The Baltic (984-85) Ethelwulf the Wanderer and his company arrive in the court of the aged Harald Bluetooth in Denmark. Along with the giant Thorgrim the Short, Ethelwulf is persuaded to help a Wendish tribe plundered by the mysterious Sons of Hel. There follows the horrors of pagan rites, the treachery of a king and then the enforced recruitment into the forces of Styrbjorn, claimant to the Swedish throne. The attempt is a disaster and Ethelwulf has to somehow slip away without the slur of ‘niddering’. With extensive factual End-Notes Part 5 of a nine part series set in the 10th century Viking world. Here the background is a pagan world of the Baltic Sea, with a divided Viking society and savage neighbours.

It followed every major military victory in ancient Rome: the successful general drove through the streets to the temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill; behind him streamed his raucous soldiers; in front were his most glamorous prisoners, as well as the booty he’d captured, from enemy ships and precious statues to plants and animals from the conquered territory. Occasionally there was so much on display that the show lasted two or three days. A radical reexamination of this most extraordinary of ancient ceremonies, this book explores the magnificence of the Roman triumph, but also its darker side. What did it mean when the axle broke under Julius Caesar’s chariot? Or when Pompey’s elephants got stuck trying to squeeze through an arch? Or when exotic or pathetic prisoners stole the general’s show? And what are the implications of the Roman triumph, as a celebration of imperialism and military might, for questions about military power and “victory” in our own day? The triumph, Mary Beard contends, prompted the Romans to question as well as celebrate military glory. Her richly illustrated work is a testament to the profound importance of the triumph in Roman culture—and for monarchs, dynasts and generals ever since. But how can we re-create the ceremony as it was celebrated in Rome? How can we piece together its elusive traces in art and literature? Beard addresses these questions, opening a window on the intriguing process of sifting through and making sense of what constitutes “history.”

Fifteen-year-old Cat and three other London teens are drawn into a dangerous game in which Tarot cards open doorways into a different dimension, and while there is everything to win, losing can be fatal.

A writer begins keeping a notebook of handwriting exercises hoping that, if he is able to improve his penmanship, he himself will also improve. What begins as a mere physical exercise is filled involuntarily with humorous reflections and tender anecdotes about living, writing, and the sense—or nonsense—of existence.