Memoirs Books

Book SynopsisWhen Joe McNally moved to New York City in 1976, his first job was at the Daily News as a copyboy, the wretched dog of the newsroom. He was earning the lowest pay grade possible and living in a cheap hotel in Manhattan. Life was not glamorous. But with a fierce drive, an eye for a picture, and a willingness to take (almost) any assignment that came his way, Joe stepped out onto the always precarious tightrope of the freelance photographer and never looked back. Fast forward 40 years, and his work has included assignments and stories for National Geographic, Time, LIFE, Sports Illustrated, and more. He has travelled for assignments to nearly 70 countries and received dozens of awards for his photography. In The Real Deal, Joe tells us how it all started, and candidly shares stories, lessons, and insights he has collected along the way. This is not a dedicated how-to book about where to put the light, though there is certainly instructional information to be gleaned here. This is also not a navel-gazing look back at the good old days, because those never really existed anyway. Instead, The Real Deal is simply a collection of candid field notes some short, some quite long gathered over time that, together, become an intimate look behind the scenes at a photographer who has pretty much seen and done it all. Though the photography industry bears little resemblance to the industry just 10 years ago (much less 40 years ago), what it really takes to become a successful photographer the character traits, the fundamental lessons, the ability to adapt, and then adapt again remains the same. Joe writes about everything from the crucial ability to know how to use (and make!) window light to the importance of creating long-term relationships built on trust; from lessons learned after a day in the field to the need to follow your imagination wherever it takes you; from the random and lucky moments that propel one s career to the wonders and pitfalls of today s camera technology. For every mention of f-stops and shutter speeds, there is equal discussion about the importance of access, the occasional moment of hubris, and the idea of becoming iconic. Before Joe was a celebrated and award-winning photographer, before he was a well-respected educator and author of multiple bestselling books, he was just Joe, hustling every day, from one assignment to the next, piecing together a portfolio, a skill set, a reputation, a career. He imagined a life and then took pictures of it. Here are a few frames.

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Book SynopsisIn this expanded edition of a widely praised book, now available for the first time in North America, the renowned journalist Patrick Cockburn looks at his experience of contracting polio as a child in the context of a new pandemic, that of COVID-19. The parallels between what happened 65 years ago and today’s crisis are both striking and salutary. Cockburn was just six when he woke up one day in the summer of 1956 with a headache and a sore throat. His parents, Claud and Patricia, had recently returned to Ireland, to their house in East Cork, careless of the fact that polio had broken out in Cork City. Patrick caught the disease and was taken to the fever hospital. The virus attacks the nerves of the brain and the spinal cord, leading to paralysis of the muscles. Patrick could no longer walk. The Broken Boy is at once a memoir of Patrick Cockburn’s own experience of polio, a portrait of his parents, both prominent radicals, and the story of the Cork epidemic, the last great polio epidemic in the world.Trade Review“Written with affection and insight.” — Maeve Binchy “Charming, interesting and moving by turn.” — Sunday Telegraph “Engrossing . . . an often perceptive genre-defying gem . . . engaging and entertaining.” — Scotland on Sunday “This is wonderful writing . . . Brilliant . . . Cockburn has pulled off something remarkable.” — Observer “The best journalist's autobiography to appear for years . . . This is a story of endurance and a hugely adventurous mind, elegantly told.” — Evening Standard “Sad and entertaining, and altogether evocative of a vanished Ireland.”— Sunday Times

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Book SynopsisBev Stohl ran the MIT office of the renowned linguist and social critic Noam Chomsky for nearly two and a half decades. This is her account of those years, working next to a man described by the New York Times as “arguably the most important intellectual alive today.” Through these pages we observe the comings and goings of a constant and varied stream of visitors: the historian Howard Zinn; activists Alex Carey, Peggy Duff, and Dorie Ladner; the inventor of the World Wide Web, Tim Berners Lee; actors Catherine Keener and Wallace Shawn; the writer Norman Mailer; gaggles of fourteen-year-old school students, and the world’s leading linguists. All make appearances in these stories. Many who visit are as careless of their allotted time as Chomsky is generous with his. Shepherding them out in mid-conversation is one of Bev’s more challenging responsibilities. Other duties include arranging lectures to overflow crowds around the world, keeping unscrupulous journalists at bay, preventing teetering ziggurats of paper and books from engulfing her boss, and switching on his printer when it is deemed “broken” by a mind that is engaged less by mundane technology than the realms of academia and activism. Over the years, what has commenced as a formal working arrangement blossoms into something more: a warm and enduring friendship that involves work trips to Europe, visits with her partner and dog to Noam’s summer home on Cape Cod, and a mentorship that challenges Bev with all manner of intriguing mental and practical puzzles. Published with the approval of its subject and written with affection, insight and a gentle sense of humor, Chomsky and Me describes a relationship between two quite different people who, through the happenstance of work, form a bond that is both surprising and reciprocally rich.Trade Review“This is a beautiful, tender and profound book about one of the most important thinkers of our time, by one of the people who knows him best. A masterpiece of observation and memoir.”—Johann Hari, author of New York Times Bestseller Chasing the Scream “A ringside seat on the life and times of a man regarded by millions as a remote intellectual deity, but who comes into sharp focus through the delightfully warm and humorous lens of Bev Stohl as a relatable mortal … If you want to know the real Noam Chomsky, this is the book for you.”—Amir Amirani

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Book SynopsisBeckett’s Children is a lyrical blend of personal memoir, father-son dialogue, and literary investigation that probes the works of Irish writer Samuel Beckett and American poet Susan Howe in search of traces of their long-rumored status as father and daughter. Although Howe has denied the rumor, the possibility that it might be true leads Coffey to a highly original appreciation of her work and a fascinating focus on the dozens of unattended children who wander through Beckett’s oeuvre. The saga of Coffey’s adult son, at various moments on the run in the Indiana woods or incarcerated, shines light on life without parental connection in a cold America. As an adoptee himself, Coffey looks to literature for traces of his own origin story and lineage, a heritage held in secret by a closed adoption system but which, through books and cultural signs, he has been able to decipher in his own way.  Provoc

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Book SynopsisDue to high demand for the deluxe edition, we''re thrilled to announce the trade edition of In the Catbird Seat, featuring the same recipes and content in a more functional size.Since its opening in 2011, The Catbird Seat has captivated foodies and critics alike with its spectacular food and open kitchen layout. Now, take a special inside look at the menus and workings of this renowned restaurant through the eyes of former Executive Chef, Brian Baxter. Part luxury cookbook, part memoir, In the Catbird Seat: A Nashville Chef?s Journey at the Convergence of Art and Cuisine brings readers alongside Chef Baxter?s time as the fifth Executive Chef of The Catbird Seat. From navigating the post-Covid restaurant scene, to planning the menus, to looking ahead to his time away from The Catbird Seat, the book provides just as intimate an experience as you?d get sitting in one of the exclusive restaurant?s twenty-two seats.In the Catbird Seat contains a Prologue by Pedro Iglesias, Introduction by The Catbird Seat?s co-founder Josh Habiger, beautiful full-page food photography by Andy Lee, and breathtaking watercolors by Todd Saal and Brian Baxter, offering a stunning depiction of one of the most elite restaurants in the United States. The carefully curated recipes will elevate your cooking and stir your creative culinary imagination. Budding and veteran chefs alike will discover the inspiration behind some of Catbird?s most iconic dishes, including Redneck Sushi, Hay-Smoked Mussels with Sauce Poulette, and Burnt Banana Bread.

