New Releases by John Barnes

The Return is a tale about the kind of space adventure that could happen today—and that will happen tomorrow. As told by Buzz Aldrin, who's been there ... and who's already helped change the world. Former astronaut Scott Blackstone's dream of opening outer space to visits from everyday people is under attack. His pilot program has been marred by a fatal accident, he's out of a job, and he's being sued for a billions dollars. And it's beginning to seem that the "accident" wasn't at all accidental. Then the endless conflict between India and Pakistan heats up ... and Pakistan explodes a nuclear device in the upper atmosphere, frying electronics on earth and in space, and putting the crew of the International Space Station at risk. With the Shuttle fleet grounded, only a secret skunkworks project known to Scott and his old friends can save the space station's stranded crew. "As real as it gets." — New York Post

An eloquent and thought-provoking book on racism and prejudice by the Liverpool and England football legend John Barnes. John Barnes spent the first dozen years of his life in Jamaica before moving to the UK with his family in 1975. Six years later he was a professional footballer, distinguishing himself for Watford, Liverpool and England, and in the process becoming this country's most prominent black player. Barnes is now an articulate and captivating social commentator on a broad range of issues, and in The Uncomfortable Truth About Racism he tackles head-on the issues surrounding prejudice with his trademark intelligence and authority. By vividly evoking his personal experiences, and holding a mirror to this country's past, present and future, Barnes provides a powerful and moving testimony. The Uncomfortable Truth About Racism will help to inform and advance the global conversation around society's ongoing battle with the awful stain of prejudice.

Neon Road Trip chronicles the history of the commercial neon sign with a curated collection of photographs capturing the most colorful and iconic neon still surviving today. The vivid photographs are arranged according to the signs' imagery, with sections such as Spirit of the West, On the Road, Now That's Entertainment, and Ladies, Diving Girls & Mermaids. Sixteen of the most iconic landmark signs include brief histories on how that unique sign came to be. A resource section includes a photography index by location and a Neon Museums Visitor's Guide.

My Money is Worth More Than My Children was written because John Barnes wanted to let all of the fathers in the world know that they are not alone in their struggle. He wanted to share his story to help some mothers understand that just collecting child support does not raise a child. Allowing a child's father to be in their lives, to help raise them, to help nurture them and to protect them is what a child needs, not just financial support.

Blending alternate history, time travel, and detective thriller, the "able and impressive" Nebula and Hugo Award nominee gives us Nazis, Tories, and togas ( The Washington Post). An attack by time-hopping terrorists turns Mark Strang's life upside down, and the Pittsburgh art historian discovers his calling as a bodyguard for hire. Strap yourself in for a ride through alternate timelines in this action-packed series that combines sci-fi, time travel, alien invasion, and high-tech adventure. Patton's Spaceship: When he learns the aliens behind the terrorists who destroyed his old life are trying to take control of timelines and subject them to totalitarian rule, Mark Strang will journey to a not-too-distant past to stop them—and get revenge. But he lands in a timeline where America lost World War II. He can help the resistance with his knowledge of future technology, but is he permanently trapped in a Nazi-controlled past? Washington's Dirigible: With the inhuman Closers still threatening timelines, Strang joins forces with their enemies, the ATN. He and time agent Chrysamen ja N'wook travel to an alternate colonial America to locate a missing operative and find that the colonies are on friendly terms with England and George Washington reigns as Duke of Kentucky. But he has one real enemy here—himself. Caesar's Bicycle: On assignment in ancient Rome, Mark Strang discovers the Closers have infiltrated the timeline and Julius Caesar is under their influence. Even as the Closers rewrite history to tip the scales in their favor, Strang is reluctant to assassinate an important government figure. But as he delays, his life—and those of his companions—hang in the balance, and they face a gruesome demise.

