Biography Books
HarperCollins Publishers The Year of Magical Thinking
Book SynopsisIntroducing the Collins Modern Classics, a series featuring some of the most significant books of recent times, books that shed light on the human experience classics which will endure for generations to come.A single person is missing for you, and the whole world is emptyJohn Gregory Dunne and Joan Didion saw their daughter fall ill. At first they thought it was flu, then she was placed on life support. Days later, the Dunnes were sitting down to dinner when John suffered a massive and fatal coronary.This powerful book is Didion's attempt to make sense of the weeks and then months that cut loose any fixed idea I ever had about death, about illness'. The result is a personal yet universal portrait of marriage and life, in good times and bad, from one of the defining voices of American literature.Beautiful and devastating Didion has always been a precise, humane and meticulously truthful writer, but on the subject of death she becomes essential' Zadie SmithTrade Review‘It is the most awesome performance of both participating in, and watching, an event. Even though Didion does not allow herself to break down, only a terribly controlled reader will resist doing the same’ Independent ‘Ultimately, and unexpectedly for a book about illness and death, this is a wonderfully life-affirming book’ Observer ‘Searing, informative and affecting. Don’t leave life without it’ Financial Times ‘This is a beautiful and devastating book by one of the finest writers we have. Didion has always been a precise, humane and meticulously truthful writer, but on the subject of death she becomes essential.’ Zadie Smith ‘Taking the reader to places where they would not otherwise go is one of the things a really good book can do. The Year of Magical Thinking does just that, and brilliantly. Powerful, moving and true’ Spectator ‘A great book, a great work. Angular, exact, pressured and tough, precise as a diamond drill bit’ Nick Laird
£9.49
Cornerstone Take Care
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£10.44
Pan Macmillan Artists Siblings Visionaries
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£11.69
Profile Enough Said
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£21.25
Penguin Books Ltd The Place of Tides
Book Synopsis
£9.99
Vintage Publishing In the Sea There Are Crocodiles
Book SynopsisBorn in Turin in 1972, Fabio Geda is an Italian novelist who works with children in difficulties. He writes for several Italian magazines and newspapers, and teaches creative writing at the Italian school of storytelling, Scuola Holden, in Turin. This is his first book to be translated into English.Trade ReviewA frank, revealing and clear-eyed testament of the experiences faced by a young asylum-seeker in the contemporary world -- Diane Samuels * Guardian *A moving and eye-opening account chronicles hardships no child should have to endure, mitigated by intermittent kindnesses * Sunday Times *A beautifully written and moving book * Choice *This little gem, beautifully and unobtrusively translated, will raise tears of sorrow and joy * Independent *The threat of arrest and deportation is constant, with worse to fear at the hands of traffickers... A remarkable story * Financial Times *
£9.49
Penguin Books Ltd Light and Thread
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£11.69
HarperCollins Publishers The White Album
Book SynopsisJoan Didion's hugely influential collection of essays which defines, for many, the America which rose from the ashes of the Sixties.We tell ourselves stories in order to live. The princess is caged in the consulate. The man with the candy will lead the children into the sea. In this now legendary journey into the hinterland of the American psyche, Didion searches for stories as the Sixties implode. She waits for Jim Morrison to show up, visits the Black Panthers in prison, parties with Janis Joplin and buys dresses with Charles Manson's girls. She and her reader emerge, cauterized, from this devastating tour of that age of self discovery into the harsh light of the morning after.Trade Review'All the essays manifest not only her intelligence but an instinct for details that continue to emit pulsations in the reader's memory, and a style that is spare, subtly musical in its phrasing, and exact. Add to this her highly vulnerable sense of herself, and the result is a voice like no other in contemporary journalism.'NEW YORK TIMES 'Demonstrates an uncanny ability to capture the insidious and pervasive infections of mind and spirit that have led to both the corruption of government and business, and the withering of the individual.'CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 'Everything Didion writes has a land's end edginess to it – a hyperattentive eye on the dramas found at the outskirts of the human condition. She writes as someone who has come through great shudders of the earth with a fundamental understanding that everything is subject to instantaneous and complete revision.'VILLAGE VOICE 'She is the best chronicler California has'VOGUE 'Simply an original and unexpected writer who is never banal'NEW YORK REVIEW OF BOOKS
£9.49
Grosvenor House Publishing Ltd MEET YRRET FFUD
Book SynopsisTrue story of a wee Glasgow guy with no formal school qualifications, who ends up running a business in Australia and New Zealand. Many famous people met along the way.
