Vikings Nonfiction

Vikings part 2: nonfiction!

Beyond the Northlands: Viking Voyages and the Old Norse Sagas by Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough - In the dying days of the eighth century, the Vikings erupted onto the international stage with brutal raids and slaughter. The medieval Norsemen may be best remembered as monk murderers and village pillagers, but this is far from the whole story. Throughout the Middle Ages, long-ships transported hairy northern voyagers far and wide, where they not only raided but also traded, explored and settled new lands, encountered unfamiliar races, and embarked on pilgrimages and crusades. To explore the sagas and the world that produced them, Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough now takes her own trip through the dramatic landscapes that they describe. Along the way, she illuminates the rich but often confusing saga accounts with a range of other evidence: archaeological finds, rune-stones, medieval world maps, encyclopaedic manuscripts, and texts from as far away as Byzantium and Baghdad. As her journey across the Old Norse world shows, by situating the sagas against the revealing background of this other evidence, we can begin at least to understand just how the world was experienced, remembered, and imagined by this unique culture from the outermost edge of Europe so many centuries ago.

Exploring the World of the Vikings by R. A. Hall - This authoritative new survey of Viking history and culture tells the complete story of the Vikings from their origins in Scandinavia during the first millennium AD, through the incredible period of raiding, trading and settling known as the Viking Age, to their last surviving settlements in 15th century Greenland.

Laughing Shall I Die: Lives and Deaths of the Great Vikings by T. A. Shippey - Viking literature is dominated by famous last stands, famous last words, death songs and defiant gestures, all laced with grim humour. Much of this mindset is alien to modern sentiment, and academics have accordingly shunned it. And yet, it is the same worldvew that has always powered the popular public image of the Vikings - with their berserkers, valkeyries and cults of Valhalla and Ragnarok - and has also been corroborated by archaeological discoveries. Was it this mindset that powered the sudden eruption of the Vikings onto the European scene? Was it a belief in heroic death that made them so lastingly successful against so many bellicose opponents? Weighing the evidence of sagas and poetry against the accounts of the Vikings' victims, Tom Shippey considers these questions as he plumbs the complexities of Viking psychology and recounts many of the great bravura scenes of Old Norse literature, including the Fall of the House of Skjoldunds, the clash between two great longships Ironbeard and Long Serpent, and the death of Thormod the skald.

The Sea Wolves: A History of the Vikings by Lars Brownworth - In AD 793 Norse warriors struck the English isle of Lindisfarne and laid waste to it. Wave after wave of Norse 'sea-wolves' followed in search of plunder, land, or a glorious death in battle. Much of the British Isles fell before their swords, and the continental capitals of Paris and Aachen were sacked in turn. Turning east, they swept down the uncharted rivers of central Europe, captured Kiev and clashed with mighty Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire. But there is more to the Viking story than brute force. They were makers of law - the term itself comes from an Old Norse word - and they introduced a novel form of trial by jury to England. They were also sophisticated merchants and explorers who settled Iceland, founded Dublin, and established a trading network that stretched from Baghdad to the coast of North America. In The Sea Wolves, Lars Brownworth brings to life this extraordinary Norse world of epic poets, heroes, and travellers through the stories of the great Viking figures. Among others, Leif the Lucky who discovered a new world, Ragnar Lodbrok the scourge of France, Eric Bloodaxe who ruled in York, and the crafty Harald Hardrada illuminate the saga of the Viking age - a time which "has passed away, and grown dark under the cover of night.

The Viking Experience by Marjolein Stern & Roderick Dale - The impact of the Vikings is impossible to overstate. A people apparently condemned to a marginal existence in the remote wastes of Dark Age northern Europe, they burst onto an unsuspecting continent with extraordinary consequences. Initially they were pirates and raiders of astounding ferocity. In a matter of decades, they had laid waste much of the coastal British Isles and had penetrated deep into France, threatening to snuff out for good an emerging Christendom. They launched raids against Muslim Iberia and then into the Mediterranean. They pushed east across the Baltic and from there south along the river-systems of western Russia to the Black Sea and Byzantium, establishing themselves as traders and slavers. They discovered and exploited sea-routes deep into the North Atlantic, and finally to America itself. They initiated routes of oceanic exploration that would be unmatched until Columbus five centuries later. This book, accessible and vivid, sheds new light on the Viking Age. It examines their gods and belief systems, their technological advances, their craftsmanship, their social organization, their success as colonizers, their political coups, their military might, their commercial nous, and their remarkable self-belief. It provides a compelling portrait of a world decisively shaped by the Viking initiatives and imperative. 

Viking: The Norse Warrior's (Unofficial) Manual by John Haywood - The fifth instalment in this popular and highly successful series, Viking follows on from Legionary, Gladiator, Knight and Samurai, your guide to the Norse world of the tenth century ad. Discover everything you will need to become a successful Viking warrior: how to join a war band; what to look for in a good leader; how to behave at a feast; what weapons and armour to choose; how to fight in a shield wall; where to go raiding; how to plunder a monastery and ransom a monk; how to navigate at sea; and what to expect if you die gloriously in battle. Modern reconstructions and ancient artefacts, including 16 pages of brilliant colour images, will immerse the reader visually in the Viking world. The humorous text peppered with quotes from sagas and chronicles will take you on an engrossing journey from joining a raiding party to how to die gloriously.

