China and Russia share a history of understanding and misunderstanding whose nuances are not well appreciated by outsiders. In his interpretation of this relationship from a Russian point of view, Lukin shows how, over the course of three centuries, China has been seen by Russia.

An illuminating account of Russia’s attempts—and failures—to achieve great power status in Asia. Since Peter the Great, Russian leaders have been lured by opportunity to the East. Under the tsars, Russians colonized Alaska, California, and Hawaii. The Trans-Siberian Railway linked Moscow to Vladivostok. And Stalin looked to Asia as a sphere of influence, hospitable to the spread of Soviet Communism. In Asia and the Pacific lay territory, markets, security, and glory. But all these expansionist dreams amounted to little. In We Shall Be Masters, Chris Miller explores why, arguing that Russia’s ambitions have repeatedly outstripped its capacity. With the core of the nation concentrated thousands of miles away in the European borderlands, Russia’s would-be pioneers have always struggled to project power into Asia and to maintain public and elite interest in their far-flung pursuits. Even when the wider population professed faith in Asia’s promise, few Russians were willing to pay the steep price. Among leaders, too, dreams of empire have always been tempered by fears of cost. Most of Russia’s pivots to Asia have therefore been halfhearted and fleeting. Today the Kremlin talks up the importance of “strategic partnership” with Xi Jinping’s China, and Vladimir Putin’s government is at pains to emphasize Russian activities across Eurasia. But while distance is covered with relative ease in the age of air travel and digital communication, the East remains far off in the ways that matter most. Miller finds that Russia’s Asian dreams are still restrained by the country’s firm rooting in Europe.

Russia's foreign policy experience in the first post-Soviet decade was marked by disappointments as well as surprising turns. Expectations that Russia would join the Western powers as an equal partner were frustrated, while relations with the People's Republic of China warmed considerably. Today, Russia's relationship with China is an important component of its overall foreign policy orientation, as the two states - one greatly diminished, the other clearly on the rise - have found themselves sharing an interest in curbing the power of the United States. In analyzing Russia's evolving foreign policy vis-a-vis China, the author takes into account the legacy of Soviet-era precedents; the simultaneous processes of economic policy change and integration into global economic structures; and military relations. By shedding light on the role of political realism, decision makers, and exogenous factors in Russian foreign policy, this analysis of an important bilateral relationship contributes to the larger project of understanding international relations and the dynamics of domestic and foreign policy change.

A compelling, expansive history of the relationship between China and Russia, from the seventeenth century to the present Russia and China, the largest and most populous countries in the world, respectively, have maintained a delicate relationship for four centuries. In addition to a four-thousand-kilometer border, they have periodically shared a common outlook on political and economic affairs. But they are, in essence, profoundly different polities and cultures, and their intermittent alliances have proven difficult and at times even volatile. Philip Snow provides a full account of the relationship between these two global giants. Looking at politics, religion, economics, and culture, Snow uncovers the deep roots of the two nations' alignment. We see the shifts in the balance of power, from the wealth and strength of early Qing China to the Tsarist and Soviet ascendancies, and episodes of intense conflict followed by harmony. He looks too at the experiences and opinions of ordinary people, which often vastly differed from those of their governments, and considers how long the countries' current amicable relationship might endure.

The reforms of the Soviet and Chinese communist regimes were unparalleled-both in the radical, precedent-setting reforms attempted by the two countries and in the outcomes of these attempts. While the Soviet Union collapsed quickly in the midst of its reforms, more than a decade later China, the world's most populous country, still stands as a testament to the resilience of Communist rule. It is this phenomenon that Christopher Marsh explores in Unparalleled Reforms. Marsh goes beyond simply discussing the differing initial conditions, the sequencing of reform, and cultural differences to also consider the objectives and intentions of the policy makers and leaders that directed the reform processes and the interdependent nature of politics on the world stage. Unparalleled Reforms offers the reader a sophisticated understanding of the nature of political reform and develops a theoretical model that can account for commonly overlooked factors that affect political processes in all types of political systems. In a class all its own, this is an important work for scholars interested in comparative politics, international relations, economics, Asian studies, and Russian studies.