£9.99
HarperCollins Publishers A Knock at the Door
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd Nowhere Girls
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£15.29
Little, Brown Book Group Memorial Days
£11.69
Little, Brown Book Group Untitled Syrian Memoir
Book SynopsisA searing memoir from Syrian activist and journalist Loubna Mrie about her country's political struggles and her family's betrayal
£18.34
Scholastic Football Legends Mo Salah
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£5.99
Penguin Books Ltd Tarantula
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£10.44
Orion Publishing Co How to End a Story
Book Synopsis
£17.00
Orion Publishing Co The World of Hercule Poirot
Book SynopsisPut your little grey cells to the test as you piece together Hercule Poirot's most famous cases. You'll need to use order and method to spot all of the clues, crimes and culprits hidden in this intricate jigsaw, which references all thirty-three of Agatha Christie's beloved Poirot novels. 1000-PIECE PUZZLE measuring 48.5 x 68 cm (19 x 27 in.) when completed. BEAUTIFUL, DETAILED ILLUSTRATION which includes over 100 clues to spot!FOLD-OUT POSTER with a guide to the clues so you can read up on all of Poirot's most puzzling casesLAURENCE KING?has been capturing imaginations and inspiring creativity in new and unexpected ways for over 30 years, with playful and eye-catching games, gifts and books
£18.35
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Strong Roots
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£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd Somewhere A Boy And A Bear
£21.25
Cornerstone The Last Days of Marilyn Monroe
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£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers Notes on Grief
Book Synopsis**DREAM COUNT, the searing, exquisite new novel by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie is out now!**A devastating essay on loss and the people we love from the bestselling author of Americanah and Half of a Yellow Sun.''Grief is a cruel kind of education. You learn how ungentle mourning can be, how full of anger. You learn how glib condolences can feel. You learn how much grief is about language, the failure of language and the grasping for language''On 10 June 2020, the scholar James Nwoye Adichie died suddenly in Nigeria.In this tender and powerful essay, expanded from the original New Yorker text, his daughter, a self-confessed daddy''s girl, remembers her beloved father. Notes on Grief is at once a tribute to a long life of grace and wisdom, the story of a daughter''s fierce love for a parent, and a revealing examination of the layers of loss and the nature of grief.''A work of dignity and of unravelling' GUARDIANAn exquisite howl of pain' TELEGRAPHTrade Review Praise for Notes on Grief ‘Both emotional and austere, a work of dignity and of unravelling’ Guardian ‘With raw eloquence, Adichie’s observations have, simultaneously, an academic detachment and an inescapable anguish at being “in the centre of this churning” with “porous edges that there is no way through” … Notes on Grief is both achingly personal and stunningly familiar to anyone who has felt that scattering’ Independent ‘An exquisite howl of pain written in the aftermath, last year, of the unexpected death of her father’ Telegraph ‘Notes on Grief is a moving account of a daughter’s sorrow and it is also a love letter to the one who has gone. … She is saying don’t go and she is saying goodbye and she is also saying sorry’ Observer ‘In 30 short sections, Notes on Grief lays a path by which we might mourn our individual traumas among the aggregate suffering of this harrowing time.’ New York Times ‘Feels raw, even for a book about grief … It is no salve for her own grief, but Adichie’s brave observance of her own pain, will be a gift to those also suffering their first year of loss in these strange times’ iNews ‘When you send a great writer into the valley of the dead, the reportage is better quality. In 1961 CS Lewis wrote A Grief Observed of the year after the death of his wife; in 2005 Joan Didion wrote The Year of Magical Thinking about the same time span after the death of her husband. Into this tradition falls Notes on Grief by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie … For fans of the famously private Adichie – this is fascinatingly intimate. It is also delivered in the most readable, tender bites for any of the many of us whose attention has been shot by the harrowing of this past year’ The Times
£6.99
HarperCollins Publishers Homage to Catalonia The Internationally Best
Book SynopsisHarperCollins is proud to present its incredible range of best-loved, essential classics.In 1936, George Orwell volunteered as a soldier in the Spanish Civil War. In Homage to Catalonia, first published just before the outbreak of World War II, Orwell documents the chaos and bloodshed of that moment in history and the voices of those who fought against rising fascism.His experience of the civil war would spark a significant change in his own political views, which readers today will recognise in much of his later literary work; a rage against the threat of totalitarianism and control.