The Vikings: A New History by Neil Oliver - The Vikings famously took no prisoners, relished cruel retribution, and prided themselves on their bloodthirsty skills as warriors. But their prowess in battle is only a small part of their story, which stretches from their Scandinavian origins to America in the West and as far as Baghdad in the East. As the Vikings did not write their own history, we have to discover it for ourselves; and that discovery, as Neil Oliver reveals, tells an extraordinary story of a people who, from the brink of destruction, reached a quarter of the way around the globe and built an empire that lasted nearly two hundred years.Drawing on the latest discoveries that have only recently come to light, Scottish archaeologist Neil Oliver goes on the trail of the real Vikings. Where did they emerge from? How did they really live? And just what drove them to embark on such extraordinary voyages of discovery over 1,000 years ago? The Vikings: A New History explores many of those questions for the first time in an epic story of one of the world's great empires of conquest.

Vikings: Life and Legend edited by Gareth Williams, Peter Pentz, & Mattias Wemhoff - In the ninth and tenth centuries, the Vikings created a cultural network that spanned four continents: from the Caspian Sea to the North Atlantic and from the Arctic Circle to the Mediterranean. The Viking Age was a period of major change as a result of the Vikings' impact on neighboring areas and the introduction of external influences into Scandinavia. This book explores Viking culture from a global perspective, examining the influences of their varied contacts from around the world and how Viking Scandinavia drew from both Christian Europe and the Islamic world.
The book focuses on the core period of the Viking Age, from the late eighth to the early eleventh centuries. New discoveries by archaeologists and metal detectorists highlight the interconnected nature of the cultures of Europe, Byzantium, and the Middle East.
Vikings accompanies a major exhibition developed jointly by the British Museum, the National Museum of Denmark, and the Museum for Prehistory and Early History in Berlin. Edited by the exhibition curators Gareth Williams, Peter Pentz, and Matthias Wemhoff and with contributions from a number of key experts, the book, with its strong, flowing narrative and integrated illustrations, draws on a wealth of Viking objects to provide a rich and vivid account of the impact of Viking expansion throughout the world.

Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga edited by William W. Fitzhugh & Elisabeth I. Ward - The Vikings' Territorial Expansion from their Scandinavian homelands across the Atlantic to North America a thousand years ago stands as one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of exploration. Between A.D.750 and 1050, seaborne Viking warriors established trade networks reaching from Baghdad to Greenland, introduced Christianity to Scandinavia, and settled the uninhabited North Atlantic islands. In about A.D. 1000, Leif Eriksson brought his ship to shore in what is today northeastern Canada, becoming the first European to set foot in the New World.

The World of the Vikings by Justin Pollard - MGM's hit show Vikings on the History Channel has drawn millions of viewers into the fascinating and bloody world of legendary Norse hero Ragnar Lothbrok, who led Viking warriors to the British Isles and France. Covering the first three seasons of the series, this official companion book delves into the real history as well as the behind-the-scenes stories. Viking historian Justin Pollard explains shipbuilding and navigation, Norse culture and religion, and the first encounters between Viking warriors and the kings of England and France. Interviews with cast and crew reveal the process of dramatizing this gripping story, from reviving the Old Norse language to choreographing battle scenes and building ancient temples for human sacrifice. This spectacular book is a must for fans of the show and history buffs alike.

Vikings Fiction

Doing a two part series today and tomorrow: vikings!  Today: fiction!

Blood Eye by Giles Kirstian - In a thrilling adventure of brotherhood, warfare, and treachery, Giles Kristian takes us into ninth-century England, a world of darkness, epic conflict, and an unforgiving God served by powerful priests. On ships shaped like dragons, bristling with oars and armor, Jarl Sigurd and his fierce Norsemen have come in search of riches. And riches they are promised, by an English ruler who sends Sigurd and his wolves to steal a holy manuscript from another kingdom. Osric, an orphan boy, sees beyond the terror of these warriors, and somehow knows the heathens' tongue. Renamed Raven, rechristened in blood, he will join them. They are his people. And they will be his fate. Book 1 of 3 in the Raven series

The Circle of Ceridwen by Octavia Randolph - It is the year 871, when England was Angle-Land, and largely fallen to the invading Vikings. Ceridwen, lost in the frozen woods, is discovered by warriors accompanying young Aelfwyn, daughter of a Saxon lord, sold into marriage to a Viking war chief as part of a peace treaty. Becoming fast friends with Aelfwyn, Ceridwen joins the group to their destination- the captured fortress of Four Stones. There, Ceridwen finds living with the enemy affords her unusual freedoms and she find contentment in helping Aelfwyn restore the Four Stones to glory, until a new arrival shatters their peace and sets Ceridwen on an extraordinary adventure to save a man she has never met.  Book 1 of 6 in the Circle of Ceridwen Saga

Fate's Needle by Jerry Autieri - No land. No father. No brother. No son." When his father is murdered and his brother betrays him to steal his birthright as Jarl of Grenner, Ulfrik Ormsson finds himself adrift on a sea of vengeance and corruption. Aided only by a beautiful slave, a smiling warrior, and a group of blood-lusting berserkers, he must wrest back his homelands by force and face the most difficult decision of all to even the scales of justice and honor.  Book 1 of 7 in Ulfrik Ormsson's Saga

God's Hammer by Eric Schumacher - It is 935 A.D. and the North is in turmoil. King Harald Fairhair has died, leaving the High Seat of the realm to his murderous son, Erik Bloodaxe. To solidify his claim, Erik ruthlessly disposes of all claimants to his throne, save one: his youngest brother Hakon.
Erik's surviving enemies send a ship to Wessex, where the Christian King Athelstan is raising Hakon. Unable to avoid his fate, he returns to the Viking North to face his brother and claim his birthright, only to discover that victory will demand sacrifices beyond his wildest nightmares.  Book 1 of 3 in Hakon's Saga

