Memoirs Books

Book Synopsis''A delightful memoir'' Kate Saunders, The Times''Fabulous . . . dazzling'' Tatler''Enchanting . . . movingly lyrical'' Ysenda Maxtone Graham, Country LifeThis short volume has turned out to be merely a handful of recollections of well-remembered times and stories - some probably misremembered, too - and a few people who have played a crucial part in my life. And some confessions: I have never before tried to write about my doll phobia, for instance, or about the effect synaesthesia has had over the years. I can only hope that this collection of stories from times past might give some idea of a mostly happy life that has gone, and is going, much too fast.At the age of five Angela Huth decided she would become a writer. Hers was an idiosyncratic childhood. Her parents were known to be a highly glamorous couple: Harold was a famous actor and film director who possessed legendary charm; Bridget was known fTrade ReviewNow pushing 80, Huth has what every aspiring writer most desires: a distinctive voice, dry, witty and utterly clear-eyed -- Marcus Berkmann * Daily Mail *Enchanting memoir . . . scintillating thumbnail sketches . . . She is also movingly lyrical about some English customs -- Ysenda Maxtone Graham * Country Life *Enjoyable . . . a series of vividly-written chapters, like snapshots in a high-end album. Most of these are fascinating, some hilarious; all are shot through with sparkling asides . . . a delightful memoir -- Kate Saunders * The Times *Fabulous . . . dazzling . . . She may be 80, but the wit and keen powers of observation for which Huth's novels are known are not diminished a bit in this elegant and joyful memoir * Tatler *Though it may not be the whole story, what a story it is . . . vividly described . . . marvellously gossipy . . . sweetly nostalgic . . . no doubt she is a thoroughly good egg: ever cheerful, a wonderfully loyal friend and as amusing and engaging a writer as one could hope to find -- Violet Hudson * Spectator *This elegantly written, witty memoir tells the story of [Huth's] unconventional and fascinating life . . . A remarkably candid book on a life lived in full, capturing a world as lost as Elizabeth Bowen's novels . . . Unputdownable -- Rebecca Wallersteiner * The Lady *Deliciously gossipy and amusingly trenchant, this is an entertaining "collection of stories from times past" -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisHow can tending a flock of sheep empower leadership skills?How does it build character and awaken wisdom?And why was shepherding the starting point for so many of the great prophets, such as Mohammed, Moses and Abraham?These questions had long intrigued MBA student AlBaraa Taibah before he decided to become a modern-day shepherd and herd sheep alone in the Sahara Desert. Confronting the dangers of desert snakes, getting hopelessly lost in the dunes and suffering from dehydration - all on the first day - made him ask himself, ''Why didn''t I just take that leadership course back in Boston?''The Modern Shepherd is a leadership book unlike any other. Inspiring and insightful, AlBaraa H. Taibah reveals the secrets of the ancient art of shepherding and how they can teach us to become effective and successful leaders.Trade ReviewThe Modern Shepherd was not what I expected. Part travelogue, part spiritual journey, part leadershipmanual, part biography, it is a book that can be read and enjoyed on many levels. It enlightened and entertained me and I really recommend it - Linda's Book Bag

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Book SynopsisA self-deprecating and humorous account of life in the Coldstream Guards followed by a wry, witty collection of letters that provides unique insight into life as a POW during the Second World War.

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Book SynopsisRescuing a dog can change not only the dog`s life but yours too. This book explains how. It also tells you everything you need to know about finding the right dog at a shelter near to you, and getting him or her used to you and their home. There is also appropriate advice on training and caring for your new friend. This book contains moving poems, true stories and appealing portraits of actual rescue dogs, who found new owners and loving homes.Trade ReviewA book about the ultimately lucky dogs that were in dire need of help and love, and who got both. - Foreword of the book

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Book SynopsisAs a police officer, Alistair Livingstone was dubbed Supercop by the media for making more arrests than any other officer in the UK. But then Ali broke down. Broken Blue Line is the vividly told story of what brought him to that point, and the beginning of his slow, painful recovery.Trade ReviewBroken Blue Line is a rollercoaster of a ride depicting the realities of twenty-first-century policing on the front-line. Its well written, honest and informative. Alistair Livingstone put his life on the line, and now he's put his heart on the line. Courageous and human. Highly recommended. -- Mike Pannett, author of Now Then Lad . . . and Crime Squad

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Book SynopsisHow to hold it together ... even if it feels like everything is falling apart. Welcome to the rollercoaster of family lifethe parts nobody talks about, the 'wow' moments, the mistakes, tears, tantrums and triumphs. This book is about the stuff we don't teach our kids in school, how to have heartbreaking conversations and healing from being broken. It's the book I wish I had been able to read to know things will be OK. I'm sharing my mad, patchwork family to help you - maybe to laugh at my fails, manage teenagers pushing boundaries (good luck with that!) or find a little strength to get you through the day. I was once a single mum alone in a flat with two tiny babies coming to terms with domestic abuse; now I'm a parent and step-parent in a chaotic family of eight with a whole bunch of new challenges, standing up for survivors and with hundreds of thousands of followers in the Part-Time Working Mummy community. 

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Book SynopsisAn unforgettable portrait of a marriage tested to its limits.When Dan, a writer with a passion for underground comics, and his wife Bekah, a potter dedicated to traditional Japanese ceramics, met through a mutual friend, they swiftly fell in love. Of all the women I''ve ever met, Dan told a friend, she''s the first one who felt like family. But at Christmas, as they prepared for the birth of their first child, tragedy struck.Based on Daniel Raeburn''s acclaimed New Yorker essay, Vessels: A Memoir of What Wasn''t is the story of how the couple clashed and clung to each other through a series of unsuccessful pregnancies before finally, joyfully, becoming parents. In prose as handsomely unadorned as his wife''s pottery, Raeburn recounts a marriage cemented by the same events that nearly broke it.Vessels is an unflinching, enormously moving account of intimacy, endurance and love.Trade ReviewDaniel Raeburn gets right down to the essentials: life, death, love, loss. There's not a spare syllable here, and the telegraphic style has the odd effect of amplifying these profound questions, allowing them to resonate fully. Vessels is a beautiful book about the sheer, mysterious contingency of anyone being born at all. -- Alison Bechdel, author of Are You My Mother?A brilliant and dazzling story about love, marriage and family. In a prose so transparent that you feel as if it's your own experience, Daniel Raeburn has written a beautiful book about loss and redemption -- Susan CheeverVessels conveys the complicated loves of marriage and parenting, of finding honest and enduring meaning in a time when one is hard-pressed to do so -- Antonya NelsonSpare and elegant and smart and propulsive, but above all alive with the close breath of the realest intimacy -- Claire Dederer[Vessels] is not only a poignant expression of how two young people matured as they created a family. It is also a celebration of the way that birth - even if that birth ends in sudden death - brings new life to parents. An eloquently candid memoir. * Kirkus *This is one of the wisest, saddest, most beautiful books about love that I've ever read. -- Tom BissellAffecting and often wrenching... Raeburn writes palpably of loss and anguish, but also shows how love, hope and resilience triumph over despair. * Publishers Weekly *An eloquently candid memoir.... The narrative is not only a poignant expression of how two young people matured as they created a family. It is also a celebration of the way that birth-even if that birth ends in sudden death-brings new life to parents. * Kirkus Reviews *More than offering a simple tale about grief and the struggles of parenthood, Raeburn speaks to the emotional influence of those we try to bring into the world and the lives we are responsible for. * Booklist *

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Book SynopsisFor fans of Bryony Gordon and Dolly Alderton, The Sisterhood is an honest and hilarious book which celebrates the ways in which women connect with each other.''My five sisters are the only women I would ever kill for. And they are the only women I have ever wanted to kill.''Imagine living between the pages of Pride And Prejudice, in the Bennett household. Now, imagine how the Bennett girls as they''d be in the 21st century - looking like the Kardashian sisters, but behaving like the Simpsons. This is the house Daisy Buchanan grew up in,Daisy''s memoir The Sisterhood explores what it''s like to live as a modern woman by examining some examples close to home - her adored and infuriating sisters. There''s Beth, the rebellious contrarian; Grace, the overachiever with a dark sense of humour; Livvy, the tough girl who secretly cries during adverts; Maddy, essentially Descartes with a beehive; and Dotty, the joker obsessed with RuPaul'Trade ReviewWhimsical and brilliant observations on the female sex are explored through her own family tree... it's her natural and self-aware voice that makes this read a sharp, funny and relatable experience. * Magic Radio Bookclub *