£5.62
HarperCollins Publishers The Great Divorce
Book SynopsisC.S. Lewis's dazzling allegory about heaven and hell and the chasm fixed between them is one of his most brilliantly imaginative tales, as he takes issue with the ideas in William Blake's The Marriage of Heaven and Hell'.In a dream, the narrator boards a bus on a drizzly afternoon and embarks on an incredible voyage through Heaven and Hell. He meets a host of supernatural beings far removed from his expectations, from the disgruntled, ghostly inhabitants of Hell to the angels and souls who dwell on the plains of Heaven.This powerful, exquisitely written fantasy is one of C.S. Lewis's most enduring works of fiction and a profound meditation on good and evil.Trade Review‘The Great Divorce … helped me see the possibility of a really adult faith that did not avoid the toughest questions about failure and self-deception and pointed to a God absolutely and unconditionally loving and utterly, painfully, demanding in his truthfulness.’Rowan Williams ‘There is attractive imagery and amusing satire… There are exciting speculations… Mr. Lewis rouses curiosity about life after death only to sharpen awareness of this world.’ The Guardian
£9.49
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC How the World Made the West
Book SynopsisAncient Greece and Rome have long been considered the parents of Western civilisation. But the ancient world was a very wide one, of conversation, commerce and theft, sex, war and enslavement. It was this restless global contact that built the West. Why did Macedonian generals steal elephants from India to rule new realms? How did the lewd graffiti left by foreign workers in Egypt form the basis of the alphabet? In a voyage through space and time, from the Levant of 2000 BC to the dawn of the Age of Exploration, Josephine Quinn rewrites the story of the West and in doing so, offers us a new history of our shared past.A truly encyclopaedic and monumental account of the ancient world' The TimesFull of little gem-likes shifts of perspective' Guardian Scintillates with its focus on the unexpected' Economist A work of great confidence, empathy, learning and imagination' Rory Stewart This is, in every way, a big book' TLS
£11.69
Profile Books Ltd Ninettes War
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£10.44
Ebury Publishing Starchild
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£18.70
Birlinn General Breathe
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£9.49
Simon & Schuster Ltd The Storyteller
Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES NO 1 BESTSELLER * ONE OF NME's BEST MUSIC BOOKS OF 2021 * ONE OF VARIETY'S BEST MUSIC BOOKS OF 2021 * INCLUDED IN AUDIBLE'S BEST OF THE YEAR LISTSo, I’ve written a book. Having entertained the idea for years, and even offered a few questionable opportunities (‘It’s a piece of cake! Just do four hours of interviews, find someone else to write it, put your face on the cover, and voila!’), I have decided to write these stories just as I have always done, in my own hand. The joy that I have felt from chronicling these tales is not unlike listening back to a song that I’ve recorded and can’t wait to share with the world, or reading a primitive journal entry from a stained notebook, or even hearing my voice bounce between the Kiss posters on my wall as a child. This certainly doesn’t meaTrade Review'Thoroughly entertaining... His tone remains unwavering: good-natured, self-deprecating and eternally positive. He reads as if he’s bouncing on the spot. It’s impossible not to be won over by him… With the flair of a natural raconteur, Grohl broadly makes the job of a rock superstar out to be tremendous fun… Sometimes the good guys do win.' -- Paul Rees * Daily Express *'His incredible memoir is packed with extraordinary anecdotes about Nirvana, Iggy Pop, and even Sir Paul McCartney. Oh my, what a wonderful read this is – the man has lived a million lives.' -- Natasha Harding * Sun *'For anyone interested in how a hyperactive misfit from Virginia became a third of Nirvana and went on to become a stadium-filling star with his own Foo Fighters, The Storyteller lives up to its billing... Those years spent crammed into vans, living off fumes and the kindness of female mud wrestlers are some of the most vivid here. The camaraderie and sudden violence of the international punk ecosystem is beautifully evoked... Grohl is a lively and thoughtful writer.' -- Kitty Empire * Observer *'Just strap yourself in for smooth, well-told tales by a