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Book SynopsisSee the Holocaust through the Eyes of Children.Stefan and Marion Hess's happy childhood was shattered in 1943. Torn from their home in Amsterdam, the six-year-old twins and their parents were deported to a place their mother called "this dying hell"—the infamous concentration camp at Bergen-Belsen. Inseparable is the vivid account of one family's struggle to survive the Holocaust. In the camp, the children ran from SS soldiers, making it a game to see who could get closest to the guard towers before being warned they would be shot. Stefan and Marion witnessed their father beaten beyond recognition, dodged strafing warplanes, and somehow survived in a place where "the children were looking for bread between the corpses." Above all, this is the unforgettable story of a young mother and father who were willing to sacrifice everything for their children. From the Hesses' prosperous pre-war life in Germany to their desperate ride in a bulletstrafed boxcar through the rubble of the collapsing Third Reich, Faris Cassell weaves Stefan and Marion’s personal memories and historical details into a gripping narration of their family’s heroic fight for their lives. As the number of Holocaust survivors dwindles, the Hess twins' account of their childhood ordeal forces the reader to grapple with pure evil. And more important, it is an opportunity to offer the most meaningful of tributes to victims and survivors of the Third Reich—remembrance.

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Book SynopsisA self-involved academic struggling to cope with his own neurological problems, Jeff could hardly take care of himself, let alone a child with special needs, when his son, Ethan, was born. But despite multiple surgeries, hospitalizations, serious breathing and swallowing problems, hearing loss, and a challenging social environment in his first months of life, Ethan thrived—all the while teaching Jeff to take things as they came. And eight years later, the arrival from China of adopted baby sister Penelope took Jeff's on-the-job training to a whole new level.Ethan's instinct for fun proved the perfect complement to Jeff's determination to live life fully. He died too young, but not before he, Penelope, and their mother, Janet, taught Jeff that the true path to happiness was putting other people's needs before his own—and living in the moment rather than trying to control it.Trade Review2022 Best Book Awards Finalist in Nonfiction: Creative“About coping, self-sacrifice, and loss, The Fun Master is a moving memoir by a father who was transformed by his love for his child.”—Foreword Reviews“. . . bold and heartwarming . . . a powerful story of one father’s journey; a journey that is filled with realities bravely faced . . .”—Readers' Favorite, 5-star review“In this poignant memoir, Seitzer takes us inside the grueling day-to-day of parents turned inside out by the arrival of a child with intense medical needs, while reminding us that even in the most challenging times the joy and humor that children bring always shines through. And the love. The big, life-changing love.”—Nicola Kraus, co-author of The Nanny Diaries“Jeff Seitzer combines compassion, humor, and hard truths in this artfully written and beautiful story of a father’s dedication to his son, Ethan. It is a compelling story of personal growth, triumph over adversity, and love simultaneously both heart wrenching and heartwarming.”—George Bodenheimer, former President and Executive Chairman, ESPN“Jeff Seitzer shepherds readers through charming, poignant, and also heartbreaking tales of parenting, adoption, and the loss of a child. Through The Fun Master, I learned valuable lessons of love and resilience from the point of view of both parent and child, and I am reminded of why I pursued a career in medicine in the first place. This is a must-read for parents and medical professionals alike.”—Ron Bahar, MD, pediatric gastroenterologist and author of The Frontman“Jeff Seitzer writes beautifully about the love between parent and child. You will laugh, cry, and ultimately understand why children are our greatest teachers. Above all, this moving memoir honors his son's incredible impact on everyone he met.”—Nadine Kenney Johnstone, author of Of This Much I Am Sure“If life is learning, Jeff Seitzer is uniquely equipped. Bringing to bear his philosophical voice on the minutiae of raising a child with special needs, Seitzer has created a memoir as self-effacing as it is fearlessly honest.”—Sarah Terez Rosenblum, author of Herself When She's Missing“The Fun Master brings us face to face with the daily life of parenting a special needs child. Through inspirational writing, you will be taken to the most creative places in your mind and soul following this dad’s transformation through the complex role of fathering. An extraordinary, heartfelt story of loving and letting go.”—Anna Penenberg, author of Dancing in the Narrows“Beautifully told and deeply moving—a gripping tale about infinite joy and sadness alike, and about the ironies that life contains. It takes a powerful writer like Seitzer to treat these ironies with the right mix of involvement, distance, and wonder, and to show the impossible—namely how to reconcile the unreconcilable.”—Rainer Forst, winner of the Leibniz Prize and author of Toleration in Conflict“Jeff Seitzer has penned a beautiful memoir detailing the struggles of a faither with CMT. I found this book funny, inspiring and full of love. I hope he writes many more! ”—Clark Semmes, author of The Tribe of Thin Ankles“Beautifully crafted memoir.”—Heather Harpham, author of Happiness: A Memoir“If you like memoirs that are written beautifully and manage to quickly tug at your heartstrings, then you won’t want to overlook The Fun Master.”—Pick a Good Book review

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Book SynopsisIn this emotional and insightful memoir about nannying for New York City's richest families, Stephanie Kiser chronicles her journey through the world of the Western elite a world in stark contrast to her own impoverished childhood.***What are the lives of America''s richest families really like? Their nannies see it allAfter a dysfunctional childhood as one of four kids born to teenage parents and raised white trash in poor Rhode Island, Stephanie Kiser finds herself a 22-year-old, first-generation university graduate drowning in student loan debt. To stay afloat, she surrenders her career-track PR job for a position as a babysitter to New York City's toddler elite.The span of seven years takes Stephanie on a journey from working alongside a stay-at-home mum in her ten-million dollar Park Ave apartment, to a no discipline family, to the Kushners, world-class doctors and finally, to a position with a young couple both high-powered lawyers wit

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Book SynopsisStay brings together nearly thirty years of work (poetry, memoir, essays, interviews, plays, film), in a mixed-media retrospective that shows nothing is created in isolation. Threads in the artist's life are presented alongside many of the artistic collaborations that have led to-or come out of-his own work, including a selection of images from an ongoing daily collage practice, which Flynn considers a type of meditation. Like Flynn's life, Stay is populated by examples of his collaborations with artists he has worked with since the 1980s: Amy Arbus, John Baldessari, Guy Barash, William Blake, Robert De Niro (performance), Marilyn Minter (photograph), Josh Neufeld (comic art), Catherine Opie (photograph), Sarah Sentilles (drone alert sutras), Bill Shuck (installation), Paul Weitz (film). A full color, hardcover edition, Stay is a wide-ranging and personal journey through the public and private spaces of an artist at the peak of his powers.Trade Review"One of the pleasures of a book like Stay is its ability (rather, its capacity) to surprise...That's the beautiful thing about a book like Stay: the juxtaposition, the play between art forms, and how it allows room for experience, opens up space to sit and feel." -Brock Kingsley, Chicago Review of Books "Personally, this book came to me when I needed it and detangled some of the loose threads balled up in my mind. This book is a self-portrait, a collaboration, and a piece of art. This book is essential." -Ali Hintz, Arkansas International "Over the course of a year, [Flynn] will have released three books...Stay feels like the glue that brings them all together."-Licia Morelli, Vanity Fair "Stay [is] a kaleidoscopic self-portrait that combines Massachusetts native Flynn's writing, photography, and collage with visual art from dozens of collaborators and influences and friends."-Kate Tuttle, The Boston Globe

