Tai-Pan

Tai-Pan PDF Author: James Clavell
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982537574
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 889

Book Description
The sweeping epic novel of the founding of Hong Kong, by the #1 New York Times bestselling author and unparalleled master of historical fiction, James Clavell “There can only be one Tai-Pan.” Dirk Struan rose from humble beginnings to build Struan & Company, also known as the Noble House, into the world’s largest Far East trading company. He is now the Tai-Pan—Supreme Leader—of all Tai-Pans in China. Along the way, however, he made a powerful enemy. Tyler Brock, Struan’s rival from their early opium-smuggling days, also heads a large trading fleet, second in size only to Struan’s. But it is not only silks and spices that drive their mutual companies’ wealth—the opium trade is still booming. War between England and China might be over, but the hostilities remain. Struan and Brock come to control much of England’s trade with China yet neither can control their desires or their hatred of each other. Over the years, their two families will cross paths, threatening to rip both apart, with reverberations that will echo across the generations. Struan must fight to save his company and his family, or risk seeing everything he has created destroyed at the hands of his sworn enemy. Ambition, political intrigue, and love and lust weave their way throughout the novel the New York Times called, “grand entertainment...packed with action...with blood and sin, treachery and conspiracy, sex and murder.” East and West come together in an opulent and intricately plotted narrative. A tour-de-force of historical fiction, rich in detail yet eminently readable, Tai-Pan will stay with you long after the final page.

Gai-Jin

Gai-Jin PDF Author: James Clavell
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1094188034
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 1589

Book Description
The dynamic epic novel of political upheaval and societal change in late 1800s Japan, by the #1 New York Times bestselling author and unparalleled master of historical fiction, James Clavell This epic novel by master writer James Clavell, loosely based on the Namamugi Incident and Anglo-Satsuma War that took place in the late 1800s, is a richly researched, panoramic view of Japan’s budding relationship with the Western powers, its sweeping societal changes, and the political upheaval that followed. As Malcolm Struan, the son of Culum and Tess Struan, and a small band of Westerners travel down the Tōkaidō road, they are attacked by two Satsuma samurai, who mortally wound John Canterbury and seriously injure Malcolm, who then finds reprieve in the merchant village of Yokohama after a narrow escape facilitated by the unscathed Angelique. Angelique Richaud, Malcolm’s penniless but beautiful French companion, is thrown into a world of political intrigue, fierce devotion, unstable family dynamics, blackmail, and secrets as the trading houses battle for supremacy. With a cast of dynamic and fully recognized characters, Gai-Jin spins a tale of passionate love affairs, devastating loss, intense power struggles, and the fight to survive and thrive in a hostile new land that will leave readers longing for another foray into Clavell’s extraordinary Asian Saga.

Chen Pan-Ling's Original Tai Chi Chuan Textbook (Tai Chi Chuan Chaio Tsai)

Chen Pan-Ling's Original Tai Chi Chuan Textbook (Tai Chi Chuan Chaio Tsai) PDF Author: Chen Pan-Ling
Publisher: Blitz! Design
ISBN: 9780966024036
Category : Tai chi
Languages : en
Pages : 194

Book Description
CHEN PAN-LING'S ORIGINAL TAI CHI CHUAN TEXTBOOK (TAI CHI CHUAN CHIAO TSAI), translation of the Chinese text published in 1963, emerged when Chen chaired a committee of renowned martial artists of the 1940s. The resultant form, supported by scientific theory, incorporates the best from many styles popular at that time. Over 300 photos & illustrations act as a foundation for today's family styles. Tai chi chuan's mission is mental & physical well-being through self-defense. Scientific research supports tai chi's effectiveness in improving balance. Falls can mean decreased mobility, increased expenses, even nursing homes. This dilemma means more taxes for all, & poor quality of life for senior baby boomers. Teaching tai chi chuan to people of all ages is the express purpose of the original text, & the present translation. Y.W. Chang, Chen's senior student, collaborates with Ann Carruthers, a qualified curriculum developer & educator. This text has the elements of other tai chi chuan books, but with more structure for teaching & learning. Commentary, glossary, & other teaching aids make it an ideal supplement for university & hospital settings, along with the traditional martial arts studio. Blitz! Design, 2731 Palmer Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70118-6323; 504-862-0168.