Hunting Season by Shelly Laurenston - Neecy Lawrence, winged warrior for a Viking goddess and second-in-command of the fierce Crows, doesn't know what to do with a nice guy. As it is, making up for a past she'd sooner forget leaves her barely polite most days. But Raven leader and loyal Odin warrior, Will Yager, isn't just nice. He's gorgeous, hot, and a distraction she simply can't afford. Yager has wanted Neecy in his life-and in his bed-for a long time. Not just for a night, but forever. And, like any self-respecting Viking, he'll stop at nothing to get what he wants. So what if she's the most difficult, complex, never-gives-him-a-break woman he's ever known? She's more than worth the effort. In fact, she's worth everything. And if it turns out that twenty-four hours of non-stop, any-way-she-wants-it sex doesn't work with Neecy? Then it looks like he'll just have to get a little more creative... Book 1 of the Gathering series

The Last Kingdom by Bernard Cornwell - This is the exciting--yet little known--story of the making of England in the 9th and 10th centuries, the years in which King Alfred the Great, his son and grandson defeated the Danish Vikings who had invaded and occupied three of England's four kingdoms.
The story is seen through the eyes of Uhtred, a dispossessed nobleman, who is captured as a child by the Danes and then raised by them so that, by the time the Northmen begin their assault on Wessex (Alfred's kingdom and the last territory in English hands) Uhtred almost thinks of himself as a Dane. He certainly has no love for Alfred, whom he considers a pious weakling and no match for Viking savagery, yet when Alfred unexpectedly defeats the Danes and the Danes themselves turn on Uhtred, he is finally forced to choose sides. By now he is a young man, in love, trained to fight and ready to take his place in the dreaded shield wall. Above all, though, he wishes to recover his father's land, the enchanting fort of Bebbanburg by the wild northern sea.  Book 1 of 11 in the Last Kingdom series

People of the Songtrail by W. Michael Gear & Kathleen O'Neal Gear - People of the Songtrail is the saga of the first European settlers to land on the shores of the New World. It is a story, like so many in America's history, of the swift and violent clash of cultures, and of extraordinary men and women on both sides who were brave enough to work for the fragile hope of peace. On the shores of what is now northeastern Canada, a small group of intrepid settlers have landed, seeking freedom to worship and prosper far from the religious strife and political upheaval that plague a war-ridden Europe... 500 years before Columbus set sail. Vikings, the first European settlers to land on the shores of the new world, intend to make it their home-- in spite of the Skraeling barbarians who stand in their way. In their swift and violent clash of cultures, there are men and women on both sides who are brave enough to work for the fragile hope of peace.  Book 17 of 18 in the North America's Forgotten Past series

Viking Warrior by Judson Roberts - A young man only at peace when he is at war
Young Halfdan is a slave. He is crafty with a bow and arrow and wise in the ways of the animals, but he can only dream of a warrior's life. That is, until the dark day a Saxon's blows lay his father on his deathbed, and his mother makes a tragic bargain for Halfdan's freedom.
A boy's destiny can come at the most terrible price. Halfdan must suffer a grave loss in order to grasp what he most desires: to train by, to live by, and, if the fates decree it, to die by the force of his sword and the swiftness of his arrow. He is to be a warrior -- a great warrior.
Bloody, furiously paced, heart-wrenching, and unflinching, this is a story of a land where the destinies of boys and men are forged in the heat of battle. Young Halfdan shall come to know the glories of true brotherhood and the unspeakable horrors of true evil. In this first book in a saga teeming with thrilling details of the Viking world, young Halfdan emerges as a new hero . . . a new myth . . . a new legend.   Book 1 of 4 in the Strongbow Saga

Warrior of the Wild by Tricia Levenseller - An eighteen-year-old chieftain's daughter must find a way to kill her village's oppressive deity if she ever wants to return home in this Viking-inspired YA standalone fantasy from Tricia Levenseller, author of Daughter of the Pirate King. How do you kill a god? As her father's chosen heir, eighteen-year-old Rasmira has trained her whole life to become a warrior and lead her village. But when her coming-of-age trial is sabotaged and she fails the test, her father banishes her to the monster-filled wilderness with an impossible quest: To win back her honor, she must kill the oppressive god who claims tribute from the villages each year or die trying? 

The Wolf in the Whale by Jordanna Max Brodsky - A young Inuit shaman's epic quest for survival in the frozen lands of North America in 1000 AD. Born with the soul of a hunter and the language of the gods, Omat is destined to become a shaman like her grandfather. To protect her people, she invokes the spirits of the sky, the sea, and the air. But the gods have stopped listening, the seals won't come, and Omat's family is starving. Desperate to save them, Omat journeys through the icy wastes, fighting for survival with every step. When she meets a Viking warrior and his strange new gods, together they set in motion a conflict that could shatter her world...or save it.  

Marijuana

Yesterday was the unofficial marijuana smoker's holiday.  Today we are featuring books on various topics to do with marijuana.  Enjoy.

