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  Title: Anti-Imperialist Writings Author: Mark Twain Librivox Audiobook app Read by John Greenman (5 hr 11 min) The book is a collection of essays, speeches, and reflections that reveal one of America’s most celebrated writers in his role as a social critic and political commentator. Written primarily in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, these works demonstrate Twain’s fierce opposition to imperialism, colonialism, and foreign intervention, particularly by the United States. Twain, who had been widely recognized for his humor and storytelling, turned his wit and sharp tongue toward politics, exposing the hypocrisy and moral contradictions of imperial power. Anti-Imperialist Writings brings together Twain’s writings during and after the Spanish-American War , when the United States acquired territories such as the Philippines , Puerto Rico , and Guam . Twain, once a supporter of the war under the impression that it was fought to liberate oppressed peoples, became ...

  Title: Old Times on the Mississippi Author: Mark Twain Librivox Audiobook app Read by John Greenman (3 hr 38 min) Old Times on the Mississippi is Mark Twain’s semi-autobiographical account of his early years as a cub pilot on the Mississippi River . First published in serialized form before later being expanded into Life on the Mississippi , the work captures the mix of excitement, challenge, and nostalgia of an era when steamboats dominated American rivers . Twain blends humor, sharp observation, and personal memory to preserve the spirit of a world that was already beginning to fade. The story opens with Twain recalling his boyhood admiration for river pilots , who were regarded as glamorous, authoritative figures in river towns . For him, piloting was not just a profession but a calling that promised status and adventure. His dream materializes when he secures an apprenticeship under Horace Bixby , a respected but stern pilot. What follows is Twain’s struggle to learn the ha...

  Title: The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci - Volume 2 Author: Leonardo Da Vinci Publisher: iBooks Year published: Some words of advice from Leo: To keep in health, this rule is wise: Eat only when you want and relish food. Chew thoroughly that it may do you good. Have it well cooked, unspiced and undisguised. He who takes medicine is ill advised. I teach you to preserve your health; and in this you will succeed better in proportion as you shun physicians, because their medicines are the work of alchemists. Summary: The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci - Volume 2 is a continuation of the remarkable collection of Leonardo’s writings, sketches, and reflections that reveal the mind of one of history’s greatest polymaths.  This volume presents a broad range of subjects, showing how Leonardo’s thoughts moved fluidly between art, science, engineering, and philosophy.  It reflects not just his curiosity but his attempts to unify knowledge into a comprehensive understanding of nat...

  Title: The Defence and Fall of Singapore Author: Brian P. Farrell Publisher: Monsoon Books, Leicestershire Year published: 2019 496 pages From page 426: 1st Malay resisted Japanese attacks near Buona Vista Village , including at least one using civilians forced to run ahead as human shields.  Worse followed on the hilltop near the Opium Factory.  Japanese infiltration cut off C Company , helped by burning oil flowing through wide drains behind and below the Malays.  C Company beat back Japanese assaults with steady Bren gun fire, but both sides suffered heavily.  By late afternoon only one officer survived, 2nd Lt. Adnan Saidi .  The Japanese overran the position and gave no quarter; only four Malays escaped the enemy and the drains.  The Japanese massacred the remainder, reportedly torturing Adnan to death. READ MORE