{ "item_title" : "The Marriage of Meldrum Strange", "item_author" : [" Talbot Mundy "], "item_description" : "A forest can be guarded by knowledge, or measured as timber. In colonial India, Cottswold Ommony knows the woodland and its animals intimately, serving both as its protector and as an unofficial intelligence figure. His stewardship is challenged when Meldrum Strange, a wealthy American drawn by tiger hunting, begins to consider the estate as the foundation of an industrial enterprise. Their opposition turns a jungle adventure into a contest between two radically different ideas of value. Beyond the forest, colonial authority, religious power and financial influence complicate every calculation. Covert messages and ceremonial performances sit beside patrols, hunting and photography, while reputation and appearances become instruments in their own right. Ommony must rely on observation and local knowledge in a world where wealth can command negotiations but cannot necessarily interpret the signs concealed in woodland, palace or temple. Romantic intrigue and social satire sharpen the conflict without displacing the novel's central concern: whether land is something to possess, exploit or preserve. The big-game narrative gains unusual tension from its conservation theme, setting the hunter's pursuit against the forest guardian's deeper understanding of animal life and human manoeuvring. Questions of independence, acquisition and responsibility run through a story in which intelligence operates both officially and beyond official channels. Adventure and deception are bound to a struggle over who has the right-and the wisdom-to determine the forest's future. This book was out of print for decades and is now republished by Alpha Editions. It has been restored for today's and future generations. This edition is not just a reprint - it's a collector's item and a cultural treasure.", "item_img_path" : "https://covers2.booksamillion.com/covers/bam/9/30/933/918/9309339187_b.jpg", "price_data" : { "retail_price" : "20.99", "online_price" : "20.99", "our_price" : "20.99", "club_price" : "20.99", "savings_pct" : "0", "savings_amt" : "0.00", "club_savings_pct" : "0", "club_savings_amt" : "0.00", "discount_pct" : "10", "store_price" : "" } }

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