Memoirs Books

Book SynopsisFor readers of Rachel Cusk, Lisa Taddeo and the essays of Zadie Smith, Bear Woman is a beautifully wrought memoir from one of Sweden's bestselling authorsA beautifully written and astonishing memoir of a woman - a writer - in the midst of motherhood, marriage and life.While struggling with the demands of family and career, the writer discovers a figure from history, Marguerite de la Rocque, a sixteenth-century noblewoman who was abandoned, pregnant, on a remote island in Nova Scotia. When she is finally rescued, her lover and her baby have died, but she has survived this inhospitable wilderness, alone, for two long years. It's a remarkable story of survival, but one that has been consigned to a footnote.Delving deeper into Marguerite's hidden life, the writer begins to question her ability to tell this story, the story of any women in history - or even her own.'The deeply personal journey of a writer, surprising and illuminating, and for me, familiar in the most reassuring way as she loses herself in this compelling story' - Esther Freud, author of Hideous KinkyTrade Review'The deeply personal journey of a writer, surprising and illuminating, and for me, familiar in the most reassuring way as she loses herself in this compelling story' * Esther Freud, author of Hideous Kinky *Ramqvist, in Vogel's translation, is a master of finely observed detail and this book - with a slow-burn obsession at its heart - captivated me. Rarely have I found a book so gentle but enthralling in its telling, so able to distill the subtle turbulence of womanhood, motherhood, and the writer's life. * Jessica J. Lee, author of Two Trees Make a Forest *Ramqvist skillfully blends a story of survival with an autofictional meditation on womanhood ... It adds up to a careful study of a woman's writing life. * Publishers Weekly *Karolina Ramqvist writes with frosty precision the kind of literature that is unforgettable. Her portraits of women hit deep into bone and marrow. * Dorthe Nors on The White City *

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Book Synopsis'A harrowing-but-moving story' - Stylist'Raw, brave and vulnerable. Told with such clarity and purpose' - Maxine Mei-Fung Chung'A brave and deeply moving story of fierce spirit' - Dakota JohnsonBexy Cameron was in her late twenties when the dark events of her past finally caught up with her.Bexy was born into the Children of God, one of the world's most notorious cults. She was 9 years old when she experienced her first exorcism, held in a secret commune deep in the British countryside. At 10, she was placed on Silence Restriction, forced to be silent for a whole year. Even from an early age, she knew what was happening was not right. At the age of 15, she escaped, leaving behind her parents and 11 siblings.Haunted by her past, Bexy set off on a road trip across America, embedding herself in the underbelly of religious cults, living with children who, like her, are born into the worlds their parents and cult leaders have created for them.It is a journey of meth cooks, monks, Jesus Freaks, soap-making Armageddonists, surveillance vans and finally, confronting her parents and herself.Trade ReviewBexy Cameron has achieved a remarkable feat: deftly interweaving her intensely personal memoir with a wider examination of the common threads that run through cults across the world - all revealed through elegant, sharp-eyed prose. I marveled again and again at her courage, compassion and curiosity. An extraordinary book by an extraordinary woman. * Jessica Moor, author of Keeper *An unmissable memoir * Stylist *A vivid, emotional and almost unbelievable account. * The Daily Mail *'Raw, brave and vulnerable. Told with such clarity and purpose.' * Maxine Mei-Fung Chung *An extraordinary story * Christine Lampard *Astonishing... a jaw-dropping memoir * Irish Times Magazine *Powerful, beautiful and exceptionally written * Glamour Magazine *One of the most incredible stories I've ever heard * Joe Marler *Gripping and unforgettable, an incredible journey * Annie Mac *Defiantly not a misery memoir * The Times *Its rare to find writing so pure and captivating * Katie O’Connell Marsh *Its Thelma and Louise meets Wild Wild Country * Rankin *Lively and engaging, a powerful story of healing and transformation * Hunger Magazine *

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Book SynopsisIn Bread and Milk, iconic Swedish writer Karolina Ramqvist traces a girlhood through food - that which has the potential to fill her up, but also threatens to consume her.

