A grand and revelatory portrait of Wall Street’s most storied investment bankWall Street investment banks move trillions of dollars a year, make billions in fees, pay their executives in the tens of millions of dollars. But even among the most powerful firms, Lazard Frères & Co. stood apart. Discretion, secrecy, and subtle strategy were its weapons of choice. For more than a century, the mystique and reputation of the "Great Men" who worked there allowed the firm to garner unimaginable profits, social cachet, and outsized influence in the halls of power. But in the mid-1980s, their titanic egos started getting in the way, and the Great Men of Lazard jeopardized all they had built.William D. Cohan, himself a former high-level Wall Street banker, takes the reader into the mysterious and... Less

A grand and revelatory portrait of Wall Street’s most storied investment bankWall Street investment banks move trillions of dollars a year, make billions in fees, pay their executives in the tens of millions of dollars. But even among the most powerful firms, Lazard Frères & Co. stood apart. Discretion, secrecy, and subtle strategy were its weapons of choice. For more than a century, the mystique and reputation of the "Great Men" who worked there allowed the firm to garner unimaginable profits, social cachet, and outsized influence in the halls of power. But in the mid-1980s, their titanic egos started getting in the way, and the Great Men of Lazard jeopardized all they had built.William D. Cohan, himself a former high-level Wall Street banker, takes the reader into the mysterious and... Less

A grand and revelatory portrait of Wall Street’s most storied investment bankWall Street investment banks move trillions of dollars a year, make billions in fees, pay their executives in the tens of millions of dollars. But even among the most powerful firms, Lazard Frères & Co. stood apart. Discretion, secrecy, and subtle strategy were its weapons of choice. For more than a century, the mystique and reputation of the "Great Men" who worked there allowed the firm to garner unimaginable profits, social cachet, and outsized influence in the halls of power. But in the mid-1980s, their titanic egos started getting in the way, and the Great Men of Lazard jeopardized all they had built.William D. Cohan, himself a former high-level Wall Street banker, takes the reader into the mysterious and... Less

“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born.” First, the unthinkable: a security breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he’s done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has... Less

“It happened fast. Thirty-two minutes for one world to die, another to be born.” First, the unthinkable: a security breach at a secret U.S. government facility unleashes the monstrous product of a chilling military experiment. Then, the unspeakable: a night of chaos and carnage gives way to sunrise on a nation, and ultimately a world, forever altered. All that remains for the stunned survivors is the long fight ahead and a future ruled by fear—of darkness, of death, of a fate far worse.As civilization swiftly crumbles into a primal landscape of predators and prey, two people flee in search of sanctuary. FBI agent Brad Wolgast is a good man haunted by what he’s done in the line of duty. Six-year-old orphan Amy Harper Bellafonte is a refugee from the doomed scientific project that has... Less

This book is about the most precious piece of paper we know, about bank-notes. Modern life would be unthinkable without them. Yet, the general public is kept very much in the dark about how they are made or who makes them. It is rarely known, for example, that despite America's technical Prowess all dollar bills are printed exclusively on German high-security printing presses using secret Swiss special inks, or that the phony 100 dollar bills, the so-called supernotes may well be printed in a top-secret printing works located just north of the white House and run by the CIA - although the US government is blaming the rogue government of North Korea for counterfeiting these bills. This book is finally lifting the veil on an industry used to absolute secrecy. It recounts the stories of a... Less

Praise for Private Equity"Private Equity: History, Governance, and Operations is an invaluable guide to understanding the world of private equity investing. Harry Cendrowski and his colleagues have drawn on their extensive experience and expertise to produce a book that is remarkably comprehensive and authoritative."—Ro bert Larson, Chairman, Lazard Real Estate Partners LLC and Larson Realty Group Managing Director, Lazard Alternative Investments" Private Equity: History, Governance, and Operations is an essential text for any business/finance professional's library. Applicable to both seasoned private equity gurus and students of the industry, its in-depth analysis of 'Best Practices' is well researched and clearly written."—William Campbell, Managing Director, W.Y. Campbell &... Less

It's no secret that koalas are some of the best-loved creatures in the animal kingdom. Now for the first time, the koala's story is portrayed in a large format with 160 striking photographs and accompanying text. The Koala Book describes the native forests before the onset of human settlement. Only in some of the old-growth forests such as Wild Cattle Creek can one catch a glimpse of how koalas might have lived. The lovable koala's physical attributes are then discussed, covering everything from its paws and claws to its backward opening pouch. Maps illustrate its population and range. The type of habitat that supports the koala and the factors that determine where koalas occur are also given. Sadly, its habitat has been decreased by 80 percent since the encroachment of... Less

Here, for the first time, is a complete history of the world based on the beliefs and writings of secret societies....

