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Congo Masquerade is about mismanagement, hypocrisy and powerlessness in what has proved to be one of Africa's most troublesome and volatile states. In this scathing study of catastrophic aid inefficiency, Trefon argues that whilst others have examined war and plunder in the Great Lakes region, none have yet evaluated the imported 'template format' reform package pieced together to introduce democracy and improve the well-being of ordinary Congolese. It has, the book demonstrates, been for years an almost unmitigated failure due to the ingrained political culture of corruption amongst the Congolese elite, abetted by the complicity and incompetence of international partners.

• Forfatter: Theodore Trefon
• Publisert: 2011
• Innbinding: Heftet
• Språk: Engelsk
• ISBN: 9781848138360

Explore the World’s Most Extraordinary Islands: A Journey Through the Strange, Scary, Remote, and Naturally Odd. Dive in to a captivating exploration of 29 of the world’s most unique and enigmatic islands, each with its own compelling story. This visually stunning book is divided into four sections, each revealing a different facet of these extraordinary locales: Strange Uncover islands that defy the ordinary. From Ocean Flower in China, an artificial lotus-shaped archipelago now mired in financial ruin, to Santa Cruz Del Islote, 'the world's most crowded island', these islands challenge the boundaries of imagination.

Marvel at the Floating City in the Pacific, a visionary eco-island, and learn about Kihnu, famous for the central and visible role of its women. Scary Venture into the eerie and unsettling. Discover Runit’s ominous concrete dome packed with nuclear waste, or the haunted island of Poveglia off the coast of Venice.

Experience the chilling history of Fire Island, where Russia's most dangerous murderers are imprisoned. Remote Journey to the furthest corners of the Earth. Explore Socotra and its unique flora and fauna, and Inaccessible Island, surrounded by cliffs and rarely seen by human eyes.

ISBN: 9781836005773

Forfattere: Alastair Bonnett
Publisert: Okt. 2025
Sider nr: 188

Hav på alle kanter opphever dagens landegrenser og tegner et levende portrett av det Nord-Atlantiske havområdet, denne historiske, kulturelle og genetiske smeltedigelen som deler en felles keltisk og norrøn arv. Leseren kommer tett på øyfolk og tradisjoner, myter og historier, triumfer og tragedier som forteller hvordan naturen og havet har formet, og fortsatt former, livet på øyene.

Så lenge det har bodd mennesker langs Nord-Atlanterens kyster, har de delt den dypt menneskelige trangen til å utforske det ukjente. Det er som om mennesker burde hatt gjeller og svømmehud mellom tærne, for så snart de fikk sjansen, la de ut på havet med livet som innsats. Før nåtidens kart og nasjonale grenser ble til, øyhoppet folk mellom Norge og Shetland, Orknøyene og Hebridene, Man, Irland, Færøyene og Island uten tanke på pass eller grensekontroll. De kastet seg ut i bølgene i uthulte stokker, lette skinnbåter, klinkbygde skip, fiskefartøy og skuter. De handlet med hverandre og giftet seg med hverandre, inspirerte hverandre eller fortrengte hverandre. Under vikingtiden ble øyene også tilknyttet Norge på ulike måter, som skattland under den norske kongen og gjennom erkebiskopen i Trondheim.

Øyer er samfunn i miniatyr. Når man er omgitt av hav på alle kanter, er innbyggerne i samme båt, bokstavelig talt – og mer eller mindre avhengige av hverandre. Å bo på en øy kan være klaustrofobisk, romantisk, forblåst, uhyggelig, ensomt, frustrerende, fredelig – men sjelden kjedelig.

• Forfatter: Kirsti MacDonald Jareg
• Forlag: Cappelen Damm
• Utgitt: 2025
• Innbundet
• Ant sider: 284
• Isbn: 9788202861995

A Captivating Guide to a Shortened History of Russia, Ukraine, Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Moldova, Belarus, and Romania

How much Eastern European history do you know?

The story of Eastern Europe is one of successes and failures, competing interests, and the rise and fall of states and empires. The ancient Greek and Roman empires knew the importance of Eastern Europe for trade and settlement. Later, during the Migration Period, also known as the "Barbarian Invasions," Eastern Europe became the stomping grounds for many people groups. The Visigoths, Huns, Slavs, and central Asian Turkic tribes like the Avars and Khazars all made their way into Eastern Europe.

With so many people moving in, the first states started to rise. Some of them would break apart as soon as they started, while others would form full-fledged empires. The medieval period would see some of the greatest empires of European history, like Kievan Rus, the Bulgarian Empire, Serbia, and the German Crusader states. By the early modern period, these great states would be replaced by Russia, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Ottoman Empire.

In the coming centuries, the rise of Russia, Austria, and Prussia would spell doom for the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Ottomans would keep pressing into Eastern Europe. The 19th century would lay the foundations for the outbreak of World War I, which would itself lead to World War II. In the aftermath, Eastern Europe became part of the Eastern Bloc, which was dominated by the USSR until the fall of communism nearly five decades later. This book extends past contemporary histories of Eastern Europe, which usually end at the fall of the Berlin Wall, to cover more recent events, including the conflicts in Bosnia and Kosovo and the 2014 Crimean crisis.