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Book Synopsis“I was bored, angry, tired and sad. I felt all alone yet I had nothing to complain about. I had a good job, a husband who as far as I could tell wasn’t shagging his assistant, three children who apart from being the occasional assholes were pretty good kids; a house, a dog and everything else we are told as little girls we should aspire to. But inside, I was growing restless. I was sick of having the same dull conversations about meal plans and kid-friendly holidays. I was frustrated with having the same married sex I’d been having for the past seven years, or not having any sex at all. I didn’t want to be looked at as just a ‘mom’. I wanted to be desired, to make someone’s hair stand on end and go crazy for me. I didn’t want to live by some label that didn’t represent me. I looked at my messy SUV after my yoga class one morning and I wanted to vomit on it all. I panicked, thinking about how I am slowly approaching middle age and the menopause and I wondered how many years do I have left of being ‘f**ckable’ before everything starts going downhill?” F*cked at 40 is a funny, raw and empowering mid-life crisis. Tova Leigh takes the reader along on her journey of rediscovering her identity after motherhood, encouraging women to break free from society’s expectations. This paperback edition includes a hilarious new chapter on Tova's life in lockdown, revealing how vibrators didn't just add a zing but also provided an income that kept food on the table Trade Review"Tova Leigh has been there, done that, and lived to tell the healing, hilarious tale.""Funny and irreverent""Tova's book is a refreshing dose of reality, telling it like it really is, while being funny at the same time!""Tova’s book is funny, entertaining and relatable. A must read for any Mum!"“The way she talks about her body, her relationship with her body, seizing the day ultimately and just living life. I found it really refreshing.”"Buy it, have a read of it, it's good fun.""... the best thing is you don't have to be 40 (or f*cked) to enjoy it!""You don't have to be a mum to read it, you don't need to be 40 to read it, you just need to read it!""Hilarious, funny, raw, intellectual, engaging, witty read, this book is for you""It's about love, relationships, happiness, motherhood, it's acceptance of who you are and the age you are and age is just a number.""A funny, honest account of motherhood and ageing that women from all walks of life will relate to."

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Book SynopsisXenia Tchoumi is passionate about self-empowerment and independent thinking. A fashion influencer, motivational speaker and self-made digital entrepreneur, she wrote this book to share the techniques and tools that have made her so successful, and to encourage her readers to resist media manipulation, stand up for who they really are, and live their best, most powerful lives.Xenia takes readers on a practical, no-nonsense journey to self-empowerment, covering topics such as taking responsibility, using your pain and your failures to push yourself further, and learning digital dominance instead of letting yourself be digitally dependent. She offers a wealth of tips for creating productive habits, setting goals, protecting your mental health and resisting society's pressures to confirm.She shares her stories of struggling against prejudice as the child of recent immigrants, battling the restrictive structures of the fashion industry, making her mark in the digital space and ultimately making herself into an ultra successful brand. Questioning exactly what empowerment looks like today, she also offers the inspiring stories of empowered people she has met all over the world and shows that, while empowerment can seem very different in different cultures, there are certain key traits that empowered people share - habits that anyone can learn and use to become a success in life.

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Book SynopsisThis is the tale of a devastating pandemic, of lives cut painfully short – it’s also a love story. Derek, a distinguished designer, and J, a pioneering entrepreneur and creator of Heaven, the iconic gay dance club, met and fell in love more than 40 years ago. In the early 1980s their friends began to get sick and die – AIDS had arrived in their lives. When they got tested, J received what was then a death sentence: he was HIV Positive. While the onset of AIDS strengthened stigma and fear globally, they confronted their crisis with courage, humour and an indomitable resolve to survive. J’s battle lasted six long years. Turning to spiritual reflection, yoga, nature – and always to love – Derek describes a transformation of the spirit, how compassion and empathy rose phoenix-like from the flames of sickness and death, and how he and J founded the charity Aids Ark, which has helped to save more than 1,000 HIV Positive lives. This is a story of joy and triumph, of facing universal challenges, of the great rewards that come from giving back. Derek speaks for a generation who lived through a global health crisis that many at the time refused even to acknowledge. His is a powerful story chronicling this extraordinary era.Trade Review"This book is both a history and an inspiration." - Matthew Parris"Incredibly vivid, moving, and compelling." - Lord Chris Smith"This is a powerful book, at once a love letter, a well-informed history of the AIDS epidemic, and the life-story of a beautiful young man in London, moving happily through the early days of gay liberation into a time of widespread anguish and despair." - Del Kolve, Professor of English Literature UCLA, CA, USA"Poignant and heart-touching." - Linda-Gail Bekker, Professor of Medicine, President International AIDS Society 2016–2018, Co-Founder of the Desmond Tutu HIV Centre and Health Foundation, Cape Town, South Africa."Tells a story of living life to the full and giving back so much. Derek's passion for life comes through on every page." - Iain Anderson, Executive Chairman of Cicero/amo & Stonewall Ambassador"A moving and heartfelt account of two incredible people who are at once fighters, survivors and givers. . . .Running alongside the romantic and heart-warming storyline is a vivid recollection and reflection on important facets of the LGBTQIA+ and HIV epidemic experience, a history that is recorded and honestly told, lest we forget."—Varsity

