Acknowledgements

　　While some of the characters who appear in this book are based on historical figures, and while many of theareas described—such as the Gilf Kebir and its surrounding desert—exist, and were explored in the 19305, it isimportant to stress that this story is a fiction and that the portraits of the characters who appear in it are fictional,as are some of the events and journeys.

I would like to thank the Royal Geographical¹ Society, London, for allowing me to read archival material and toglean from their Geographical Journals the world of explorers and their journeys—often beautifully recorded bytheir writers. I have quoted a passage from Hassanein Bey’s article “Through Kufra to Darfur” (1924),describing sandstorms, and I have drawn² from him and other explorers to evoke³ the desert of the 19305. I wouldlike to acknowledge information drawn from Dr. Richard A. Hermann’s “Historical Problems of the LibyanDesert” (1934) and R. A. Bagnold’s review of Almasy’s monograph⁴ on his explorations in the desert.

Many books were important to me in my research. Unexploded Bomb by Major A. B. Hartley was especiallyuseful in re-creating the construction of bombs and in describing the British bomb disposal units at the start ofWorld War II. I have quoted directly from his book (the italicized lines in the “In Situ” section) and have basedsome of Kirpal Singh s methods of defusing on actual techniques that Hartley records. Information found in thepatient’s notebook on the nature of certain winds is drawn from Lyall Watson’s wonderful book Heavens Breath,direct quotes appearing in quotation⁵ marks. The section from the Candaules-Gyges story in Herodotus’sHistories is from the 1890 translation by G. C. Mc-Cauley (Macmillan). Other quotations⁶ from Herodotus use theDavid Grene translation (University of Chicago Press). The line in italics on page 21 is by Christopher Smart; thelines in italics on page 144 are from John Milton s Paradise Lost; the line Hana remembers on page 288 is byAnne Wilkinson. I would also like to acknowledge Alan Moorehead’s The Villa⁷ Diana, which dis.cusses the lifeof Poliziano in Tuscany. Other important books were Mary McCarthy’s The Stones of Florence; LeonardMosley’s The Cat and the Mice; G. W. L. Nicholson’s The Canadians in Italy 1943-? and Canada’s NursingSisters; The Marshall Cavendish Encyclopaedia⁸ of World War H; F. Yeats-Brown’s Martial⁹ India; and threeother books on the Indian military: The Tiger Strikes and The Tiger Kills, published in 1942 by the Directorateof Public Relations, New Delhi, India, and A Roll of Honor.

Thanks to the English department at Glendon College, York University, the Villa Serbelloni, the RockefellerFoundation, and the Metropolitan¹⁰ Toronto Ref.erence Library.

I would like to thank the following for their generous help: Elisabeth Dennys, who let me read her letters writtenfrom Egypt during the war; Sister Margaret at the Villa San Girolamo; Michael Williamson at the NationalLibrary of Can.ada, Ottawa; Anna Jardine; Rodney Dennys; Linda Spalding; Ellen Levine. And Lally Marwah,Douglas LePan, David Young and Donya Peroff.

Finally a special thanks to Ellen Seligman, Liz Calder and Sonny Mehta.

The End

1 geographical   

adj.地理的；地区(性)的

参考例句：

• The current survey will have a wider geographical spread.当前的调查将在更广泛的地域范围內进行。
• These birds have a wide geographical distribution.这些鸟的地理分布很广。

2 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

3 evoke   

vt.唤起，引起，使人想起

参考例句：

• These images are likely to evoke a strong response in the viewer.这些图像可能会在观众中产生强烈反响。
• Her only resource was the sympathy she could evoke.她以凭借的唯一力量就是她能从人们心底里激起的同情。

4 monograph   

n.专题文章，专题著作

参考例句：

• This monograph belongs to the category of serious popular books.这本专著是一本较高深的普及读物。
• It's a monograph you wrote six years ago.这是你六年前写的的专论。

5 quotation   

n.引文，引语，语录；报价，牌价，行情

参考例句：

• He finished his speech with a quotation from Shakespeare.他讲话结束时引用了莎士比亚的语录。
• The quotation is omitted here.此处引文从略。

6 quotations   

n.引用( quotation的名词复数 )；[商业]行情（报告）；（货物或股票的）市价；时价

参考例句：

• The insurance company requires three quotations for repairs to the car. 保险公司要修理这辆汽车的三家修理厂的报价单。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• These quotations cannot readily be traced to their sources. 这些引语很难查出出自何处。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

8 encyclopaedia   

n.百科全书

参考例句：

• An encyclopaedia contains a lot of knowledge.百科全书包含很多知识。
• This is an encyclopaedia of philosophy.这是本哲学百科全书。

9 martial   

adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的

参考例句：

• The sound of martial music is always inspiring.军乐声总是鼓舞人心的。
• The officer was convicted of desertion at a court martial.这名军官在军事法庭上被判犯了擅离职守罪。

10 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。