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Book SynopsisAn exhilarating insight into the life of a doctor at Heathrow Airport, where the truth is often stranger than fiction.For over a decade, Stephanie Green was a doctor on-call for one of the world''s busiest airports, confronting dramatic, bizarre and sometimes heart-breaking situations. During her 24-hour shifts at Heathrow, Dr Green had to be ready for anything: from finding an abandoned suitcase leaking blood onto the carousel, to discovering a man smuggling heroin in a corset.It''s a job that brought her into contact with all walks of life; her patients included drug mules and fugitives, schizophrenics and stowaways, refugees and tourists. And with the threats of a nerve agent poisoning or a Level Four viral epidemic always in the back of her mind, Dr Green found herself on the frontline where the decisions are made about who - or what - was allowed to leave the airport''s borders.FLIGHT RISK reveals the thrilling drama that takes place behind-the-sc

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Book Synopsis''a wonderful book ... a great read'' Daily Mail''a fascinating book ... I really enjoyed it'' Piers Morgan, Good Morning Britain''a heart-warming, funny and insightful read. Perfect for a rainy day by the fire.'' FourFourTwo magazineOne of the Guardian''s ''Biggest Books of Autumn 2020''''A beautiful book about football, family, friendship and finding out who you really are.'' JACK WHITEHALL''One of the best books I''ve ever read about what it takes to become a pro.'' FRANK LAMPARDFor the Redknapp clan, football is a family concern; it''s the family business. Me, Family and the Making of a Footballer is a deeply moving, heartfelt and beautifully personal account of growing up as the second son of Harry Redknapp, and also an enchanting love letter to football.I''m Jamie Redknapp. Chances are my surname rings a bell. I want to introduce you Trade ReviewA beautiful book about football, family, friendship and finding out who you really are * Jack Whitehall *One of the best books I've ever read about what it takes to become a pro * Frank Lampard *An engaging account of [Jamie Redknapp's] childhood and how he blossomed into a professional footballer in a family steeped in the game. * The People (Love Sunday) *A great read... honest. * Daily Mail *A warm, family-orientated account. . . the tales are genuine which means that readers will feel as though they have a seat at a family get-together where reminiscences and anecdotes tumble amid much laughter. * South Wales Evening Post *Part memoir, part manual, on playing your way to the top. * PA *This wonderful book is about. . . the fun. the laughter, the hard work, the disappointments and the triumphs * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisFor fans of Everything I Know About Love, Wrong Knickers and The Right Sort of Girl this is the incredibly honest and brilliantly raunchy memoir you don''t want to miss.''Honest. Much needed.'' FRANK SKINNER''A hilarious, courageous and compelling read that explores the complicated relationship between culture, religion, identity and sexuality within the British Asian community. A must read for those who have lived it, and for those who haven''t.'' ANITA BHAGWANDAS''Azmat raises complex, consequential matters with a lightness of touch. Sex Bomb is an easy read as she reflects candidly and boldly on her experiences and the factors that led to them.'' CHORTLE__________Sadia is a comedian who loves sex. She is also a hijab-wearing Muslim woman. The two are in a lifelong relationship, but it''s complicated.Sadia Azmat has many different sides to her, she is the goTrade ReviewHonest. Much needed. I was surprised several times... it's a very respectable book in many ways. A logical move from stand-up to autobiography -- Frank Skinnerbold and honest... a memoir that is sure to bring you some warmth and joy * Bustle *Thought-provoking, educational and funny * Tim Lovejoy *Sex Bomb is so hilarious, raw and poignant. I couldn't put it down! * Jena Friedman *Sex Bomb brims with vulnerability, patience and a refreshing mix of confidence and empathy. Frankly, it's impossible not to come away from this book feeling richer, smarter and honoured to have been let into Sadia's world. Sex Bomb is a privilege and a joy to read, and everybody you've ever met should read it. * Anne T. Donahue *Sadia Azmat raises complex, consequential matters with a lightness of touch. Sex Bomb is an easy read as she reflects candidly and boldly on her experiences and the factors that led to them. * Chortle *wickedly entertaining -- Anna Bonnet, Best Non-Fiction Picks of 2022 * i *Refreshing, candid, hilarious and necessary. -- Sarah MalikA hilarious, courageous and compelling read that explores the complicated relationship between culture, religion, identity and sexuality within the British Asian community. A must read for those who have lived it, and for those who haven't. -- Anita Bhagwandas

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Book SynopsisFor fans of Everything I Know About Love, Wrong Knickers and The Right Sort of Girl this is the incredibly honest and brilliantly raunchy memoir you don''t want to miss.''Honest. Much needed.'' FRANK SKINNER''A hilarious, courageous and compelling read that explores the complicated relationship between culture, religion, identity and sexuality within the British Asian community. A must read for those who have lived it, and for those who haven''t.'' ANITA BHAGWANDAS''Azmat raises complex, consequential matters with a lightness of touch. Sex Bomb is an easy read as she reflects candidly and boldly on her experiences and the factors that led to them.'' CHORTLE__________Sadia is a comedian who loves sex. She is also a hijab-wearing Muslim woman. The two are in a lifelong relationship, but it''s complicated.Sadia Azmat has many different sides to her, she is the goTrade ReviewHonest. Much needed. I was surprised several times... it's a very respectable book in many ways. A logical move from stand-up to autobiography -- Frank Skinnerbold and honest... a memoir that is sure to bring you some warmth and joy * Bustle *Thought-provoking, educational and funny * Tim Lovejoy *Sex Bomb is so hilarious, raw and poignant. I couldn't put it down! * Jena Friedman *Sex Bomb brims with vulnerability, patience and a refreshing mix of confidence and empathy. Frankly, it's impossible not to come away from this book feeling richer, smarter and honoured to have been let into Sadia's world. Sex Bomb is a privilege and a joy to read, and everybody you've ever met should read it. * Anne T. Donahue *Sadia Azmat raises complex, consequential matters with a lightness of touch. Sex Bomb is an easy read as she reflects candidly and boldly on her experiences and the factors that led to them. * Chortle *wickedly entertaining -- Anna Bonnet, Best Non-Fiction Picks of 2022 * i *Refreshing, candid, hilarious and necessary. -- Sarah MalikA hilarious, courageous and compelling read that explores the complicated relationship between culture, religion, identity and sexuality within the British Asian community. A must read for those who have lived it, and for those who haven't. -- Anita Bhagwandas

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Book SynopsisThe actress, activist, and once infamous Playboy Playmate reclaims the narrative of her life in a memoir that defies expectation in both content and approach, blending searing prose with snippets of original poetry.Trade ReviewA revelatory and fascinating dive beyond the usual bimbo clichés -- Alexander Larman * The Spectator *Pamela Anderson tackles her journey from small-town girl to one of the icons of the 90s, terrorised by the LA paparazzi who were obsessed with her personal life . . . this is a chance for her to tell her story in her own way. * Stylist *Reveals the woman behind the iconic image in this intimate and well-written journey of self-discovery, uncovering the layers that make up her complicated past and sharing her lifelong thirst for knowledge. Anderson fully takes control of her own story, addressing the salacious aspects but also sharing inspiring tales of survival, motherhood, and activism. * Library Journal *A page-turner . . . throughout her account of this kooky, messed-up, enviable, and often thrilling life, her humility . . . never fails her. * Kirkus *This pensive and free-spirited narrative reflects both Anderson's naivete and her wild spirit. * Publishers Weekly *The most disappointing thing about Love, Pamela is that it doesn't come in a form that can be injected directly into your viens . . . Dazzling. * The New York Times *The iconic Anderson uses a mixture of poetry and prose to present an impressionistic view of a fascinating life . . . the book paints a picture of a wild spirit, a proud mother, and a seeker that will draw in fans and those who have misunderstood this complicated woman. * Booklist, starred review *Anderson reveals the woman behind the iconic image in this intimate and well-written journey of self-discovery, uncovering the layers that make up her complicated past and sharing her lifelong thirst for knowledge. Anderson fully takes control of her own story, addressing the salacious aspects but also sharing inspiring tales of survival, motherhood, and activism. * Library Journal *

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Book SynopsisAn Irish bestseller'A remarkable book that is unique in the annals of its kind ... sublime' Dr Bruce Greyson, co-editor of The Handbook of Near Death ExperiencesTrade ReviewRoisin Fitzpatrick has written a remarkable book that is unique in the annals of near-death experiences ... As a guide to enhancing your own spirituality, Taking Heaven Lightly is a love story in the most sublime sense * Dr Bruce Greyson, co-editor of The Handbook of Near Death Experiences: Thirty Years of Investigation *A book of wise words that will introduce some people to the light, will draw others back to the light, and will itself long shine light in all sorts of unforeseeable and beautiful ways. Every reader can undoubtedly expect to have their own personal epiphany. A brilliant book with an unforgettable message * Dr Christine Ranck, author of 'Ignite the Genius Within' *Taking Heaven Lightly's clear, sincere, even humorous style attracted me and I was drawn in ... Ms Fitzpatrick's rehabilitation of pre-Christian Irish spirituality of light is excellent * Dr Tadhg O'Dushlaine, Head of Dept for the Centre for Irish Cultural Heritage, National University of Ireland, Maynooth *An inspirational guide for those who are interested in spirituality * Irish Examiner *Nothing short of a riveting read ... [the] author takes the reader on a remarkable journey * Southside People *[Taking Heaven Lightly] is both a biography and a mission statement * RTE Guide *Taking Heaven Lightly shows people that they don't need to have any fear of death and by understanding the meaning of this light we can transform our lives from ordinary to extraordinary in ways we can't imagine * RSVP magazine *A very important and poignant personal account of her near-death experience * Anthony Murphy, author of Newgrange: Monument to Immortality *An authentic, moving and motivating book ... Read it and be enlightened! * Dr Martin Curley, author of Knowledge Driven Entrepreneurship *Taking Heaven Lightly is ... reminiscent of John O'Donohue's Anam Cara in that it explores ancient Celtic mysticism and I imagine it will find a similar following * Irish Independent *An insightful and in-depth look into what lies beyond our physical realm. A must read * Sean Mahon, actor (Philomena, The 39 Steps) *