In this intriguing book, John Barnes takes us on a journey through aspects of numbers much as he took us on a geometrical journey in Gems of Geometry. Similarly originating from a series of lectures for adult students at Reading and Oxford University, this book touches a variety of amusing and fascinating topics regarding numbers and their uses both ancient and modern. The author informs and intrigues his audience with both fundamental number topics such as prime numbers and cryptography, and themes of daily needs and pleasures such as counting one's assets, keeping track of time, and enjoying music. Puzzles and exercises at the end of each lecture offer additional inspiration, and numerous illustrations accompany the reader. Furthermore, a number of appendices provides in-depth insights into diverse topics such as Pascal's triangle, the Rubik cube, Mersenne's curious keyboards, and many others. A theme running through is the thought of what is our favourite number. Written in an engaging and witty style and requiring only basic school mathematical knowledge, this book will appeal to both young and mature readers fascinated by the curiosities of numbers.

The war for a million Earths spreads to an alternate eighteenth century in the second book of the epic science fiction series the Timeline Wars John Barnes has reinvented alternate-history science fiction in his ingenious saga of the battle to save the multiverse from enslavement by an alien enemy who can transcend time and reality. In the second volume of his remarkable trilogy, the war moves to a new battlefield: a different colonial America still happily tied to the British crown, where miraculous machines prowl the skies. There are a million different Earths across an infinite number of timelines—and every one of them is in peril. Former Pittsburgh private investigator Mark Strang is now a fully trained and blooded Crux Ops special agent, dedicated to the fight against the alien Closers who are invading every Earth in every time. Now the eternal struggle is carrying Strang to a different 1775 Boston, home of astounding technologies, where the colonists remain fiercely loyal to their king across the ocean. Something is rotten in England, though, and Strang must ally himself with the well-respected commander George Washington, the Duke of Kentucky, to derail a terrifying Closer plot and put this world’s history back on its proper course. But the enemy has unleashed a secret weapon that could permanently shift the balance: an unstoppable agent of destruction . . . named Mark Strang.

First in the series blending alternate history, time travel, and detective thriller, from a Nebula and Hugo Award nominee. There are a million different Earths across an infinite number of timelines—and every one of them is in peril. Mark Strang became a bodyguard and private investigator when terrorists killed his family; now he spends his days protecting Pittsburgh’s helpless and abused. But while on a mission to save the life of a ten-year-old girl, Strang is inexplicably cast into an alternate reality, transported to a different time on another Earth, where America was defeated in the Second World War and now suffers under the brutal yoke of Nazi oppression. Joining up with the remnants of the Resistance in the Free Zone—and allied with such notable commanders as George Patton and John F. Kennedy—Strang is suddenly a marked man and the last hope in a desperate fight for freedom, not only on this world but on countless others. For a war unlike any other is raging across time and dimensions, threatening every possible Earth, including Strang’s own. And the enemy will not rest until the entire multiverse is in chains. In his epic and action-packed science fiction saga the Timeline Wars, John Barnes takes alternate-history SF to new heights, ingeniously reinventing and reinvigorating a genre popularized by such acclaimed authors as Harry Turtledove while joining the stellar ranks of Robert Heinlein and Joe Haldeman.

Ada is the language of choice for the majority of programmers involved in writing safety-critical and high-integrity software. Previous editions of John Barnes' books established themselves as the definitive references for earlier versions of Ada. With the release of the latest ISO standard, Ada 2012, this new book will become recognised as the go-to resource for those wishing to learn the language or to program in it.

For more than a year, Heather O’Grainne and her small band of heroes, operating out of Pueblo, Colorado, have struggled to pull the United States back together after it shattered under the impact of the event known as Daybreak. Now they are poised to bring the three or four biggest remaining pieces together, with a real President and Congress, under the full Constitution again. Heather is very close to fulfilling her oath, creating a safe haven for civilization to be reborn. But other forces are rising too—forces that like the new life better... In a devastated, splintered, postapocalyptic United States, with technology thrown back to biplanes, black powder, and steam trains, a tiny band of visionaries struggles to re-create Constitutional government and civilization itself, as a new Dark Age takes shape around them.

