La obra contiene, extractados, todos los libros de emblemas que se publicaron en español durante los siglos XVI y XVII. Se trata de un material de difícil acceso que de este modo se pone a disposición del lector, ya sea investigador o mero aficionado a la riquísima cultura simbólica cifrada en el género de la literatura emblemática. El libro se presenta en primera instancia como índice alfabético de los motivos iconográficos principales presentes en cada emblema. Pero, además, se podrá acceder a los emblemas mediante búsquedas realizadas a partir de los índices complementarios: de autores, lemas, fuentes y claves temáticas, aparte de los motivos iconográficos secundarios. Completa el volumen un glosario terminológico y de personajes que ayuda a la comprensión de los significados. El desarrollo de los estudios de emblemática en el ámbito internacional (existe una extensa Society for Emblem Studies) ha hecho aconsejable introducir traducción al inglés de los campos de información más relevantes. Y las ventajas que proporcionan las nuevas tecnologías han sido aprovechadas con la incorporación de un CD-ROM (ejecutable por igual en los sistemas Macintosh y PC) que agiliza la combinación de búsquedas complejas. Tanto el CD-ROM como el libro reproducen los grabados de los 1.732 emblemas estudiados.

LEARN SPANISH NEWS Vol.5: English & Spanish THIS EDITION: The dual-language text has been arranged into sentences and shorter paragraphs for quick and easy cross-referencing. The source text is the Spanish language edition of Voice of America (VOA). The Spanish text has been translated into English for this dual-language project. The reader can choose between four formats: Section 1: English to Spanish Section 2: Spanish to English Section 3: English Section 4: Spanish A methodology for getting the most out of this bilingual format is explained in the book’s Foreword. The primary purpose of this text is to equip a foreign language learner with the ability to start reading news in the particular foreign language: to be able to read only in the foreign language, and extract enough understanding to continue the language learning process fruitfully this way. A reader might like to go back to reading dual-language news for reinforcement and further development, returning to foreign language only news with a deeper understanding. By going back to the same ‘old’ news, you are going over words, word patterns, and passages with which you already have a certain familiarity. The process of reinforcement, learning or retaining of what is new, and exposure to what is unfamiliar, is much easier this way — even though the news may seem a little dated. The aim of informing the reader about actual news is secondary, especially given that the content will become less current (and less relevant) over time. If you are having trouble with the level of difficulty in the text, a suggested path for learning languages is as follows: Familiarise yourself with a basic language instruction book — or re-read the one you have. Once a student has studied the basics, a suitable book about basic grammar can be helpful. The suggestion is that any grammar book be studied more with the intent of recognition and understanding, rather than memorising and obsessive rote learning. Go through as much of the grammar book you feel you can digest — maybe even the whole book — skipping over what is not easily understood. After this, read through a portion of text in a book called ‘Spanish Sentences’, by 2LanguageBooks, looking for examples of what you have picked up (or gleaned) in your hopefully not so arduous study of grammar. Even repeatedly seeing a word that you remember seeing listed as a ‘subject pronoun’ or a ‘third person plural’ verb of some sort is a great help. Then, depending on your inclination, return to the grammar book (or your basic Spanish book), or move on to lengthier bilingual text — like in 2Language Books texts containing news or stories, for example —, or find some suitable Spanish text: a simple novel, a Spanish news website, etc. Grammar books will likely have some verb charts. However, there are currently good on-line resources that go further — dictionaries with a verb conjugation ‘search’ option. Many basic language books offer some form of audio support. Internet services — primarily news based radio stations — offer podcasts. Audio from television is an additional resource, and can be formatted for use on various digital platforms. However, if audio is an important component of your interest in languages, electronic devices that support quality text-to-speech (TTS) will likely be appealing. With a library card, TTS technology (in a device that supports the relevant content), and the above mentioned resources, an entire language learning system is available for not much more than a cup of coffee! There is no substantial financial outlay to get you started. Furthermore, there are no additional ongoing fees (and updates), and there are no expiry dates on ‘premium’ content and resources. (A Dual-Language Book Project) 2Language Books