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Book SynopsisA captivating nature memoir telling the story of Britain's Green Belt, our national obsession with the countryside, and the author's childhood, for fans of LOVE NINA, Alan Bennett and THE SHEPHERD'S LIFE.Trade ReviewGrindrod's evocative and intelligent exploration of the green belt and its place in our national consciousness is part history and part memoir. He deftly weaves the two together, transforming what might otherwise have been a dry, technical discussion of planning and housing policy into a heartfelt narrative . . . One of the great strengths of Grindrod's book is his moving portrait of his late parents . . . [his] personal yet highly informative account of the origins and meaning of the green belt provides an excellent point of departure for an essential debate about its future, one that is likely to be contentious but is long overdue. -- PD Smith * Guardian *Illuminating and enjoyable . . . tolerantly and unsentimentally, he gets us close up to the green belt as it actually is today . . . what truly lifts it is the personal element, above all Grindrod's portrayal of family life. -- David Kynaston * Spectator *Grindrod writes beautifully about nature . . . a lucid, evocative book, suffused with sadness and anger. -- Lynsey Hanley * Financial Times *Well-researched and engaging . . . It allows the reader to reconsider parts of the country that they might have taken for granted, and offers its own modest encomium to a part of England that seems under threat. -- Alexander Larman * Observer *A coherent, deeply researched study . . . the experience of Grindrod's very ordinary yet unique family upbringing forms a logical sequence underpinning much of what he says about the green belt. -- Gillian Tindall * TLS *Fascinating * Robert Macfarlane, author of The Old Ways *A satisfying ramble through the Green Belt of past and future with a backpack full of research . . . thought-provoking [and] compelling' -- Laura Waddell * The List *A terrific, and very moving read. Fascinating study in the emotional landscapes of cities. A hymn to the peripheral that is totally on target. -- Leo Hollis, author of CITIES ARE GOOD FOR YOUWhat better lens to view the current friction between nature and our engorged cities than the Green Belt? A brilliant idea, brilliantly executed. -- Tristan Gooley, bestselling author of THE WALKER'S GUIDEOutskirts is dotted with funny anecdotes and familiar cultural references from a 1970s childhood. Grindrod segues elegantly between memoir and fascinating social history * BBC Countryfile *Very topical . . . interesting and moving . . . Grindrod has the knack of putting an issue into precisely the right perspective -- John Greening * Country Life *

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Book SynopsisThis is the real Jason McAteer: a little bit bruised, a little bit battered. But still fighting.Trade ReviewA meaty memoir with as much gristle as its title promises * Irish Independent *

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Book Synopsis''That nickname . . .''''Little bird. It wasn''t mine. I found out later he gave it to every little girl that came in to be injected. Little Bird didn''t mean anything. It was a trick. There were thousands of little birds, just like me, all thinking they were the only one.''As a reporter, Jacques Peretti has spent his life investigating important stories. But there was one story, heard in scattered fragments throughout his childhood, that he never thought to investigate. The story of how his mother survived Auschwitz.In the few last months of the Second World War, thirteen-year-old Alina Peretti, along with her mother and sister, was one of thirteen thousand non-Jewish Poles sent to Auschwitz. Her experiences there cast a shadow over the rest of her life.Now ninety, Alina has been diagnosed with dementia. Together, mother and son begin a race against time to record her memories and preserve her family''s story

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Book SynopsisComedian and star of The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Ellie Kemper delivers a hilarious and uplifting collection of essays about one pale woman's journey from Midwestern naÃf to Hollywood semi-celebrity to outrageously reasonable New Yorker.

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Book SynopsisLearning to start again when your happy-ever-after isn't so happy

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of Last Days of Steam on the LMS & BR, published in 2009.

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Book SynopsisA personal exploration of the mysterious world of birds through a single year.

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Book Synopsis''A beautiful book'' Tim Birkhead, author of Bird Sense''The prose is sublime, and so is the intelligence behind it'' Bel Mooney, Daily MailThe extraordinary world of birds has the power to change lives, as it did the author''s. The pleasure and fascination of bird-watching, together with the silence and stillness involved, can play a part in changing the way that we live our lives - and can help us when we have to deal with adversity.Personal and elegiac, Waiting for the Albino Dunnock shows us how beauty is central to our emotional wellbeing, and reminds us of the careless damage we are inflicting on the natural world. This glorious pilgrimage into the soaring world of birds opens our eyes afresh to the beauty which surrounds us.Trade ReviewA beautiful book -- Tim Birkhead, author of BIRD SENSEGlorious, beautifully written pilgrimage into the soaring world of birds ... The prose is sublime, and so is the intelligence behind it -- Bel Mooney * DAILY MAIL *Rare, charming and unforgettable ... Her prose has the clarity, poise, precision and transcendent beauty of someone who was brought up reading the classics and knows the joy of finding the right words. Every sentence is perfect -- Richard Davenport-Hines * THE OLDIE *Beautifully written * CHOICE magazine *[Richardson] writes...with a poetic lyricism -- Eithne Farry * SUNDAY EXPRESS *This exquisite depiction of bird-watching as personal pilgrimage is written with passion, poetry and thefreshness of a newcomer: 'the real voyage of discovery consists in...seeing with new eyes' * THE LADY *Richardson is both a looker and a see-er and her open-eyed delight in the beauty around her has an infectious quality enhanced by exquisite writing -- Sara Maitland * BBC COUNTRYFILE *[Richardson's] lyrical memoir of a year of birdwatching in Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex and Greece is a life-enhancing record of birds (and books). * DAILY MAIL *

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Book SynopsisOriginal tales by remarkable writersHometown Tales is a series of books pairing exciting new voices with some of the most talented and important writers at work today. Some of the tales are fiction and some are narrative non-fiction - they are all powerful, fascinating and moving, and aim to celebrate regional diversity and explore the meaning of home.In these pages on Lancashire, you''ll find two unique tales. ''After the Funeral, the Crawl'' is an arresting portrait of a couple forced to confront a dark secret over the course of a pub crawl one night in Preston, by award-winning novelist Jenn Ashworth. ''JUDAS!'' is a vivid, coming-of-age story that traces the political and cultural history of Manchester, from its industrial past to its eventual separation from the county, by Benjamin Webster.

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Book Synopsis''In the wake of the strongest earthquake in Italy for nearly forty years and the many aftershocks that followed, Italians began speaking of the earth beneath our feet as la terra ballerina, the dancing earth. The dance they spoke of was unrelenting.''Foreign correspondent Christine Toomey spent years renovating her glorious, long-abandoned hill-top home in Le Marche, Italy, as a haven of rest from covering crises around the world. But in 2016, the peace and beauty of this beloved landscape were thrown into chaos when a series of powerful earthquakes struck the heart of the Apennines.Wracked with grief for a place still reverberating with seismic aftershocks, Christine set out on a journey of discovery through the history of a landscape that gave birth to so much of Western culture and civilisation.Fuelled by a collection of century-old letters, oil paintings and an earthquake map of Sicily hidden away and thick with dust in her attic, she becomTrade ReviewA brilliant memoir -- Mariella FrostrupAn optimistic, airy book with high cultural references. From the drama of the earthquake, from that dancing of the mountains, from those territories damaged but not vanquished, Christine shows us all of them -- Adolfo Leoni * Il Resto Del Carlino *A beautifully written, many-layered and poetic book . . . As well as a description of an existential disaster, this is also a meditation on the fragility of the human state and mind and life itself. Brilliant! There is deep meditation here -- Adam Williams, author of THE BOOK OF THE ALCHEMISTEngaging and contemplative -- Caroline Moorehead * TLS *