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Book SynopsisVogue's Best Books of Summer 2021 "Everyone had a clearer vision of my body than I did. It didn't feel as if my body was really mine..." At age fourteen, Jonathan Wells weighs just sixty-seven pounds, triggering a scrutinizing persecution of his body that will follow him into adulthood. Upstate New York in the 1970s: A boy in preparatory day school suffers a harrowing attack by a teacher offended by his failure to put on weight. For the first time in his young life, Jonathan Wells is forced to question his right to take up space in the world. Jonathan's father, reading his weight as a clear and deeply concerning deficit of masculinity, creates a workout regimen meant to bulk him up. When that doesn't help, he has Jonathan seen by a slew of specialists, all claiming he is in perfect health, and yet the problem cannot be denied: the boy is simply too skinny. Jonathan's complicated relationship with his charming but elusive mother does not help matters. As the eldest son, he is privy to the struggles of a fraying marriage in which he, unwittingly, plays a divisive role. As a result, Jonathan is sent to boarding school in Switzerland, where he manages to establish an identity of his own among the child exiles and outcasts that make up the student body. And yet, his father's obsession follows him to Europe, threatening to destroy the space he has painstakingly won for himself. The critically acclaimed poet and author of the collection Debris, Jonathan Wells gives us a candid, powerful, and quietly humorous memoir about the universal exploration of adolescence and self-image, the frailty of masculinity, and all the places we seek comfort in a world that tries to define us.Trade Review"One of the most vulnerable memoirs I've ever read, Jonathan Wells' Skinny is the story of surviving the long, brutal gauntlet toward manhood that many boys who grew up in the 1970s and;80s endured. An important cautionary tale illuminating the devastating, lifelong harm caused by rigid gender rules and the parents who try to enforce them."--Bill Clegg, author of Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man and he End of the Day The Skinny is a poignant account of what it is like to grow up as a diminutive boy in a world that prefers its men big and strong. In precise and poetic prose, Jonathan Wells explores the intersection of wealth, sexuality, and body image, peeling back the glittering layers of privilege, searching for his father's approval, and examining the assumptions made about male size in a culture of toxic masculinity. Ultimately, The Skinny is an illuminating memoir of one man's search for meaning, acceptance and love.--Adrienne Brodeur, author of Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover and Me Here's the skinny on The Skinny. Wells has written a memoir that's lean without being gaunt, rawboned without being fleshless. It's an elegant work of curving contours and sharp-edged insight that captures a world long gone in voluptuous prose that nonetheless, is delightfully devoid of flab or excess.--Allen Kurzweil, author of Whipping Boy: The Forty-Year Search for My Twelve-Year Old Bully Jonathan Wells was small as a child--short, but also quite thin. That trait, the way others reacted to it, and its nonconformity with perceived male norms led to a painful chain reaction of events...The Skinny is gripping in its wonderful articulation of an underrepresented perspective on masculinity. --Foreword Review Jonathan Wells's extraordinary coming-of-age memoir, The Skinny, is not only startling and heartbreaking, but each page seems somehow even more riveting and moving than the last. If you want the skinny - I mean, the real skinny - about growing up in a male body in this country it's time you read this deeply compelling and eminently wise new book.--David St. John, author of The Last Troubadour Layer by layer, Jonathan Wells unravels the father-son knot in ways both troubling and uplifting. I was gripped by The Skinny, a remarkable portrait of the most tangled of relationships, written with a poet's eye and grace.--Roger Cohen, The Girl from Human Street: A Jewish Family Odyssey With a poet's grace, Jonathan Wells has written a harrowing memoir about growing up severely underweight, about surviving sexual abuse by a schoolmaster--and about his tyrannical father's determination to transform his son's body into his own ideal of masculinity. The Skinny is a deeply haunting account of the lasting effects of emotional and physical bullying. I couldn't put it down.--Besty Bonner, The Book of Atlantis Black

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Book Synopsis"A child of the '50's, Sas Carey was raised to marry and rear children. She did that, but with the care and morals shared by her parents, along with a lust for life, learned she could follow her own path, strewn with heartache, yet leading to transcendence. Her story is one of empowerment. In overcoming expectations, Sas becomes a healer of body and soul, learning that she need not devote herself to a single person to substantiate herself. Sas Carey has climbed mountains, swum across lakes and rivers, and slept on the ground of three continents. She has ridden planes, trains, cars, bikes, boats, horses, camels, and reindeer. A Quaker, Sas is an award-winning documentary film director, author, spiritual healer, registered nurse, mother, and grandmother. Relaxing in her gazebo in Vermont, she dreams of her next adventure.

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Book SynopsisAfter a decade-long relationship with a dominatrix he called Daddy, Emerson Whitney began to crave something besides submission. It came as a full surprise: submission had been so central to his early adulthood. Now what? Dizzied by new questions of transness and aging, living in a tent while his relationship ends, Emerson stumbles upon an advertisement for a storm chasing tour. 'For thrill seekers,' it says. Unsure what else to do, he signs up. Daddy Boy follows Emerson as he packs into a van with a group of strangers and drives up and down America - staying in Days Inns and eating bags of carrots from Walmart and hunting down storms like so many white whales. Steeped in the prairie landscape of his childhood, Emerson recalls his adoptive dad, Hank, unflinching and extremely Texan; and his biological dad who, with his cowboy hats and puppies, always seemed so sweet and absent. From the van's trash-strewn backseat, and in the face of these looming figures, Emerson begins to wonder: Did he want to be Daddy now?Trade Review"A beautiful flight toward a life one can believe in. Gorgeously written, truthful, and timely." - Chris Kraus, author of I Love Dick and After Kathy Acker: A Literary Biography "Hypnotic. It quivers with the air." - Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore, author of The Freezer Door

