Product Description
First published in 1889, Land of the Dragon provides a lively account of William Spencer Percival's daily life as a British civil servant working in Shanghai at the end of the nineteenth century. An author of several travel books such as Twenty Years in the Far East (1905), Percival takes his 'sympathetic' British friends' prejudices about China as pretext to give a thorough account of his life in the East. He delights in relating his boating and hunting excursions in the Chinese countryside, and his adventures - camping out, shooting pigs, and towing through rapids - are packed with often extraordinary anecdotes about the land, the Chinese people, and other foreigners, including American and Roman Catholic missionaries. Part travel diary, part anthropological study, this book gives a valuable insight into the relationship between the British and the people of Qing dynasty China. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

PADDLES UP!!!Excellent intro to the sport...
If you haven't jumped into a dragon boat yet and paddled, this is a greatintro to the sport and history of the greatest team sport for people of allages and ANY skill level!!The stroke instructions and illustrations arevery well put together for the most novice paddler.The history andcurrent status of the sport is also well composed for those who would liketo know what the rave is all about!I have certainly enjoyed all thegraphics and photos. For those that i have referred this book to--new andexperience paddlers as well as sport enthusiasts--have all agreed with itscomprehensive introduction to the sport that has been growing and growingin the USA. Paddles up!! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Excellent
This colorful book discusses the history of the dragonboating sport, as well as the dragon boat festival.Text is in English and Chinese traditional characters. Includes bibliographical references and internet links.It is difficult to find books on this topic, so I highly recommend this one for public libraries with large Asian/Chinese communities (especially in Canada), and secondary schools with social studies curricula covering modern China. ... Read more

Product Description
Most sailors dream of journeying to foreign ports, but many are held back by fears both real and imagined. However, as Reese Palley explains, sailing close to the shore is considerably more dangerous than voyaging across the sea. There Be No Dragons is intended to encourage those timid of the deep oceans and to inspire the confidence necessary to set sail across the wine dark seas of the world.

By his own account a sailor of no great skill, Palley has nevertheless safely completed a fifteen-year circumnavigation. If he can do it, then even the lowliest amateur, equipped only with the simplest of information and a small but sturdy boat, can follow in his wake.

Palley's essential and entertaining guide, now available for the first time in paperback, discusses easily learned skills and inexpensively acquired equipment, all of which are requisite for safe sailing. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Dragon slayin'
Great book, great advise, nice writing style and very easy to read. Really does address key issues that sailors will be considering before venturing further in their small boats. Read it and it will motivate you to "just do it!".

Good Read
Since our long-range goal is to sail the Caribbean I thought this book would help us ready our boat for the adventure. I was not disappointed. Alternately funny & informative this is truly a must-read before you set sail for any long adventure.I have a strong feeling it will be well-worn before we head out.

OK, but...
Contains some useful advice on blue-water sailing.However, after seeing the author's photo on the back cover, I *really* could have done without his lengthy discourse on sexual relations at sea.

For aspiring sailors seeking to launch
There Be No Dragons: How To Cross A Big Ocean In A Small Sailboat is the story of how Reese Palley (a self-admitted marginally skilled sailor) managed to safely complete a fifteen-year circumnavigation of the globe in a very small sailboat. Among other insightful bits of nautical wisdom, readers (and aspiring sailors seeking to launch out into their own nautical adventuring around the world) will learn that its actually safer to sail out into the ocean than to hug the coast lines; that even a rank amateur having only the sketches information can succeed if his small boat is sturdy, his confidence is strong, and he gives a careful reading to Reese Palley's There Be No Dragons with its combination of easily learned skills, identified necessary equipment, and advice for safe sailing.

wrongly titled
you might find this book enjoyable if you like rambling sailing anecdotes.
but it is definitely not a sailing guide. ... Read more

Product Description
Synopsis:

Blue Skies Red Soil is a novel told through the eyes of a villain named Qin Shi Chong, a Chinese man whose father’s wealth helps him come to America to gain a Western education. While in the United States, he is faced with extreme racial prejudice during the Korean War. Several transgressions happen to him, changing his life forever.

The book covers many historical events that have never been explained over the years which are masterminded by Qin Shi Chong. While the story unfolds, the reader considers many potential futures for the United States, some of which are rather grim, to say the least.

As Qin Shi Chong returns to China, he is determined to create havoc in a lifelong quest to destroy the United States. His revenge takes many avenues and clandestine plots. From creating a network to sell drugs to soldiers during the Vietnam War, to secretly training North Vietnamese soldiers in ways of killing American soldiers, Qin Shi Chong succeeds.

Blue Skies Red Soil covers an 80-year span in Qin Shi Chong’s life, including the explosion of the computer revolution, where he inadvertently stumbles on a weapon capable of immobilizing civilian and military technology in America.

About the Author:

Author David Mudra lives in a suburb of Cleveland. He works for an American automotive company in heavy manufacturing. He is also a state-certified medical first responder, a state-certified firefighter, a part-time police officer for a local municipality, and a commercially rated pilot.

... Read more