A full-color, oversized, hardcover tome that faithfully adapts the original Japanese material, detailing the creation of the most recent entry in the Final Fantasy saga! Final Fantasy XV's world of Eos is filled with wonderous scenery, larger-than-life creatures, diverse cultures, and treacherous foes. Experience hundreds of pieces of detailed design work composed lovingly for fans of the unique sci-fi fantasy world. This volume collects complex lore, insightful commentary, comprehensive data, and dazzling concept art, all beautifully bound in this richly detailed hardcover! Square Enix and Dark Horse Books present a superbly curated collection of Final Fantasy XV content that any fan will cherish.
A full-color, lavishly illustrated introduction to the world of Final Fantasy VII Remake, presenting information on characters, settings, gameplay, and more! With its captivating characters, striking visual design, and intense gameplay, Final Fantasy VII set a new standard for the RPG genre and became one of the top video game releases of all time. Now, with Final Fantasy VII Remake, players return to Midgar in a stunning new rendition of a timeless classic. This World Preview volume offers both new players and longtime fans essential information on characters, settings, gameplay, and more, as well as introductory comments from producer Yoshinori Kitase and director Tetsuya Nomura.
The inside scoop... for when you want more than the official line! We've all heard stories of the millionaire real-estate tycoons who started out by scraping together enough money for a down payment on a modest first property-or so the legend goes. And we've all seen the books that promise to show you how to make a million dollars buying houses with no money down. But when average people like us can barely pay the mortgage or the rent, we don't need get-rich-quick schemes or hocus-pocus-we need the inside scoop on how real estate investing can improve our lives. The Unofficial Guide to Real Estate Investing, Second Edition, gives savvy readers like you a foolproof appraisal of everything from the most basic concepts of real estate investing to complicated tax and financing formulations. Millions of Americans got burned when the Internet bubble burst and corporate scoundrels ran off with their retirement accounts. Now they're discovering that real estate can be their ticket to a prosperous retirement. Fully updated to take account of new tax law changes and now including listings of current apartment owners' associations in all 50 states, this new edition is friendlier and more comprehensive than ever. If you're looking for a long-term investment that you can control-safe from robber barons and market swings-look no further than The Unofficial Guide to Real Estate Investing, Second Edition. * Vital Information on the inside world of real estate investing * Insider Secrets on tax shelter benefits * Money-Saving Techniques for valuing property correctly and determining its most profitable use * Time-Saving Tips on borrowing money and discovering which investments have the potential to turn into tomorrow's hot properties * The Latest Trends in hot real estate investing options * Handy Checklists and charts that help you put together a top-rate investment plan, generate cash flow, and pick the best real estate agent
An epic account of the rise and fall of the Silk Road empires The first complete history of Central Eurasia from ancient times to the present day, Empires of the Silk Road represents a fundamental rethinking of the origins, history, and significance of this major world region. Christopher Beckwith describes the rise and fall of the great Central Eurasian empires, including those of the Scythians, Attila the Hun, the Turks and Tibetans, and Genghis Khan and the Mongols. In addition, he explains why the heartland of Central Eurasia led the world economically, scientifically, and artistically for many centuries despite invasions by Persians, Greeks, Arabs, Chinese, and others. In retelling the story of the Old World from the perspective of Central Eurasia, Beckwith provides a new understanding of the internal and external dynamics of the Central Eurasian states and shows how their people repeatedly revolutionized Eurasian civilization. Beckwith recounts the Indo-Europeans' migration out of Central Eurasia, their mixture with local peoples, and the resulting development of the Graeco-Roman, Persian, Indian, and Chinese civilizations; he details the basis for the thriving economy of premodern Central Eurasia, the economy's disintegration following the region's partition by the Chinese and Russians in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, and the damaging of Central Eurasian culture by Modernism; and he discusses the significance for world history of the partial reemergence of Central Eurasian nations after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Empires of the Silk Road places Central Eurasia within a world historical framework and demonstrates why the region is central to understanding the history of civilization.
In The Real North Korea, Lankov substitutes cold, clear analysis for the overheated rhetoric surrounding this opaque police state. Based on vast expertise, this book reveals how average North Koreans live, how their leaders rule, and how both survive
A notable contribution to our understanding of ourselves. This book explores the realm of human behavior in social situations and the way that we appear to others. Dr. Goffman uses the metaphor of theatrical performance as a framework. Each person in everyday social intercourse presents himself and his activity to others, attempts to guide and cotnrol the impressions they form of him, and employs certain techniques in order to sustain his performance, just as an actor presents a character to an audience. The discussions of these social techniques offered here are based upon detailed research and observation of social customs in many regions.
The second volume of a two-volume set of the official art books for Final Fantasy XIV: Heavensward. This beautiful new edition features hundreds of pages of full-color art and an exclusive bonus item code! (NOTE: E-book edition does not include bonus item code.) A treat for collectors and fans of Final Fantasy XIV, this high-quality, large-format art book presents a rich collection of illustrations and concept artwork for characters, environments, accessories, and more. Covering content through the end of the Heavensward expansion, this volume also includes comments from the art team and a look at the processes that the team uses when creating art pieces. Book two of a two-book set with The Art of Ishgard: Stone and Steel. Includes an exclusive bonus item code for an in-game Wind-up Hraesvelgr minion! The third volume in the line of Final Fantasy XIV official art books.
INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER "For anyone who wants to understand capitalism not as economists or politicians have pictured it but as it actually operates, this book will be invaluable."-Observer (UK) If you've wondered how we did not see the economic collapse coming, Ha-Joon Chang knows the answer: We didn't ask what they didn't tell us about capitalism. This is a lighthearted book with a serious purpose: to question the assumptions behind the dogma and sheer hype that the dominant school of neoliberal economists-the apostles of the freemarket-have spun since the Age of Reagan. Chang, the author of the international bestseller Bad Samaritans, is one of the world's most respected economists, a voice of sanity-and wit-in the tradition of John Kenneth Galbraith and Joseph Stiglitz. 23 Things They Don't Tell You About Capitalism equips readers with an understanding of how global capitalism works-and doesn't. In his final chapter, "How to Rebuild the World," Chang offers a vision of how we can shape capitalism to humane ends, instead of becoming slaves of the market.