{"title":"Books by John Davie","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781399424790","title":"Greek To Us","description":"\u003cp\u003eAncient Greek lives on in our culture in surprising ways. Sometimes funny - the word for an actor, hupokrites, gives us ‘hypocrite’; sometimes beautiful - an astronaut is literally a sailor of the skies. And that’s before we get to the myths which gave us our Achilles heel or our Midas Touch. And what about crocodile tears, which comes from the Greek’s belief that crocodiles cried while eating their victims!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis is a learned but always entertaining journey through the world of the Ancient Greeks, their extraordinary language and how it has shaped our own understanding of the world today. After all, what is language but the frame through which we understand the world? Davie aims to bring more than just humour, he seeks to trace the thread of ancient Greek thought that runs through our own civilization, always with the lightness of touch and fascinating etymology. We meet Eros and Aphrodite, Alexander the Great and Oscar Wilde, the stoics, Epicurus and Sparta.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhile this is a book about language and the touching and illuminating presence of the ancient Greeks in our current words, it’s also about how Ancient Greece shapes our culture today.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55896369922421,"sku":"9781399424790","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781399424790_d47eaa57-0b28-4a13-8e7b-e15840ab6df6.jpg?v=1786019471"},{"product_id":"9783836501804","title":"Leonardo","description":"Filling notebook after notebook with sketches, inventions, and theories, Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) not only stands as one of the most exceptional draftsmen of art history, but also as a mastermind and innovator who anticipated some of the greatest discoveries of human progress, sometimes centuries before their material realization.    From the smallest arteries in the human heart to the far-flung constellations of the universe, Leonardo saw nature and science as being unequivocally connected. His points of inquiry and invention spanned philosophy, anatomy, geology, and mathematics, from the laws of optics, gravitation, heat, and light to the building of a flying machine.    In his painting, Leonardo steered art out of the Middle Ages with works such as The Last Supper and the world-famous La Gioconda or Mona Lisa depicting not only physical appearances, but a compelling psychological intrigue and depth which continues to draw crowds of mesmerized visitors to masterpieces in Paris, Milan, Washington, London, and Rome.    This book brings together some of Leonardo’s most outstanding work to introduce a figure of infinite curiosity, feverish imagination, and sublime artistic ability, often described as having “not enough worlds for to conquer, and not enough lives for to live” (Alan Woods).","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56311032578421,"sku":"9783836501804","price":18.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9783836501804_6beb2f8d-0728-48da-988c-57252a63c410.jpg?v=1786035157"},{"product_id":"9781399400978","title":"Et tu, Brute?","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eHarry Mount and John Davie unlock the wisdom of the past in this light-hearted and fascinating book, revealing how ancient Latin can help us to live better in the present.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere are so many Latin phrases in everyday use that often we use them without understanding the background and context within which they were actually used. 'Carpe diem'; 'Stet'; 'Memento mori'; 'Et tu Brute' – examples would fill a book. And often these phrases are also used in English translation: 'The die is cast'; 'crossing the Rubicon'; 'Rome was not built in a day'. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMany of these phrases are humorous, but they are also a rich source of wisdom: the wisdom of the ancients. The chapters of this book include: Latin for Gardeners, the Great Latin Love Poets, Cicero on How to Grow Old Gracefully and Seneca's Stoic Guide to Life. Each chapter starts with a quotation and is lightly sprinkled with many more, with accompanying English translations and entertaining cartoons and illustrations dotted throughout.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe background to each quotation is explained so that the context is fully understood. Who crossed the Rubicon and why, for example? At a time of great political and social turbulence, more and more people are turning back to ancient wisdom as a guide to life. Here they are in touch with two classical scholars of distinction who have the common touch and can help make Latin accessible to all, not to mention fun!\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312267473269,"sku":"9781399400978","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781399400978_43284213-f0db-434b-b153-a115d1a367bc.jpg?v=1786020058"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-john-davie.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}