A couple of Endeavour Press freebies available at the various Amazon stores...
The Spencer Family by Charles Spencer
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Tracing the history of the Spencers from their beginnings as medieval sheep farmers, through centuries of service to country and crown to their high public profile following the marriage of Diana Spencer to the Prince of Wales, Charles, Ninth Earl Spencer, has written a superb and engaging work of family history.
Hugely enriched by his unique access to private papers and family memories, it details the lives of such fascinating figures as the romantic, chivalrous Henry Spencer, First Earl of Sunderland; Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, scandalizer and enchantress of eighteenth century high-society; and George Spencer, who, as Father Ignatius, rejected the privileges of his birth to live a life of poverty and chastity as a mendicant monk.
‘A labour of love and a very successful one… The Spencers have been leading actors on the British stage for more than 300 years. Look at every reign from James I onwards and you will find a Spencer in the thick of things. .. The women of the family have their own histories which are every bit as fascinating.’ - Amanda Foreman, Mail on Sunday
'Charles Spencer is a very good writer… a splendidly enjoyable, elegantly written narrative in which the author brings all his characters to life in a manner that is both at once astute and vivid.' - Literary Review
'A warm, entertaining and appropriately personal account of one of the most successful families England has produced.' -Daily Mail
'A history of his family which contrives to be always entertaining without descending to the trivial … he writes well, with wit and panache.' - Daily Telegraph
Charles Spencer was educated at Eton College and obtained his degree in Modern History at Magdalen College, Oxford. He is the author of five books, including the Sunday Times bestseller ‘Blenheim: The Battle for Europe’ (shortlisted for History Book of the Year, National Book Awards), 'Killers of the King: The Men Who Dared to Execute Charles I' and ‘Prince Rupert: The Last Cavalier’.
Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.
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The Autobiography of the British Soldier: From Agincourt to Basra, in His Own Words by John Lewis-Stempel
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From Agincourt to Waterloo, from Dunkirk to the Gulf War, and in every conflict in between, one man has served in all these battles. This is the story of Britain at war from the perspective of that man.
It is the autobiography of the British soldier.
In a comprehensive series of first-hand accounts, this anthology offers a huge variety of views on the experience of war: from a letter written by Oliver Cromwell to the Speaker of Parliament, to a First World War's soldier's last letter home to his son, to a powerful description of what it was like to be on the Sir Galahad when it was hit by a missile in the Falklands conflict of the 1980s, right up to life as a soldier on the ground in Basra, Iraq.
Winner of impossible victories, cannon fodder for the Western Front, thin khaki line against Hitler - wherever and whenever, the British soldier has done his duty - and more, this is his heroic story.
It includes first hand accounts from George Orwell, Winston Churchill, Vera Brittain, Siegfiried Sassoon and Corporal Chris Ryan to name but a few.
It is essential reading for anyone interested in the history of the British Army.
Praise for The Autobiography of the British Soldier:
'[A] thoughtful compilation... One is struck by the breadth of suffering it covers and the sheer quantity of human blood that has been spilled on the earth... The letters "to be opened only in the event of my death" are almost unbearably moving" The Guardian
'Five stars' The Sunday Express
John Lewis-Stempel is a writer predominantly known for his books on military and natural history. He lives in Herefordshire, on the very edge of England before it runs into Wales, and within a stone's throw (with a decent gust of wind) from where his family were farming in the 1300s. His many books include Fatherhood: The Anthology, England: The Autobiography, The Autobiography of the British Soldier (Sunday Express '5 stars') and The Wild Life (Sunday Telegraph 'Timely and Compelling') and Foraging: The Essential Guide to Free Wild Food.
Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.
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