man for whom "dumb luck seems to be my speciality".' -- Tony Clayton-Lea * Irish Times *'Dave Grohl has plenty of tales of musical obsession, dizzying highs and dreadful lows. But more than the music, this memoir is an ode to family, both biological and chosen... A warm, funny and natural storyteller, Grohl spins a fine yarn, self-deprecating and pinging from subject to subject before circling back to his original point.' -- Emma Johnston * Classic Rock *'He writes brilliantly and candidly about the runaway train that was Nirvana, and watching Kurt Cobain fading away before his eyes on the set of the "Come As You Are" video. Most like Bruce Springsteen's autobiography in terms of its author's honesty, drive and self-deprecating humour, Grohl's inherent constancy and resilience comes across on every page.' -- Tom Doyle * Mojo *'The nicest guy in rock delivers a book to match. Charming...[an] uplifting spirit is shot through his memoir, which has the everyman charm of Grohl's personality. Grohl’s warm and conversational prose ensures the stories he does write about are vivid… Juggling stardom with family life has rarely been written about better.' * Record Collector *'A life-affirming ode to his love of music that skeeters through some of music’s biggest names over the past 30 years.' * Stylist, Books of the Year *
£9.89
HarperCollins Publishers The Times Sir
£9.49
HarperCollins Publishers Entitled
Book Synopsis
£18.70
Publications UK Ltd The Official Souvenir Programme: Celebrating the Coronation of His Majesty King Charles III and Her Majesty Queen Camilla
£7.50
Swift Press One Morning in March
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£17.00
Michael O'Mara Books Ltd For Freddie
Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERThe inspirational memoir from the founder of the You, Me and the Big C podcast, Rachael Bland. Courageous and life-affirming, this is a mother’s final gift to her son. My beautiful son, I so wish that I didn’t have to leave you now. But believe me, I tried EVERYTHING I could to stay around for you, and for every moment I could eke out of this life. From the outset, it was not a fair fight. My cancer was too big, and too aggressive, and we didn’t start on a level playing field. You were fourteen months old and at the beginning I was so full of fierce intention that we could get past this. I would lay you in your cot each night and silently communicate from my mind to yours, ‘I will do this Freddie, I will gladly take whatever they throw at me if it means we can stay together’. In 2016, beloved broadcaster and journalist Rachael Bland was diagnosed with can
£13.59
Icon Books Becoming Bulletproof: Life Lessons from a Secret
Book Synopsis'Part memoir, part hugely entertaining self-help manual for these tough times' Roger Alton, Daily Mail'A bona fide badass' The Sunday TimesFormer Secret Service Special Agent Evy Poumpouras shares the insights and skills from one of the oldest elite security forces in the world - to help you prepare for stressful situations, instantly read people, influence how you're perceived, and live a more fearless life.From gruelling training to clandestine interrogation rooms, to protecting the President of the United States of America, Evy shares rare behind-the-scenes glimpses while also exploring the psychology of human behaviour and the strategies used by the best negotiators. Evy demonstrates how we can learn from these experiences to heighten our own natural instincts to detect BS, develop grit and become the most resilient and powerful version of ourselves.Becoming Bulletproof is a timely guide to empowerment, mental strength, and overcoming fear and abuse - a guide to becoming bulletproof.Trade Review'Part memoir, part hugely entertaining self-help manual for these tough times' -- Roger Alton, Daily MailA bona fide badass * The Sunday Times *
£10.44
Penguin Books Ltd The Salt Path