Brave New Weed: Adventures Into the Uncharted World of Cannabis by Joe Dolce - Pot. Weed. Grass. Mary Jane. We all think we know what cannabis is and what we use it for. But do we? Our collective understanding of this surprising plant has been muddled by politics and morality; what we think we know isn't the real story.
A war on cannabis has been waged in the United States since the early years of the twentieth century, yet in the past decade, society has undergone a massive shift in perspective that has allowed us to reconsider our beliefs. In Brave New Weed, Joe Dolce travels the globe to "tear down the cannabis closet" and de-mystify this new frontier, seeking answers to the questions we didn't know we should ask.
Dolce heads to a host of places, including Amsterdam, Israel, California, and Colorado, where he skillfully unfolds the odd, shocking, and wildly funny history of this complex plant. From the outlandish stories of murder trials where defendants claimed "insanity due to marijuana consumption" to the groundbreaking success stories about the plant's impressive medicinal benefits, Dolce paints a fresh and much-needed portrait of cannabis, our changing attitudes toward it, and the brave new direction science and cultural acceptance are leading us.

The Cannabis Grow Bible: The Definitive Guide to Growing Marijuana for Recreational and Medical Use by Greg Green - When cannabis growers have questions about their crop, they turn to this bible. With over 55,000 orginal copies sold, this second edition delivers even more tips, and is fully illustrated and updated with a new section on organics. Greg Green offers methods on how to maximise yield and potency, whilst blending a solid understanding of marijuana botany with practical advice on the day-to-day demands of maintaining a garden. It also covers everything from the best plant genetics to protecting crops from pests and prying eyes.

Cannabis Pharmacy: The Practical Guide to Medical Marijuana by Michael Backes - In Cannabis Pharmacy, expert Michael Backes offers evidence-based information on using cannabis to treat an array of ailments and conditions. He provides information on how cannabis works with the body's own system, how best to prepare and administer it, and how to modify and control dosage. This newly revised edition is now completely up-to-date with the latest information on the body's encannabinoid system, which is now understood to control emotion, appetite, and memory, delivery and dosing of cannabis, including e-cigarette designs, additional varietals, and a new system for classification, as well as 21 additional ailments and conditions that can be treated with medical marijuana. There are currently more than 4.2 million medical cannabis patients in the United States, and there are 25 states plus the District of Columbia where medical cannabis is legal.

Marijuana Grow Basics: The Easy Guide for Cannabis Aficionados by Jorge Cervantes - This practical, informative guide tells readers everything they need to know about growing marijuana. Packed with more than 700 full-colour illustrations and photographs detailing more than 150 affordable grow set-ups, it is ideal for beginners and aficionados alike. Readers can become experts on grow rooms, feminised seeds, seedlings, cloning and mother plants, as well as manicuring, drying and curing your crop for the highest potency.

Marijuana is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink? by Steve Fox, Paul Armentano, & Mason Tvert - Nationally recognized marijuana-policy experts Steve Fox, Paul Armentano, and Mason Tvert compare and contrast the relative harms and legal status of the two most popular recreational substances in the world--marijuana and alcohol. Through an objective examination of the two drugs and the laws and social practices that steer people toward alcohol, the authors pose a simple yet rarely considered question: Why do we punish adults who make the rational, safer choice to use marijuana instead of alcohol?
Marijuana Is Safer reaches for a broad audience. For those unfamiliar with marijuana, it provides an introduction to the cannabis plant and its effects on the user, and debunks some of the government's most frequently cited marijuana myths. For current and aspiring advocates of marijuana-law reform, as well as anyone else who is interested in what is becoming a major political battle, the authors spell out why the message that marijuana is safer than alcohol must be a prominent part of the public debate over legalization.
Most importantly, for the millions of Americans who want to advance the cause of marijuana-policy reform--or simply want to defend their own personal, safer choice--this book provides the talking points and detailed information needed to make persuasive arguments to friends, family, coworkers, and elected officials.

Marijuana Nation: One Man's Chronicle of America Getting High: From Vietnam to Legalization by Roger A. Roffman - For 45 years, Roffman has worn a multitude of hats, all related to his fascination with marijuana: the first to survey soldiers about their pot use in Vietnam, activist working to reform the laws, federally-funded marijuana dependence researcher, addiction therapist, drug educator, and - for a while - even a dealer who helped cancer patients learn about pot.
It began in Vietnam where, as an Army officer in 1967, he questioned the prison terms meted out to soldiers who got high, while at every military base in the country booze was cheap and readily available.
Roffman has experienced the layered and complex relationship Americans have with marijuana first-hand. His stories offer all too rare balanced insights about a drug that directly or indirectly has affected virtually all of us living in Marijuana Nation.

The Official High Times Cannabis Cookbook: More than 50 Irresistible Recipes That Will Get You High by Elise McDonough - This first-ever cookbook from High Times magazine -- the world's most trusted name when it comes to getting stoned -- is the deliciously definitive guide to cannabis-infused cooking. Easy, accessible recipes and advice demystify the experience of cooking with grass and offer a cornucopia of irie appetizers and entrees, stoner sweets, cannabis cocktails, and high-holiday feasts for any occasion, from Time Warp Tamales and Sativa Shrimp Spring Rolls to Pico de Ganja Nachos and Pineapple Express Upside-Down Cake. Delectable color photos and recipes inspired by stoner celebrities such as Snoop Dogg, Cheech and Chong, and Willie Nelson will spark the interest of experienced cannabis cooks and "budding" chefs, whether they're looking for the perfect midnight munchie or just to take dinner to a higher level.

Smoke Signals: A Social History of Marijuana: Medical, Recreational, and Scientific by Martin A. Lee - Investigative journalist Martin A. Lee traces the social history of marijuana from its origins to its emergence in the 1960s as a defining force in an ongoing culture war. Lee describes how the illicit marijuana subculture overcame government opposition and morphed into a multibillion-dollar industry. In 1996, Californians voted to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes. Similar laws have followed in several other states, but not without antagonistic responses from federal, state, and local law enforcement. Lee draws attention to underreported scientific breakthroughs that are reshaping the therapeutic landscape: medical researchers have developed promising treatments for cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer's, diabetes, chronic pain, and many other conditions that are beyond the reach of conventional cures. This is a fascinating read for recreational users and patients, students and doctors, musicians and accountants, Baby Boomers and their kids, and anyone who has ever wondered about the secret life of this ubiquitous herb.