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Book Synopsis"I was bored, angry, tired and sad. I felt all alone, yet I had nothing to complain about. I had a good job, a husband who wasn't shagging his assistant, three children who apart from being occasional a**holes were pretty good kids; a house, a dog and everything else we are told as little girls we should aspire to. But inside, I was restless. I didn't want to be seen as 'just a mom'. I wanted to be desired, to make someone's hair stand on end and go crazy for me. I panicked, and wondered how many years I had left of being 'f**ckable' before everything starts going downhill?" F*cked at 40 is a funny, raw and empowering mid-life crisis. Tova Leigh takes the reader along on her journey of rediscovering her identity after motherhood, encouraging women to break free from society's expectations. When you find authenticity it's like opening a door to the truth - it's hard to go back. This is what prompted Tova to write this book for herself and for women like her, to say: HERE I AM. This paperback edition of Tova's bestselling memoir includes a brand-new, hilarious chapter on her life, revealing how vibrators didn't just add a zing to life but also provided an income that put food on the table.Trade Review"Tova Leigh has been there, done that, and lived to tell the healing, hilarious tale."—Sarah Knight, New York Times bestselling author of The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck"A funny, honest account of motherhood and ageing that women from all walks of life will relate to."- The SunFunny and irreverent"— Grazia Book Club"Tova's book is a refreshing dose of reality, telling it like it really is, while being funny at the same time!"— Dr Philippa Kaye, GP and author of The M word: Everything you need to know about the menopause"Tova’s book is funny, entertaining and relatable. A must read for any Mum!"- Danielle Collins, The Face Yoga Expert and author of Danielle Collins' Face Yoga“The way she talks about her body, her relationship with her body, seizing the day ultimately and just living life. I found it really refreshing.”- Giovanna Fletcher"Buy it, have a read of it, it's good fun."- Nadia Sawalha "... the best thing is you don't have to be 40 (or f*cked) to enjoy it!"- Kaye Adams"You don't have to be a mum to read it, you don't need to be 40 to read it, you just need to read it!"- Pina Crispo"Hilarious, funny, raw, intellectual, engaging, witty read, this book is for you"- Lucy Werner, author of bestseller Hype Yourself"It's about love, relationships, happiness, motherhood, it's acceptance of who you are and the age you are and age is just a number."- Sophie McCartney, Tired 'N Tested blog

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Book SynopsisThis is the story of Maxine and Sheila Kohler, two sisters who grew up in the suffocating gentility of 1950s South Africa. When Maxine is just shy of her fortieth birthday her husband, a brilliant and respected surgeon, drives their car off the road and kills her. Devastated, Sheila returns to the country of her birth, haunted by questions. How had she failed to protect her sister? Was Maxine's death a matter of chance, or destiny? What lies in the soil of their troubled motherland that condemns its women to such violence?Trade ReviewA powerful memoir from an acclaimed novelist reveals a past of privilege, violence and possibly murder . . . This many-layered memoir, rich in texture and suggestion, executed with a novelist's eye for oblique human suffering, is her devastating reckoning with the past * * Guardian * *A powerful memoir of love, loss and the author's failure to protect her beloved sister . . . the result is wonderful - spare, controlled and immensely resonant . . . a compact little gem * * Sunday Times * *An extraordinary memoir of loss . . . tender and powerful * * Observer * *Engrossing and beautifully written * * Sunday Express * *An elegant book, and a story that packs a mighty punch . . . A powerful meditation not only on loss and grief but also on complicity within a family and a country . . . Both horrifying and illuminating, and which lingers in the reader's consciousness long after the final page has been turned -- Gillian Slovo * * Times Literary Supplement * *This is a memoir of love, sorrow, sisterhood and privilege. It's also a memoir of the limitations of such privilege - in particular, the inescapable tragedy of being born female in a patriarchal world, where all the money, beauty and breeding cannot protect you from a man who takes what he wants without consequence * * New York Times * *A rich and poignant memoir -- J M COETZEEA pleasurable book, both because of its sinuous prose and because of its setting . . . the present tense has a poetic power, turning many of the scenes into visual set pieces * * Telegraph * *Beautiful and disturbing . . . It is a tragic tale, with echoes of cultural sexism and misogyny, yet a triumphant story of a young woman's liberation from this culture and her emergence as a writer -- JOYCE CAROL OATESKohler digs into her past for a searing and intimate memoir about love turned deadly . . . Her powerful story gives a sharp contrast between a sister's lasting love and the ways society protects a violent man * * BBC, Ten Books to Read in 2017 * *