Book SynopsisTrade ReviewA beautiful, thoughtful, lyrical story of homelessness, human strength and endurance * Guardian *An astonishing narrative of two people dragging themselves from the depths of despair along some of the most dramatic landscapes in the country, looking for a solution to their problems and ultimately finding themselves. * Independent *A gem of a book * Guardian, Best Books of Summer *This is what you need to read right now to muster hope and resilience. A beautiful story and a reminder that humans can endure adversity * Stylist *Ray's account of their incredible journey is a tale of triumph, of hope over despair * Pick of the paperbacks, The Sunday Times *The landscape is magical, shape-shifting seas and smugglers' coves; myriad sea birds and mauve skies . . . It's a tale of triumph: of hope over despair; of love over everything . . . home was no longer about bricks and mortar. It was a state of mind * The Sunday Times *An inspirational nature memoir for fans of H is for Hawk about losing everything and finding yourself between the elements of sea and sky * Waterstones *The Salt Path is a life-affirming tale of enduring love that smells of the sea and tastes of a rich life. With beautiful, immersive writing, it is a story heart-achingly and beautifully told.The most inspirational book of this year . . . In some ways The Salt Path reads like the ultimate drop-out odyssey, except that this journey isn't a life choice . . . What the book chiefly conveys is the human capacity for endurance and the regenerative power of nature . . . The Salt Path also serves as a reminder that Britain is a land criss-crossed by footpaths and that we take this 140,000-mile national glory for granted at our peril . . . The Salt Path has reminded me to scrape last year's mud from my walking boots and get rambling again. I hope it has the same impact on millions of others. * The Times *Moving and beautifully evocative * i *Uplifting and inspirational * Woman & Home *An exquisite piece of writing * Western Morning News *A remarkable and redemptive journey * Financial Times *This beautiful, meditative book should give us all a sense of our possible braveries: offering us an answer to the "what if?" questions - "what if we lost absolutely everything, what would we do?" . . . An extraordinary testament to love, hope and resilience.A fabulous read, inspiring and life-affirming. If you're not already walking the coastal path, this book will make you want to set-off immediately. It is a hymn to the power of love, sear-air and the natural beauty of Cornwall to heal and nurture. It's an absolute joy * Cornwall Life *What an absolutely glorious and moving book. It deserves all its praise! A triumph of love and hope and giving oneself up to the healing power of nature. Beautifully written with vivid imagery, what a heart-warming and glorious readYou lost me a whole night's work. This is a great read.A beautiful ode to how nature can soothe and inspire hope with every step . . . this book is really special * Stylist *Mesmerising. It is one of the most uplifting, inspiring books that I've ever read * i (The paper for today) *Filled with wry humour, this is a wonderfully uplifting and touching book * Guardian *This is a wonderful, heart-gladdening, life-affirming read. It will make you want to walk. What a gem.Luminescent. A literary phenomenon * Mail on Sunday *Utterly inspirational * The Times *The Salt Path broke my heart and put it back together again over and over. Beautiful writing, and such a sharp eye - both for nature and for people. It's hopeful and sad and honest and I LOVED it.Harnesses the wildness of rock, sky and coastal walking in life-affirming prose -- Emma Stonex * Guardian *Radiant, soaring, heartstring-tugging * BBC Countryfile *A remarkable account of the healing power of landscape and the resilience of the human spirit. I felt the rain on my face and heard the waves pounding on the sand.Inspirational * Good Housekeeping *The Salt Path pummelled me like Atlantic winds. It carried me along on a rain-soaked, sun-burnt, despair-infused, hope-driven walk. The writing is at times raw, poetic, funny, shocking. It is consistently honest, vulnerable, clear. I finished the book reminded of the importance of really hearing people's stories, of the healing power of the natural world, and of our individual and collective now. * The Ecologist *A thoughtful, lyrical story of homelessness, strength and endurance * The Week *A moving true story * i Paper *By turns inspirational and horrifying . . . [Winn] writes with a detail and a joy that tugs at the reader, lifting this beyond a mere travel memoir and all the privations and hardship to be something truly meaningful * Times Higher Education *Beautiful, sad, erudite and uplifting * The New European *An uplifting tale * Cornish Times *Vivid . . .This is a book essentially about hope, but also about sheer gritty determination not to give in, to survive extreme discomfort, danger and sometimes disillusionment * Kibworth & District Chronicle *An inspirational true story * Top Sante *It's a heart-warming, heart-wrenching story, told by Raynor in vivid