Alan Ryan

Discover the strange world of the undead and the proof that creatures of the night exist. The facts about vampires are stranger than anything you may have read, heard, or imagined before. Vampires rips away the myth and exposes the habits and lifestyles of these beings. The author reveals the occult truths about these creatures, including actual first-person encounters with vampires of all types―the ancient undead of folklore, contemporary mortal blood drinkers, and the most dangerous creatures of all: psychic vampires who intentionally drain the life force from their victims. Learn about the four types of vampires Read about vampire legends from around the world Discover vampires from history, including: Arnold Paole of Serbia Peter Plogojowitz and the Count de Cabreras of Hungary The vampire of Croglin Grange, Cumberland, England Countess Elizabeth Bathory, responsible for up to 650 deaths Gilles de Rais Fritz Haarman, of Germany, from ninety years ago John Haigh of Yorkshire, England, from just before WWII And, of course, the real Vlad Dracula Present-day blood drinkers How to protect yourself from vampires Included are letters from contemporary vampires; you will be shocked and surprised as you discover what these people are really like. Besides learning about the psychic vampire that unintentionally drains you of your energy as well as the intentional psychic vampire, you'll learn rituals for protection and methods to avoid falling into their clutches.

Breathtaking and manifold, inspiring and unforgiving, America's last great frontier is vividly revealed in this collection of twenty-eight remarkable eyewitness accounts. An enraptured John Muir first glimpses Glacier Bay in 1879. While running the Iditarod, Libby Riddles loses her grip on the sled, only to see her huskies lope off into the night. Jon Krakauer marvels at the fresh size 20 grizzly print next to his size 9 boot; and Anne Morrow Lindbergh is amazed simply at the sight of a road after a long-flight over the trackless wastes of the North Slope. By gathering the diverse "reports" of intrepid travelers to the land of Seward's folly, from John McPhee's encounter with "kamikaze" bush pilots to Jonathan Waterman's tale of humanity lost on Denali's precarious slopes, The Reader's Companion to Alaska offers readers an incomparably richer perspective on the real Alaska than could possibly be offered by any standard guidebook.

The Reader's Companion to Cuba offers nearly two dozen captivating eye-witness "reports" from visitors to Cuba's shores, among them Anais Nin's introduction to the "Fairyland" of Havana, Langston Hughes's surprising rumba party, an excursion around town with Fidel behind the wheel, Tommy Lasorda's baseball interview with pistol presiding, and Thomas Merton's pilgrimage to Our Lady of Cobre - a trip "nine-tenths vacation and one-tenth pilgrimage." From Arnold Samuelson's intimate portrait of Hemingway to Frank Ragano's recollections of the Mafia in Havana, The Reader's Companion to Cuba offers an infinitely more revealing and personal time-lapse "tour" of this complex country than could possibly be offered by any standard guidebook.

Contents: Miss Attila the Hun / Dean R. Koontz -- Hardshell / Dean R. Koontz -- Twilight of the dawn / Dean R. Koontz - - Predators / Edward Bryant -- The Baku / Edward Bryant -- Frat rat bash / Edward Bryant -- Haunted / Edward Bryant -- Buggage / Edward Bryant -- Doing Colfax / Edward Bryant -- The Deep end / Robert R. McCammon -- A Life in the day of / Robert R. McCammon -- Best friends / Robert R. McCammon.

Mexico has long held sway over the passions of travelers and has been featured in the writings of such keen observers as Katherine Anne Porter, Paul Bowles, Langston Hughes, Elizabeth Borton de Trevino, and John Steinbeck. Their eyewitness accounts are gathered with those of a score of other writers in this remarkable collection of some of the best travel writing ever about some of the most popular destinations for travelers, from Cabo San Lucas to Mexico City to Yucatan. Says editor Alan Ryan about this collection, "I wanted a book that would be like a trunk filled with letters from a branch of the family that's lived and traveled for many years in Mexico. Some of these imaginary relatives loved the country and made it their own. Some visited briefly, saw what there was to see, and left. A few disliked it, complained about everything, and couldn't wait to get away. All of them sent back reports." These personal "reports" accentuate Mexico's diversity and provide an incomparably richer perspective of this complex country than could possibly be offered by any standard guidebook. As Booklist commented in an exultant boxed review, this is a "sometimes startling collection that would indeed make a fine traveling companion."

"Since his retirement as Archbishop of Canterbury and his return to academic life (Master of Magdalene College Cambridge) Rowan Williams has demonstrated a massive new surge of intellectual energy. In this new book he turns his attention to St Augustine. St Augustine not only shaped the development of Western theology, he also made a major contribution to political theory (City of God) and through his Confessions to the understanding of human psychology. Rowan Williams has an entirely fresh perspective on these matters and the chapter titles in this new book demonstrate this at a glance - 'Language Reality and Desire', 'Politics and the Soul', 'Paradoxes of Self Knowledge', 'Insubstantial Evil'. As with his previous titles, Dostoevsky, The Edge of Words and Faith in the Public Square this new study is sure to be a major contribution on a compelling subject."--Bloomsbury Publishing.