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Book SynopsisSELECTED AS A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEKA SUNDAY TIMES BEST PAPERBACK OF 2022Born and raised in America, Mildred Harnack was twenty-six and living in Germany when she witnessed the meteoric rise of the Nazi party. She began holding secret meetings in her apartment, forming a small band of political activists set on helping Jews escape, denouncing Hitler and calling for revolution. When the Second World War began, she became a spy, couriering top-secret intelligence to the Allies.In this astonishing work of non-fiction, Harnack's great-great-niece Rebecca Donner draws on extensive archival research, fusing elements of biography, political thriller and scholarly detective story to tell a powerful, epic tale of an enigmatic woman nearly erased by history.Trade ReviewReads like a thriller . . . Written in a pacey, suspenseful present tense, it's biography with a pulse . . . a superb, sure-footed work of historical detection conceived with a powerful intelligence * * Sunday Times * *Astonishing . . . wilder and more expansive than a standard-issue biography . . . a real-life thriller with a cruel ending * * New York Times * *A beautifully rich portrait of a very brave woman. While never less than scrupulously researched, this biography explodes the genre of "biography": experimental but achieved, Donner's story reads with the speed of a thriller, the depth of a novel and the urgency of an essay, like some deeply compelling blend of Alan Furst and W.G. Sebald -- JAMES WOODDonner questions what motivates someone to risk their life for the sake of their beliefs in a gripping story that reads like a political thriller * * Observer * *Written in a fizzing present tense, the book in places reads like a spy novel . . . Donner writes in beautiful, crisp prose (like her great-great-aunt, as quotes from Mildred's letters reveal) . . . The result is a work that transports us to a period now slipping from living memory but that contains vital lessons for our own time * * Herald * *A tour de force of investigation . . . gripping * * Economist * *A thrilling and inspiring book. It is a treasure trove for lovers of biography, new writing and the history of the Third Reich * * Scotsman * *A stunning literary achievement. Rebecca Donner forges a new kind of biography - almost novelistic in style and tone, this scholarly work resurrects the courageous life of Mildred Harnack. A relentless sleuth in the archives, Donner has written a page-turner story of espionage, love and betrayal -- KAI BIRD, winner of the Pulitzer PrizeA lively read . . . Mildred Harnack has received proper recognition at last * * Financial Times * *Pacey . . . an impressive piecing together of fragments . . . a memorial to Mildred Harnack * * Spectator * *

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Book SynopsisKeggie Carew has an unerring instinct for being in the wrong place at the wrong time, of putting her foot in it and making a hash of things. From the repercussions of a missing purse, to boiling a frog, or the holiday when the last thing you could possibly imagine happens, Keggie has been there. She also has an enviable talent for recycling awfulness and turning embarrassment into gold. In prose that will make you laugh, wince and curl your toes, Keggie Carew shares her most humiliating, awkward, uncomfortable, funny, true, terrible and all-too-relatable moments.Trade ReviewI don't know how she does it but Keggie has the ability to take the sideways moments in life, and paint them with such humour and folly and awfulness I go from snort-out-loud laughing to wonder. Here is a collection of tales of mistakes that verge from terrifying to everyday but told once again with Keggie's rare blend of wit, warmth, zany fizz and plain honesty -- RACHEL JOYCEThis is an unexpected and unusual treat: a funny and clever collection of non-fiction stories that feels like a breath of fresh air . . . This is laugh-out-loud, delightful comedic writing. It captures a mood of escapism and nostalgia that I found incredibly reassuring and cheering. More Keggie, please -- VIV GROSKOP * * Observer * *Hilariously, toe-curlingly relatable . . . a joyous burst of authenticity * * Mail on Sunday * *Carew is a natural storyteller, and each of these tales works like a perfectly paced standup routine, punctuated by some gorgeous phrase-making . . . It's hard to make writing look this easy, but Carew's stories have the knack of easing the reader happily from page to page, leaving us squirming at the situations she finds herself in while secretly hoping that she won't escape them just yet * * Guardian * *Wonderfully written, very funny and full of life -- ROGER DALTREYCarew excel[s] at pinpointing the disjointedness between the life we boast about and the messy lives we actually end up living * * Sunday Times * *Keggie Carew really has a knack for stepping in it, boy. But the further you wade in with her, the more hilarious, and poignant, it all becomes. Quicksand Tales is a tonic for the tortured and cursed -- JOSHUA FERRISI loved it. Keggie is chaos in motion, yearning for everything to go right and, luckily for us, it rarely does. She has a wonderfully sharp eye for character, draws every scene so vividly and it's funny, witty. Never arch. Funny. And awful -- ROBERT BATHURSTKeggie Carew blazes a trail for the more earthbound and hapless among us in her brilliant and hilarious Quicksand Tales * * Sunday Express * *Charming . . . Carew has a beautifully evocative style * * Evening Standard * *