For years, the inhabitants of Prali, a small Italian mountain town near the French border, lived in peace. They believed that danger would never come to them. However, deep within a mountain cave, a one-of-a-kind dragon feasts on rats and mice living within the cave. While he grows, he discovers this is not enough. He craves the taste of cow, oxen, and humans. The last of his kind, the dragon launches a brutal attack on the people of Prali. After the terrorizing havoc of the dragon. Bernard, a young Franciscan monk; Mary, a misplaced English girl; and the arrogant knight Leonardo. Join forces to eliminate the dragon and bring peace to the people of Prali. Only the courage and strength of the three dragon hunters will save the world from destruction. As they travel through the mysterious forests, and deep caverns of the region. They discover the secrets of the hidden lair and an underworld that time has forgotten. They journey to the farthest reaches of the dragon's lair to face their ultimate destiny.

This edition of the ‘Grimm’s Fairy Tales – Illustrated by Charles Folkard’ was originally published in 1911, and contains fifty-six of the Brothers Grimm’s classic stories. The narratives include the famed tales of ‘Sleeping Beauty’, ‘Tom Thumb’, ‘Little Red Riding Hood’, ‘Hansel and Gretel’, ‘Cinderella’, ‘The Frog Prince’, and many more. They are all beautifully illustrated by Charles Folkard – in both colour, and black and white. Folkard (1878 – 1963) was a celebrated British illustrator, known for creating ‘Teddy Tail’, a popular cartoon character who rain in the Daily Mail newspapers for decades. He is also renowned for his illustrations for Arabian Nights, Aesop’s Fables, Pinocchio – and of course – the Brothers Grimm. The Brothers Grimm are perhaps the best known folklorists of all time. Die Brüder Grimm; Jacob (1785–1863) and Wilhelm Grimm (1786–1859), were German academics, linguists, cultural researchers, lexicographers and authors – who together specialized in collecting and publishing folklore during the nineteenth century. The popularity of their collected tales has endured well; they have been translated into more than 100 languages, and remain in print in the present day. This is a text to be appreciated by young and old alike; extraordinary for its literary as well as artistic significance. Pook Press celebrates the great ‘Golden Age of Illustration‘ in children’s literature – a period of unparalleled excellence in book illustration from the 1880s to the 1930s. Our collection showcases classic fairy tales, children’s stories, and the work of some of the most celebrated artists, illustrators and authors.

The year is 2001, and American businessman Roger Gordian has extended his reach into space. His company has become the principal contractor in the design and manufacture of Orion, a multinational space station. But the launch of a shuttle carrying parts for the station is sabotaged. Mysterious guerrilla attacks occur at the manufacturing facilities in Brazil and Kazakhstan. And Gordian's deepest fears are confirmed... The Orion project has been targeted by an international terrorist whose criminal enterprises thrive on violence and political instability. Harlan De Vane's goal is to cripple Gordian's intelligence and security tean, while stowing a high-powered electromagnetic pulse generator aboard Orion--a state-of-the-art weapon with the capacity to throw every major American city into chaos...

The much anticipated final book in Chris d'Lacey's New York Times bestselling Last Dragon Chronicles!On Earth, at the battle of Scuffenbury Hill, time has been suspended. Dragons and their natural enemies, the Ix, are trapped in a bitter conflict. But at the dawn of history, a mysterious force is rewriting the timelines, turning what was once legend into startling reality. Is David Rain strong enough to save himself and those he loves from being written into a deadly new destiny?David, Zanna, Lucy, Alexa, and the Pennykettle dragons return, along with new friends and enemies, to embark on their most dangerous and most magical adventure yet. Bridging the magic of the first five books with the world and characters introduced in FIRE WORLD, this action-packed final installment of the Last Dragon Chronicles will have readers racing to the last page.Don't miss Chris d'Lacey's addition to his rich dragon mythology in his next series, The Erth Dragons!