Tai-Pan

Tai-Pan PDF Author: James Clavell
Publisher: New York : Dell Publishing Company
ISBN: 9780440184621
Category : American fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 740

Book Description
Dirk Straun, a pirate, smuggler, and ruthless individual, finds glory beyond his dreams as the Tai-Pan, or supreme leader, of Hong Kong.

Silk Road

Silk Road PDF Author: Colin Falconer
Publisher: Atlantic Books
ISBN: 0857891197
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 529

Book Description
1260 AD: Josseran Sarrazini is a Templar Knight, trained for war. But as the Christian garrisons in the Holy Land begin to fall to the Saracen, he must embark upon a mission of peace: to the golden palaces at Xanadu, to seek an alliance with Kubilai Khan, ruler of the greatest empire in history and commander of the invincible Mongol horde. Josseran's task is formidable. To ride the treacherous Silk Road to the edge of the known world. To cheat hunger, thirst, and death. And to forge a crucial allegiance with a people who do not honor his cause, or his God. Blazing with adventure, epic in scope, and utterly compulsive, Silk Road weaves a spellbinding story of war, honor, and desire onto the vast tapestry of the medieval East.

Samurai William

Samurai William PDF Author: Giles Milton
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ISBN: 0374706239
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 370

Book Description
An eye-opening account of the first encounter between England and Japan, by the acclaimed author of Nathaniel's Nutmeg In 1611, the merchants of London's East India Company received a mysterious letter from Japan, written several years previously by a marooned English mariner named William Adams. Foreigners had been denied access to Japan for centuries, yet Adams had been living in this unknown land for years. He had risen to the highest levels in the ruling shogun's court, taken a Japanese name, and was now offering his services as adviser and interpreter. Seven adventurers were sent to Japan with orders to find and befriend Adams, in the belief that he held the key to exploiting the opulent riches of this forbidden land. Their arrival was to prove a momentous event in the history of Japan and the shogun suddenly found himself facing a stark choice: to expel the foreigners and continue with his policy of isolation, or to open his country to the world. For more than a decade the English, helped by Adams, were to attempt trade with the shogun, but confounded by a culture so different from their own, and hounded by scheming Jesuit monks and fearsome Dutch assassins, they found themselves in a desperate battle for their lives. Samurai William is the fascinating story of a clash of two cultures, and of the enormous impact one Westerner had on the opening of the East.

Tai-Pan

Tai-Pan PDF Author: James Clavell
Publisher: Dell
ISBN: 0307491579
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 738

Book Description
“A fabulous epic of the Far East that will disturb and excite you . . . a thrilling and enticing tale of adventure and human relationships . . . dramatic episodes, exotic vignettes and heady descriptive passages.”—Baltimore Sun It is the early 19th century, when European traders and adventurers first began to penetrate the forbidding Chinese mainland. And it is in this exciting time and exotic place that a giant of an Englishman, Dirk Straun, sets out to turn the desolate island of Hong Kong into an impregnable fortress of British power, and to make himself supreme ruler…Tai-Pan! Praise for Tai-Pan “Unforgettable.”—Chicago Tribune “[James] Clavell is, as always, a matchless tale-spinner.”—Cosmopolitan “Every five or six years there appears on the horizon a book so vast in scope, so peopled with bold, colorful characters, it eclipses other efforts. . . . Such a book is Tai-Pan.”—Pittsburgh Press “Grand entertainment...packed with action...gaudy and flanboyant with blood and sin, treachery and conspiracy, sex and murder...fresh and vigorous.” —The New York Times