A “wildly entertaining homage to the best ’60s Heinlein juveniles,” from a multiple Nebula finalist (Publishers Weekly). Jak Jinnaka’s teenage life in the thirty-sixth century has been nothing but fun—ignoring school, partying outrageously with his beautiful girlfriend, Sesh, and spending his uncle Sib’s huge fortune. But then, while they are out for a wild night of post-graduation clubbing, Sesh is kidnapped by the dangerous, enigmatic Duke of Uranium. Bruised and battered, Jak wakes up to a whole new reality. Sweet, superficial Sesh is actually Princess Shyf of Greenworld, daughter of the rulers of a powerful faraway spaceport. Kind and slightly dotty old Uncle Sib is a legendary spymaster. And Jak’s whole life has been preparation for the world of espionage . . . Now, his maiden mission is to rescue his girlfriend from one of the most powerful aristocrats in the solar system—or is it? The world Uncle Sib has plunged him into has wheels within every wheel and hidden forces in every shadow, in this action-packed tale by the acclaimed author of Directive 51 and the Timeline Wars series. “Rollicking space opera with outlaws, space travel, kidnappings, rescues, chases, and the abrupt coming of age of the protagonist.” —Science Fiction Chronicle “Barnes plays with old-fashioned space opera in this far-future SF adventure. . . . This is a fun romp.” —Locus

DIVDIVWith the soul of thirty-sixth-century humanity at stake, Jak Jinnaka steps in . . . now we’re really in trouble /divDIV Jak Jinnaka parlayed his powerful family connections, unearned media fame, and consistent dumb luck into a cushy job as vice procurator of the Martian moon Deimos, an office he precariously maintains alongside his top-secret post as a station chief for Hive Intelligence—two soft jobs for an already rich, handsome, single young man in a fun-loving colonial outpost./divDIV Sadly, when his boss takes a well-deserved vacation, it looks like Jak may actually have to do a little work—keep local trade humming, maintain the Hive’s hegemony, prevent the boss’s pretty teenage niece’s internship from becoming front-page celebrity gossip, and make sure his rambunctious visiting uncle Sib doesn’t cause international incidents among the thousands of prickly petty kingdoms on Mars./divDIV Then, in one of the pettiest kingdoms of all, the lifelog of the man who wrote the Wager—a set of principles that guides all human life in the thirty-sixth century—is discovered, and the race is on for control of the holiest relic in a thousand years, with Jak in the lead and all of the devils and angels of his past howling at his heels. /divDIV/div/div

Over many centuries, wars have been lost due to lack of food and proper supplies for the troops. Without a way to survive, the troops had to retreat rather than stay and fight. The same need applied to ships at sea. New York to Okinawa Sloooooowly is the true story of a soldier who served on one of the supply ships that were vital to the survival of the troops in battle during Wolrd War II. John Barnes graduated from high school in 1941. While many of the kids in his class headed off to college, that was not Johns plan. He wanted to join the marines, but when he discovered that his mother would not sign the papers, he set his sights on the US Coast Guard, the same service as his favorite cousin, Frank. After his basic training, he and his shipmates headed out on a journey that would ultimately take them to Okinawa. Through the severe storms, typhoons and enemy aircraft attacks, they got the job done come hell or high water.

The first book in a new post-apocalyptic trilogy from "a master of the genre" Heather O'Grainne is the Assistant Secretary in the Office of Future Threat Assessment, investigating rumors surrounding something called "Daybreak." The group is diverse and radical, and its members have only one thing in common-their hatred for the "Big System" and their desire to take it down. Now, seemingly random events simultaneously occurring around the world are in fact connected as part of Daybreak's plan to destroy modern civilization-a plan that will eliminate America's top government personnel, leaving the nation no choice but to implement its emergency contingency program...Directive 51.

Based on a series of lectures for adult students, this lively and entertaining book proves that, far from being a dusty, dull subject, geometry is in fact full of beauty and fascination. The author's infectious enthusiasm is put to use in explaining many of the key concepts in the field, starting with the Golden Number and taking the reader on a geometrical journey via Shapes and Solids, through the Fourth Dimension, finishing up with Einstein's Theories of Relativity. Aimed at a general readership, the text makes accessible complex subjects such as Chaos and Fractals. It includes a wealth of the author's own illustrations and features appendices on related topics. Equally suitable as a gift for a youngster or as a nostalgic journey back into the world of mathematics for older readers, John Barnes' book is the perfect antidote for anyone whose maths lessons at school are a source of painful memories. Where once geometry was a source of confusion and frustration, Barnes brings enlightenment and entertainment.