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Book SynopsisIn this frank, playful and typically unorthodox collection of essays, Alasdair Gray tells how his early life experiences influenced his writing, including the creation of those landmarks of literature, Lanark and 1982, Janine. He details the inspirations behind his many acclaimed artworks and murals, and makes clear how his moral, social and political beliefs and his work are inextricably linked.Incisive, funny and fired with passion, Of Me and Others is as much about people, place and politics as it is about Gray's own life in art.Trade ReviewUnbelievably inventive -- ALI SMITHGray is a true original, a twentieth-century William Blake * * Observer * *One of the most gifted writers to have put pen to paper in the English language -- IRVINE WELSHAn essential portrait of an artist emerging in the second half of the 20th century . . . Gray is an exceptionally generous writer * * Herald * *A great writer, perhaps the greatest living in Britain today -- WILL SELFAlasdair Gray is that rather rare bird among contemporary British writers - a genuine experimentalist -- DAVID LODGEDisarmingly personal . . . Like Gray himself, the book is by turns ebullient, eccentric, generous and shy * * Scotsman * *Gray has a rare ability to convey his thought in writing that is clear, invigorating and, in the very best way, fun. This book is all of those things, and much more besides . . . A thrilling and powerful statement about the value of Scottish art * * The List * *Gray may be regarded as the doyen of Scottish letters, and this publication is a fitting acknowledgement of his status -- Allan Massie * * Scotsman * *

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Book SynopsisIn The Pattern in the Carpet the award-winning and beloved writer Margaret Drabble explores her own family story alongside the history of her favourite childhood pastime - the jigsaw. The result is an original and moving personal history about remembrance, growing older, the importance of play and the ways in which we make sense of our past by ornamenting our present.Trade ReviewEngrossing . . . Blends family history and reflection with social and cultural history to reveal the novelist's passion for jigsaws . . . Moving and candid . . . Fascinating * * Observer * *A mature overview of a lifetime spent fitting objects together in various ways before breaking them up and beginning all over again * * Guardian * *Touchingly human and often wise . . . a book with such enthusiasm for its subject matter that it makes you long to embark on your own jigsaw * * Telegraph * *Throws poignant light on the difficult jigsaw of human life - and on how to shed harmful thought patterns and reassemble them into something less destructive -- Anita Sethi * * Independent * *Part memoir, part rigorously researched historical perspective, Drabble's book is a multi-layered look at jigsaw puzzles and their role through the ages for society, individuals and herself; it's also a charming homage to Drabble's beloved Auntie Phyl, who passed her lifelong love of jigsaws on to Drabble * * Publishers Weekly * *Gently illuminating . . . An evocative study in memory and the techniques used to reconstruct it . . . A dab hand at fiction and editorship comes through once more, this time with a chockablock memoir fitted under the rubric of pastimes * * Kirkus Reviews * *