Weed the People: The Future of Legal Marijuana in America by Bruce Barcott - The legalization of marijuana is the next great reversal of history. Perhaps the most demonized substance in America, scientifically known as Cannabis sativa, simply a very fast growing herb, thrived underground as the nation's most popular illegal drug.
Now the tide has shifted: In 1996 California passed the nation's first medical marijuana law, which allowed patients to grow it and use it with a doctor's permission. By 2010, twenty states and the District of Columbia had adopted medical pot laws. In 2012 Colorado and Washington state passed ballot measures legalizing marijuana for adults age 21 and older.
The magnitude of the change in America's relationship to marijuana can't be measured in only economic or social terms: There are deeper shifts going on here - cultural realignments, social adjustments, and financial adjustments. The place of marijuana in our lives is being rethought, reconsidered, and recalibrated. Four decades after Richard Nixon declared a War on Drugs, that long campaign has reached a point of exhaustion and failure. The era of its winding down as arrived.
Weed the People will take readers a half-step into the future. The issues surrounding the legalization of pot vary from the trivial to the profound. There are new questions of social etiquette: Is one expected to offer a neighborly toke? If so, how? Is it cool to bring cannabis to a Super Bowl party? Yea or nay on the zoning permit for a marijuana shop two doors down from the Safeway? Plus, there are the inevitable conversations between parents and children over exactly what this adult experiment with marijuana means for them.

A Woman's Guide to Cannabis: Using Marijuana to Feel Better, Look Better, Sleep Better - And Get High Like a Lady by Nikki Furrer - Women of all ages are using cannabis to feel and look better. For rookies and experienced marijuana users alike, this lively, information-filled book is just the supportive guide you need to find the right dose to relieve anxiety, depression, and inflammation, and mitigate the onset of dementia and other signs of aging. Plus boost moods, ease aches, even lose weight, and get restful sleep. And a dose just for fun? Well, that works, too! Here's how to navigate the typical dispensary, with its overwhelming options of concentrates, edibles, vape pens, and tinctures. Understand the amazing health-giving compounds found in cannabis,THC, CBD, terpenes, and more, and how to use topicals to reduce pain and give your skin a healthy glow. There's even advice on how not to get high but still reap all the amazing health benefits.

Fiction of Ancient Rome

According to legend, the city of Rome was founded by two brothers Romulus and Remus on the 21st of April in 753 BC.  Get ready to celebrate the 2,772nd birthday of Rome tomorrow with these novels of Ancient Rome.

Captivity by György Spiró - A literary sensation in Hungary, Gyorgy Spiro's Captivity is set in the tumultuous first century A.D., between the year of Christ's death and the outbreak of the Jewish War. It follows the adventures of the feeble-bodied, bookish Uri, a young Roman Jew. Frustrated with his hapless son, Uri's father sends the young man to the Holy Land to regain the family's prestige. In Jerusalem, Uri is imprisoned by Herod and meets two thieves and (perhaps) Jesus before their crucifixion. Later he has an awakening in cosmopolitan Alexandria, and then returns home to an unexpected inheritance. 

Emperor: The Gates of Rome by Conn Iggulden - In a true masterpiece of historical fiction, Iggulden takes us on a breathtaking journey through ancient Rome, sweeping us into a realm of tyrants and slaves, of dark intrigues and seething passions. What emerges is both a grand romantic tale of coming-of-age in the Roman Empire and a vibrant portrait of the early years of a man who would become the most powerful ruler on earth: Julius Caesar. On the lush Italian peninsula, a new empire is taking shape. At its heart is the city of Rome, a place of glory and decadence, beauty and bloodshed. Against this vivid backdrop, two boys are growing to manhood, dreaming of battles, fame, and glory in service of the mightiest empire the world has ever known. One is the son of a senator, a boy of privilege and ambition to whom much has been given and from whom much is expected. The other is a bastard child, a boy of strength and cunning, whose love for his adoptive family–and his adoptive brother–will be the most powerful force in his life. As young Gaius and Marcus are trained in the art of combat–under the tutelage of one of Rome’s most fearsome gladiators–Rome itself is being rocked by the art of treachery and ambition, caught in a tug-of-war as two rival generals, Marius and Sulla, push the empire toward civil war. For Marcus, a bloody campaign in Greece will become a young soldier’s proving ground. For Gaius, the equally deadly infighting of the Roman Senate will be the battlefield where he hones his courage and skill. And for both, the love of an extraordinary slave girl will be an honor each will covet but only one will win. The two friends are forced to walk different paths, and by the time they meet again everything will have changed. Both will have known love, loss, and violence. And the land where they were once innocent will be thrust into the grip of bitter conflict–a conflict that will set Roman against Roman...and put their friendship to the ultimate test.  Book 1 of 5 in the Emperor series

Feast of Sorrow by Crystal King - Set amongst the scandal, wealth, and upstairs-downstairs politics of a Roman family, Crystal King's seminal debut features the man who inspired the world's oldest cookbook and the ambition that led to his destruction. On a blistering day in the twenty-sixth year of Augustus Caesar's reign, a young chef, Thrasius, is acquired for the exorbitant price of twenty thousand denarii. His purchaser is the infamous gourmet Marcus Gavius Apicius, wealthy beyond measure, obsessed with a taste for fine meals from exotic places, and a singular ambition: to serve as culinary advisor to Caesar, an honor that will cement his legacy as Rome's leading epicure. Apicius rightfully believes that Thrasius is the key to his culinary success, and with Thrasius's help he soon becomes known for his lavish parties and fantastic meals. Thrasius finds a family in Apicius's household, his daughter Apicata, his wife Aelia, and her handmaiden, Passia, whom Thrasius quickly falls in love with. But as Apicius draws closer to his ultimate goal, his reckless disregard for any who might get in his way takes a dangerous turn that threatens his young family and places his entire household at the mercy of the most powerful forces in Rome. 