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Book SynopsisRichard Charkin’s experience as a publisher is unique among his generation. Over the past half century he has been (at different times) a scientific and medical publisher, a journal publisher, a digital publisher and a general publisher. He has worked for family-owned, publicly-owned, university-owned companies and start-ups. In this memoir he uses his unrivalled experience to illustrate the profound changes that have affected the identity and practices but not the purpose of publishing. Of course there are stories about well-known personalities he has encountered in his career - Madonna, Jeffrey Archer, Robert Maxwell, Paul Hamlyn, Mohammed Al-Fayed and many more. But his primary purpose is to provide an insider’s account of the social, technological, commercial and geographical developments as seen through the eyes of a gifted all-round publisher who has made a very significant contribution to the profession. This is an insider’s account of the last fifty years of the publishing industry: the essential guide for writers, readers, students of publishing, and book industry professionals including librarians, booksellers, literary agents, printers, copyright lawyers, digital experts. Table of ContentsPreamble; 1. Starting Out; Working Life of a Young Editor; Family Ownership and Management; Fast Forward Fifty Years: Last Day at the Bloomsbury Office. 2. The Brave New World of Scientific Publishing; Publishing and the Life Sciences; Leaving Pergamon in Abrupt Circumstances; The Not so Brave New World of Oxford University Press; Decision-Making at Oxford University Press: A Beginner’s Guide. 3. A Time of Crisis; Cost-cutting, Upheavals and Outsourcing; First Encounters with Computers; The Transformation of Printing ; The Oxford English Dictionary Second Edition; Trying to Leave Oxford University Press. 4. Things Speed Up; The World of Trade Publishing; Bad Behaviour in the Roaring 80s; Academic vs Trade Publishing; The Perils of Literary Publishing; Distinctly Non-Literary Bestsellers. 5. Consolidation, Change and Controversies; The ‘Big Bang’ of Trade Publishing; The Changing Retail Landscape; The Demise of Book Clubs; The Decline of Theological Publishing; The End of the Net Book Agreement; Reed Elsevier: The Anti-Book Publisher. 6. The Start-up Years; The Art of the Publishing Deal; Multimedia CD-ROMs; Innovation and Adding Value;The Rise and Rise of Journal Publishing. 7. A Global Family Business; Nurturing Nature; Open Access takes on Journal Publishing; Do No Evil: Going to Battle against a Tech Giant; Macmillan India: an Imperial Legacy; Children’s Publishing Grows Up; Accidental Successes; Managerial Diversions. 8. Making Bloomsbury Less Magical; Wisden – a Long-running Love Affair; Becoming a Digital Publisher in a Digital World; Public Library Online: Trying to Modernise Library Services; The Culture of Bloomsbury and Industry Progress; Design, Marketing and Sales. 9. British Publishing: An International Bestseller; The Growth of ELT Publishing; The Dominance of the English Language; Adventures in the Gulf; International Diplomacy. 10. Being a Mensch; Publicity and Sales in a Digital World; Publishing by Numbers; Coming to Terms with Agents; Print on Demand and the Curse of Book Returns; How Do you Value a Publishing Company?; The Ever-Changing Geography of London Publishing; An International Publisher in a Post-Brexit World. Afterword; Reasons to be Cheerful, or Why 2022 might be Better than 1972; Publishing People; Companies; Technology; Marketplace; Authors. And Finally…Post-amble


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Book SynopsisThis is the story of a young boy growing up in the seaside town of Blackpool. He is the youngest member of a typical loving family of four. The era is the nineteen sixties and despite having a very close bond with his mother, David has quite a job coming to terms with everything else. This includes School, God, Santa Claus and pretty much all other categories in-between. Later in life when he loses his Mum to dementia aged 81, things begin to take a downwards turn. The loss has affected him much more than he had ever expected. He loses interest in most things, until suddenly a number of unusual events begin to mysteriously point him back in the direction of all the things he loved - music, art and humour, to name but a few. Is someone somewhere trying to tell him something, and if so, who? As events begin to unfold and the universe starts to make a lot more sense, David realises that maybe he is finally moving towards happiness and his true life's purpose. Something that his mum and dad would have surely approved of. More reading and writing, and having a lot more faith.

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Book SynopsisHong Kong, 2019. Communist China wants to bring the former British colony under its control. The people of Hong Kong - used to the freewheeling democracy that has made it Asia's financial capital - take to the streets to protest. The stage is set for one of the most dramatic political showdowns since Tiananmen Square. Liberate Hong Kong takes readers to the heart of the protest movement in Hong Kong. It tells the stories of the people of Hong Kong - the shopkeepers, musicians, young radicals to middle-aged moderates - who have led the way in demanding universal suffrage and freedom from control by the Chinese Communist Party.

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Book SynopsisBurt, the devil dog, has risen from the dead, Gadget the miniature horse has moved into the kitchen and Tommy is thinking about distilling gin, what can possibly go wrong? With Brexit looming, a second baby on the way, and sales of IPA beer plummeting, trouble is brewing. But just as Tommy hits rock bottom inspiration arrives.Trade Review'A candid, brilliantly human book full of laugh out loud moments. And lots of beer' Rosie Birkett, Sunday Times. 'An anti-hero to the home brewer, Barnes' writing froths and unexpectedly eddies - his second work is certainly no stuck fermentation' Douglas Blyde, Drinks columnist, Evening Standard magazine. 'Tommy's antics are hilarious. Like Brewing meets Bake Off in rural France' James Dowdeswell. 'He writes so well and is funny too.' James McConnachie, The Rough Guide to France. 'Barnes adds something new to the Englishman in France genre not just by being extremely funny but by writing from the heart.' 2018 Best Booze Books, Master of MaltTable of ContentsIncludes 12 delicious beer infused recipes from Chatsworth Bakehouse Chef Tom Mathews

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Book Synopsis'Every family has secrets. Ours also has an award-winning biographer. My sister's discoveries astonished me.' Geraldine BrooksWho can ever truly know their parents?He was a glamorous heart-throb, a famous American singer performing in front of Bette Davis, Katharine Hepburn, Clark Gable and other stars at the Academy Awards. In the 1930s, his recording of 'Hawaiian Paradise' outsold those of Bing Crosby and Guy Lombardo. So how did he become an Australian infantryman, fighting alongside and performing for his fellow Diggers in Palestine, Beirut, Egypt and New Guinea? Why did he leave Hollywood and the ritziest hotels in America for a modest Californian bungalow in suburban Sydney? And what caused him to cease his endless drifting from one woman to another, one marriage to another, and settle with the love of his life?She was a strong Aussie woman, a talented radio broadcaster and publicity agent. Why did she take a chance on this reckless vagabond and notorious womaniser?Seeking answers, Darleen Bungey turns her forensic skills on her own family, exploring her father's multi-layered and at times tempestuous life with a truthful eye and loving heart.This is a book about a remarkable man who sparked the originality that manifests itself in the writings of both Darlene Bungey and Geraldine Brooks.Trade ReviewThis memoir does maximum honour to the idea that each family is its own unique story. And in the case of Darleen Bungey, the tale she tells of Robert Cutter/ Lawrence Brooks, her father, is a charming and engrossing record of an exuberant, gifted, contradictory and brave man whose nationality was as varied as his gifts and who kept his daughters enriched and fascinated to the end. In an era of catastrophic family confessions, it reads like silk. -- Tom KeneallyThis is something beautiful. Bungey's writing is as spellbinding and wondrous as the subject she has so bravely, forensically, gracefully explored. Further evidence that the most interesting people in our worlds were always waiting outside our bedroom doors. -- Trent DaltonA daughter's tender tribute uncovers her father's past life of Hollywood glamour and scandal, reminding us that our parents had other lives, loves and secrets before we came along. -- Caroline BaumA family story, beautifully told, of an American singer who turned his back on fame to live the life he needed in the suburbs of Australia. Daddy Cool is unexpected, sweet and raw. -- David Marr

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Book SynopsisIn 2007 Carl Williams was convicted of three murders and sentenced to 35 years' jail. Yet his role in the Melbourne Gangland Wars went far beyond a handful of killings, however brutal, and had made him one of the most infamous names in Australian criminal history. The unlikely gang boss with a baby face and friendly grin had played a leading role in the savage long-running conflict that saw more than 30 gang-related murders on the streets of Melbourne.Williams began serving his sentence in a high-security unit at Victoria's Barwon Prison. In October 2008 he was given access to a personal computer. Confined to a tiny cell for most of the day, and having limited contact with the outside world, the computer was a godsend. As soon as he received it, Carl began a daily correspondence with his friends and family, covering his life in jail, his thoughts and hopes for the future, and his views and opinions on everyone from barristers and judges to fellow criminals and deadly rivals. Just a year and a half later, Williams was bashed to death by a trusted friend and fellow prisoner.Using his letters, Life Sentence paints a vivid picture of Carl's last eighteen months. His writing is surprising, often manipulative, frequently self-serving, and always a fascinating and revealing insight into the mind of one of Australia's most notorious criminals.'For years, others have spoken for Carl. In these letters, Carl tells his own story for the first time. It's like meeting the man behind the myth.' - Adam Shand