In this book, you will learn about:

The Greek and Roman influence in Eastern Europe
The Migration Period, aka the "Barbarian Invasions"
Charlemagne and the Holy Roman Empire
The Mongol invasions
Christian Europe vs. the Ottoman Empire
The fall of Constantinople
The rise of Russia and its famous rulers, like Ivan the Terrible and Catherine the Great
The path to World War I and World War II
The Jewish experience in Eastern Europe
The Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc
The fall of the Berlin Wall and the end of communism
The conflicts in Bosnia and Kosovo
The 2014 Russian annexation of Crimea

Utgitt: okt 2021

Denne boka er unik ved at den på en praktisk måte sammenlikner hvordan de statskontrollerte fjernsynskanalene og det som fortsatt er igjen av mer uavhengige russiske medier rapporterter om Krim, Ukraina, Norge, Baltikum, Tsjetsjenia, Georgia, historie, politikk og en rekke andre temaer. Boka er en hyllest til de tøffe og uavhengige journalistene i Russland som med stor integritet fortsetter å jobbe profesjonelt til tross for hyppige drap, overfall, trusler og statlig press.

Boka er med på å forklare hvordan flertallet av russere ofte tenker annerledes en andre europeere, og er en påminnelse om hva som skjer når man ikke lenger makter å tenke kritisk.

• Forfatter: Richard Bærug
• Publisert: 2018
  
• Antall sider: 496
  
• Innbinding: Innbundet
• Språk: Norsk bokmål
• ISBN: 9788283301847

Seeds of Terror will reshape the way you think about the West's enemies, revealing them less as ideologues and more as criminals who earn billions of pounds every year off the opium trade. With the breakneck pace of a thriller, author Gretchen Peters traces their illicit activities from the vast poppy fields of southern Afghanistan to heroin labs run by Taliban commanders, from drug convoys armed with Stinger missiles to the money launderers of Karachi and Dubai. Based on hundreds of interviews with Taliban fighters, smugglers, and law enforcement and intelligence agents, Peters makes the case that we must cut terrorists off from their drug earnings if we ever hope to beat them.

Forfattere: Gretchen Peters
Publisert måned: Des
Publisert år: 2011
Utgave: 1.utg
Sider nr: 300

During his campaign for the presidency, one of Donald Trump's signature promises was that he would build a "great great wall" on the border between the US and Mexico, and Mexico was going to pay for it. A year and a half into his term, with only a few prototype segments erected, the wall is the 2,000-mile, multibillion-dollar elephant in the room of contemporary American life. In The Great Great Wall, architectural historian and critic Ian Volner takes a deep dive into the story of Trump's wall.

Volner follows the conception, selling, design, and construction (or lack thereof)of this expensive and consequential barrier, giving readers a detailed look at what's happening in Washington, DC, and along the border. He also travels far afield, to China, the Middle East, Northern England, and back to our border to examine the barriers we've been building for centuries. Why do we build walls? What do they reveal about human history? The Great Great Wall is an absorbing, smart, and timely book on an incredibly contentious and newsworthy topic.

• Forfatter: Ian Volner
• Publisert: 2019
• Antall sider: 288
  
• Innbinding: Innbundet
• Språk: Engelsk
• ISBN: 9781419732829

1,199 sites of cultural, historical, and scientific significance to humanity have been labelled UNESCO World Heritage Sites with the agreement to maintain and honour. UNESCO - World Heritage Journeys compiles stunning photographs, practical information, and travel suggestions for 40 of the most exquisite UNESCO sites on earth. Deep-dive boxes provide insights on, for example, the best time of year to visit, means of transport to reach more remote sites, and advice for getting the most out of your adventure.

There will be no shortage of information in this comprehensive compendium, which can be a keepsake post-travel and a guide for the adventures yet to be had!

• Publisert: Mars 2025
• Innbinding: Innbundet
• Språk: Engelsk
• Antall sider: 240
• ISBN: 9788854421349

I sin nye bok analyserer professor Ole O. Moen USA slik verdens eneste supermakt nå fremstår under president Barack Hussein Obama - både i lys av vår samtid og USAs særegne historiske tradisjoner. Presidentvalget i 2008 var på flere vis begynnelsen på et nytt kapittel i USAs moderne historie. Moen beskriver de nye trekk som nå avtegner seg i den politiske og kulturelle hverdag.

Denne boken forteller historien om dette landet i en ny og annerledes tidsalder. Det er sterke bånd som knytter Norge til USA. En naturlig konsekvens av dette er at de fleste nordmenn mener seg å kjenne USA. Onkel Sam er en gammel kjenning, men vår generelle innsikt i amerikansk kultur og politikk er relativt overflatisk. Denne boken er et bidrag til en bedre forståelse av dagens amerikanske samfunn.

• Forfatter: Ole O. Moen
• Publisert: 2009
• Antall sider: 416
• Språk: Norsk
• ISBN: 9788292870204