‘Good luck to all the lads.’ Brian Cox wrote those words in his diary on 26 August 1940, just before he and his mates from 9 Platoon of 27 (Machine Gun) Battalion experienced enemy action for the first time in the Western Desert. A Nelson College old boy, Brian enlisted to do his duty and to take part in ‘a great adventure’. But when he came home, like so many of his mates, he seldom spoke of his experiences. It was only a chance question, some 25 years after Brian’s death, that triggered his son Peter’s search to discover what his father had done during the Second World War. Brian’s personal diaries and the photographs he had brought home were a good start, but much more was needed: material from the official war histories and archives, and, best of all, memories from men who had fought alongside Brian. In 2007 Peter Cox and his wife Robin retraced Brian’s war journey in Egypt, Libya and Greece. They visited the battlefield at Sidi Rezegh in the Libyan Desert, travelled the length of Greece, following the route the New Zealand Division took, and stood on the hillside where Brian and his mates had been dive-bombed and machine-gunned. More than one man’s tribute to his father, this is an important addition to New Zealand’s military history and a fitting memorial to the young men, a number of them from Nelson College, who bravely served, and sometimes died, so far from home.

Reproduction of the original: The Rover Boys in the Land of Luck by Edward Stratemeyer

Not even a Prince of Thieves can prevent love from stealing his heart… On what should have been Verdeen’s proudest day, she is blocked from advanced warrior training because no war mare chooses to bond with her. Burning with humiliation, she accepts a lesser assignment to the Isle of Ice, serving as bodyguard to human riever, Daq Aryk. Verdeen’s never paid much attention to men, so focused was she on her training. But she quickly realizes hieing off into a distant wilderness with Aryk is a bad idea. He makes her lose all focus and perspective. Aryk faces a difficult task: molding six warring clans into a peaceful whole. He’s got nothing against women warriors, but Verdeen is young and inexperienced, her beauty a potentially fatal distraction. She’s a shield-maiden, not a bedmate. But the way she melts at his every touch erodes all his good intentions…and sense. One kiss unleashes the kind of feverish desire that should occur only once in a lifetime—with a mate. But as their quest takes ever more dangerous twists and turns, their bond could be the one thing that unites a nation. Or make Aryk’s worst nightmare a blood-soaked reality. Warning: Contains fire and ice, never-gratuitous sex and violence, sword play and self-play, spying and lying, noble intentions and betrayal. In other words, a rollicking good roll in the proverbial hay.

Boys' Life is the official youth magazine for the Boy Scouts of America. Published since 1911, it contains a proven mix of news, nature, sports, history, fiction, science, comics, and Scouting.

'A master psychologist - cycling's answer to Brian Clough.' MARK CAVENDISH The inside story of Mark Cavendish's Rainbow Jersey Winning World Title of 2011 Twenty five years ago, British road cycling was in the doldrums: today it is at the top of the world thanks to Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Geraint Thomas and the sprinter who has bridged all their careers - the Manx Missile, Mark Cavendish. British cycling has become that rare beast, a story of sporting success built from the bottom up. Project Rainbow is the story of this sport's meteoric rise, told by one of its key figures, culminating in Cavendish's world road race title in 2011. As GB Elite Road Coach and former Team Sky Performance Manager, Rod Ellingworth was one of the most important men behind this incredible rise. Here, one of the chief architects of this amazing journey, tells the inside story of both teams' advance to the top. With an introduction by Mark Cavendish.