soon changed his mind and rejected the term. Gandhi's nonviolent action was not an evasive strategy nor a defensive one. Gandhi was always on the offensive. He believed in confronting his opponents aggressively, in such a way that they could not avoid dealing with him. But wasn't Gandhi's nonviolent action designed to avoid violence? Yes and no. Gandhi steadfastly avoided violence toward his opponents. He did not avoid violence toward himself or his followers. Gandhi said that the nonviolent activist, like any soldier, had to be ready to die for the cause. And in fact, during India's struggle for independence, hundreds of Indians were killed by the British. The difference was that the nonviolent activist, while willing to die, was never willing to kill. Gandhi pointed out three possible responses to oppression and injustice. One he described as the coward's way: to accept the wrong or run away from it.