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Book Synopsis'People abroad always thought things were much scarier in China than they really were. What threw me, though, was the urgency of the diplomats in Beijing. They live it, they get it. And they wanted me out.'Bill Birtles was rushed out of China in September 2020, forced to seek refuge in the Australian Embassy in Beijing while diplomats delicately negotiated his departure in an unprecedented standoff with China's government. Five days later he was on a flight back to Sydney, leaving China without any Australian foreign correspondents on the ground for the first time in decades.A journalist's perspective on this rising global power has never been more important, as Australia's relationship with China undergoes an extraordinary change that's seen the detention of a journalist Cheng Lei, Canberra's criticism of Beijing's efforts to crush Hong Kong's freedoms, as well as China's military activity in the South China Sea and its human rights violations targeting the mostly Muslim Uighur minority in Xinjiang province. Chronicling his five-year stint in China as he criss-crossed the country, Birtles reveals why the historic unravelling of China's relations with the West is perceived very differently inside the country.The Truth About China is a compelling and candid examination of China, one that takes a magnifying glass to recent events, and looks through a telescope at what is yet to come.

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Book SynopsisThe extraordinary life story of Australia''s beloved Julie Goodwin, first winner of MasterChef and bestselling cookbook author Julie Goodwin was catapulted into our hearts as the first-ever winner ofMasterChef Australia.In many ways her win was unlikely. As a child Julie adored music and art, but her career began in youth work, including in a juvenile detention center housing troubled boys and a toxic all-male staff. After her three sons were born, she and her husband started an IT business. Then cameMasterChef- a record-breaking juggernaut of a show. The attention and opportunities that flowed from Julie''s win were thrilling and overwhelming. She became a columnist forAustralian Women''s Weekly, a presenter onToday,published numerous cookbooks and made appearances on many shows including facing off with snakes and alligators onI''m A Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here!For years she co-hosted an award-winning breakfast radio show, and she opened a thriving cooking school. It was by all appearances, a successful, rewarding life. But under the surface relentless pressure from Julie''s outer and inner worlds was taking its toll. Struggling with depression, anxiety and addiction, with bushfires blazing and lockdowns looming, Julie found herself hospitalized in a mental health unit. Her recovery, bumpy and circuitous, is an ongoing process that Julie tackles with tenacity. In this gloriously candid, deeply moving memoir, filled with beautiful food, astonishing people, humor and heart, Julie writes with brutal honesty about her struggles. We are brought into her story, into her unravelling and quest for healing as she seeks to resume a richly lived life.

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Book Synopsis''A compelling story, beautifully told, about how animals can show you a way forward.'' Richard GloverTim Husband was born into a Jehovah''s Witness family who spent their weekends delivering God''s Word. Struggling to fit into this orthodox community, he found refuge in the bush, collecting and caring for injured animals.At fourteen, Tim was thrown out of home by his father and the church elders. He was taken in by the owner of the local zoo, and in exchange for a bed and food, Tim spent the next ten years caring for the wild animals. Patiently observing these exotic animals gave Tim his first true sense of family. He slowly enriches their lives by making their habitats closer to those found in the wild.Tim is one of a handful of international specialists known for their expertise in animal care. He has directed, designed and curated at some of the best-known zoos in the world, building a reputation as an exotic animal whisperer.

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Book SynopsisReflecting on his reconnection with his terminally ill father through their shared love of games, Peter Unwin produces a collection of personal essays that explores how the power of play can create connection and levity, even in the face of grief, war, or violence.

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Book SynopsisAn autistic writer's memoir of the detrimental effects of pretending to be normal, and her impassioned call to redefine what is considered a successful life.Sarah Kurchak is autistic. She hasn't let that get in the way of pursuing her dream to become a writer, or to find love, but she has let it get in the way of being in the same room with someone chewing food loudly, and of cleaning her bathroom sink. In I Overcame My Autism and All I Got Was This Lousy Anxiety Disorder, Kurchak examines the Byzantine steps she took to become an autistic success story, how the process almost ruined her life and how she is now trying to recover.Growing up undiagnosed in small-town Ontario in the eighties and nineties, Kurchak realized early that she was somehow different from her peers. She discovered an effective strategy to fend off bullying: she consciously altered nearly everything about herselffrom her personality to her body language. She forced herself to wear the denim jeans that felt like being enclosed in a sandpaper iron maiden. Every day, she dragged herself through the door with an elevated pulse and a churning stomach, nearly crumbling under the effort of the performance. By the time she was finally diagnosed with autism at twenty-seven, she struggled with depression and anxiety largely caused by the same strategy she had mastered precisely. She came to wonder, were all those years of intensely pretending to be someone else really worth it?Tackling everything from autism parenting culture to love, sex, alcohol, obsessions and professional pillow fighting, Kurchak's enlightening memoir challenges stereotypes and preconceptions about autism and considers what might really make the lives of autistic people healthier, happier and more fulfilling.

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Book SynopsisForty influential and diverse Canadians with expertise in subjects such as Indigenous rights, climate change, social justice and race, gun control, higher education and poetry reflect on everything Canada is getting rightand what still needs to change to make the country even better.Acclaimed journalist Mark Bulgutch collects inspiring stories and ideas from multifaceted Canadians whose love for Canada compels them to make this country a better place for allultimately revealing that equal parts critique and celebration is the key to a thriving nation. These chapters spotlight visions of a more sustainable, equitable, welcomingand fun!country from Canadians who believe in the possibility of an even better future.Including: Perry Bellegarde on upholding the rights of Indigenous people; Adam Fenech on adapting to climate change; Najma Ahmed on ending the contagion of gun violence; Mack Rogers on how literacy solves problems; Laura Tamblyn Watts on securing the future for seniors; Katie Ward on the innovations of Canadian agriculture; Santa Ono on how higher education keeps Canada competitive; Michael Levitt on the value of an MP; Paulette Senior on equal opportunity for women; Kenneth Sherman on poetry and the human spirit; Michael Prince on ensuring dignity for people with disabilities; Donald MacPherson on how drug overdoses can be dramatically reduced; Kwame McKenzie on mental health and happiness; Duff Conacher on improving Canadian democracy; and many more.This dynamic collection is sure to spark debate and showcase how the fabric of a country is defined by its multiplicity of voices, cultures, stories and ideas. Weaving together these diverse viewpoints, Bulgutch leads us into the futurecompelling us to do the most Canadian of things: change the world, and our nation, for the better.

