Archives: March 2009
Fri Mar 27, 2009
Le Réveil du Dodo
Author: Emmanuel Richon
Broche. 2008. 150x 210 mm. 144 pp
ISBN: 978-99903-0-585-2
Price: Rs 225
Le dodo sous toutes ses facettes et sous toutes les coutures. Voici réunie pour la première fois, la totalité d'un mythe à méditer. Symbole national, cet oiseau méritait, certes, une réhabilitation en même temps qu'une récapitulation exhaustive des thèses concernant son mode de vie ou sa disparition. « As dead as the dodo », déclarent les Anglais, est-ce si sûr ? L'avancée fulgurante des recherches génétiques récentes nous renvoie inconsciemment à l'éventualité d'un impossible retour...
Un peu de Lewis Caroll, un peu du Dr. Frankenstein, beaucoup de sérieux également, pour un livre fascinant à la portée de tous, juste pour tenter, d'une manière cette fois bien innocente, de faire revivre... une légende restée bien ancrée dans notre inconscient collectif, en tout cas dans notre mémoire populaire et si nécessaire, de permettre une véritable réhabilitation de cet oiseau hors du commun.
Le héros de cet ouvrage permet en tout cas de retracer une véritable histoire écologique des Mascareignes depuis l'arrivée des premiers êtres humains jusqu'à nos jours. Il remet cette disparition en perspective et propose finalement à tout un chacun de réfléchir sur sa propre responsabilité à venir.
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From Alien to Citizen - The Integration of the Chinese in Mauritius
Authors: H. Ly Tio Fane-Pineo & Edouard Lim Fat
Paperback. 2008. 150 x 210mm. 512pp
ISBN: 978-99903-0-569-2
Price: Rs. 475.00
It has been estimated that over 30 million Chinese have emigrated from China to seek better living elsewhere. The hardships they suffered and their struggles to survive in the host country have been related in various ways, but there is no other documented book such as “From Alien to Citizen, the integration of the Chinese in Mauritius” that adds so much to the knowledge of the Chinese Diaspora.
The contribution of the Chinese to the development of Mauritius is striking. The authors remind us that such outstanding achievement was made possible thanks to the benevolence of British authorities towards the first settlers, but also to the Chinese acumen in taking advantage of changing colonial policies and evolution of the economy.
As long as the Chinese immigrant laboured under the legal provisions limiting his activities as alien, he had to restrict his means of living to trade, but when at Independence the status of citizen was conferred on him, he lost no time on taking the lead in the development of Port Louis as a centre of world finance and a major market for developing world commerce.
This book successfully ties the past to the present, and is an indispensable reference work for the historian, the politician, the economist as well as for sociologist.
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'No Man is an Island' - The Irish Presence in Isle de France/Mauritius (1715 - 2007)
Author: Marc Serge Rivière
Paperback. 2008. 150x210mm. 525pp
9789990305845
Price: Rs. 400
Mauritius has never been a major destination for Irish immigrants, but Irish people have made their mark in its annals. During the infancy of Isle de France, several descendants of the 'Wild Geese' arrived as hired hands, settlers, sailors, soldiers or chaplains.
Three Irish Regiments in the Service of France sojourned at Port-Louis on their way to India from 1757 onwards. After the British takeover (810), the number of Government officials and administrators of Irish origin increased; Irish clergymen and missionaries, such as I.B.V.M. (Loreto) Sisters, Brothers of the Christian Schools and 'Spiritans', disembarked to promote Christian values and a holistic vision of education.
A few Irish Good Shepherd Sisters came to join a community set up in 1977 to assist young people in distress. Since World War II, numerous Mauritian-born students have completed their tertiary studies at Irish Universities. More recently, Ireland has been viewed as an economic model for Mauritius which, in turn, has now become a favourite destination and business centre for Irish people.
This ground-breaking study reveals the strong links between Ireland and Mauritius over the centuries; it highlights the major contribution made by prominent individuals, and communities, to the cultural, educational, political, and social development of the 'rainbow nation'. Governors, such as Cole and Pope Hennessy, scientists like Belfast-born Charles Telfair, Irish regiments, admirals, officers and soldiers, writers and artists, Bishops, missionaries, educators, policemen, sportsmen, and the Irish nation as a whole, have all played a part.
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Thu Mar 26, 2009
Antiquarian news now only electronic
Since January, the e-mail newsletter "Fine Books Notes" has replaced the US antiquarian magazine "Fine Books & Collections". The newsletter is free of charge and is published monthly. The British antiquarian magazine "Rare Book Review" which has been on the market since 1974, is also abandoning its print edition and is now only available online.
finebooksmagazine.com
www.rarebookreview.com
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Signpost through the research jungle
Springer Science + Business Media has launched a freely accessible website designed to provide information on which research institutions are working in which areas of science.
www.AuthorMapper.com
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New platform for the industry
Batchconnect.com is a website which aims to bring booksellers, publishing companies and authors in the UK into direct contact with one another. It is provided by the Booksellers Association of the UK and Ireland.
www.batchconnect.com
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Books for the visually impaired
Australian online bookseller ReadHowYouWant has launched a special initiative for the visually impaired. English titles can be accessed in Braille and the e-book and audio format DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System), which uses MP3 data.
www.readhowyouwant.com/braille
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États généraux sur le multilinguisme
Lors de ces « États généraux sur le multilinguisme », ce sont 17 langues qui ont résonné dans le grand amphithéâtre de la Sorbonne, lieu qui a acquis, dès sa création, un prestige international. More...
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Wed Mar 25, 2009
The future of publishing in India – a view from across the Atlantic
Trying to understand and work out the Indian book market is a huge challenge, one taken on by our guest author Chad Post. Successfully, as we find out. More...
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