Fire in the East by Harry Sidebottom - A.D. 255: The Roman Imperium is stretched to the breaking point, its authority and might challenged throughout the territories and along every border. One man is sent to marshal the defenses of a lonely city and to shore up the crumbling walls of a once indomitable symbol of Roman power, a man whose very name means war, a man called Ballista. So unfolds an epic drama--a story of empire, heroes, treachery, courage, and most of all, of brutal, bloody warfare.  Book 1 of 7 in the Warrior of Rome series

I am Livia by Phyllis T. Smith - At the tender age of fourteen, Livia Drusilla overhears her father and fellow aristocrats plotting the assassination of Julius Caesar. Proving herself an astute confidante, she becomes her father's chief political asset--and reluctantly enters into an advantageous marriage to a prominent military officer. Her mother tells her, "It is possible for a woman to influence public affairs," reminding Livia that--while she possesses a keen sense for the machinations of the Roman senate--she must also remain patient and practical.
But patience and practicality disappear from Livia's mind when she meets Caesar's heir, Octavianus. At only eighteen, he displays both power and modesty. A young wife by that point, Livia finds herself drawn to the golden-haired boy. In time, his fortunes will rise as Livia's family faces terrible danger. But her sharp intellect--and her heart--will lead Livia to make an unbelievable choice: one that will give her greater sway over Rome than she could have ever foreseen.

Imperium by Robert Harris - Of all the great figures of the Roman world, none was more fascinating or charismatic than Marcus Cicero, the greatest orator of all time, who at the age of twenty-seven was determined to attain imperium--supreme power in the state. At his side was the everpresent Tiro, the confidential secretary and slave, whose celebrated biography of his master was lost in the Dark Ages. Imperium is the re-creation of Tiro's vanished masterpiece, recounting in vivid detail the story of Cicero's extraordinary quest for glory.  Book 1 of 3 in the Cicero series

Mistress of Rome by Kate Quinn - First-century Rome: One young woman will hold the fate of an empire in her hands.
Thea is a captive from Judaea, a clever and determined survivor hiding behind a slave's docile mask. Purchased as a toy for the spoiled heiress Lepida Pollia, Thea evades her mistress's spite and hones a secret passion for music. But when Thea wins the love of Rome's newest and most savage gladiator and dares to dream of a better life, the jealous Lepida tears the lovers apart and casts Thea out.
Rome offers many ways for the resourceful to survive, and Thea remakes herself as a singer for the eternal city's glittering aristocrats. As she struggles for success and independence, her nightingale voice attracts a dangerous new admirer: the Emperor himself. But the passions of an all-powerful man come with a heavy price, and Thea finds herself fighting for both her soul and her destiny.
Many have tried to destroy the Emperor: a vengeful gladiator, an upright senator, a tormented soldier, a Vestal Virgin. But in the end, the life of Rome's most powerful man lies in the hands of one woman: the Emperor's mistress.  Book 1 of 4 in the Empress of Rome series

Roman Blood by Steven Saylor - Gordianus is hired by a young advocate, Cicero, to investigate a murder which is at the center of Cicero's first important case. Cicero is defending a man, Sextus Roscius, who is accused of perhaps the worst crime in Roman law -- the murder of his father -- and Gordianus must find the truth behind the murder to save a man from a particularly grisly punishment.  Book 1 of 13 in the Roma Sub Rosa series

The Uncertain Hour by Jesse Browner - a.d. 66: Having been falsely implicated in a plot to assassinate the emperor Nero, Titus Petronius has a choice: await the executioner at dawn, or die a noble Roman death by his own hand. Deciding that his will be a suicide like no other the world has ever seen, he summons a small circle of intimate friends to his magnificent villa on the enchanting Tyrrhenian coast of southern Italy. There, over the course of a balmy autumn's night, Petronius throws the party of a lifetime. As they feast on course after course of the most sumptuous and exotic fare the empire has to offer, his guests are expressly forbidden to dwell on the imminent tragedy; instead, they are enjoined to sing, eat, drink, and celebrate. But as his life dwindles to a few precious hours, Petronius himself cannot shake off the ghosts of his past or his regret over mistakes that can no longer be set right. With the fateful dawn approaching, he recalls the great love affair of his life, and his years as Nero's "Arbiter of Elegance." Not until the very end will he bequeath his magnum opus, The Satyricon, to posterity. 

Under the Eagle by Simon Scarrow - It is the year 42 AD, and Centurion Macro, battle-scarred and fearless, is in the heart of Germany with the Second Legion, the toughest in the Roman army. Cato, a new recruit and the newly appointed second-in-command to Macro, will have more to prove than most. In a bloody skirmish with local tribes, Cato gets his first chance to prove that he's more than a callow, privileged youth. As their next campaign takes them to a land of unparalleled barbarity - Britain - a special mission unfolds, thrusting Cato and Macro headlong into a conspiracy that threatens to topple the Emperor himself.  Book 1 of 18 in the Eagles of the Empire series 

Marathon Running

Today in history - April 19th, 1897 - The first Boston Marathon is held.  Also, this year's Boston Marathon was just this Monday!  Here are 10 books on marathon running.