yet plain prose. There are so many wonderful passages * Church Times *Raynor's writing is beautiful. It's a heart-wrenching read at times, but you won't be able to put it down * Mirror *We walk with Ray and Moth every step of the way, sharing the hunger, exhaustion, blazing heat and freezing rain in an account that is both lyrical and inspirational * Guardian, Top 10 books about walking in Britain *An extraordinary memoir - moving, funny and uplifting * Open Up *An inspirational and lyrically observed memoir on the regenerative power of walking in nature, as well as a reminder that material things are much less important than we sometimes think. If you love the landscape of the British coastline and are drawn to the philosophies of mindfulness and minimalism, this is a moving and reflective book to read during a break from your everyday life * Guardian *Raynor Winn's glorious memoir tells the real-life story of her hike along the South West Coast Path, which she embarked upon with her husband after they lost their home. It's raw yet uplifting - and guaranteed to inspire your next adventure * Huffington Post UK *A thoughtful reflection on ageing and infirmity, home and homelessness, hope and survival -- Dr Michael Fitzpatrick * Daily Telegraph *A life-affirming story that examines grief and the power of nature * Liz Earle Wellbeing *Poignant . . . It's far from a book without hope, and you'll be with Raynor and Moth every step of their walk along the South West Coast Path * Country Walking *A heart-wrenching, inspiring tale of one couple's enduring love for each other in the face of calamity and of their accidental odyssey along England's South West Coast Path * Advnture *A love story of resilience and optimism, brimming with heart and humanity -- Ruth Jones * Prima *A gripping domestic disaster story turned celebration of survival * Country Walking *A true story of hope in a dire situation * Daily Express *
£10.44
Canongate Books Ltd. Overnight
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£10.44
Faber And Faber Ltd. LOVE MAGIC POWER DANGER BLISS
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£16.99
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC A Hundred Voices
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£23.75
Weldon Owen Hemingways Spanish Table
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£21.98
Little, Brown Book Group Travels with Agatha Christie
£24.00
Ebury Publishing Legacy of Menace
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£8.99
Penguin Books Ltd I Deliver Parcels in Beijing
£17.00
Batsford Garden Voices
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£24.00
Faber & Faber John and Paul
Book Synopsis
£21.25
Headline Publishing Group The Secret Life of the Savoy
Book Synopsis''A real triumph, beautifully written, with many wonderful stories of the Savoy.'' Lady Anne Glenconner, author of Lady in Waiting''An elegantly crafted, yet spritely and sparkling book, perfectly befitting its subject.'' - Ophelia Field, author of The FavouriteIn three generations, the D''Oyly Carte family pioneered the luxury hotel and the modern theatre, propelled Gilbert and Sullivan to lasting stardom, made Oscar Wilde a transatlantic celebrity, inspired a P. G. Wodehouse series, and popularised early jazz, electric lights and Art Deco. Following the history of the iconic Savoy Hotel through three generations of the D''Oyly Carte family, The Secret Life of the Savoy revives an extroardinary cultural legacy. For The Gondoliers-themed birthday dinner, the hotel obligingly flooded the courtyard to conjure the Grand Canal of Venice. Dinner was served on a silk-lined floating gondola, real swans were swimming in the Trade ReviewA thoroughly entertaining account of some of London's most treasured history, with its beloved The Savoy at the heart of a fascinating and delightful plot. Bravo to Olivia Williams and her fantastically colourful cast of characters. * Lady Kinvara Balfour, director and producer *An elegantly crafted, yet spritely and sparkling book, perfectly befitting its subject. Williams uses group biography to beautifully illuminate some of London's greatest hotel and theatre landmarks. * Ophelia Field, author of The Favourite *A cracking good read and a fascinating story that - amazingly - has not been told before. * Fiona Duncan, the Telegraph *A feast of gloriously eccentric and compelling characters... a veritable cornucopia of explanations and clarifications... endlessly compelling. * Mike Leigh, director of Gilbert