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Books

Winds of Sorrow: travels in and around Transylvania

"Winds of Sorrow" is an eclectic collection of essays compiled by the author during his travels to Transylvania in northern Romania between 1998 and 2004. What was at first a mere inkling of a name on a map in a faraway Ruritanian land unfolds into an exotic medley of fascinating people and picturesque places. The complex truths behind the convoluted history of Transylvania are revealed as the reader journeys to the medieval towns and villages of this former Principality, once famous throughout the courts of Europe. These are journeys not to be missed!

"In this meticulously researched account, Alan Ogden swiftly drives a stake through the heart of the vampire myth….Ogden is an energetic - and eccentric guide- scampering around churches in search of crumbling frescoes…"
The Guardian, 4 December 2004

"Ogden demonstrates with tremendous enthusiasm that, far from being an irrelevant backwater, Transylvania is crucial to a true understanding of Europe…. Winds of Sorrow adds significantly to a body of work that amounts to a valuable contribution to European culture, testifying to the tenacity of its virtues as well as to its horrors."
The Spectator, 20 November 2004

"The rural areas, a microcosm of mediaeval life, are filled with proud and generous inhabitants. Images of smoke, darkness and inclement weather contrast with gorgeous vistas, the luminosity of church art and the beauty of an unsullied countryside."
Geographical magazine, January 2005

Travel

• Moons and Aurochs
• Winds of Sorrow
• Revelations of Byzantium
• Romania Revisited
• Fortress of Faith

History

• The Discontented
• Through Hitler's back Door

New editions

• Two Vagabonds in the Languedoc
• Romanian Furrow

All the above titles can be ordered from:
John Sandoe (Books) Ltd
10 Blacklands Terrace, Chelsea, London, SW3 2SRB
Telephone orders: 00 44 20 7589 9473