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Book Synopsis''I loved The Ballast Seed. I couldn''t put it down. Beautiful and sad and hopeful all at once - luminous and lush, full of dirt, darkness, sun light and soft new growth. It''s a story of vulnerability, persistence and the will to live. This is a memoir that will make you weep, then roll up your sleeves and plant the seeds of a new life.'' Cal Flyn author of Islands of AbandonmentThe surprise of a second pregnancy, so soon after the birth of her first son, plunged Rosie into a despair that spiralled into deep depression. Terrified at the prospect of adding another child into her already precariously balanced life, Rosie was compelled to find a new way of living. She found herself instinctively drawn to the local parks and scraps of communal green spaces in her local south east London neighbourhood, and to therapy via tending a hidden garden deep within the city. Interlaced with her responses to the travel journals of an eccentric 19th century female botaTrade ReviewCompletely brilliant * India Knight *A gorgeously subtle memoir of depression, that intertwines in surprising and often uplifting ways with the healing power of nature. * Monica Ali *I loved The Ballast Seed. I couldn't put it down. Beautiful and sad and hopeful all at once-luminous and lush, full of dirt, darkness, sun light and soft new growth. It's a story of vulnerability, persistence and the will to live. This is a memoir that will make you weep, then roll up your sleeves and plant the seeds of a new life. * Cal Flyn author of Islands of Abandonment *The Ballast Seed is a book to read... The language is evocative, the writing beautiful, intense and personal... the book is infused with the thrill of discovery and knowledge... a compelling and profoundly hopeful read. -- Naomi Slade * THE GARDEN *The Ballast Seed brought me to tears, of sadness and of wonder. Rich in the possibilities of connection and of nature, Rosie Kinchen has created a book that is so many things at once, and utterly unique. It is an exquisite piece of writing that is unsentimental and raw and deeply moving, and a stunning antidote to some of the unhelpful myths propagated around new motherhood; in this sense I was underlining sentences as I read... a raw and passionate insight into all that flourishes from the darkest of places. A breath of fresh air. * Charlotte Philby, author of Edith and Kim *This is an achingly beautiful memoir. It's a story about motherhood, but also about healing, about growth, about hope. Reading it felt like finding sunlight - I couldn't put it down. * Catherine Cho, author of Inferno: A Memoir of Motherhood and Madness *Kinchen skilfully weaves together her experiences as a mother and a gardener in this beautiful evocation of a journey through darkness into light. * Sue Stuart-Smith, author of The Well Gardened Mind *Both delicate and powerful, The Ballast Seed paints a portrait of early motherhood that is refreshing in its refusal to deny either the despair or the hope of that fragile time. It feels like a paean to paying attention - to our own emotional landscapes, to the histories (and botanies) on our doorstep, to everyday moments of beauty. * Miranda Ward, author of Adrift *I loved the open and honest clarity of The Ballast Seed. A memoir that weaves the personal challenges of a surprise pregnancy with biography, and a discovery of the healing quality of horticulture. It is a book about the power of caring and nurture, for yourself, your children, and for plants and community, full of surprising discoveries within the fast paced urban landscape. But it is also about transformation and regeneration. A gorgeous testament to a growing year, and the wonders of new life. * Lily Dunn, author of Sins of My Father *[An] intelligent, careful memoir... Its tales of plants, friendship and the immense solace of plunging your hands into the soil will resonate with many. -- Hephzibah Anderson * OBSERVER *A gorgeous memoir about an unexpected pregnancy. -- Eve Crosbie * HELLO! MAGAZINE *

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Book Synopsis''Alluring, shocking, welcome and wonderful''Lisa Taddeo, author of Three Women''The most delicious memoir that kept me in bed all day . . . I think she might be a genius'' Sophie Heawood, author of The Hungover Games''I''ve really never read about sex and been so sharply reminded about how much it is tied up with the fundamentals of being a woman''Minnie DriverFrom the author of Your Voice in My Head and Royals comes a beautiful, breath-taking, unputdownable memoir about love and heartbreak, sex and celibacy, growing up and starting again. What happens when your story doesn''t end the way you thought it would?When the dream life you have been working towards becomes something you must walk away from?When you swap a Hollywood marriage and a LA mansion with waterside views, for a little attic flat shared only with your daughter, beneath thTrade ReviewA staggering piece of writing: I had to start it again the minute I finished reading it, and it was just as shocking, absorbing and beautiful on rereading -- Nigella LawsonCompelling, mystical, deeply moving, darkly funny. Busy Being Free is a poetic, incisive, uncensored study of female solitude. I adored it. * Dolly Alderton *Alluring, shocking, welcome and wonderful -- Lisa Taddeo, author of THREE WOMENThe most delicious memoir that kept me in bed all day. I wonder what it is like to live with a mind like Forrest's, which makes such shooting connections between things and sees a great pattern in it all. I think she might be a genius. Eve Babitz didn't die, she just regenerated as Emma Forrest -- Sophie Heawood, author of THE HUNGOVER GAMESI've really never read about sex and been so sharply reminded about how much it is tied up with the fundamentals of being a woman. This deep part of ourselves that somehow gets side-lined and subordinated by everything else. This ecstatic voice we so often manage to ignore. I can hear Emma's voice though, and it's woken me up -- Minnie Driver, author of Managing ExpectationsBusy Being Free utterly thrilled me with its exposition of loneliness, solitude, and the differences between the two. How wonderful to be privy to many sides of a marriage and what comes after it, how wonderful to be shown so vividly that the end of a formal relationship is not the end of life nor even the end of that particular love. Emma Forrest is a master of voicing those human instincts and thoughts which feel too murky or ingrained to be articulated, and yet here she is doing so with enviable elegance on every page -- Megan Nolan, author of Acts of DesperationA heart-rending and acerbic memoir of appetite and abstinence -- Polly Samson, author of A Theatre for DreamersEmma Forrest can write the hell out of anything but where she truly excels is when she's writing about her life, which is often like something out of a novel... A glorious, sharp-as-a-tack-but-full-of-soul exploration of heartbreak and what happens next. -- Sarra Manning * RED MAGAZINE *Her writing hums with life, honesty and intelligence and underneath the romance and red carpets is loneliness and vulnerability. -- Marianne Power * THE TIMES *Forrest is examining, with an unflinching eye and a formidable cultural frame of reference... what it means for a woman to find herself alone in her 40s and to redefine herself outside a context of marriage, motherhood and men... One of Forrest's greatest gifts as a writer - apart from her humour; like its predecessor, Busy Being Free is frequently hilarious - is her instinct for ambiguity. She writes so well about messy lives because she understands the contradictions we are all prone to... the fact that she has written about this mid life excavation with such ferocity and frankness is cause for celebration. -- Stephanie Merritt * THE OBSERVER *Not to be missed... Disarmingly candid, she reveals how she put herself back together after shattering heartbreak. -- Helen Whitaker * GRAZIA *A rollicking good read - a lyrical and titillating journey through Los Angeles and North London. -- Honeysuckle Weeks * MAIL ON SUNDAY *A beautiful, unputdownable memoir about love and heartbreak, sex and celibacy, growing up and starting again. * SHEERLUXE *Deeply moving and wryly warm. * HEAT MAGAZINE *This book had me from the first few lines. It's bracingly honest, brilliantly written, and very, very sexy. Take it somewhere no one can find you - a hotel, a beach, or foreign country - and celebrate your solitude with the same energy as Emma Forrest -- Tanya Shadrick, author of The Cure for SleepBusy Being Free is a perfect combination of sharp, moving and funny. A story about marriage and its life beyond divorce, but also about how we define ourselves through our relationships and the physical and emotional transformation that comes with maturity and middle age. This is a brave book as it explores love, lust and female desire to the bone, but does it with such airy effortlessness that it becomes a gift we can all learn from -- Lily Dunn, author of Sins of My FatherAs well as being elegantly written, Busy Being Free is eminently readable - a treasure trove of profound insights into love, lust and female desire. -- Emma Lee Potter * DAILY MIRROR *Hitting themes of heartbreak, romance, celibacy and self-discovery, it's a testament to the power of putting yourself first. -- Alicia Lansom * REFINERY 29 *Reading Busy Being Free isn't like reading at all, in the sense that you will never look at how many pages you have left, or wonder whether this was the page you got stuck on last night before sleep. It's more like drinking, or watching TV (no higher praise, in this books column). It is funny, compelling, and the product of a singular, valuable mind. -- Nick Hornby * The Believer *A new piece of magic from a mind who changed mine. Like reading the best friend you don't have but always needed, that grows you right up while keeping you young -- Lena DunhamUtterly unique yet totally relatable. A book that made me think about sex and desire in completely different ways and the tender painful brutality of love. A totally intoxicating read, that fascinated me from start to end -- Abi Morgan