and Sullivan biopic 'Topsy-Turvy' *This is a fascinating story, and it could not be better told. Elegant, great fun, and with a finely-judged personal touch: much like the Savoy hotel itself. * Laura Thompson, biographer of Agatha Christie and the Mitford Sisters *Williams writes with authority and style, making her ideal to chronicle the story of the Savoy. * Richard Vines, Bloomberg *The story of how one family's vision shaped not only a British institution but the very idea of luxury. From Belle Epoque scandals to Hollywood gossip, and from kitchen politics to corporate swashbuckling, Williams' writing is deliciously alive with the type of behind-the-scenes drama that will transport you back in time. * Francesca Cartier Brickell, author of 'The Cartiers' *A new book by Olivia Williams is to be welcomed as a reminder that "at their height", the D'Oyly Cartes ranked as "the greatest impresarios and hoteliers in the world" - as dynamic, innovative and powerful in their way as any of today's media dynasties. * Daily Telegraph *Whether it's The Beatles being blocked from entry or Marilyn Monroe sipping tea in a daring dress, London's Savoy Hotel has seen its share of intrigue and controversy for more than a century. Olivia Williams reveals its most decadent moments. * You Magazine *From Churchill to the real 007 via the suffragettes - an unbelievable reel of secrets is revealed * Telegraph *A transportive story * Tatler *This sumptuous book offers a delicious insight * The Sun *Delves into the 5 star hotel's illustrious history, from Oscar Wilde's weekly £6,000 bills to whisky heir Thomas Dewar's 40 YEAR stay * Daily Mail *A real triumph, beautifully written, with many wonderful stories of the Savoy * Lady Anne Glenconner, author of LADY IN WAITING *A remarkable biography * The Eastern Eye *A fascinating glimpse into the past. . . Williams' biography is informative and hugely entertaining, painting a deliciously decadent picture of the glamour, theatre and scandal that surrounded the D'Oyly Cartes. * Culture Fly *Rich with details, both serious and frivolous, and deftly sets the story of this singular institution in the context of the greater forces of English history. * The New York Times *
£11.69
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC Dickens the Enchanter
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£10.44
Transworld Publishers Ltd The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by
Book SynopsisTHE MULTI AWARD-WINNING #1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Gripping' NEW YORK TIMES'At last, the Ripper's victims get a voice... An eloquent, stirring challenge to reject the prevailing Ripper myth' MAIL ON SUNDAY____________Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, Catherine and Mary-Jane are famous for the same thing, though they never met.They came from Fleet Street, Knightsbridge, Wolverhampton, Sweden and Wales. They wrote ballads, ran coffee houses, lived on country estates, they breathed ink-dust from printing presses and escaped people-traffickers.What they had in common was the year of their murders: 1888.Their murderer was never identified, but the name created for him by the press has become far more famous than any of these five women.Now, in this devastating narrative of five lives, historian Hallie Rubenhold finally sets the record straight, and gives these women back their stories.____________Awards for The Five include:- Winner of the BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE for Non-fiction- HAY FESTIVAL Book of the Year 2019- Winner of the Goodreads Choice Awards for HistoryPRAISE FOR THE FIVE'Devastatingly good. The Five will leave you in tears, of pity and of rage.' LUCY WORSLEY'Fascinating, compelling, moving.' BRIDGET COLLINS, author of The Binding'An angry and important work of historical detection, calling time on the misogyny that has fed the Ripper myth. Powerful and shaming.' GUARDIAN'Haunting' SUNDAY TIMES'What a brilliant and necessary book' JO BAKER, author of Longbourn'Beautifully written and with the grip of a thriller, it will open your eyes and break your heart.' ERIN KELLY'An outstanding work of history-from-below ... magnificent' SPECTATOR'Deeply researched' THE NEW YORKERTrade ReviewFIVE STARS: At last, the Ripper's victims get a voice... An eloquent, stirring challenge to reject the prevailing Ripper myth. -- Gwen Smith * Mail on Sunday *How fitting that in the year when we celebrate the 100th anniversary of women’s suffrage, dignity is finally returned to