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Book SynopsisSkid Dogs is a raw and riveting debut memoir about coming of age during the casual oppression of ‘90s rape culture and the passionate tumult of teenage friendships.“I can’t remember the last time I read a book so brave. Maybe never.” —Ani DiFrancoI fell hard for the scrappy, funny, honest, resilient young heroine of Skid Dogs, and the wise narrator who mediates her story—an essential tale of girlhood survival. —Melissa Febos, author of Girlhood, winner of the National Book Critics Circle Award“Everyone knows, a girl has to be killed before she’s taken seriously; anything less is just called growing up.”In 1991, Emelia Symington-Fedy stumbled upon a tight-knit group of girls hanging out on the secluded railroad tracks intersecting her small rural town—and became “best friends&r

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Book Synopsis“[Metcalf’s] talent is generous, hectoring, huge, and remarkable.”—Washington PostIn Temerity & Gall, Metcalf looks back on a lifetime spent in letters; surveys, with no punches pulled, the current state of CanLit; and offers a passionate defense of the promise and potential of Canadian writing.In a 1983 editorial letter to the Globe and Mail, celebrated Canadian novelist W.P. Kinsella railed that “Mr. Metcalf—an immigrant—continually and in the most galling manner has the temerity to preach to Canadians about their own literature.” Forty years later, in spite of Kinsella’s effort to discredit him in the name of a misguided nationalism both embarrassing and familiar, John Metcalf still has the temerity and gall to preach, to teach, and to write passionately (and uproariously) about literature in Canada. Part memoir, meditation, and apologia, part criticism and pure Metcalf, the present volume distills a lifetime of reading and writing, thinking and collecting, and continues his necessary work kicking against the ever-present pricks. As is the case with all of his critical work, Temerity & Gall will challenge, delight, anger, and inspire in equal measure, and is essential reading for anyone interested in literature in Canada and its place within the wider tradition of writing in English.Temerity & Gall is printed in a limited paperback edition of 750 copies signed and numbered by the author.Trade ReviewPraise for Temerity & Gall"Incandescent [...] steeped in acid wit."—Literary Review of Canada"[Metcalf's] exacting eye and his ongoing willingness to call out what he considers substandard, inert, or deadening in our literary culture has earned him opprobrium ... One need not agree with everything [he] says to find much to gnaw on in his analyses of the various ways literary technique and style ... are too often downgraded or outright ignored. ... While it’s amusing to wrestle with the temerity and gall of Metcalf’s settled esthetic standards ... his achievement in translating this approach into practice as mentor and guiding light is invaluable and we are all in his debt."—Steven W. Beattie, Toronto Star"[Metcalf] deliver[s] a layered and textured narrative highlighting a wide range of writing and writers, one that immerses the reader into the soul of what writing, and thus literature, is supposed to be. And in this, he has succeeded."—Ottawa Review of Books"Temerity & Gall is obviously a must-have for book lovers but, since it presents Metcalf’s energetic meandering from a re-union of the Montreal Story Tellers through colourful observations and unabashed opinions, it can be enjoyed by anyone seeking stimulation of the mind."—Winnipeg Free PressPraise for John Metcalf “John Metcalf has written some of the very best stories ever published in this country.”—Alice Munro “[Metcalf’s] talent is generous, hectoring, huge, and remarkable.”—Washington Post “In the past few decades, Canada has won a reputation as a prolific producer of high-quality short stories. Alice Munro, Mavis Gallant and John Metcalf are among those who have proven themselves masters of the difficult form.” —Maclean’s “Hilarious, touching and delightful … brilliant concision and understated humor.” —Los Angeles Times “A master stylist confidently at work in his favoured form.” —Oxford Companion to Canadian Literature: Second Edition “Masterful ... Harsh reality, hope, and caricature mingle in this tour de force. As Metcalf says in his previous book, "Writing is very hard work but at the same time it is delightful play." An exceptional collection.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

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Book SynopsisBorn in the old Transvaal town of Schweizer Reneke, Essop Pahad started on a path of political activism from his parents’ flat in Becker Street, Ferreirastown, where an all-welcome policy prevailed and visionaries of the Congress alliance, such as Yusuf Dadoo, Walter Sisulu, O.R.Tambo, Nelson Mandela and Ahmed Kathrada were regular visitors. His parents instilled in the family strong anti-racist principles and a genuine concern for all human beings regardless of race, class or religion. A graduate of the ‘Congress School’ in Johannesburg, Essop’s growing commitment to social justice was nurtured by teachers who were among the struggle’s most eminent leaders. An executive member of the Transvaal Indian Youth Congress, Essop was banned in 1964 and went into exile in the UK where he was recruited into the South African Communist Party (SACP). In 1973 he studied at the Lenin Party School in Moscow and then worked in Prague representing the SACP on the editorial board of the World Marxist Review for a decade. During this time he was sent by the ANC for military training with Umkhonto we Sizwe in Angola, which he was unable to complete as he contracted malaria. Essop returned to South Africa in 1990, where he played a central role in shaping our new democracy.A Life Committed is the memoir of a revolutionary whose diverse experiences with other progressive people and movements, local and international, enabled him to deepen his understanding of how to better face the challengesconfronting South Africa, Africa and the world. The book is spiced with anecdotes from his impressive memory archive and lightened by his mischievous sense of humour. Profiles of his mentors and friends from liberation movements and workers’ parties provide insight into the extent of the fierce integrity,compassion and humanity of the author.

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Book SynopsisFor readers of Oliver Sacks and Being Mortal by Atul Gawande comes “a luminous ode to the ‘mysterious ways music... moves’ patients with such conditions as dementia and autism… Assured and lyrical, this impresses."—Publishers Weekly, STARRED ReviewA celebrated art therapist plays the cello for her patients—and offers a moving reflection on the extraordinary power of music to enrich our lives, all the way to the very end.When Claire Oppert plays the cello, miracles happen. Children with profound autism, patients in extreme pain and distress, even people on the threshold of death smile, cry, laugh, sing and dance. “When you play, I’m not sick anymore,” one man tells her. “I feel happy, I feel alive.”In The Schubert Treatment, Oppert recounts her remarkable story of healing suffering through music, alongside portraits of the many people she has helped. Born

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Book SynopsisA gripping and vital portrait of wolf repopulation. It is impossible not to root for Diane, or for the wolves.ERICA BERRY, AUTHOR OF WOLFISHThis is a book about a courageous woman. Often alone in wild country, she endures hardships and faces danger in many forms . It is a book I highly recommend: informative, fascinating, and beautifully written.DR. JANE GOODALLA debut memoir from one of the first women biologists in the United States to study wild wolves in their natural habitata story of passion, resilience, and determination. Called the Jane Goodall of wolves, world-renowned wildlife biologist Diane Boyd has spent four decades studying and advocating for wolves in the wilds of Montana near Glacier National Park. When she started in the 1970s, she was the only female biologist in the United States researching and radio-collaring wild wolves. With her two dogs for company, she faced the rigors of the Montana winter in an isolated cabin without running water or electricity. Boyd fearlessly forded icy rivers, strapped on skis to navigate thick stands of lodgepole pine, and monitored packs from the air in a tiny bush plane that skimmed the treetops so she could count wolves and see what they were feeding on. She faced down grizzly bears, mountain lions, wolverinesand the occasional trapperas she stalked her quarry: a handful of wolves that were making their way south from Canada into Montana. Resilient and resourceful, she devised her own trapping methods and negotiated with locals as wolf populations grew from the first natural colonizer to more than 3,000 wolves in the West today. In this captivating book, Boyd takes the reader on a wild ride from the early days of wolf research to the present-day challenges of wolf management across the globe, highlighting her interactions with an apex predator that captured her heart and her undying admiration. Her writing resonates with her indomitable spirit as she explores the intricate balance of human and wolf coexistence.