When Jak gets word that his ex-girlfriend, Princess Shyf of Greenworld, is in danger, Jak and his panth buddy Dujuv join the Royal Palace Guard and race across the solar system to save her. But they quickly discover that they're the ones who need to be rescued--from Shyf, who has decided that she likes absolute power. Original.

Giraut Leones, special agent for the human Thousand Cultures' shadowy Office of Special Plans, is turning fifty--and someone is trying to kill him. Giraut's had a long career; the number of entities that might want him dead is effectively limitless. But recently Giraut was approached by the Lost Legion, an Occitan underground linked to an alliance of illegally human-settled worlds beyond the frontier. Also, it turns out that the Lost Legion colony has a "psypyx" —a consciousness-recording—of Shan, onetime boss of the Office of Special Plans. If they have that, they have literally thousands of devastating secrets. Now, returning to his native Nou Occitan, Giraut will encounter violence and treachery from human and artificial consciousnesses alike. As bigotry and mob violence erupt throughout the rapidly destabilizing interstellar situation, Giraut will be called on the make the ultimate sacrifice, for the sake of civilization itself... At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

This introductory programming textbook integrates BlueJ with Java. It provides a thorough treatment of object-oriented principles.

Shatter the line between fiction and fantasy... The life of an award-winning novelist probably bears more resemblance to "normal" than most fans would want to believe. But every once in awhile, strange things are bound to erupt around those most equipped to document them... so imagine what renowned science fiction writer John Barnes might do when he finds himself in one of the wildest, most rollicking hard-SF adventures to hit print in years. Barnes' college friend Travis Bismark always brought back plenty of great stories from his job as an industrial spy. This time, over a few beer- and coffee-fueled chat sessions, Travis unravels a tale about his current case too tall for even an SF author to believe: a Gaudeamus machine that bends physics in order to make possible both teleportation and time travel, and how it gets stolen--twice; a grad student-cum-prostitute who deals in telepathy-inducing drugs that let her "download" top-secret documents from her client's brains, a romp through Colorado and New Mexico during which each episode and character is more bizarre than the last; and the internet meme that seems to tie it all together. Barnes' playful commentary on Travis' story and his own life as a SF writer and drama teacher, interspersed with their everyday interactions with a group of funny, compelling friends, is related in a surprising and non-traditional narrative that blurs the line between fact, fiction, and metafiction.

A new movement on Earth seeks to use the recorded personalities of the dead as their helpless virtual reality playthings in this continuation of the interstellar epic begun in the award-winning "A Million Open Doors" and "Earth Made of Glass."

Writers as diverse as Philip K. Dick Robert Harris and Len Deighton have told us what our past and present would be like had the unthinkable happened and the Nazi's won the second world war. Now John Barnes has given us a terrible warning of what futures a different past would have made created. In the far future the Third Reich is heading confidently into its thousand year reign. America was devastated by a nuclear exchange in 1980 and now there is seemingly nothing to stop Nazism spreading its message beyond Earth. One solar system, one people. But history has a way of asserting itself.

Describing in detail one of the most inventive periods in the history of English cinema, the volumes in this celebrated series are already established as classics in their field. Each volume details the highlights of a single cinematic year, including details of production, manufacturers of equipment, dealers and exhibitors. This is augmented by numerous carefully chosen illustrations and a comprehensive filmography of English films, fiction and non-fiction, for the year. Taking the Kinetoscope as its point of departure, Volume 1 explores in depth the progress made in the field of cinematography up until the end of 1896, by which time the film had become the main attraction of almost every major music hall in Great Britain. The contribution made by inventors such as R.W. Paul and Birt Acres is discussed in detail, as is also the work of hitherto forgotten pioneers of the British film.

Science fiction-roman.

This work offers an introductory analysis of Canadian Sports law that discusses legal and administrative aspects in the context of wider social, historical and economic issues. The text outlines leading themes and principles, while the extensive reference material can serve as a source for further study.

In the mid-Pacific, a gigantic hurricane triggered by nuclear explosions spawns dozens more in its wake. A world linked by a virtual-reality network experiences the devastation, witnessing the death of civilization as we know it and the violent birth of an emergent global consciousness.