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Book SynopsisFrom skinny scholar to muscle-bound showman. “Easily the best memoir ever written about weight training, steroids and all” (Men’s Journal). When blue-blooded, storklike Samuel Wilson Fussell arrived in New York City fresh from the University of Oxford, the ethereal young graduate seemed like the last person on Earth who would be interested in bodybuilding. But he was intimidated by the dangers of the city—and decided to do something about it. At twenty-six, Fussell walked into the YMCA gym. Four solid years of intensive training, protein powders, and steroid injections later, he had gained eighty pounds of pure muscle and was competing for bodybuilding titles. And yet, with forearms like bowling pins and calves like watermelons, Fussell felt weaker than ever before. His punishing regimen of workouts, drugs, and diet had reduced him to near-infant-like helplessness and immobility, leaving him hungry, nauseated, and prone to outbursts of “ ’roid rage.” But he had come to succeed, and there was no backing down now. Alternately funny and fascinating, Muscle is the true story of one man’s obsession with the pursuit of perfection. With insight, wit, and refreshing candor, Fussell ushers readers into the wild world of juicers and gym rats who sacrifice their lives, minds, bodies, and souls to their dreams of glory in Southern California’s so-called iron mecca.Trade Review“A kind of beefcake Alice in Wonderland . . . Hilarious . . . Marvelous, entertaining.” —The Boston Globe “A powerful, funny, and disturbing book, a classic piece of Americana.” —Entertainment Weekly “Lively and enjoyable . . . A modern cautionary tale on answered prayers . . . A very good book.” —The Washington Post “Easily the best memoir ever written about weight training, steroids and all.” —Men’s Journal Table of Contents Dedication CONTENTS Disclaimer Epigraph THE INTRODUCTION 1. THE GENESIS 2. THE Y 3. THE WALK 4. THE METAMORPHOSIS 5. THE BUNKER 6. THE MOVE 7. THE JUICE 8. THE DIGS 9. THE VOCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES 10. THE NINTH ANNUAL ROSE CITY BENCH-PRESS EXTRAVAGANZA 11. THE BLITZ 12. THE SAN GABRIEL VALLEY 13. THE DIET 14. THE GOLDEN VALLEY 15. THE AFTERMATH THE IMAGE GALLERY ABOUT THE AUTHOR

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Book Synopsis5 ***** Mail on Sunday ‘An absolutely gripping read’ Andrew Marr ‘Probably the most important book on the state of British policing you’ll ever read' Graham Bartlett Jess McDonald was a true crime junkie and Line of Duty sofa sleuth with a strong sense of justice. Under a year later, thanks to a controversial new initiative, she was a detective in the London Metropolitan Police Service. The Met Police’s Direct Entry Detective scheme was aimed at turning people with no experience of the police into detectives. When it was launched, to tackle an unprecedented recruitment crisis, over 4,500 people, Jess included, applied. But why, within just a year of qualifying, had the majority of Jess’ cohort resigned? No Comment is Jess’ candid, eye-opening and often shocking account, exploring the reality of being a detective in the Met and responsible for ‘keeping London safe for everyone’. In her incisive book she explores the challenges of life on the front line, dealing almost exclusively with serious crimes against women, and what that reveals about the Met Police now.Trade ReviewProbably the most important book on the state of British policing you’ll ever read. Written with candour and balance, Jess McDonald lifts the lid on why cultural change is nigh on impossible in the Metropolitan Police and how the justice system conspires against the most vulnerable. A brilliant read which should be compulsory for all Chief Officers if they are serious about understanding what life is really like at the coal face -- Graham BartlettI was gripped by this unflinching close-up account of life as a new Met detective. As a female outsider, McDonald offers a rare insight into the current state of the UK’s biggest and most controversial police force - a world usually painfully resistant to scrutiny. No Comment is essential reading for anyone interested in the questions being asked of the Met today, and its passionate call for change could hardly be more timely -- Katherine FaulknerIt's an excellent insight into modern policing and how the system fails to protect victims, communities and the people who work in the job. Jess writes about complex, dark subjects with humanity and warmth. It's a must-read for anyone who has ever wondered what happens after they've called 999 and a shocking indictment of a system not fit for purpose -- Angela Kirwin, author of Criminal: How Our Prisons Are Failing Us All

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Book Synopsis'Swan Dive is to ballet what Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential was to restaurants, a chance to go behind the serene front of house to the sweaty, foul-mouthed, psychofrenzy backstage.' Daisy Goodwin, Sunday TimesAward-winning New York City Ballet soloist Georgina Pazcoguin, aka the Rogue Ballerina, gives readers a backstage tour of the real world of elite ballet – the gritty, hilarious, sometimes shocking truth you don’t see from the orchestra circle.In this love letter to the art of dance and the sport that has been her livelihood, NYCB’s first Asian American female soloist Georgina Pazcoguin lays bare her unfiltered story of leaving small-town Pennsylvania for New York City and training amid the unique demands of being a hybrid professional athlete/artist, all before finishing high school. She pitches us into the fascinating, whirling shoes of dancers in one of the most revered ballet companies in the world with an unapologetic sense of humour about the cutthroat, survival-of-the-fittest mentality at NYCB. Some swan dives are literal: even in the ballet, there are plenty of face-plants, backstage fights, late-night parties, and raucous company bonding sessions.Rocked by scandal in the wake of the #MeToo movement, NYCB sits at an inflection point, inching toward progress in a strictly traditional culture, and Pazcoguin doesn’t shy away from ballet’s dark side. She continues to be one of the few dancers openly speaking up against the sexual harassment, mental abuse, and racism that in the past went unrecognized or was tacitly accepted as par for the course – all of which she has painfully experienced firsthand.Tying together Pazcoguin’s fight for equality in the ballet with her infectious and deeply moving passion for her craft, Swan Dive is a page-turning, one-of-a-kind account that guarantees you'll never view a ballerina or a ballet the same way again.Trade ReviewSwan Dive is to ballet what Anthony Bourdain’s Kitchen Confidential was to restaurants, a chance to go behind the serene front of house to the sweaty, foul-mouthed, psychofrenzy backstage. -- Daisy Goodwin * Sunday Times *Swan Dive is a sharp plunge into the reality of ballet in all its perfectionist genius and rigour, and all its abuses and sadism. What makes Pazcoguin’s message so haunting is that exploitation and violation are seen as the price that female dancers have to pay to perform some of the greatest dances known to humanity. -- Bidisha * Observer *Her resilience is written on every page, often in capitals, with wit and rage displayed in equal measure. -- Sarah Crompton * Sunday Times Books of the Year *A funny, poignant and shocking read . . . [Pazcoguin] punctures, with enormous glee, the stereotype of the ballet dancer as an elegant, ethereal being. -- Fiona Sturges * Guardian *Explosive . . . This is far from misery memoir. There’s a passionate joy in the dancing itself, and the lively pages are filled with colloquialisms -- Marianka Swain * Daily Telegraph *A blisteringly honest tale of overcoming hurdles — racism, misogyny, sexual harassment and psychological abuse — to reach the top of a fiendishly cut-throat industry. -- Laura Pullman * Sunday Times *A gritty, shocking yet also humorous account of the demands of life as an elite dancer from the first Asian American female soloist at the New York City Ballet. * i News *Ballet fans should definitely get their hands on Swan Dive by Georgina Pazcoguin which is a truthful, funny, shocking and scandalous exploration of elite ballet. * Stylist *Pazcoguin's highly readable account of a life in the most painful profession . . . a power pack of inspiration. * Strong Words *A page-turner * New York Times *Witty, sobering, hell-raising . . . Pazcoguin exposes more turmoil at New York City Ballet than any fictional melodrama could hope to match. Good luck trying to look away. . . . There are enough real-life crises in this brisk, often laugh-out-loud tell-all to light the imagination of any cable TV script writer. But with her string of criticisms and even in her crazy-funny asides, Pazcoguin has a serious point to make about the ballet world * Washington Post *While the juicy details of beautiful people behaving badly are beguiling, it’s Pazcoguin’s unsparing criticism of the industry that begs an encore. This is potent stuff * Publishers Weekly *Always arresting onstage, Georgina Pazcoguin gives us a take on the ballet world that is witty and from the heart. An eye-opening read. -- Mikhail BaryshnikovRevelatory . . . Sure to ruffle some tutus * New York Post *Come for the unfiltered peek behind the curtain, stay for the accessible, often hilarious writing * Dance Magazine *Pazcoguin writes with astounding passion about her achievements, and her prose is enchanting as she describes finally being comfortable in her own skin. Vulnerable, raw, and full of grit, this is the story of a woman who has been broken yet clawed her way to victory . . . A personal tale of darkness, passion, and euphoric triumph * Library Journal *In her brisk, spirited debut memoir, [Pazcoguin] recounts her experiences in the competitive, hierarchal ballet world . . . A lively chronicle of dedication and joy. * Kirkus Reviews *Aggressively entertaining. . . [Swan Dive] is equal parts autobiography, insider intel, and righteous indignation * Shelf Awareness *A thoroughly captivating read. Determination and passion are the cornerstones of Georgina’s magic onstage and off, and her humor and wit make this peek behind the curtain like no other dance memoir. Her courage in the face of adversity is to be admired -- Chita RiveraGeorgina has led quite the journey to become the woman she is today. She exemplifies a natural, nostalgic showgirl attitude combined with the sensitivity and precision of a life in ballet. -- Zac PosenThis is a fearless book written with a courageous, blazing spirit. Georgina’s story compels you to look at yours as fiercely as she examines hers. -- Jose Antonio Vargas, founder of Define American and author of Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented CitizenGeorgina Pazcoguin has brought the glories of ballet and technique into a new light. She is refinement and explosion wrapped into a woman whose personal style is ready for the runway. She can captivate an opera house as easily as she can earn the adoration of a young fan. . . . You will find Swan Dive to be a wild ride dancing between risk and balance, legacy and possibility. -- Andy Blankenbuehler, award-winning choreographer of In the Heights and Hamilton

