FREE/BARGAIN - Non-Fiction - 2015

[GtrsRGr8]

That's 92% of the digital list price.

Hitler's Spy Chief: The Wilhelm Canaris Mystery. By Richard Bassett. Rated 4.5 stars, from 30 reviews at the present moment. Print list price $15.95; digital list price $24.99; Kindle price now $1.99. Pegasus Books, publisher. 352 pages. http://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-Spy-Ch...FRQKHR4W23JDCQ.

Book Description
A remarkable tale of espionage and intrigue—the true story of Wilhelm Canaris, Hitler’s intelligence chief, and his role in the conspiracy to assassinate the Führer.

Admiral Wilhelm Canaris was appointed by Hitler to head the Abwehr (the German secret service) eighteen months after the Nazis came to power. But Canaris turned against the Führer and the Nazi regime, believing that Hitler would start a war Germany could not win. In 1938 he was involved in an attempted coup, undermined by British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain.

In 1940 he sabotaged the German plan to invade England, and fed General Franco vital information that helped him keep Spain out of the war. For years he played a dangerous double game, desperately trying to keep one step ahead of the Gestapo. The SS chief, Heinrich Himmler, became suspicious of Canaris and by 1944, when Abwehr personnel were involved in the attempted assassination of Hitler, he had the evidence to arrest Canaris himself. Canaris was executed a few weeks before the end of the war.

In a riveting true story of intrigue and espionage, Richard Bassett reveals how Admiral Canaris’s secret work against the German leadership changed the course of World War II.

[avantman42]

Kenneth 'Hawkeye' Lee DFC: Battle of Britain and Desert Air Force Fighter Ace

Amazon UK - Amazon.com

£1.99 / $3.09 (down from £10.79)

Following training ‘Hawkeye’ Lee received his commission and was posted to 501 Squadron which was sent to support the Expeditionary Force in France, arriving on 10 May, only hours after the Blitzkrieg had been launched. Lee quickly opened his score, claiming several bombers during the first week of operations. Having been wounded when his Hurricane exploded following a dogfight, Lee was briefly rested but soon rejoined the Squadron before they moved to their first Battle of Britain base at Middle Wallop. Lee scored more damaged and destroyed enemy aircraft and by the end of July he was Mentioned in Dispatches. Lee was forced to take to his parachute for the second time. He later recalled how each of the Squadron’s ‘aces’, even ‘Ginger’ Lacey, had been shot down at least twice during that summer.

Lee was later posted to 112 (Shark) Squadron, flying Curtis Kittyhawks on Fighter and Fighter-Bomber missions in North Africa and then to 260 Squadron which was heavily involved in the lead-up to the battle of El Alamein, seeking out and destroying enemy troop columns and fighting off the Luftwaffe which still had air superiority. In March 1943, 123 Squadron began Fighter-Bomber operations against Mediterranean targets, during one Lee was hit by AA and made a forced – landing in an olive grove. He was captured and sent to Stalagluft III just in time to play a key role in the Great Escape.

The Philosophy Book (Big Ideas)

Amazon UK - doesn't appear to be available at Amazon.com

£1.99 (down from £6.99)

An innovative and accessible guide to more than 2,000 years of thought

To the complete novice learning about philosophy can be daunting - The Philosophy eBook changes all that. With the use of powerful and easy-to-follow images, succinct quotations, and explanations that are easily understandable, this ebook cuts through any misunderstandings to demystify the subject.

Each chapter is organised chronologically, and covers not only the big ideas, but the philosophers who first voiced them, as well as cross-referencing with earlier and later ideas and thinkers. The Philosophy eBook untangles knotty theories and sheds light on abstract concepts, and is perfect for anyone with a general interest in how our social, political, and ethical ideas are formed, as well as students of philosophy and politics.

Covers major and niche topics, from moral ethics to philosophies of religion

[GtrsRGr8]

Ratings are scanty on this book. Reason being, it was just published a couple of months ago. But the ratings that there are are great! Since high school which was . . . . well, never mind how long ago that was (ha) . . . . I have been familiar with American Heritage books, and thought that they were always very well done. I'm sure that this one will not be an exception.

I rarely see American Heritage ebooks marked down; it might be a long time before this one will be marked down again, if it ever is. You'd better grab it now.

American Heritage History of Flight. By Arthur Gordon. Rated 5 stars, but from only 1 review, at Amazon at the present moment; rated 4.29, from 7 ratings at GoodReads (the book was just recently published). Regular(?) print price $53.40; regular(?) digital price $9.99; Kindle price now $2.99. New Word City, Inc., publisher. 416 pages. http://www.amazon.com/American-Herit...J5XSNCP4BEFQ3F.

Book Description
People dreamed of flight for thousands of years. When we finally took to the skies, a new world opened up. This sweeping, superbly researched history from American Heritage details how various pioneers and innovators - from the Wright Brothers to Chuck Yeager - helped lift us into the sky.

