Showing results by author "Spinneys" in All Categories

With a death toll of between 50 and 100 million people and a global reach, the Spanish flu of 1918–1920 was the greatest human disaster. And yet, in our popular conception it exists largely as a footnote to World War I. Laura Spinney recounts the story of an overlooked pandemic, tracing it from Alaska to Brazil, from Persia to Spain and from South Africa to Odessa. She shows how the pandemic was shaped by the interaction of a virus and the humans it encountered, and how this devastating natural experiment put both the ingenuity and the vulnerability of humans to the test.

As the planet emerged from the last ice age, a language was born between Europe and Asia, by the Black Sea. This ancient tongue, which we call Proto-Indo-European, soon exploded out of its cradle, changing and fragmenting as it went, until its offspring were spoken from Scotland to China. Today those descendants constitute the world’s largest language family, the thread that connects disparate cultures: Dante’s Inferno to the Rig Veda, The Lord of the Rings to the love poetry of Rumi. Indo-European languages are spoken by nearly half of humanity. How did this happen?

Tobey is a giant Alaskan malamute that shares a home with Emma; William; William's wife, Molly; Beauregard, a Newfoundland dog; and Socks, a cat that was rescued by Emma when she was an abandoned kitten. Tobey was formerly to be partnered with Allison Stillman, a US customs agent, but Allison was severely injured in an auto accident early in the training stages. Tobey was evaluated as being "too immature" to continue with training, so he was placed in a shelter where William found him.

This is a cheerful, heartwarming story about a rescued dog named Emma and her new family. Emma's story will be enjoyed by both children and adults alike. As the title of the book More Adventures of Emma implies, this is the sequel of The Adventures of Emma which was suggested — even requested — by some people who gave that book five stars in their reviews.

This is the first of three books in a series. Each book is told by the rescue dog Emma. When William meets Emma, she is famished, dehydrated and barely alive, having run away from an abusive owner. Although a vet suggests putting the dog down, William takes her into his household, along with his wife and two huge dogs. As the months pass, Emma gains more confidence and independence. After Emma regains her strength, she is excited to explore her new surroundings. She ventures out on her own. Upon seeing her return one day, William turns to a visitor and concedes, "That's Emma being Emma.

A show that inspires you to eat and live well. Hosts Devina Divecha and Tiffany Eslick chat with leading players in the food community, from farmers to foodies, as well as health and well-being experts. Brought to you by the UAE’s premium supermarket retailer, this award-winning show promises to bring you engaging conversations, fresh ideas, and help nourish your heart and soul. New episodes every other Tuesday.

City of Big Shoulders links key events in Chicago's development, from its marshy origins in the 1600's to today's robust metropolis. Robert G. Spinney presents Chicago in terms of the people whose lives made the city - from the tycoons and the politicians, to the hundreds of thousands of immigrants from all over the world. In this revised and updated second edition that brings Chicago's story into the 21st century, Spinney sweeps his historian's gaze across the colorful and dramatic panorama of the city's explosive past.

When Lu Spinney's 29-year-old son, Miles, flies up on his snowboard, "he knows he is not in control as he is taken by force up the ramp," writes his mother, "skewing sideways as his board clips the edge and then he is hurtling, spinning up, up into the free blue sky ahead.... " He lands hard on the ice and falls into a coma. Thus begins the erratic loss - Miles first in a coma and then trapped in a fluctuating state of minimal consciousness - that unravels over the next five years.