With its fossil hunters and philosophers, diplomats, dropouts, writers and explorers, missionaries and refugees, Peking's foreign community in the early 20th century was as exotic as the city itself. Always a magnet for larger than life individuals, Peking attracted characters as diverse as Reginald Johnston (tutor to the last emperor), Bertrand Russell, Pierre Loti, Rabrindranath Tagore, Sven Hedin, Peter Fleming, Wallis Simpson and Cecil Lewis. The last great capital to remain untouched by the modern world, Peking both entranced and horrified its foreign residents. Ignoring the poverty outside their gates, they danced, played and squabbled among themselves, oblivious to the great political events that were to shape modern China unfolding around them. This is a dazzling portrait of an eclectic foreign community and of China itself.

Why do all cultures, distant and diverse, have similar tales of dragons? Universal wisdom confirms dragons have interacted with people since time immemorial—they call to us, pique our curiosity, and arouse our fears. These mystical beasts are real and their power, their influence, and especially their magick can be captured. Building upon rituals and drawing on their energy, learn to befriend these inspirational creatures and become partners with them on a spiritual journey. Move with them, learn from them, dance in perfect human/dragon syncopation. Praise: "A unique, one-of-a-kind tome and a welcome addition to the growing body of metaphysical lore."—Midwest Book Review "A personal devotion and an academic work of the highest order."—The Dragon Chronicle (UK) "Dragon-lovers everywhere will like this book."—Prediction

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • THE BOOK BEHIND THE FIFTH SEASON OF THE ACCLAIMED HBO SERIES GAME OF THRONES Don’t miss the thrilling sneak peek of George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire: Book Six, The Winds of Winter Dubbed “the American Tolkien” by Time magazine, George R. R. Martin has earned international acclaim for his monumental cycle of epic fantasy. Now the #1 New York Times bestselling author delivers the fifth book in his landmark series—as both familiar faces and surprising new forces vie for a foothold in a fragmented empire. A DANCE WITH DRAGONS In the aftermath of a colossal battle, the future of the Seven Kingdoms hangs in the balance—beset by newly emerging threats from every direction. In the east, Daenerys Targaryen, the last scion of House Targaryen, rules with her three dragons as queen of a city built on dust and death. But Daenerys has thousands of enemies, and many have set out to find her. As they gather, one young man embarks upon his own quest for the queen, with an entirely different goal in mind. Fleeing from Westeros with a price on his head, Tyrion Lannister, too, is making his way to Daenerys. But his newest allies in this quest are not the rag-tag band they seem, and at their heart lies one who could undo Daenerys’s claim to Westeros forever. Meanwhile, to the north lies the mammoth Wall of ice and stone—a structure only as strong as those guarding it. There, Jon Snow, 998th Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch, will face his greatest challenge. For he has powerful foes not only within the Watch but also beyond, in the land of the creatures of ice. From all corners, bitter conflicts reignite, intimate betrayals are perpetrated, and a grand cast of outlaws and priests, soldiers and skinchangers, nobles and slaves, will face seemingly insurmountable obstacles. Some will fail, others will grow in the strength of darkness. But in a time of rising restlessness, the tides of destiny and politics will lead inevitably to the greatest dance of all. Praise for A Dance with Dragons “Filled with vividly rendered set pieces, unexpected turnings, assorted cliffhangers and moments of appalling cruelty, A Dance with Dragons is epic fantasy as it should be written: passionate, compelling, convincingly detailed and thoroughly imagined.”—The Washington Post “Long live George Martin . . . a literary dervish, enthralled by complicated characters and vivid language, and bursting with the wild vision of the very best tale tellers.”—The New York Times

Dragons are ancient mystical creatures that come bearing gifts and messages from the deepest and darkest corners of the psyche. For those who dare to dance with them, secrets from the personal and collective unconscious are revealed in the most unexpected and creative of ways. The dragons are wise and experienced guides in matters of the shadow and journeying with them can awaken the soul to greater communion with Spirit and wholeness in all dimensions of life. In Dancing with Dragons, Nicole Gruel shares an intimate and personal account of meeting the dragons whilst experiencing total body meltdown. After years of travelling paths of love and light, she recalls how the dragons came to bring balance to what had become a lop-sided way of being. By honestly facing that which remained hidden and through integrating all that surfaced, she describes how she came into greater alignment with her most authentic Self. As she travels through the seven chakrasthe portals of psychological, somatic and spiritual knowingshe shares the complex struggles ego encounters as the being becomes whole. This book is an invitation into the fascinating and trepidatious world of the dragons that reside within each of us. It speaks to the most primal and archetypal patterns of the soul journey, and sheds light on the many obstacles the ego faces in this earthly life. When we accept the invitation to dance, we are moved through the alchemical fires and who knowswe may even stumble across the gold that awaits.

There are tremendous personal benefits to realizing and integrating the shadow part of the personality. When we can look at the "disowned parts of ourselves," we release a great deal of energy that can be used for creative expression. Dancing in the Dragon's Den is a practical self-help book that can open up your life in ways you have not yet dreamed of. Bane talks to you directly-she is warm, friendly, and supportive as she outlines the process.

GOLD MEDAL, BEST FICTION: AUSTRALIA/NEW ZEALAND-AOTEAROA/PACIFIC RIM. 2024 INDEPENDENT PUBLISHER BOOK AWARDS SILVER MEDAL, LITERARY FICTION, 2024 READERS' FAVORITE BOOK AWARDS From Jenni Ogden, author of multiple-award-winning A Drop in the Ocean, comes another evocative story of friendship, coral reefs, and marine conservation for book-club readers. It is the late 1970s and teenagers Gaia and her brother Bron live with their parents on their isolated property on Western Australia’s Coral Coast. Intensively trained for a career as a professional ballet dancer by her mother, once a Principal Dancer in the American Ballet Theatre, Gaia also loves snorkeling over the coral reef that borders their small market garden. Then comes a day that changes her life forever: she discovers a rare pair of dramatically colored seadragons, their courtship dance over the coral spellbinding, and that night she loses her entire family and her dancing dream. Two years later she returns to the abandoned property, determined to live off the land. For years her only friends are the wild animals of the bush and reef, and Mary and Eddie, an Aboriginal couple who work for the racist farmer on the neighboring property — until one morning Jarrah, Mary’s 11-year-old orphaned nephew, is entranced when he sees Gaia dancing on the beach. As an unlikely friendship between these two lonely and scarred people deepens, they discover that when you lose everything the only way to survive is to open your heart.