A detailed account of Wellington's campaign in the south of France. Drawing on eyewitness accounts and official dispatches; Ian Robertson outlines the nature of the war as well as traces the complicated maneuvering and operations of the British and French armies. He describes in detail such hard-fought actions as the Nivelle; Orthez; Toulouse; and Bayonne and throws light on some less well-known clashes; many of which were fought in the unforgiving terrain of the Pyrenees.
#1225468 in Books imusti 2015-09-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 7.50 x .70 x 7.50l; .59 #File Name: 1851242562176 pagesBodleian Library
Review
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful. A wonderful visual tourBy D. BrubakerThis is a book that Dr. Small; a leading Oxford researcher of Qur'an manuscripts; was asked to write for placement in the Oxford Bodleian Library Bookstore; to give readers a general sense of the progression of the Qur'an through the various periods of its history as a written object while also showcasing many of the remarkable Qur'an manuscripts in the collections of the Bodleian Library.Small's previous book; "Textual Criticism and Qur'an Manuscripts;" is scholarly and systematic; and I've also reviewed it here on ."Qur'ans: Books of Divine Encounter;" is something quite different. It is a simple and beautiful introduction to the progression of the Qur'an through its manuscript (and one textile) history for non-academics. In it; Small presents these objects with emphasis upon their style; utility; and beauty as works of art and exemplars of their respective time periods. He touches upon the ways they were produced; the development of the textual features; geometry; illuminations; and materials; as well as some of the ways written Qur'ans have been understood and used by ordinary Muslims over the centuries. Its full color photographs of manuscripts are beautiful; and the selection of Qur'ans; while not exhaustive (it was not intended to be so); is balanced and logical. And of course; even though this book was not written for graduate students; its author is an expert and the book is thus an intelligent introduction for lay people wishing to explore the world of Qur'an manuscripts a bit further.One important scholar in our area recently gave "Qur'ans: Books of Divine Encounter" praise while also making a few justified (but non-fatal) criticisms of a nature that will not in any way touch upon the book's general usefulness. This is what scholars do to keep each other sharp and is nothing unusual.I work as an academic with Qur'an manuscripts myself and move among the other academics in this field. I will conclude this review with mention of another respected senior scholar in our field who commented to me recently that he loves this book and has found it excellent for use with students. I agree with him and will be doing the same.First; know that this is not a textbook as such; but then please don't hesitate to buy it.1 of 3 people found the following review helpful. A Misleading ProductBy Dr. Jon MillsVery disappointing and misleading in the product description. Rather than a scholarly comparison of different variations of Qur'ans over the centuries; including how the texts; translations; meanings; and interpretations vary and were derived; it is merely a picture book with very little description of the pictures (mainly 1 page of a text or manuscript per photo). I would have never bought this if I knew it was a coffee table book with Islamic art inscribed on the inside pages of various extant manuscripts.