George William Russell, better known as Æ (1867-1935), mystic, poet, painter, journalist, editor, and practical rural economist, was a pivotal figure in the Irish literary revival and in the emergence of modern Ireland. From the beginning of the twentieth century he formed life-long friendships with W. B. Yeats, George Moore, Lord Dunsany, James Stephens, Stephen Mackenna (translator of the Enneads of Plotinus), James Joyce, and other writers, thinkers, and artists, and was closely associated with the Fay brothers in the Irish National Theatre Society (later the Abbey Theatre). Russell's influence was as extensive in practical and political affairs as it was in the more intimate spiritual domain: many writers were first encouraged by Russell's editorial guidance in the Irish Homestead... Less

At midnight, in a secret medical clinic in Washington, D.C., two foreign doctors and their team are completing plastic surgery on an anonymous client who is changing the appearance of his face, among other things. After the procedure, the client begins to stir - and suddenly the operating room erupts in violence, and the clinic is ablaze. Washington police conduct an arson investigation, with inconclusive results. But one tantalizing fragment of evidence suggests that a terrorist bombing may be imminent. The presidential inauguration is quickly approaching, and Washington’s police, fire, intelligence, military, federal, and White House security teams are making frantic preparations. Because of the strain on manpower, retired Secret Service agent Swamp Morgan is recalled to active duty... Less

Austria is one of the world's best-kept financial secrets. Not only does it offer first-class private banking services, it also has some of the most affordable real estate in Western Europe. And if you're looking for a safe, affordable, and culturally rich place to relocate, look no further than Austria's historic capital, Vienna. Mercer's, a human resources consultancy, rates Austria's capital of Vienna as the second most desirable city to live in the world. And speaking of secrets--in Austria, the privacy of banking records is protected by a law with the same legal status as the Austrian Constitution! Austrian Money Secrets shows you how to use an Austrian bank account as a jumping-off point for access to investment opportunities throughout the world. You'll learn what it's... Less

They say that history is written by the victors. But what if history-or what we have come to know as history-has all along been written by the wrong people? What if everything we've been told is only part of the story? What if it's the wrong part? In this groundbreaking new work, Mark Booth embarks on an enthralling intellectual tour of our world's secret histories. Starting from a dangerous premise-that everything we've been taught about our world's past is corrupted, and that the stories put forward by the various cults and mystery schools throughout history are true-Booth produces nothing short of an alternate history of the past 3,000 years. History is more than a list of things that have happened; it's a measure of consciousness and experience. And in The Secret History of the World,... Less

Combining a concise writing style with real-world applications, this innovative text takes a new approach to the money and banking course. Money and Banking examines the role the banking system plays in individual financial activities and considers the monetary policymaking that shapes the world's financial system. A highly respected teacher--and a leading expert on macroeconomic forecasting, with several years of experience at the Federal level--Croushore makes the personal and the public relevant and interesting to students. The text's shorter, more focused approach addresses the modern framework of today's financial system, in which both financial markets and banks play important roles. Designed to appeal to a range of learners, the pedagogical features include over 130 figures and 20... Less

New York isn't what it used to be, so why haven't New York's photographers and photographic books caught up with reality? Why do picture-makers continue to mimic the gritty glamour and aggression of William Klein's New York images, or stalk up and down Fifth and Madison Avenues paying peculiar homage to Garry Winogrand, or struggle to rediscover the romance of Nan Goldin's Lower East Side, on streets now clogged with Starbucks and designers' tenement-scaled emporia? What makes Mitch Epstein's most recent book, The City, particularly interesting is witnessing Epstein's attempt to breathe life back into a classic, albeit tired, genre. Instead of the usual raucous juxtapositions of visual clichés—pictures crammed with street corner sturm und drang and urban gargoyles—The City's elliptical... Less