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Book Synopsis'Stunning . . . Built like a thriller, moving, wise and illuminated on every page with love' -Joanne Harris, author of ChocolatA parent's deeply moving love letter to a daughter who has always known exactly who she is.When Carolyn Hays’s child made clear to the family that they were all wrong, he was not a boy, but, in fact, a girl, the Hays shifted pronouns, adopted a nickname and encouraged her to dress as she felt comfortable. One ordinary day, a caseworker from the Department of Children and Families knocked on their door to investigate an anonymous complaint about the upbringing of their transgender child. It was this threat that instilled in them a deep-seated fear for their child’s safety in the Republican state they called home. And so they uprooted their lives to the more trans-accepting Northeast United States, though they were never far from the hate and fear resting at the nation’s core.Intimate, lyrical and thought-provoking, A Girlhood is an ode to Hays’s brilliant, brave child, as well as a cathartic revisit of the pain of the past. It tells of the brutal truths of being trans, of the sacrificial nature of motherhood, and of the lengths a family will go to shield their youngest from the cruel realities of the world. Hays asks us all to love better, for children everywhere enduring injustice and prejudice just as they begin to understand themselves. A Girlhood is a celebration of difference, a plea for empathy, a hope for a better future, but moreover, it is a love letter to a child who has always known herself and is waiting for the rest of the world to catch up.Trade ReviewStunning . . . Built like a thriller, moving, wise and illuminated on every page with love' -- Joanne Harris, author of ChocolatHays’s story is about more than the transgender question: it’s about ignorance and wisdom; hatred and love; men, women, and children. In the end, A Girlhood is about all of us. -- Jennifer Finney Boylan, author of She’s Not There and Good BoyIt’s impossible to read this book and not root for the fierce, human, beautiful family at its center and the daughter that they - ‘like tanks’ - protect against those who try to steal her joy. -- Beth Ann Fennelly, author of Great with Child: Letters to a Young Mother'I saw facets of my own trans identity I’d never pondered, questions about the construction of self I’d never even thought to pose . . . An act of epic compassion. -- Diana Goetsch, author of This Body I WoreTouching, combative, compelling . . . this memoir begins with the suspense of a thriller and ends with hope * Vogue (Italy) *An important and moving book, which traverses family bonds, change, courage, politics, rights, faith and reason . . . dictated by a love that will not accept compromises. * La Repubblica *An incredibly poignant and timely story for trans families everywhere. I wish my parents had access to these words, stories, and beautiful thoughts while raising me -- Tommy Dorfman

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Book Synopsis'Thrillingly honest, funny, incisive and hopeful, this is the perfect gateway into a discussion on mental health' Marian Keyes'Truly one of the most powerful books about mental health that I’ve ever read.' Daisy BuchananOne of the Independent's top ten millennial memoirs of 2019How not to be good? Let me list the ways…Are you a woman? Do you make to-do lists to stop you losing your mind? Have you ever cried in the toilets at work, had a meltdown in the supermarket, or gone off the rails at a hen party? And have you ever been saved from any of the above by your truly brilliant friends?If you’ve answered ‘yes’ to any of these questions, then this is the book for you. A moving, funny and brutally honest memoir of one woman’s millennial misadventures, The To-Do List and Other Debacles follows Amy Jones on her journeys through friendship, marriage and mental health disasters in a story that’s as relatable as it is riotous.Trade ReviewThrillingly honest, funny, incisive and hopeful, this is the perfect gateway into a discussion on mental health. * Marian Keyes *Searingly honest about some of the realities of a long-term relationship as well as what it’s like to be restless at work. * The Independent *Part memoir, part fiction, The To-Do List And Other Debacles is for anyone who’s a woman, or a millennial or has cried in the loos at work, or all of the above. With painful, poignant and also lolz honesty, Amy Jones writes about friendship, marriage and her mental health in a way that makes me want to give her a massive hug. -- Sarra Manning * Red Magazine *Truly one of the most powerful books about mental health that I’ve ever read. There are lines so funny and beautiful that I’ll remember them until my dying day - and then parts so truthful and vulnerable that they winded me. * Daisy Buchanan *

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Book Synopsis'A remarkable book...wise and arresting' Sarah Winman'Exquisite... a deeply insightful memoir which charts our fundamental longings for place and identity, and ultimately our yearnings for love.' Helena KennedySingle, in her mid-forties and having experienced a sudden early menopause, a realisation comes to Peggy quietly, and clearly: she decides to adopt a child. But the preparation is arduous and the scrutiny intense. There are questions about past lives, about capability and expectations.Asking big questions about identity and belonging, as well as about what makes a mother - and a home - this is a beautiful meditation on how the legacies of childhood might be overcome by a mother's determination to love.'Extremely moving...an unusually thoughtful take on becoming a mother, enabled by removing babyhood and biology.' GuardianTrade ReviewExquisite. Beautifully written, The Wild Track is a deeply insightful memoir which charts displacement and our fundamental longings for place and identity and ultimately our yearnings for love. -- Helena KennedyThis memoir is a triumph; an extraordinarily wise and rich analysis of what it means to belong, to a place and to beloved others. Deeply moving, richly allusive, surprising and thought-provoking, The Wild Track deserves to be one of the great successes of 2021. -- Bel MooneyA remarkable book. Wise and arresting in its candour. -- Sarah WinmanEnlightening...The Wild Track is a passionate, heartfelt exploration of a woman who wants to be a mother. I found it utterly compelling. -- Alex WheatleExtremely moving...an unusually thoughtful take on becoming a mother, enabled by removing babyhood and biology. A testament to the joy of finding home and belonging...the precariousness of the care system is painfully felt and it's this that makes Reynolds's book such a necessary contribution to the literature on motherhood. * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis* SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA BIOGRAPHY AWARD 2021 *'If her moving, engrossing, elegantly written memoir does not win prizes, there really is no justice in the literary world.' Lucy Atkins, Sunday TimesAll happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.When Arifa Akbar discovered that her sister had fallen seriously ill, she assumed there would be a brief spell in hospital and then she'd be home. This was not to be. It was not until the day before she died that the family discovered she was suffering from tuberculosis. Consumed is a story of sisterhood, grief, the redemptive power of art and the strange mythologies that surround tuberculosis. It takes us from Keats's deathbed and the tubercular women of opera to the resurgence of TB in modern Britain today. Arifa travels to Rome to haunt the places Keats and her sister had explored, to her grandparent's house in Pakistan, to her sister's bedside at the Royal Free Hospital in Hampstead and back to a London of the seventies when her family first arrived, poor, homeless and hungry. Consumed is an eloquent and moving excavation of a family's secrets and a sister's detective story to understand her sibling.Trade ReviewBeguiling . . . The story and the writing have an unusual mystery about them, with striking imagery and a relatable insight into the darknesses and half-truths of family life . . . this one stands out for its eccentricity and elegiac splendour. -- Diana Evans, Guardian Summer Books[Consumed] is a tender memoir of sisterhood, of growing up in a low-income immigrant family in Primrose Hill in the 1970s and 1980s and, above all, of family dysfunction, mental illness, grief and survival . . . Akbar sews many disparate strands into a work of art. If her moving, engrossing, elegantly written memoir does not win prizes, there really is no justice in the literary world. -- Lucy Atkins * Sunday Times *An insightful and often lyrical study of sibling and the story of a troubled life cut short . . . as Fauzia immortalised her sister in art, [Akbar] has done the same, vividly and wonderfully, in prose. -- Fiona Sturges * Guardian *One of this year's must-read memoirs . . . A rich and beautiful story that will at times leave you weeping while simultaneously hugging Akbar's writing close. -- Francesca Brown * Stylist *'Consumed is Akbar's poised and scholarly memoir; her sister and their relationship is at its heart, skilfully woven together with a cultural history of the disease that killed her . . . A moving story of loss, grief and sisterhood. -- Francesca Carington * Tatler *Akbar explores complicated family dynamics with candour - never sentimentalising what was often a difficult relationship, nor smoothing over the ugly side of dying. -- Prospect, Best Books of the YearAn engrossing and moving book, both forensic and delicate in its dredging of complicated truths . . . I have rarely read a memoir with such a combination of powerful, tender feeling and cool-headed analysis. Rather like Fauzia's embroideries, the tapestry of sisterly passion and pain is worked here in precise, gleaming little stitches: a literary labour of love. -- Jenny McCartney * Mail on Sunday *Beautifully written, extremely moving -- Lucy Scholes,The White Review Books of the YearA beautifully written memoir with the ghost of Fauzia haunting every page. -- Shirley Whiteside * Herald *A meditation on memory and the arts, the book also explores Arifa's often fraught relationship with her sister, her grief, and the inherent subjectivity of memory . . . I was profoundly moved by this book, thinking of particular passages long after reading it. -- Rageshri Dhairyawan * The Lancet *While Akbar's meticulously written memoir is often heartbreaking - there are passages that will move you to tears - it is never maudlin . . . [It] stands as a testament to familial love precisely because she is brave enough to explore how it can be entangled with its opposite. -- Alex Peake-Tomkinson * Prospect *Compelling, searingly honest, so real that, at times, you feel the burn on the skin, but the teller never exploits these emotions. Akbar's artistic sensibility turns what could be a misery memoir into a literary tour de force. -- Yasmin Alibhai-BrownA brilliant book about loss and grief, about art and death, and, more importantly, about family and belonging. The strength of feeling is remarkable, but it's Arifa Akbar's writing that lifts it to an even higher plane of achievement. -- Anthony Quinn, author of Our Friends in BerlinI loved this haunting, beautiful exploration of sisterhood, love and loss. Consumed weaves together art history, medical mystery and grief memoir with enormous honesty and tenderness. -- Rachel Clarke, bestselling author of Dear Life and BreathtakingI'm bowled over. It's a searing, brilliant, dazzling memoir of sisterhood, mental illness, art and grief. Heartbreaking and beautiful. I can't recommend it highly enough. -- Christina Patterson