This political and military history of Paraguay chronicles the dictatorship of General Alfredo Stroessner from 1954 to the coup that overthrew him in 1989. 1989 was a crucial year for Paraguay. After thirty-five years of dictatorship, General Alfredo Stroessner was overthrown by a coup d’état. In this sweeping historical study, Paraguayan historian Antonio Luis Sapienza chronicles Stroessner’s rise to power during the coup of 1954; his long tenure maintained through fraudulent elections, military alliances, a right-wing political party, and assistance from the United States; and his eventual downfall. While in power, Stroessner launched major development projects, improving roads, water and sewage facilities, and an airline. At the same time, abuse of human rights and oppression of political opposition became the norm. Dozens of political prisoners were tortured and even executed, and thousands driven into exile. Like most dictators, Stroessner oversaw major expansions of the military and police. Nevertheless, it was Paraguay’s armed forces, led by General Andres Rodriguez, that brought a violent end to his rule. Sapienza provides a detailed analysis of the coup that sent Stroessner into exile in Brazil. Extensively illustrated with photographs and maps, The 1989 Coup d’etat in Paraguay is a unique study of an important episode in Latin American history.

LEARN SPANISH NEWS Vol.6: English & Spanish THIS EDITION: The dual-language text has been arranged into sentences and shorter paragraphs for quick and easy cross-referencing. The source text is the Spanish language edition of Voice of America (VOA). The Spanish text has been translated into English for this dual-language project. The reader can choose between four formats: Section 1: English to Spanish Section 2: Spanish to English Section 3: English Section 4: Spanish A methodology for getting the most out of this bilingual format is explained in the book’s Foreword. The primary purpose of this text is to equip a foreign language learner with the ability to start reading news in the particular foreign language: to be able to read only in the foreign language, and extract enough understanding to continue the language learning process fruitfully this way. A reader might like to go back to reading dual-language news for reinforcement and further development, returning to foreign language only news with a deeper understanding. By going back to the same ‘old’ news, you are going over words, word patterns, and passages with which you already have a certain familiarity. The process of reinforcement, learning or retaining of what is new, and exposure to what is unfamiliar, is much easier this way — even though the news may seem a little dated. The aim of informing the reader about actual news is secondary, especially given that the content will become less current (and less relevant) over time. If you are having trouble with the level of difficulty in the text, a suggested path for learning languages is as follows: Familiarise yourself with a basic language instruction book — or re-read the one you have. Once a student has studied the basics, a suitable book about basic grammar can be helpful. The suggestion is that any grammar book be studied more with the intent of recognition and understanding, rather than memorising and obsessive rote learning. Go through as much of the grammar book you feel you can digest — maybe even the whole book — skipping over what is not easily understood. After this, read through a portion of text in a book called ‘Spanish Sentences’, by 2LanguageBooks, looking for examples of what you have picked up (or gleaned) in your hopefully not so arduous study of grammar. Even repeatedly seeing a word that you remember seeing listed as a ‘subject pronoun’ or a ‘third person plural’ verb of some sort is a great help. Then, depending on your inclination, return to the grammar book (or your basic Spanish book), or move on to lengthier bilingual text — like in 2Language Books texts containing news or stories, for example —, or find some suitable Spanish text: a simple novel, a Spanish news website, etc. Grammar books will likely have some verb charts. However, there are currently good on-line resources that go further — dictionaries with a verb conjugation ‘search’ option. Many basic language books offer some form of audio support. Internet services — primarily news based radio stations — offer podcasts. Audio from television is an additional resource, and can be formatted for use on various digital platforms. However, if audio is an important component of your interest in languages, electronic devices that support quality text-to-speech (TTS) will likely be appealing. With a library card, TTS technology (in a device that supports the relevant content), and the above mentioned resources, an entire language learning system is available for not much more than a cup of coffee! There is no substantial financial outlay to get you started. Furthermore, there are no additional ongoing fees (and updates), and there are no expiry dates on ‘premium’ content and resources. (A Dual-Language Book Project) 2Language Books