[GtrsRGr8]

For the price of your email address and a few other pieces of personal information, you can download free the O'Reilly Media book Graph Databases. This is the second edition (published June 2015!). The authors of the book are Ian Robinson, Jim Webber, and Emil Eifrem.

O'Reilly Media is a publisher of technical computer books, and maybe books of other non-fiction subgenres.

To save you the trouble of going to the signup webpage and then possibly finding out that the book is not for you, here is a short blurb:
Discover how graph databases can help you manage and query highly connected data.

With this practical book, you’ll learn how to design and implement a graph database that brings the power of graphs to bear on a broad range of problem domains. Whether you want to speed up your response to user queries or build a database that can adapt as your business evolves, this book shows you how to apply the schema-free graph model to real-world problems.

Curiosity got the better of me, and I had to go to O'Reilly's website to find out what the retail price of this ebook is. It is $33.99!

I did not download the book, myself (due a lack of interest on my part in computer books on this level), but I'm "sure" that the format of the ebook will be pdf, although I noticed that if you buy the ebook on O'Reilly's website, you can get any of the flavors (ePub, mobi, pdf).

Here is the place to get it.

[koland]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

I did not download the book, myself (due a lack of interest on my part in computer books on this level), but I'm "sure" that the format of the ebook will be pdf, although I noticed that if you buy the ebook on O'Reilly's website, you can get any of the flavors (ePub, mobi, pdf).

All three, drm-free

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by koland

All three, drm-free

Very helpful information. Thanks.

[FizzyWater]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

Very helpful information. Thanks.

If you sign up for the O'Reilly mailing list, they have pretty good sales (like 50% off a certain programming language). It's one of the sales notifications I don't automatically have going to a "Junk Ads" folder.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

O'Reilly Media is a publisher of technical computer books, and maybe books of other non-fiction subgenres.

I did not download the book, myself (due a lack of interest on my part in computer books on this level), but I'm "sure" that the format of the ebook will be pdf, although I noticed that if you buy the ebook on O'Reilly's website, you can get any of the flavors (ePub, mobi, pdf).

If you buy an O'Reilly paper book on O'Reilly's website, you can also download any or all of the ebook formats of the same book for a nominal additional fee. I've pretty much gone all ebook all the time, but I still find paper handy for technical reference books. Having both forms for little more than the cost of one is great.

If you buy an O'Reilly ebook from another vendor, you can get the same updates and multiformat rights by registering the ebook with O'Reilly for a nominal fee. I've done this with some books I bought from Amazon. I forget the details, but it was pretty quick and easy.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by FizzyWater

If you sign up for the O'Reilly mailing list, they have pretty good sales (like 50% off a certain programming language). It's one of the sales notifications I don't automatically have going to a "Junk Ads" folder.

Originally Posted by j.p.s

If you buy an O'Reilly paper book on O'Reilly's website, you can also download any or all of the ebook formats of the same book for a nominal additional fee. I've pretty much gone all ebook all the time, but I still find paper handy for technical reference books. Having both forms for little more than the cost of one is great.

If you buy an O'Reilly ebook from another vendor, you can get the same updates and multiformat rights by registering the ebook with O'Reilly for a nominal fee. I've done this with some books I bought from Amazon. I forget the details, but it was pretty quick and easy.

Great information. I was not aware . . . .

Like you j.p.s., I've gone ebook almost exclusively. Even five years ago, I could not have pictured me doing that.

About the only time that I make an exception is when the ebook is much more expensive than the dead-tree version, and when I have no need, with the book, for the digital benefits (cut-and-paste, et al.)--such books would be books for my casual reading, mainly.

[GtrsRGr8]

The 80% figure is calculated from the digital list price.

This is the "New Ed edition (May 27, 2009)."

Terry Jones' Medieval Lives. By Alan Ereira; Terry Jones. Rated 4.5 stars, from 48 reviews at the present moment. Print list price $16.95; digital list(?) price $9.99; Kindle price $1.99. BBC Digital, publisher. 224 pages. http://www.amazon.com/Terry-Jones-Me...terry+jones%27.

Book Description
Was medieval England full of knights on horseback rescuing fainting damsels in distress? Were the Middle Ages mired in superstition and ignorance? Why does nobody ever mention King Louis the First and Last? And, of course, those key questions: which monks were forbidden the delights of donning underpants... and did outlaws never wear trousers?

Terry Jones and Alan Ereira are your guides to this most misrepresented and misunderstood period, and they point you to things that will surprise and provoke. Did you know, for example, that medieval people didn't think the world was flat? That was a total fabrication by an American journalist in the 19th century. Did you know that they didn't burn witches in the Middle Ages? That was a refinement of the so-called Renaissance. In fact, medieval kings weren't necessarily merciless tyrants, and peasants entertained at home using French pottery and fine wine.

