Ranulph Fiennes

#2

The publication of Children of the Arbat in 1988 established Anatoli Rybakov as one of the most important Russian authors of the century. Now, in a long-awaited novel - the first since his magnificent international bestseller - Rybakov has written Fear: a stunning account of Stalin's purges. Rybakov brings alive a generation and a nation on the brink of self-destruction with the story of Sasha Pankratov, a young man sent into Siberian exile after a flippant and inadvertently impolitic remark in a school newspaper. No longer the idealistic youth of Rybakov's first novel, but a knowledgeable victim with hard-won wisdom, Sasha is released to make his way across a country where the mass arrests have continued, but the Party faithful - the original creators of the Bolshevik Revolution - are now subject to arrest, torture, trial, and death. In his profound rendering of Stalin's mind and personality, Rybakov proves his extraordinary skills as both historian and craftsman. His depiction of the dynamics of terrorism is equally deft: the psychological molding of a once hopeful generation into fearful, self-protective informers; and, even more devastating, Stalin's conscious twisting of a self-serving but essentially banal bureaucracy into a horde of prosecutorial demons whose zeal and inventiveness surpass Torquemada's inquisitors. At once an epic saga, a chilling exposition of terrorism, and a deeply etched, unmatched portrait of Stalin, Fear confirms Rybakov's stature among the classic historical writers of our time.

#3

"No branch of Christianity has grown more rapidly than Pentecostalism, especially in the southern hemisphere. There are over 100 million Pentecostals in Africa. In Latin America, Pentecostalism now vies with Catholicism for the soul of the continent, and some of the largest pentecostal congregations in the world are in South Korea. In To the Ends of the Earth, Allan Heaton Anderson explores the historical and theological factors behind the phenomenal growth of global Pentecostalism. Anderson argues that its spread is so dramatic because it is an "ends of the earth" movement--pentecostals believe that they are called to be witnesses for Jesus Christ to the furthest reaches of the globe. His wide-ranging account examines such topics as the Azusa Street revival in Los Angeles, the role of the first missionaries in China, India, and Africa, Pentecostalism's incredible diversity due to its deep local roots, and the central role of women in the movement. He describes more recent developments such as the creation of new independent churches, megachurches, and the "health and wealth" gospel, and he explores the increasing involvement of pentecostals in public and political affairs across the globe. Why is this movement so popular? Anderson points to such features as the emphasis on the Spirit, the "born-again" experience, incessant evangelism, healing and deliverance, cultural flexibility, a place-to-feel-at-home, religious continuity, an egalitarian community, and meeting material needs--all of which contribute to Pentecostalism's remarkable appeal. Exploring more than a century of history and ranging across most of the globe, Anderson illuminates the spectacular rise of global Pentecostalism and shows how it changed the face of Christianity worldwide." -- Publisher's description.