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Book SynopsisThe dazzlingly funny second volume of Danny Baker's memoirs: the television years.Since my first book was published I have had countless friends and family members get in touch to say how come I hadn't included this story or that tale. Was I ashamed of being shot twice, once up the arse, in Jamaica Road? How long should a man live with such a secret? If by retrospectively dropping my trousers every few pages I can reveal a fuller picture of myself during these years, then so be it.Besides. Being shot up the arse. In front of your mates.What else did I forget?Trade ReviewFrom presenting cheeky trivia on teatime telly to a disastrous panto sting, he's like a living poster of Kipling's If, happily talking over both Triumph and Disaster. ...his own talents, at least as a memoirist, are closer to that other driven south Londoner Spike Milligan. -- Steve Jelbert * INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY *Going Off Alarming is quite simply the funniest book you'll read all year. Seriously....Like its predecessor, the book is a hoot from soup to nuts, easily as funny, as self-deprecating and as worldly-wise as The Moon's A Balloon by David Niven. If you have been unlucky in life, and have spent the bulk of it without coming into contact with him or his work, then this book is a wonderful introduction. What's it like? Well, it's like Tom and Jerry written by a Cockney Roddy Doyle on Prozac. But funnier. -- Dylan Jones * GQ ONLINE *..great company and a brilliant raconteur. -- Viv Groskop * THE OBSERVER *Volume two of Baker's autobiography rattles along at the same delightful and dizzying pace as its predecessor. ..Baker loves a tale told at his own expense and they come thick and fast. He writes like he speaks, with hyperactive garrulity and a rhetorical flourish. ..there is something about Baker in full flow that is affirming. Book three will doubtless be out for next Christmas but, when it comes to the Pangloss of Deptford, you are happy to forgive him the indulgence. -- Duncan White * DAILY TELEGRAPH *For comic value, go for Danny Baker's latest memoir. The funniest book Dylan Jones has read all year. -- Olivia Cole * GQ *It's the strength of the anecdotes, and welcome digressions from the narrative, that make the book such a delight. * CHOICE MAGAZINE *Any autobiography that opens with the author being shot in the buttocks demands your complete attention. This book made me howl with laughter -- Lorraine Kelly * HERALD SCOTLAND *

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Book SynopsisThe newly discovered diary of a wartime nurse - a fascinating, dramatic and unique insight into the experiences of a young nurse in the Second World War.'I always seem to be saying good-bye to men whom I might have loved had there been enough time...'1939: 18-year-old trainee nurse Mary Mulry arrives in London from Ireland, hoping for adventure. Little did she know what the next seven years would bring.In her extraordinary diary, published now for the first time, Mary records in intimate detail her life as a nurse, both on the Home Front and on the frontline. From nursing children during bombing raids in London to treating Allied soldiers in Normandy, Mary's experiences gave her vivid and unforgettable material for the private diary she was dedicated to keeping.Filled with romance, glamour and inevitably sadness, too, these are the rich memories of an irrepressible personality, living through the turbulent years of the Second World War.Trade ReviewWe know so much about Mary's war because she broke the rules. Keeping a diary was strictly forbidden while on active service, which makes Mary's remarkably complete account all the more exceptional * DAILY EXPRESS *Mary Morris's absorbing diary is a tonic to so many outsized histories of the second World War by those who had not been there. ....In pithy, occasionally sardonic entries, Morris builds a picture of the pity of war and, above all, the moral and material ruins of post-Hitler Germany, where she danced the nights away in Allied officers clubs but also got to know the stench of diphtheria ("so foul and sickly") and gangrene. The scenes of horror and distress she recorded are leavened by childhood reminiscences of the Connemara coast and the glories of whiskey fruit cake. * THE IRISH TIMES *Keeping a diary during active service was forbidden, so this book offers a rare insight into the important roles of nurses, both on the Home Front and the frontline during the Second World War from their own viewpoint. * WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE *Diaries transport us back to the events they describe with a vividness other sources cannot match. This diary, recently discovered in the archives of the Imperial War Museum, was kept by Irish nurse Mary Morris to record her experiences during and after the Second World War. Her strength of character and spirit shine through. ....day and night she faced the grim experience of nursing battle casualties. The constant hunger from insufficient rations, catching diphtheria, and being injured by shrapnel failed to daunt her. * NURSING STANDARD *Throughout it all, Mary's sense of humour and her high spirits rarely failed ... Mary is a talented writer and a humane observer of her remarkable experiences. Her diary is full of vivid, sometimes shocking vignettes ... [A] fascinating and deeply moving book * DAILY MAIL *A remarkable work ... [Mary] was a lucid observer of some of the most cataclysmic events in history * IRISH TIMES *

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Book SynopsisFrieda Hughes's fable-like poems draw on her early years in Devon and Yorkshire, a lifelong engagement with nature and itinerant wildlife, and later experiences when living in Australia, London, and most recently, Wales. They cast light on two worlds, giving a mythic dimension to contemporary life - depicting with an artist's keen eye the particular nature of beast, fish and fowl. Strange creatures, fabled beings and inner voices come to life in startling poems set both in city streets and hospitals as well as in psychic landscapes and reinvented tales. Out of the Ashes brings together work from four collections: Wooroloo (1999), Stonepicker (2001), Waxworks (2002) and The Book of Mirrors (2009). These show a progressive peeling back of the layers of metaphor and allegory as the reader travels a road into a world informed by increasingly personal experiences and memories, through which the poet has been tested, challenged, and found new direction. The book takes the reader on a journey through a life - Frieda's poems examining the ideas of argument, resolution and the acceptance of what cannot be changed. They include poems relating to the death of her father, Ted Hughes, and the loss of her brother Nicholas to suicide at 47, as well as recollections of adolescence following a childhood affected by the loss of her mother, Sylvia Plath. The selection excludes poems from Forty-five (2006), available in the US from HarperCollins, and Alternative Values: poems & paintings (2015), published separately by Bloodaxe.Trade Review`An accomplished painter, she brings to her poetry the same landscape of contrasts, in her vivid descriptions of light and dark, struggle and release, the cleansing properties of fire. She is a courageous poet with a rich palette and the ability to create some startling and memorable images.' - Maura Dooley & Jamie McKendrick, PBS Bulletin; `Her book is about aloneness, about cathartic confrontation and rebirth...The position of the confessional voice in this poetry is quite deceptive - the "I" can be both public and personal. Such poems outflank the obvious. This is poetry come out of siege.' - John Kinsella, Observer

