VIKING, THE CHRONICLES OF HAAKON THE COWARD A furare normannorum libera nos, Domine (Lord, deliver us from the fury of the men of the North) Young Haakon lives a quiet and peaceful life in the Norwegian village of Vestfold. However, on reaching the age of fourteen, he must put the innocence of youth behind him, in order to become a fearsome Viking. On his fourteenth birthday something happens that will change his life forever. His father, Gunnjorn, chief of the village, demands that he sacrifice a slave in Odin's honour, in the presence of a large number of important and powerful Viking chiefs and ships' captains. This is the day of his 'proof of character', the day on which he must start to earn the reputation which will accompany him for the rest of his life. Written in a lively and attractive style, the novel takes us to 9th century Scandinavia, an inhospitable land inhabited by the terrifying Vikings, fearless sailors whose most important goal is to find fame and glory, forging for themselves an inmortal reputation and returning home with their ships full of silver and other treasures. They were not only Implacable warriors but also experienced farmers and skilled tradesmen. This fascinating people will not leave the readers indifferent.

SINOPSE DE "VIKINGO, AS CRÔNICAS DE HAAKON O COVARDE" O jovem Haakon desfruta de uma vida tranquila y pacífica na aldeia norueguesa de Vestfold, mas ao completar quatorze anos, deve se separar da inocência que envolve sua infância, para se tornar um temível Viking: nesse dia, um importante evento mudará sua vida. Seu pai, Gunnjorn, o Jarl da aldeia, exige que ele, diante da presença of powerosos Bondis nórdicos, sacrifiquem um escravo em homenagem à Odin. É o seu Skapraun, seu teste de caráter, o dia em que você deve começar a esculpir a reputação que irá acompanhá-lo para o resto de sua vida. Escrito de maneira ágil e atrativa, este romance nos levará a Escandinávia do século IX DC, uma terra inóspita habitada pelos temidos homens do norte, os vikings, uns intrépidos navegadores cuja maior glória é forjar uma imortal reputação e retornar à suas casas com os navios carregados de prata e riquezas. Eram guerreiros implacáveis, mas também experientes agricultores e comerciantes habilidosos. Essa aldeia fascinante não deixará o leitor indiferente.

Forged in the mystical fires of Asgard, the golden ax is a weapon of untold power. Whoever wields the awesome blade is imbued with the strength to slay armies. Of all mortal men only one is chosen to possess this terrible instrument of death - Haakon the Conqueror. But has he truly received a gift from the gods? Or is the ax an unholy curse of evil? Only time will tell, as Haakon leads his small band of warriors in bloody battle against overwhelming odds, determined to save his lady love, the beautiful Rosamund, or die.

Brutality is what they were known for; marauders forged in the icy north. Yet, Vikings weren't always looters and thieves. They honored home and the land, community and friends. Magnus, son of Vargr, wanted to see the world more than anything else, but his dream collided with the ruthless spread of Charlemagne's kingdom. Two lives destined to change the course of history; the fate of families for generations to come.

The story of a boy who lived at the end of the Viking period.

History and legend combine in the gripping tale of Hakon Haraldsson, a Christian boy who once fought for the High Seat of a Viking realm. It is 935 AD and the North is in turmoil. King Harald Fairhair has died, leaving the High Seat of the realm to his murderous son, Erik Bloodaxe. To solidify his claim, Erik ruthlessly disposes of all claimants to his throne, save one: his youngest brother Hakon. Erik's surviving enemies send a ship to Wessex, where the Christian King Athelstan is raising Hakon. Unable to avoid his fate, he returns to the Viking North to face his brother and claim his birthright, only to discover that victory will demand sacrifices beyond his wildest nightmares.

During the Cold War, freedom of expression was vaunted as liberal democracy’s most cherished possession—but such freedom was put in service of a hidden agenda. In The Cultural Cold War, Frances Stonor Saunders reveals the extraordinary efforts of a secret campaign in which some of the most vocal exponents of intellectual freedom in the West were working for or subsidized by the CIA—whether they knew it or not. Called "the most comprehensive account yet of the [CIA’s] activities between 1947 and 1967" by the New York Times, the book presents shocking evidence of the CIA’s undercover program of cultural interventions in Western Europe and at home, drawing together declassified documents and exclusive interviews to expose the CIA’s astonishing campaign to deploy the likes of Hannah Arendt, Isaiah Berlin, Leonard Bernstein, Robert Lowell, George Orwell, and Jackson Pollock as weapons in the Cold War. Translated into ten languages, this classic work—now with a new preface by the author—is "a real contribution to popular understanding of the postwar period" (The Wall Street Journal), and its story of covert cultural efforts to win hearts and minds continues to be relevant today.