26 Marathons: What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life From My Marathon Career by Meb Keflezighi - Four-time Olympic marathoner Meb Keflezighi shares his lessons on life, family, faith, and running through a reflection on each of the 26 marathons he's run in his storied career. When four-time Olympian Meb Keflezighi ran his final marathon in New York City on November 5, 2017, it marked the end of an extraordinary distance-running career. Meb will be remembered as the only person in history to win both the Boston and New York City marathons as well as an Olympic marathon silver medal. Meb's last marathon was also his 26th, and each of those 26 marathons has come with its own unique challenges, rewards, and outcomes for him. Through focused narrative, Meb describes key moments and triumphs that made each marathon a unique learning experience and shows runners--whether recreational or professional--how to apply the lessons he's learned to their own running and lives. Chronologically organized by marathon, 26 Marathons offers wisdom Meb has gleaned about life, family, identity, and faith in addition to tips about running, training, and nutrition. Equal parts inspiration and practical advice, this book will provide readers an inside look at the life and success of one of the greatest runners living today.

26.2 Miles to Boston: A Journey Into the Heart of the Boston Marathon by Michael Connelly - For this revised and updated edition, author and lifetime Bostonian Michael Connelly will conduct interviews with runners of the 2013 Marathon and those preparing to run in 2014 - which will prove to be the Marathon's most historic and highly attended. While still containing the wonderful trivia, history, and traditions from the original 26 Miles to Boston, this updated edition widens the POV, weaving in the shocking events surrounding the 2013 race, the aftermath, and Boston's resilience and commitment to make the 2014 race something to celebrate for the ages. With a new foreword by four-time Boston Marathon winner Bill Rodgers.

Eat & Run: My Unlikely Journey to Ultramarathon Greatness by Scott Jurek - For nearly two decades, Scott Jurek has been a dominant force--and darling--in the grueling and growing sport of ultrarunning. In 1999, as a complete unknown, he took the lead of the Western States Endurance Run, a 100-mile traverse over the old Gold Rush trails of the California Sierra Nevada. He won that race seven years in a row, setting a course record along the way. Twice he won the Badwater Ultramarathon, a 135-mile "jaunt" through Death Valley. Recently he set an American record of 165.7 miles in 24 hours--6 1/2 marathons in one day. And he was one of the elite runners who traveled to Mexico to run with the Tarahumara Indians, as profiled in the bestseller Born to Run. His accomplishments are nothing short of extraordinary, but that he has achieved all of this on a plant-based diet makes his story all the more so.
In Eat and Run, Scott Jurek opens up about his life and career--as an elite athlete and a vegan--and inspires runners at every level. From his Midwestern childhood hunting, fishing, and cooking for his meat-and-potatoes family, to his early beginnings in running (he hated it), to his slow transition to ultrarunning and veganism, to his world-spanning, record-breaking races, Scott's story shows the power of an iron will and blows apart all the stereotypes of what athletes should eat to fueloptimal performance. Chock-full of incredible, on-the-brink stories of endurance and competition, fascinating science, and accessible practical advice--including his own favorite plant-based recipes--Eat and Run will motivate everyone to "go the distance," whether that means getting out for that first run, expanding your food horizons, or simply exploring the limits of your own potential.

Life is a Marathon: A Memoir of Love and Endurance by Matt Fitzgerald - Step after step for 26.2 miles, hundreds of thousands of people run marathons. But why--what compels people past pain, lost toenails, 5.30 am start times, The Wall? Sports writer Matt Fitzgerald set out to run eight marathons in eight weeks across the country to answer that question. At each race, he meets an array of runners, from first timers, to dad-daughter teams and spouses, to people who'd been running for decades, and asks them what keeps them running. But there is another deeply personal part to Matt's journey: his own relationship to the sport--and how it helped him overcome his own struggles and cope with his wife Nataki's severe bipolar disorder.

Marathon Man: My 26.2 Mile Journey From Unknown Grad Student to the Top of the Running World by Bill Rodgers and Matthew Shepatin - Within a span of two hours and nine minutes, Bill Rodgers went from obscurity to legend, from Bill Rodgers to "Boston Billy." In doing so, he instantly became the people's champ and the poster boy for the soulful 1970s distance runner. Having won the Boston Marathon and New York Marathon four times each, he remains the only marathoner to have appeared on the cover of Sports Illustrated twice. Winning the Holy Grail of marathons in an unthinkable record time changed Bill's life forever.
But his dramatic breakthrough in Boston also changed the lives of countless others, instilling in other American runners the belief that they could follow in his footsteps, and inspiring thousands of regular people to lace up their shoes and chase down their own dreams. In the year before Rodger's victory at the 1975 Boston Marathon, 20,000 people had completed a marathon in the United States. By 2009, participants reached nearly half a million.
Thirty-seven years later Bill Rodgers still possesses the same warm, endearing, and whimsical spirit that turned him into one of America's most beloved athletes. In Marathon Man he details for the first time this historic race and the events that led him there.

Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide: Advice, Plans, and Programs for Half and Full Marathons by Hal Higdon - Especially in tough economic times, running offers an affordable and positive way to relieve stress  and gain a sense of accomplishment. Marathons and--more than ever--half-marathons are the ultimate achievement for runners and have experienced an unprecedented boom in the last several years.
New hunger for reliable information on marathon and half-marathon training, as well as new technologies that have revolutionized ordinary people's ability to train intelligently, means the time is right for a new edition of longtime Runner's World contributor Hal Higdon's classic guide to taking the guesswork out of preparing for a marathon, whether it's a reader's first or fiftieth.
Since its original publication in 1993, Higdon's definitive manual has sold over a quarter of a million
copies through all channels. The book is such a consistent seller for many reasons, but above and
beyond all the others is this one: It works. At the core of the book remains Higdon's clear and essential information on training, injury prevention, and nutrition. With more than 25 percent new material, this fourth edition of a running classic will be a must-own for both longtime runners and those new to the sport.

Mile Markers: The 26.2 Most Important Reasons Why Women Run by Kristin Armstrong - In Mile Markers, Runner's World contributing editor Kristin Armstrong captures the ineffable and timeless beauty of running, the importance of nurturing relationships with those we love, and the significance of reflecting on our experiences. This collection considers the most important reasons women run, celebrating the inspiring passion runners have for their sport and illustrating how running fosters a vitally powerful community. With unique wit, refreshing candor, and disarming vulnerability, Armstrong shares her conviction that running is the perfect parallel for marking the milestones of life. From describing running a hardfought race with her tightly-knit group of sweat sisters, to watching her children participate in the sport for the very first time, Armstrong infuses her experiences with a perspective of hope that every moment is a chance to become a stronger, wiser, more peaceful woman. Running threads these touching stories together, and through each of them we are shown the universal undercurrents of inspiration, growth, grace, family, empowerment, and endurance.

My Year of Running Dangerously: A Dad, A Daughter, and a Ridiculous Plan by Tom Foreman - CNN correspondent Tom Foreman's remarkable journey from half-hearted couch potato to ultra-marathon runner, with four half-marathons, three marathons, and 2,000 miles of training in between; a poignant and warm-hearted tale of parenting, overcoming the challenges of age, and quiet triumph. As a journalist whose career spans three decades, CNN correspondent Tom Foreman has reported from the heart of war zones, riots, and natural disasters. He has interviewed serial killers and been in the line of fire. But the most terrifying moment of his life didn't occur on the job--it occurred at home, when his 18-year old daughter asked, 'How would you feel about running a marathon with me?' At the time, Foreman was approaching 51 years old, and his last marathon was almost 30 years behind him. The race was just sixteen weeks away, but Foreman reluctantly agreed. Training with his daughter, who had just started college, would be a great bonding experience, albeit a long and painful one. My Year of Running Dangerously is Foreman's journey through four half-marathons, three marathons, and one 55-mile race. What started as an innocent request from his daughter quickly turned into a rekindled passion for long-distance running--for the training, the camaraderie, the defeats, and the victories. Told with honesty and humor, Foreman's account captures the universal fears of aging and failure alongside the hard-won moments of triumph, tenacity, and going further than you ever thought possible.

Running Home by Katie Arnold - For more than a decade, Katie Arnold chased adventure around the world, reporting on extreme athletes who performed outlandish feats--walking high lines a thousand feet off the ground without a harness, or running one hundred miles through the night. She wrote her stories by living them, until eventually life on the thin edge of risk began to seem normal. After she married, Katie and her husband vowed to raise their daughters to be adventurous, too, in the mountains and canyons of New Mexico. But when her father died of cancer, she was forced to confront her own mortality.
His death was cataclysmic, unleashing a perfect storm of grief and anxiety. She and her father, an enigmatic photographer for National Geographic, had always been kindred spirits. He introduced her to the outdoors and took her camping and on bicycle trips and down rivers, and taught her to find solace and courage in the natural world. And it was he who encouraged her to run her first race when she was seven years old.
Now nearly paralyzed by fear and terrified she was dying, too, she turned to the thing that had always made her feel most alive: running. Over the course of three tumultuous years, she ran alone through the wilderness, logging longer and longer distances, first a 50-kilometer ultramarathon, then 50 miles, then 100 kilometers. She ran to heal her grief, to outpace her worry that she wouldn't live to raise her own daughters. She ran to find strength in her weakness. She ran to remember and to forget. She ran to live.
Ultrarunning tests the limits of human endurance over seemingly inhuman distances, and as she clocked miles across mesas and mountains, Katie learned to tolerate pain and discomfort, and face her fears of uncertainty, vulnerability, and even death itself. As she ran, she found herself peeling back the layers of her relationship with her father, discovering that much of what she thought she knew about him, and her own past, was wrong.

Two Hours: The Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon by Ed Caesar - Two hours to cover twenty-six miles and 385 yards. It is running's Everest, a feat once seen as impossible for the human body. But now we can glimpse the mountaintop. The sub-two hour marathon will require an exceptional combination of speed, mental strength, and endurance. The pioneer will have to endure more, live braver, plan better, and be luckier than anyone who has run before. So who will it be?
In this spellbinding book, journalist Ed Caesar takes us into the world of elite marathoners: some of the greatest runners on earth. Through the stories of these rich characters, like Kenyan Geoffrey Mutai, around whom the narrative is built, Caesar traces the history of the marathon as well as the science, physiology, and psychology involved in running so fast for so long. And he shows us why this most democratic of races retains its brutal, enthralling appeal--and why we are drawn to test ourselves to the limit.
Two Hours is a book about a beautiful sport few people understand. It takes us from big-money races in the United States and Europe to remote villages in Kenya. It's about talent, heroism, and refusing to accept defeat. It is a book about running that is about much more than running. It is a human drama like no other.