"The SECRET that BANKS FEAR," by Consumer Advocate Dr. Lisa Rosenberger, is a Financial Masterpiece. Dr. Rosenberger culminates her years of experience in teaching and consulting homeowners how to pay off their mortgages much sooner than they ever thought possible in this empowering book. In easy to understand description and using simple illustrations, she brilliantly teaches homeowners how to use the Hi-$peed Equity Builder¿ - the most advanced Mortgage Reduction System available in this country today. This is NOT about a bi-weekly payment system. When applied correctly, the techniques that Dr. Rosenberger clearly outlines in the book will save you tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest. In addition to the detailed explanation of the Hi-$peed Equity... Less

In The Mystery, finished in 1951 but never before published, H.D. tells a tale of love, intrigue, and religious redemption. Drawn from her notes to her memoir, The Gift, the novel imaginatively re-creates the history of her mother's Moravian Church, Unitas Fratrum, and its leader, Count Zinzendorf, from which she believed she had inherited a psychic "gift." This "gift" enables her to reenvision her inheritance. The Moravian cousins, Elizabeth de Watteville and Henry Dohna, Zinzendorf's grandchildren, travel to Prague in winter 1788, on the eve of the French Revolution. There they meet Count Louis Saint-Germain, a magician and counterrevolution ary plotter, whose life changes as he joins their search to find Zinzendorf's lost Plan for "world unity without war." A hybrid novel... Less

Free Worldwide Delivery : The Most Powerful Idea in the World : Hardback : VINTAGE : 9780224082259 : 0224082256 : 03 Jun 2010 : States that the most important invention of the Industrial Revolution was invention itself. This book offers an account of how inventors first came to own and profit from their ideas - and how invention itself springs forth from logic and imagination. It explains how 'eureka' moments occur - when the brain is most relaxed.

In its fifty years of existence, the World Bank has influenced more lives in the Third World than any other institution, yet it remains largely unknown, even enigmatic. Although it claims to be a purely economic institution, the Bank wields enormous political power and has succeeded in making its own view of development appear to be the norm.In this richly illuminating and lively overview, Susan George and Fabrizio Sabelli examine the Bank’s policies, its internal culture, and the interests it serves. They reveal a supranational, nondemocratic, and extremely powerful institution that functions much like the medieval church or a monolithic political party, relying on rigid doctrine, hierarchy, and a rejection of dissenting ideas to perpetuate its influence. Its faith in orthodox economics,... Less

IT professionals need business knowledge in today's fast-paced financial landscape to deploy and maintain business- critical systems. This book gives the IT professional an insight into the business world of investment banking. It contains 12 chapters that cover: a description of business divisions for full-service and boutique investment banks; trends in investment banking; overview of the asset classes; the trading life cycle and how it maps to the software development life cycle; an overview of the systems from notable vendors that are used for trading, risk management and compliance; a description of the major players in the industry; and skills demanded by employers. The authors have carefully selected topics for discussion that ensure a wide coverage of the business knowledge... Less

In the Sentry, Zoey La Mar has, what she thinks, is a typical preteen life in the suburbs: soccer, dancing, a strict yet loving father and mother, a pesky little brother, Owen, and two best friends, Danielle Hernandez and Lucy La Mar. Without warning, during the preparations for Owen's birthday party, Zoey receives her first premonition, based on a secret truth. It starts to undermine her once peaceful, eleven-year-old existence. The forewarning matches a reoccurring dream that has plagued Zoey since Owen's current age. The premonition and dream involve mystery, monsters, and magic. At first, Zoey shucks off the forewarning, not really realizing what's going on, the importance of it. The premonition involves a family secret, a forgotten responsibility, many generations removed.As Owen's... Less

They are the most chronicled family on the face of the globe. Their every move attracts headlines. Scores of books have tried and failed to penetrate the royal facade. Now Kitty Kelley has gone behind palace walls to provide the first three- dimensional, comprehensive, and evenhanded portrait of the men and women who make up the British Royal family. Kelley spent more than four years investigating the royal family. In addition to meticulous research into documented sources, she conducted hundreds of exclusive interviews with past and present employees of the royal household, royal friends and relations, courtiers, members of Parliament, and other intimate observers, raising the curtain on this most secretive family. Here are lonely royal children brought up without a proper education in... Less