King Rat

King Rat PDF Author: James Clavell
Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
ISBN: 1982537612
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 528

Book Description
The epic novel of war, savagery, and survival in a Japanese POW camp by the #1 New York Times bestselling author and unparalleled master of historical fiction, James Clavell Japanese POW camp Changi, Singapore: hell on earth for the soldiers contained within its barbed wire walls. Officers and enlisted men, all prisoners together, yet the old hierarchies and rivalries survive. An American corporal, known as the King, has used his personality and wiles to facilitate trading with guards and locals to get needed food, supplies, even information into the camp. The imprisoned upper-class officers have never had to do things for themselves, and now they are reduced to wearing rags while the King’s clean shirt, gained through guts and moxie, seems like luxury in comparison. In the camp, everything has its price and everything is for sale. But trading is illegal—and the King has made a formidable enemy. Robin Grey, the provost marshal, hates the King and all he represents. Grey, though he grew up modestly, fervently believes in the British class system: everyone should know their place, and he knows the King’s place is at the bottom. The King does have a friend in Peter Marlowe, who, though wary of the King and himself a product of the British system, finds himself drawn to the charismatic man who just might be the only one who can save them from both the inhumanity of the prison camp but also from themselves. Powerful and engrossing, King Rat artfully weaves the author’s own World War II prison camp experiences into a compelling narrative of survival amidst the grim realities of war and what men can do when pushed to the edge. A taut masterwork of World War II historical fiction by bestselling author James Clavell.

Taiko

Taiko PDF Author: Eiji Yoshikawa
Publisher: Vertical, Inc.
ISBN: 1568364504
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 944

Book Description
In the tempestuous closing decades of the sixteenth century, the Empire of Japan writhes in chaos as the shogunate crumbles and rival warlords battle for supremacy. Warrior monks in their armed citadels block the road to the capital; castles are destroyed, villages plundered, fields put to the torch. Amid this devastation, three men dream of uniting the nation. At one extreme is the charismatic but brutal Nobunaga, whose ruthless ambition crushes all before him. At the opposite pole is the cold, deliberate Ieyasu, wise in counsel, brave in battle, mature beyond his years. But the keystone of this triumvirate is the most memorable of all, Hideyoshi, who rises from the menial post of sandal bearer to become Taiko--absolute ruler of Japan in the Emperor's name. When Nobunaga emerges from obscurity by destroying an army ten times the size of his own, he allies himself with Ieyasu, whose province is weak, but whose canniness and loyalty make him invaluable. Yet it is the scrawny, monkey-faced Hideyoshi--brash, impulsive, and utterly fearless--who becomes the unlikely savior of this ravaged land. Born the son of a farmer, he takes on the world with nothing but his bare hands and his wits, turning doubters into loyal servants, rivals into faithful friends, and enemies into allies. In all this he uses a piercing insight into human nature that unlocks castle gates, opens men's minds, and captures women's hearts. For Hideyoshi's passions are not limited to war and intrigue-his faithful wife, Nene, holds his love dear, even when she must share it; the chaste Oyu, sister of Hideyoshi's chief strategist, falls prey to his desires; and the seductive Chacha, whom he rescues from the fiery destruction of her father's castle, tempts his weakness. As recounted by Eiji Yoshikawa, author of the international best-seller Musashi, Taiko tells many stories: of the fury of Nobunaga and the fatal arrogance of the black-toothed Yoshimoto; of the pathetic downfall of the House of Takeda; how the scorned Mitsuhide betrayed his master; how once impregnable ramparts fell as their defenders died gloriously. Most of all, though, Taiko is the story of how one man transformed a nation through the force of his will and the depth of his humanity. Filled with scenes of pageantry and violence, acts of treachery and self-sacrifice, tenderness and savagery, Taiko combines the panoramic spectacle of a Kurosawa epic with a vivid evocation of feudal Japan.
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