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Book SynopsisIn 2014, a 28-year old British doctor found himself co-running the Ebola isolation unit in Sierra Leone’s main hospital after the doctor in charge had been killed by the virus. Completely overwhelmed and wrapped in stifling protective suits, he and his team took it in turns to provide care to patients while removing dead bodies from the ward. Against all odds he battled to keep the hospital open, as the queue of sick and dying patients grew every day. Only a few miles down the road the Irish Ambassador and Head of Irish Aid worked relentlessly to rapidly scale up the international response. At a time when entire districts had been quarantined, she travelled around the country, and met with UN agencies, the President and senior ministers so as to be better placed in alerting the world to the catastrophe unfolding in front of her. In this blow-by-blow account, Walsh and Johnson expose the often shocking shortcomings of the humanitarian response to the outbreak, both locally and internationally, and call our attention to the immense courage of those who put their lives on the line every day to contain the disease. Theirs is the definitive account of the fight against an epidemic that shook the world.Trade ReviewGetting to Zero is a compelling read, full of compassion, grief, ingenuity and stories of courage and unstinting commitment of local nurses, cleaners and others who remain unsung heroes of Ebola. But it is also full of tales of denial, extraordinary lapses in leadership and awkward truths that will make uncomfortable reading for many, locally and internationally. * Guardian *Written in an honest and engaging tone, their experience behind the scenes of the outbreak is illuminating and highlights important lessons for the management of future outbreaks, and the operational errors that increased the number of lives lost in the west African outbreak of 2014–16. * Lancet *Hundreds of reports have been written on the 2014 epidemic – the most widespread Ebola outbreak since the virus was discovered – but none is nearly as insightful, compassionate or unsparing as this. * Irish Times *A brave, bold, yet humble account from the frontlines of the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone. This is vital reading to help us all do better next time. * David Miliband, President and CEO of the International Rescue Committee *Courage in extreme clinical danger, courage to challenge obstructive bureaucracy, courage to make tough decisions and the courage to endure. This is the courage that Sinead Walsh and Oliver Johnson displayed in Sierra Leone. Their compelling book is essential reading for all who care about global health. * Eldryd Parry, founder of the Tropical Health and Education Trust *A captivating and brutally honest account of the Ebola epidemic from two brave, committed individuals who unexpectedly found themselves at its epicentre. The authors pull no punches, and leave us asking: will these lessons be learned, or will the world once again forget and move on? * Jeremy Farrar, Director of the Wellcome Trust *This powerful book asks important questions about aid and development and offers insights that everyone working in global health should absorb – as well as being a personal and very moving account of an epidemic that killed thousands. * Lord Nigel Crisp, Co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Global Health *Walsh and Johnson represent the best of international intervention. This book reveals the complexities and level of cooperation that made “getting to zero” possible. Offers excellent insight into those trying times. * O.B. Sisay, Director of the Situation Room at the National Ebola Response Centre, Sierra Leone *An extraordinary account from the thick of the battle against Ebola. This is history’s first draft, and a powerful example of persistent and pragmatic leadership. Mandatory reading for anyone concerned with global health in the broadest sense. * Paul Farmer, Harvard Medical School, and co-founder of Partners in Health *Takes us behind the scenes to the harrowing frontlines of the Ebola epidemic – highlighting a set of lessons that an inter-connected world would ignore at our peril. A compelling read. * Samantha Power, former US Ambassador to the UN *A detailed, up-close-and-personal perspective on the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone, important for all who want to understand what it is to confront a terrible health threat. * Tom Frieden, President and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, and former Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention *Johnson and Walsh provide a frank, beautifully written, and essential guide to the lessons learned from the heart of the outbreak. Their first-hand experiences in battling this terrible disease will take your breath away. A must read. * Tulip Mazumdar, Global Health Correspondent for BBC News *Table of ContentsMaps Preface 1. New Beginnings: Sierra Leone before the Outbreak of Ebola 2. A Dubious Start: Ebola in Guinea 3. Ebola Emerges in Sierra Leone 4. Kenema Explodes 5. Armageddon 6. The Long Wait for Action 7. The Response Kicks Off 8. The Response Bears Fruit 9. Getting to Zero 10. Conclusion Afterword: If We Had to Do It All Again…