Terry Jones' Medieval Lives reveals Medieval Britain as you have never seen it before - a vibrant society teeming with individuality, intrigue and innovation.

[Little.Egret]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

The 80% figure is calculated from the digital list price.

This is the "New Ed edition (May 27, 2009)."

Terry Jones' Medieval Lives. By Alan Ereira; Terry Jones. Rated 4.5 stars, from 48 reviews at the present moment. Print list price $16.95; digital list(?) price $9.99; Kindle price $1.99. BBC Digital, publisher. 224 pages.

£4.35 in UK

I don't think quoting 80% is worth the trouble.

[Little.Egret]

Free


Getting to Know Edinburgh by George Harris

Includes nine walking tours though the Old Town, the New Town and the suburbs, and one or two unexpected corners. Good coverage of areas such as history and painting.

The Place-names of Scotland: A First Introduction (Lectures in Scottish History Book 3) by George Harris


James IV: Scotland's Renaissance King (Lectures in Scottish History Book 4) by George Harris

Bonnie Dundee and the First Jacobite Rebellion (Lectures in Scottish History Book 2) by George Harris

An Introduction to the Scottish Enlightenment (Lectures in Scottish History Book 1) by George Harris

http://www.amazon.com/s/?url=search-...=George+harris

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?url=searc...=George+harris
http://www.amazon.ca/s/?url=search-a...=George+harris

[GtrsRGr8]

Incompletely edited. See below for the fully edited post.

[GtrsRGr8]

With World War II being a world war, there were several "theaters" of operation throughout the world then by the militaries of the belligerent countries. Usually historians recognize four major theatres: the European, Pacific, Mediterranean, and China/Burma (sometimes "India" is added to that name) theatres. The two largest of those, and most well known, were, of course, the European and Pacific theatres.

Many Americans do not realize that our country fought in China/Burma in World War II. Yet, Americans fought bravely, were injured, and died just as in other parts of the world during the war. They faced just as many dangers and suffered just as much hardship (maybe more).

This very highly rated book is about American aviation in that area of the world during, and just before, those dark days of World War II. And it's really nice to see it marked down 86% from the regular digital price.


China's Wings: War, Intrigue, Romance, and Adventure in the Middle Kingdom During the Golden Age of Flight. By Gregory Crouch. Rated 4.9 stars, from 90 reviews at the present moment. Print list price $30.00; regular(?) digital price $12.79; Kindle price now $1.99. Bantam, publisher. 528 pages. http://www.amazon.com/Chinas-Wings-I...+Age+of+Flight.

Book Description
From the acclaimed author of Enduring Patagonia comes a dazzling tale of aerial adventure set against the roiling backdrop of war in Asia. The incredible real-life saga of the flying band of brothers who opened the skies over China in the years leading up to World War II—and boldly safeguarded them during that conflict—China’s Wings is one of the most exhilarating untold chapters in the annals of flight.

At the center of the maelstrom is the book’s courtly, laconic protagonist, American aviation executive William Langhorne Bond. In search of adventure, he arrives in Nationalist China in 1931, charged with turning around the turbulent nation’s flagging airline business, the China National Aviation Corporation (CNAC). The mission will take him to the wild and lawless frontiers of commercial aviation: into cockpits with daredevil pilots flying—sometimes literally—on a wing and a prayer; into the dangerous maze of Chinese politics, where scheming warlords and volatile military officers jockey for advantage; and into the boardrooms, backrooms, and corridors of power inhabited by such outsized figures as Generalissimo and Madame Chiang Kai-shek; President Franklin Delano Roosevelt; foreign minister T. V. Soong; Generals Arnold, Stilwell, and Marshall; and legendary Pan American Airways founder Juan Trippe.

With the outbreak of full-scale war in 1941, Bond and CNAC are transformed from uneasy spectators to active participants in the struggle against Axis imperialism. Drawing on meticulous research, primary sources, and extensive personal interviews with participants, Gregory Crouch offers harrowing accounts of brutal bombing runs and heroic evacuations, as the fight to keep one airline flying becomes part of the larger struggle for China’s survival. He plunges us into a world of perilous night flights, emergency water landings, and the constant threat of predatory Japanese warplanes. When Japanese forces capture Burma and blockade China’s only overland supply route, Bond and his pilots must battle shortages of airplanes, personnel, and spare parts to airlift supplies over an untried five-hundred-mile-long aerial gauntlet high above the Himalayas—the infamous “Hump”—pioneering one of the most celebrated endeavors in aviation history.

A hero’s-eye view of history in the grand tradition of Lynne Olson’s Citizens of London, China’s Wings takes readers on a mesmerizing journey to a time and place that reshaped the modern world.

[murg]

I have the weirdest feeling of deja vu...