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Book Synopsis'A rare, highly detailed insider account of a "family" designed to be shut off from the world. And of Morgan, a ferocious young girl who railed hard against it.' Sunday Times'This is an unflinching and courageous memoir, exposing one of the world's most infamous cults. It's an inspiring, if at times upsetting, read.' Daily ExpressMy name is Faith Morgan and I was born into the infamous Children of God cult, or 'The Family' as it came to be known. At age 19 I managed to escape and entered a world in which I had to learn how to live again. Rebel is my story.My teenage diary helps piece the story of my travels in Costa Rica, India, Greece, Mexico, and London together. Of the communes, the 'missions', the friendships and the relationships. And of course, my enduring faith: in Jesus, in the Prophet (cult leader David Berg), and in the inevitability of the coming end times, which I fully believed would arrive.But beyond the brainwashing and mistreatment is the extraordinary story of my family and the adventures of my early life which help me understand what happened and why, so it doesn't happen to others. The spirit of that defiant girl who escaped is still in there somewhere, and through telling my story I wish to look into the eyes of 'evil', with its many faces so I can send it on its way.

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Book Synopsis'Utterly fascinating and intriguing' Neil Ansell, author of The Last Wilderness'A captivating dive into the mysteries of nature' Lee Schofield, author of Wild FellIn 1913 all the musk plants in the world stopped smelling. Unable to resist the lure of this mystery, Bob Gilbert turns detective, determined to find the truth in the tale. Mixing history, memoir, science and nature writing, The Missing Musk takes the reader on a journey of discovery, uncovering the truth behind six mysteries and myths from across the natural world.From the darkest corners of Britain's churchyards to Scotland's Pentland Hills, Bob travels the length of the UK, seeking answers to questions that have intrigued him throughout his life. In search of the musk's long-lost fragrance, he discovers a possibly murderous story. Investigating the true origins of 'star jelly' leads to encounters with unexplained sightings and substances. Faced with the urban myth-like stories of mosquitoes thriving in the London Underground, Bob digs deeper.Motivated by the curious, unexplained phenomena found in wild places and on urban streets, Bob peers into microscopes, delves into horticultural archives and chases a glimpse of the strange 'water bear', finding that, when it comes to mysteries, the joy is found as much in the search as in the answer it leads you to . . .Trade ReviewA brilliantly researched investigation into some of nature's most enduring mysteries. Never less than utterly fascinating and intriguing -- Neil Ansell, author of THE LAST WILDERNESSThe Missing Musk is a joyful celebration of intelligent curiosity. Absorbing, fascinating, and a positive invitation to explore the natural world around us -- Lev Parikian, author of INTO THE TANGLED BANKImpeccably researched and endlessly fascinating, The Missing Musk is a captivating dive into the mysteries of nature -- Lee Schofield, author of WILD FELLMeticulously researched, thought-provoking and enlightening, The Missing Musk is a perfect mix of whodunnit and wonder for the natural world. A truly unique, fun and inspirational book that dispels common myths without detracting from the wonder of its subject -- James Aldred, author of GOSHAWK SUMMERThe Missing Musk is not really about finding answers, but challenging the systems that govern our thinking . . . we are asked to celebrate the "confusions and contradictions" of nature, acknowledging what we cannot know while valuing all perspectives, from the metaphysical to the biological -- Kate Simpson * Times Literary Supplement *Brimful of fascinating observations and beautifully written, this is a wonderfully engaging book * Simple Things Magazine *PRAISE FOR GHOST TREESA joyous hymn to the urban wild -- Patrick Barkham, author of Wild Green WondersProfoundly uplifting * Guardian *Lyrical and beautifully evocative . . . A delight * BBC Countryfile Magazine *Gilbert weaves his vast knowledge lightly and shares it engagingly and entertainingly * Caught by the River *

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Book SynopsisIn a nation of rugby heroes, Jamie Roberts has become a legend.Jamie Roberts is your quintessential hard man: a 6 foot 4, 17 stone slab of rippling muscle, conditioned to run hard into other huge men in an arena where physical dominance is the prime currency. Yet away from rugby, he's a mild-mannered and thoughtful man - a qualified doctor with a thirst for knowledge and a curiosity about the world around him. It's an intriguing contradiction.In his first full season with the Cardiff Blues he was picked by new Wales coach Warren Gatland in the Grand Slam-winning side of 2008. He was still establishing his position in the national team when he toured with the 2009 Lions, emerging as Player of the Series. He went on to win 97 Test caps and play for clubs in Paris, London and Cape Town, yet his career has seldom been straightforward. A fractured skull was one of many injuries he had to overcome, and from the start he had to juggle the competing demands of university life and professional rugby. The joy of Six Nations success with Wales was balanced by heartbreak in the World Cup and disappointment against southern-hemisphere teams, while major trophies at club level proved frustratingly elusive.In this colourful and frank account of a sterling career, Jamie Roberts reveals all about life on tour, in boot camps and in dressing rooms filled with once-in-a-generation characters such as Mike Phillips, Andy Powell, Shaun Edwards, Martyn Williams, Brian O'Driscoll and Johnny Sexton. He also shares his views on concussion in rugby, the failings of the professional structure in Wales and the vital role of old-school team-bonding.Trade ReviewDelves into his innermost emotions * Best Rugby Books 2021 *Roberts' autobiography, written with the excellent Ross Harries, is a compelling offering, packed with tales from a remarkable career including his relationship with Gatland and brushes with celebrities including Lana Del Rey and Bono in Monte Carlo * Telegraph *If Jamie Roberts achieved plenty on the pitch, few modern players have a wider-ranging story to tell off it . . . It is to the credit of the 35-year-old and his skilful "ghost" Ross Harries that Centre Stage: My Life in Rugby seamlessly weaves together all these contrasting threads * Guardian *Tells his private and professional story with candor and charm * Buzz Magazine *