these unfortunate women. * Professor Dame Sue Black, author of ALL THAT REMAINS *A Ripper narrative that gives voice to the women he silenced; I’ve been waiting for this book for years. Beautifully written and with the grip of a thriller, it will open your eyes and break your heart. * Erin Kelly, author of HE SAID/SHE SAID *What a brilliant and necessary book * Jo Baker, author of LONGBOURN *Devastatingly good. The Five will leave you in tears of pity and of rage. * LUCY WORSLEY *Forests have been felled in the interests of unmasking the murderer, but until now no one has bothered to discover the identity of his victims. The Five is thus an angry and important work of historical detection, calling time on the misogyny that has fed the Ripper myth. . . This is a powerful and a shaming book, but most shameful of all is that it took 130 years to write. -- Frances Wilson * Guardian *By collating these five deeply affecting biographies ... Rubenhold has given these women the immortality that their murderer does not deserve. * Daily Mail *Stupendous. The sort of work that keeps history vital. * IMOGEN HERMES GOWAR, author of THE MERMAID AND MRS HANCOCK *Fascinating, compelling, moving, The Five makes a fierce, passionate argument about the ethics of how we engage with murder. A brilliant,properly thoughtful, responsible piece of political writing. * BRIDGET COLLINS, author of THE BINDING *‘Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, and Mary Jane Kelly deserve to be thought of as more than eviscerated bodies on an East London street. This haunting book does something to redress that balance. * Sunday Times *A highly readable work of rigorous scholarship that plunges the reader into the claustrophobic world of late 19th-century London... The story of these five women – Mary Ann “Polly” Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes and Mary Jane Kelly – is not one of death, but one of life. -- Rebecca Rideal * NewStatesman *A Sunday Times must-read. * Sunday Times *Fascinating and hugely important book acts as a timely reminder of what happens when society ceases to care for its most vulnerable residents. * Herald Scotland *This confidently written book gives a rich insight into the world of the wretched in the late Victorian period. Rubenhold writes in a compassionate but unsentimental style… * Literary Review *An outstanding work of history-from-below … magnificent * The Spectator *Urges us to look beyond the familiar stories... The Five challenges the accepted view of the five canonical victims of Jack the Ripper, and tells the untold stories of their lives. * History Revealed *THE FIVE has received deservedly rave reviews. It's gripping. * New York Times *A brilliant and important book that will reshape how this case is studied - anyone interested in social history or the history of crime owes a debt to @HallieRubenhold * EMMA FLINT *Becomes a passionate indictment of the true-crime genre, with its fixation on the minds of murderers and its shallow, glancing sympathy for the dead. Hard-edged and heartbreaking * Washington Post *Our fascination with true crime means we often focus on the perpertrator, such as Ted Bundy, rather than the victims. It's time to stop focusing on the killer and start remembering the victims: Polly, Annie, Catherine and Mary-Jane * Stylist *
£10.44
HarperCollins Publishers Tolkien On FairyStories
Book SynopsisA new expanded edition of Tolkien's most famous, and most important essay, which defined his conception of fantasy as a literary form, and which led to the writing of The Lord of the Rings. Accompanied by a critical study of the history and writing of the text.J.R.R. Tolkien''s On Fairy-stories is his most-studied and most-quoted essay, an exemplary personal statement of his views on the role of imagination in literature, and an intellectual tour de force vital for understanding Tolkien''s achievement in the writing of The Lord of the Rings.On Fairy-stories comprises about 18,000 words. What is little-known is that when Tolkien expanded the essay in 1943, he wrote many more pages of his views that were originally condensed into or cut from the published version. An estimate is difficult, but these unpublished passages perhaps amount to half again as much writing as the essay itself. These passages contain important elaborations of his views on other writers, and their publication repreTrade Review‘This book must be read… it goes far to explain the nature of Tolkien’s art and justify his success’ The Cambridge Review
£9.49