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Book Synopsis‘Where can the human animal seek its energy in this era of lockdowns and social distancing? Dodge may help us to find out’ Guardian‘If you’re a fan of Maggie Nelson’s work, you’ll like this book. It’s truly beautiful’ DazedIs love a force akin to gravity? A kind of invisible fabric which enables communications through space and time? Artist Harry Dodge finds himself contemplating such questions as his father declines from dementia and he rekindles a bewildering but powerful relationship with his birth mother. A meteorite Dodge orders on eBay becomes a mysterious catalyst for a reckoning with the vital forces of matter, the nature of consciousness, and the bafflements of belonging. Structured around a series of formative, formidable coincidences in Dodge’s life, My Meteorite journeys with stylistic bravura from Barthes to Blade Runner, from punk to Pale Fire. It is a wild, incandescent book that creates a literary universe of its own. Blending the personal and the philosophical, the raw and the surreal, the transgressive and the heartbreaking, Harry Dodge revitalizes our world, illuminating the magic just under the surface of daily life.'Holds you in its thrall like a brilliant friend. Dodge is a masterful writer' Miranda JulyTrade ReviewDodge has offered a new, luminous angle on autobiography that not only traces where the body has been—but also what it loves, how it thinks and feels within the potent intellectual and physical detritus of its lived world. Reading this book is like being bathed in the bright, gritty sear of a comet's tail. But the mark it leaves is stunningly terrestrial: a thumbprint of a mind on paper—singular in erudition, hurtfully wonder-struck, and true. * Ocean Vuong *Harry Dodge’s voice and vision are singular, but his genius is for revealing how each of us is plural. This is a beautiful record of his loves and deaths and ways of making, but even its most intimate moments open out, become portals to other possible worlds. No genre can hold this book. It is a work of tender force, prying open every category. My Meteorite is breathtaking—or breathgiving, because the whole thing oxygenates discourse, makes me feel alive. * Ben Lerner *My Meteorite holds you in its thrall like a brilliant friend—so vulnerable, hot, funny, and casually weird that you don't notice the profundity until you're already walloped by it. Dodge juxtaposes the tenderest of human details with hungry, brain-splitting inquiries into the very premise of life, and these shifts in scale are incredibly moving and provocative. Don't forget to notice that Dodge is a captivating and masterful writer; that's how he pulls this whole thing off. * Miranda July *Reading My Meteorite, I feel re-enchanted, all over again, with how miraculous an enterprise writing can be, when it is engaged with the degree of passion, inquisitiveness, and arrowy verbal virtuosity that Dodge brings to the game. Feel your whole body tingle as you read this blazing ode to randomness, to a cosmos where every particle and wave has a say in the matter. * Wayne Koestenbaum *A sense of simultaneity and infinitude shapes My Meteorite, which is at once memoir, studio diary and futuristic consideration of artificial intelligence and algorithms… Within the book, as in the soup of consciousness, everything is happening all at once; there are no fixed states… The recursive nature of the text captures the workings of memory and evinces a high-pressure, poetic approach to narrative and language that is also evident in much of Dodge’s raucous and extremely funny video work. -- Kate Wolf * Frieze *

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Book SynopsisAn intimate and illuminating account of queer lives and migration, homemaking and community in the Gulf, from a brilliant new voice in narrative non-fiction'An eye-opening tour de force' ALEX ESPINOZA'Exhilarating' SUSAN ORLEAN'Tender and insightful' MOHAMED TONSEY'I was captivated and carried' ADAM ZMITH'Vividly reported and luminously reflective' NADIA OWUSUUpon moving to the Gulf States where penalties for queer acts include deportation, imprisonment, torture and death Gaar Adams wants to understand why LGBTQ+ migrants might choose to live amid such peril. From the UAE to Bahrain and Oman to Saudi Arabia a region where four out of five residents are noncitizens he begins riskily gathering interviews outside the tightly controlled state media, leading with what he thinks is a simple question:Isn't it harder for you to make a life here?But as unforgettable residents share a kaleidoscope of stories from uproarious Filipino salon workers throwing secret drag parties to a courageous

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Book SynopsisA memoir told through a series of intimate portraits, which build into a poignant, insightful and unforgettable testimony of West Indian British experience***A NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023***'Grant is a natural storyteller... Compelling and charming'BERNARDINE EVARISTO, author of Girl, Woman, Other'Grant's most revealing work'NEW STATESMAN'I'm black, so you don't have to be,' Colin Grant's uncle Castus used to tell him. For Colin, born in Britain to Jamaican parents, things were supposed to be different. If he worked hard and became a doctor, he was told, his race would become invisible. The reality turned out to be very different.This is a memoir told through a series of intimate intergenerational portraits. We meet Grant's mother Ethlyn, disappointed by working-class life in Luton, who dreams of returning to Jamaica; his father Bageye, a maverick and small-time ganja dealer with a violent temper; his sister Selma, who refashioned herself as an African princess.Each character we meet is navigating their own path. Each life informs Grant's own shifting sense of his identity. Collectively these stories build into a poignant and insightful testimony of the black British experience - an unforgettable exploration of family, identity, race and generational change.Trade ReviewColin Grant writes about the characters in his family with the mischievous, dramatic flair of a natural storyteller. This is a compelling and charming read. -- Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author Girl, Woman, OtherAn important and timely book for an increasingly diverse and diffuse set of communities, a reminder of those questions of home and belonging, an invitation to parse them. * Guardian *Fascinating, brilliant, subtle, educative book. -- Michael Rosen, author of We're Going on a Bear HuntThis outstanding memoir contains a beautiful tenderness and a courageous realness. Vibrant, poignant and brutally frank, it is rooted in authenticity and wisdom, the details of a world well-observed. Grant's work here is powerful, evocative, empowered and forthright. -- Salena Godden, author of Mrs Death Misses DeathGrant's most revealing work... This compelling and poignant book gives a convincing answer to the first question: that there is more than one way to be black. * New Statesman *A memoir told through Grant's interaction with his family and others, but presented in impeccable prose and woven together with all the tensions and humour of the best fiction. A hugely enjoyable read. Get it now. -- Roger Robinson, author of A Portable ParadiseThoughtfully and meticulously constructed... A refined yet unflinching book. * Sunday Times *Thought-provoking... Witnessing the next generation acquaint themselves with their Caribbean heritage, without perceiving it a burden, fills the author, and the reader, with hope. * Times Literary Supplement *Colin Grant takes us round his family and to the Caribbean and back, exploring deep feelings to do with memory, hope, loss and a determination to survive. There are great moments of sadness and humour. * New Statesman, *Books of the Year* *I want everyone to read this book. Not only for the transformative powers of its humanity and lucidity, but because it is brimming with life. Tender yet shocking, funny yet sad, compelling and yet challenging too. It's revelatory. It's unsettling. And so utterly vivid with character and talk. I loved it more than I can say. But more than that, it changed my perception of how things really are. Colin Grant opened the door to me. -- Keggie Carew, author of Dadland