Features: Everybody has secrets that work in the music classroom. In this text, two experienced master teachers share six footprints to success that have the foundation for student-centered music making in this step-by-step journey from unison to two-part singing. Each of the six steps includes a core-value statement, suggested activities (both physical and intellectual), the secret (the why), and guaranteed-to-succ eed repertoire. Some of the music is newly written, and all is instructive, confidence- building, fun to sing, and easy to use. Photocopying permission for many of the selections is also included. Table of Contents: Publisher: Lorenz Composer: Karen Bodoin Catalog Number: 301852H Pages:  

Vanilla: The Cultural History of the WorldGÇÖs Favorite Flavor and Fragrance, is the first book ever that tells the story of vanilla from early Mesoamerica to the moment. Vanilla explores the captivating history of vanilla's journey from Mexico to the courts of Europe, where Queen Elizabeth I flavored everything with vanilla and scientists announced its power as an aphrodisiac. Vanilla arrived in the United States by way of Thomas Jefferson who fell in love with it in Paris. Tales of vanilla's glorious reign in Mexico and its demise, precipitated by the Mexican Revolution and the development of plantations in Madagascar are followed by its surge in popularity during Prohibition and beyond. Vanilla ends with the entreaty to support pure vanilla as increasingly, corporations substitute... Less

Written by an experienced lawyer engaged in cross-border M&A transactions, Investment Banking Engagement Letters Line by Line provides for businessmen and lawyers alike a concise and practical review of the common form of engagement letters typically entered into between companies and their financial advisors when contemplating an M&A deal. This short book provides the reader with a non-technical analysis of the most frequently used provisions, including the specific effects of those provisions, whether the company has the option to change them, and what those options and alternative language might be. The reader learns not only which terms that may appear onerous are common and why the financial advisor requires them, but also which terms are extraneous and can be removed or negotiated... Less

In one of the most dazzling books of his celebrated career, Dean Koontz delivers a masterwork of page-turning suspense that surpasses even his own inimitable reputation as a chronicler of our worst fears—and best dreams. In The Taking he tells the story of a community cut off from a world under siege, and the terrifying battle for survival waged by a young couple and their neighbors as familiar streets become fog-shrouded death traps. Gripping, heartbreaking, and triumphant in the face of mankind’s darkest hour, here is a small-town slice-of-doomsday thriller that strikes to the core of each of us to ask: What would you do in the midst of The Taking.On the morning that will mark the end of the world they have known, Molly and Niel Sloan awaken to the drumbeat of rain on their roof. It has... Less

The Political Economy of the World Bank: The Early Years is a fascinating study of economic history. This text describes perhaps what is the most crucial time for development economics: the birth of the "third world," the creation of development economics as a discipline, and the establishment of the World Bank's leading role in development. Using previously unavailable archival material, Michele Alacevich takes a close look at the years during which the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development—now known as the World Bank— turned its attention from reconstruction to development, having been upstaged by the Marshall Plan.He describes the "Currie Mission" to Colombia (1949–1954), the World Bank's first general survey mission in a developing nation. With the Currie Mission as... Less

For those of us who have always been fascinated by the unexplained, or inadequately explained, secrets and mysteries of this world, psychic Sylvia Browne now comes to our rescue....

William Stout: Prehistoric Life Murals is an astonishing look at dinosaurs and their primeval worlds. This lavishly illustrated 176-page volume contains all of Stout's stunning murals for The Houston Museum of Natural Science, Walt Disney World's Animal Kingdom, and the San Diego Natural History Museum. In 1981, award-winning paleoartist Stout's critically acclaimed book The Dinosaurs - A Fantastic New View of a Lost Era launched the ongoing public renaissance in the reexamination and revision of dinosaur appearance, intelligence and lifestyles. Michael Crichton acknowledged this legendary masterwork as an inspiration for Jurassic Park. Now Stout has returned to take us on a new journey, deeper into Earth's primordial past. Following in the tradition of legendary paleoartists Charles R... Less

* A comprehensive coverage of law and practice* Examines in detail all the evidence and documentation required* Provides all the essential law and practice required in the fieldThose involved in transactions with corporate banks must ensure that the correct legal principles are adhered to and that exactly the right documentation is properly used. This book provides all the essential information on the legal practices and problems for dealing in international banking law from the principles of private international law through the structure of loan agreements to mergers and acquisitions. Having dealt with these underlying principles and practices, it then examines, in detail, the vital documentation including facility letters and loan agreements, syndication, documentary credits, swaps,... Less