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Book SynopsisOn the night of 10-11 May 1996, eight climbers perished in what remains the worst disaster in Everest's history. Following the tragedy, numerous accounts were published, with Jon Krakauer's Into Thin Air becoming an international bestseller. But has the whole story been told?A Day to Die For reveals the full, startling facts that led to the tragedy. Graham Ratcliffe, the first British climber to reach the summit of Mount Everest twice, was a first-hand witness, having spent the night on Everest's South Col at 26,000 ft, sheltering from the deadly storm. For years, he has shouldered a burden of guilt, feeling that he and his teammates could have saved lives that fateful night. His quest for answers has led to discoveries so important to an understanding of the disaster that he now questions why these facts were not made public sooner.History is dotted with high-profile disasters that both horrify and capture the attention of the public, but very rarely is our view of them revised to such devastating effect.Trade Review[An] incredible story of high-adventure and of a very moving personal journey * Outdoor Enthusiast *Graham Ratcliffe has experienced triumph but also tragedy . . . and for the very first time tells of his remarkable journey * Daily Express *A welcome addition to the history of mountaineering . . . an absorbing read -- Boardman Tasker PrizeI was completely engrossed . . . this is pretty serious stuff . . . the writing is forthright and precise and the book gallops along at a riveting pace . . it's a must read * The Climber, New Zealand Alpine Club *Reads like a detective thriller . . . a book that pulls no punches and tells it how it was * SA Mountain Sport *

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Book Synopsis'Jonathan Raban is the only person I listen to in matters of travel and books and writing in general. Reading him, talking to him as I have over fifty years, he has made my work better and me happier.' Paul Theroux 'For Love and Money … is as good a book as there is about the writing life. Delighted that it will be safeguarded in print by Eland.' Tim HanniganThis collection of writing undertaken for love and money is about books and travel, and makes for an engrossing and candid exploration of what it means to live from writing. Jonathan Raban weighs up the advantages of maintaining an independent spirit against problems of insolvency and self-worth, confesses to travel as an escape from the blank page, ponders the true art of the book review, admires the role of the literary editor and remembers with affection and hilarity events from his eccentric life at the heart of literary London. Reading it is like embarking on a humane, rigorous and witty conversation.

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Book SynopsisRecollections of birth and death, joy and tragedy that reveal the reality of maternity care in a remote setting. In 2016, English midwife Indie joined the staff at Attat Hospital in south-western Ethiopia, where Atsede led the midwifery services. It was a meeting that would change their lives. Their close professional relationship, and deep personal friendship, led to them opening a birth centre serving the Gurage women and families of Cheha Woreda, bringing compassionate midwifery care into the heart of traditional communities. Through the two midwives’ eyes, as they recount stories from the women they have cared for over the years, we experience the lives of the Gurage people in rich detail. From one night shift which saw Atsede attend 16 births, and 17 babies born, to the day there was a donkey mysteriously tied up inside the hospital. By way of undiagnosed birth defects, the ramifications of female circumcision, obstetric emergencies, and long hours of ordinary, extraordinary births, what shines through is a deep and abiding love for the women in their care, and respect for each other and the colleagues they work alongside. A must-read for anyone with an interest in birth or maternal health, With Two Souls, the translation of the Chehaguraginya word hwetarwa, meaning pregnant, is a fascinating and moving insight into what birth can tell us about people and places, and how, when our eyes and hearts are open, we can embrace our differences and work together to benefit our communities.Trade Review"An insightful exploration of the experiences, thoughts, and beliefs of two very different women who have found deep friendship and professional camaraderie in their roles as midwives. Indie and Atsede's voices combine delightfully to conjure the atmosphere of rural Ethiopia, and the community created around their clinic, resulting in a book that is at once thought-provoking, uplifting, empowering, and important." Professor Helen Pankhurst CBE

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Book Synopsis***2020 winner of the Christopher Bland Prize***"Beautifully crafted and written, filled with darkness and light, compelling... She fights addiction with honesty and humour. And, like her, [we] come away changed forever." Yasmin Alibhai-Brown, RSL Christopher Bland PrizeWhen Michele Kirsch's father is killed in a train crash, her mother gets the vapours and Michele gets extremely nervous. By her mid-teens, she has found salvation in valium. Her favourite words on the prescription sheet are "Take As Needed", which she interprets as Take All The Time.Later, as a wife and mother, she adds alcohol into the mix, and before long her life is spinning out of control. Leaving home "for the sake of the family", she takes the scenic route to rehab, redemption and reinvention.But this is no misery memoir. Clean is a darkly comic tale about the difficult choices we have to make as we navigate our lives. While working as a domestic cleaner in her 50s, Michele finds herself living vicariously through other people's messes, tidying her way through early sobriety. As the Duster of Large Things, she taps into her natural nosiness to reveal the absurdities of a seemingly banal job.This is a remarkable, powerful, and often unbearably funny story in which cleaning and getting clean lead to a strange and magical form of redemption.Trade ReviewRarely can a dark memoir have been so comic, or a comic memoir so dark. * Ysenda Maxtone Graham *

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Book Synopsis'A beautifully written, profoundly moving and immersive account of grief that will bring solace.' - Louise France, The TimesWhen Juliet Rosenfeld's husband dies of lung cancer only seven months into their marriage, everything she has learnt about death as a psychotherapist is turned on its head.As she attempts to navigate her way through her own devastating experience of loss, Rosenfeld turns to her battered copy of Freud's seminal essay 'Mourning and Melancholia'. Inspired by the distinction Freud draws between the savage trauma of loss that occurs at the moment of death - grief - and the longer, unpredictable evolution of that loss into something that we call mourning, Rosenfeld finds herself dramatically rethinking the commonly held therapeutic idea of 'working through stages of grief'.This is a beautifully written meditation on what the investment of love means and how to find your own path after bereavement in order for life to continue.Trade Review'A breath-taking piece of work: tragic, terrifying and gripping as any novel, but ultimately, thanks to Rosenfeld's clear-eyed psychoanalytical honesty, also deeply consoling. I don't think writers or human beings can share their experience more movingly and generously than this.' * Julie Myerson *'A brave and beautifully-written account of an experience usually shrouded in silence. This is such an intelligent and honest book.' * Amelia Gentleman *'A masterpiece... bold and accessible.' * Professor Brett Kahr, Psychotherapist, Senior Fellow at Tavistock Institute *'A beautifully written, profoundly moving and immersive account of grief that will bring solace to readers who have been bereaved, and guide anyone who knows them, who feels at a loss how to understand what they are going through. Which pretty much means all of us, at some point in our lives.' -- Louise France * The Times *'Rarely has the physical nature of memory of the dead been so well written about.' * The Oldie *'This powerfully written book has much to say both to the bereaved and to those working with them about loss and how we can come to live with it, lovingly, as we once lived with the one who has died.' * Therapy Today Magazine *'Great stories - entertaining but not patronising' * Financial Times *

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Book SynopsisIt''s the sleepover from hell that no one prepared you for. The doctors went to medical school, the nurses went to uni, but what about the patients?Be Patient is a warm, darkly comic account of Tilly Rose''s desperate search for a diagnosis, against the backdrop of a hilariously funny, heartfelt and, at times, shocking insight into patient life.A ''medical mystery'' for over 20 years, Tilly has spent a lifetime navigating GP waiting rooms, A&E departments and hospital wards. She has been given a front row seat watching humanity at its worst (or its best, depending on how you look at it). Along the way, Tilly has become highly qualified at two things: being a patient and being very patient.Now, she is shining a bright, white hospital strip light onto a space that none of us want to occupy but one we know, with some certainty, that we will. This is one girl''s extraordinary story about becoming the expert no one wants to be. Complete with ''survival tips'' and fuelled with irony and humour (the best medicine of all), Be Patient is an essential memoir on resilience, hope and finding strength in the face of adversity.

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