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Book Synopsis'Brimming with knowledge and experience . . . delightful' Daily Telegraph'An extraordinary book by a modern-day Melville whose deep knowledge, boundless curiosity and endearingly wry humour make him the perfect guide to the world beyond our shores' Mark Vanhoenacker, author of Skyfaring: A Journey with a Pilot'Relatable, reflective, and humorous . . . a genuinely immersive read' CountrymanWhat's in a cloud? What separates a tropical storm from a winter blizzard? And what exactly is El Niño? Elliot Rappaport, a professional captain of traditional sailing ships, has spent three decades at sea, where understanding weather could be the difference between life and death. Told through a series of tall ship voyages, Rappaport's narrative takes readers from the icy seas of Greenland to the Roaring Forties, places where one can experience all four seasons in an hour. He navigates the turbulent waters of the Strait of Gibraltar, en route to storied port cities of the Mediterranean. In the vast tropical Pacific, he crosses the equator, where heat, moisture, and unsettled winds churn out powerful squalls, and drops anchor in isolated ports of call. He explores wide swathes of ocean to explain how the trade winds have carried ships westward for centuries, and how ancient Polynesian explorers pushed back the other way. Written in stunning prose, brimming with wisdom, curiosity, and humour, Reading the Glass brilliantly blends science and memoir to reveal how weather has shaped our oceans, our history, and ourselves.Trade ReviewEach chapter is brimming with knowledge and experience. Rappaport can really write - and he's done his research too . . . Some of the most delightful passages have little to do with the sea or weather. They come when we get a real sense of what it's like to lead a crew at sea, and, equally interestingly, when moored up . . . Reading the Glass will be a must-have for serious weather-watchers or sailors with aspirations. -- Tristan Gooley * Daily Telegraph *Evokes panoramas of sea and land with confident flair * Wall Street Journal *Relatable, reflective, and humorous . . . descriptive and insightful, it is perfect for those who love the sea, and wish to know more about the adventures of those who sail upon it . . . a genuinely immersive read * Countryman *An extraordinary book by a modern-day Melville whose deep knowledge, boundless curiosity and endearingly wry humour make him the perfect guide to the world beyond our shores. Elliot Rappaport has completely transformed my awareness of the vast reaches of water that dominate our planet's surface, and of the debt we all owe to our ancestors who made a science and an art out of crossing them. I can't recommend this book highly enough -- Mark Vanhoenacker, author of SKYFARINGWe live on a planet - easy to forget in your secure suburban home, but not out on the open sea. The author provides a gripping account of what weather is, how it feels to be in the middle of it, and what we can expect going forward! -- Bill McKibben, author of THE END OF NATUREPart Bill Nye, part Captain Cook, Elliot Rappaport leads an around-the-world adventure filled with eye-popping insights from the deepest depths to the high atmosphere. For those of us too chicken to cross thousands of miles on ships, Rappaport's action-packed logbook is full of history, wisdom, and hilarious stories from life on the open seas -- Daniel Stone, author of THE FOOD EXPLORERVeteran captain Elliot Rappaport knows firsthand how winds, storms, and currents affect boats, from the smallest dinghies to great ocean liners. Here, he uses his considerable literary gifts to turn meteorology into a living science . . . While sailors will relate at once to Rappaport's prose, this book is a must-read even for landlubbers -- Mark Knoblauch * Booklist *Rappaport, who has been a sea captain since 1992 and teaches at the Maine Maritime Academy, makes his book debut with vibrant accounts of sailing around the world. Central to his spirited, informative narrative is weather . . . Fascinating journeys with an expert guide * Kirkus *I loved this book. What a fabulous compendium it is of terror and disaster, expertise and courage, by a man who knows with true intimacy what he calls "the vast planetary engine" of the weather. Chapter after chapter is filled with a vivid sense of being out at sea in storm and calm and every page has his decades of lived life embedded in it, years and years of looking, responding, making the good and necessary decisions. It feels written, in other words, by a man you would be more than happy to go to sea with -- Adam Nicolson, author of LIFE BETWEEN THE TIDES

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Book Synopsis'Honest, vulnerable and empowering' Angela Scanlon'Poignant, profound, and moving, I have no doubt that this beautifully written book will comfort anyone who is in the process of falling apart' Louise O'Neill'Liadán Hynes writes with so much heart. Her story will help shine a light during uncertain, painful times. After reading, you'll be ready to heal' Cecelia AhernWhen journalist and podcaster Liadán Hynes's marriage ended, it felt like a loss: of her best-friend, and of the happy ending she had envisaged on their wedding day. In the months that followed, she had to adjust to a different future - as a single mum juggling work and managing a home -- without someone to share the ups and downs of the everyday. Here, in this honest, poignant and beautifully written memoir, she gives an account of her experience. From navigating Friday-night dinner parties and Saturday nights alone on the couch, to counselling and having more gurus than is sensible, How to Fall Apart is a story of one woman who discovered the value of different kinds of love and, in doing so, found herself: single, stronger and surrounded by love.Trade ReviewA beautifully written book ... humorous and heartfelt * Irish Examiner *Reflective and tender ... Hynes paints a vivid scene that any woman can relate to * Irish Independent *A deeply honest portrayal of life as a single parent, from the lowest ebb to the highest tide * Irish Tatler *

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Book Synopsis'What a wonderful, honest, refreshing book, full of free-spirited adventure, humour and profound thoughts to provide inspiration to anyone who simply dreams of getting out and doing their own thing' SIR CHRIS BONINGTON'Ernest Shackleton listed those qualities an explorer should possess over a century ago: optimism, patience, idealism with imagination, and courage. Vanessa's qualities are truly akin to these' ALEXANDRA SHACKLETONWhen Vanessa O'Brien was made redundant in 2008 as part of the recession, she moved to Hong Kong with her husband for his career and resigned herself to being 'just the wife'. There she was, aged 46, bored, uninspired, unemployed. Was this going to be how she was going to live the rest of her life?One night in the infamous Kee Club, over shots of tequila, a friend suggested O'Brien climb Everest, and that was the start of an epic journey she never looked back from as she climbed Everest, K2 and many other mountains.This is her inspirational story. As O'Brien says, she couldn't explain to her readers how she got to the top of K2 at the age of 52 without being honest about what came before. In To the Greatest Heights, she reveals the trials and tribulations of her difficult childhood, and the result is a life-affirming book that shows how she achieved these climbs in spite of and because of her past.To read To the Greatest Heights is to know that there is a path to overcoming the worst of what happens to us, a path that helps us reach the summit of our lives too, whatever our age.Trade ReviewWhat a wonderful, honest, refreshing book, full of free-spirited adventure, humour and profound thoughts to provide inspiration to anyone who simply dreams of getting out and doing their own thing * Sir Chris Bonington *Ernest Shackleton listed those qualities an explorer should possess over a century ago: optimism, patience, idealism with imagination, and courage. Vanessa's qualities are truly akin to these * Alexandra Shackleton *O'Brien's story is deep in insight and observation. An impressive read * Peter Hillary, Chairman of the Himalayan Trust *To The Greatest Heights is a modern-day version of Dick Bass's book, but on steroids. A must read * Forbes magazine *

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Book SynopsisA mesmeric, harrowing and uplifting childhood memoir that will open up much-needed conversations about identity and mental health'This will blow you away'- Stylist'Joly's prose is sensitive and heartbreaking...darkly compelling' - Business Post'An extraordinary and thought-provoking memoir' - Belfast TelegraphIt was an ordinary day in 2016. In Gatwick Airport, Jonathan and his wife Anna were having breakfast with their two little children while waiting for their flight to be called. And then it happened, a familiar sensation that Jonathan hadn't had for decades: an out-of-body experience that transported him to another place, the safe place he used to escape to in his mind when he was a boy. Because growing up in conservative 1980s Dublin, where there was little tolerance for children who were 'different', Jonathan Joly was, indeed, a different sort of child: creative, expressive, and - on the inside - a girl. The limitations of the people around him to understand his differences led to years of tyrannical bullying and abuse, forcing him to withdraw within himself to the point of clinical absence. His only chance for survival was the inner world he created for himself, rich with loving and supportive friends and playmates, that only he could see. Jonathan's invisible friends were his lifeline, and on that day at the airport, they came flooding back, and have remained with him to this day. This extraordinary childhood memoir is not only an important, thought-provoking and exhilarating read, it gives hope and community for all those who have ever felt 'other', and proves how vital it is to provide children with the safe space to be themselves. In All My Friends are Invisible, Jonathan Joly, known widely as one of social media's most successful content creators, shares the secret he's kept hidden these many years. He shows the beautiful world he retreated to time and time again when life was unbearable for his 'skin machine'. Most importantly, he introduces us to his invisible friends, and in so doing you may be transported back to the friends you had as a child that no one else could see, and who may have saved you, too.'When you find yourself living in a world that doesn't understand you, and you lack any connection to anyone or any place, you are faced with few options. You can choose to leave this world and hope whatever lies beyond ends up being better, or you can create your own. It will require grit, hardship, pain and suffering, but the rewards will be great, and the journey will be greater, and the adventures will be endless. So, at a very young age and faced with these options, I chose the latter.'Trade ReviewAn extraordinary and thought-provoking memoir * Belfast Telegraph *This will blow you away * Stylist *An admirable triumph * Irish Independent *A well-placed and well-structured narrative * Irish Times *An intriguing story of a child's unique response to identity bewilderment, bullying and toxic households * Strong Words *A starkly elegant account by a YouTube star of how an imaginary friend saved him from a hellish Dublin childhood * Sunday Times *Simple and friendly with a definite lack of filters and a good dose of self-revelation * Irish Examiner *Movingly describes how his friends, with the support of a sympathetic school, eventually helped him find a place in the real world * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisWilliam Grattan was a young Irish Lieutenant who served in the famous Connaught Rangers [the 88th regiment] in some of the hottest engagements of the Peninsular War. Adventures with the Connaught Rangers 18091814 is a memoir of his service with the 1st Battalion of the 88th regiment. Vividly written and accompanied by maps, this is one of the most famous fighting memoirs of the Peninsula War.

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