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Book SynopsisKaroline Kan was born in 1989, the year of the Tiananmen Square massacre: her generation has always been caught between China's authoritarian politics and its hyper-modern technology and economic boom. In her quest to understand the shifting sands of global, connected China, Karoline turns to her family, who have survived Maoism and its legacy by breaking with tradition. Navigating a society beset by poverty and often violent political unrest, the Kans swapped rural villages for crowded city streets in search of a better way of life. Now a journalist, Kan recounts gripping tales of her grandmother, who struggled to help her family through the Great Famine; of her mother, who defied the One-Child Policy by giving birth to Karoline; and of her cousin, a factory worker scraping by on less than £1 per hour. An ambitious millennial pursuing her career and personal life in a time of dizzyingly rapid social change, Kan discovers her own story's roots in the China of previous generations.Trade Review'If you’re looking to understand the female millennial experience in China, Under Red Skies is your best bet.' -- The Mistress of the House of Books blog

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Book SynopsisAfter the 1993 Oslo Accords, a handful of Palestinians were allowed to return to their hometowns in Israel. Fida Jiryis and her family were among them. This beautifully written memoir tells the story of their journey, which is also the story of Palestine, from the Nakba to the present—a seventy-five-year tale of conflict, exodus, occupation, return and search for belonging, seen through the eyes of one writer and her family. Jiryis reveals how her father, Sabri, a PLO leader and advisor to Yasser Arafat, chose exile in 1970 because of his work. Her own childhood in Beirut was shaped by regional tensions, the Lebanese Civil War and the 1982 Israeli invasion, which led to her mother’s death. Thirteen years later, the family made an unexpected return to Fassouta, their village of origin in the Galilee. But Fida, twenty-two years old and full of love for her country, had no idea what she was getting into. Stranger in My Own Land chronicles a desperate, at times surreal, search for a homeland between the Galilee, the West Bank and the diaspora, asking difficult questions about what the right of return would mean for the millions of Palestinians waiting to come ‘home’.Trade Review'This wrenching and inspiring tale of violence and courageous resistance, told through the eyes of a remarkable Palestinian family, vividly portrays a living example of what Adam Smith memorably called "the savage injustice of the Europeans".' -- Noam Chomsky‘Jiryis’s account of the travails of the Palestinian cause celebrates the power of resilience and endurance.’ -- TLS‘[A] tour de force … beautifully written … this book eloquently conveys the urgency of transforming the toxic status quo into conditions that allow everyone to thrive as equals.’ -- The Palestine Chronicle‘Jiryis paints a vivid portrait of life for Palestinians in Israel in the 1950s and 1960s.’ -- Middle East Eye‘[A] gripping account of one family’s decades-long personal and political struggle to return to their true homeland.’ -- New Internationalist‘Both commendable and the sort of book one hopes others will emulate … Jiryis lovingly, meticulously and affectingly relates the story of her own family and their specific experiences, yet these experiences can so easily be translated to virtually all Palestinians.’ -- The Markaz Review‘Wonderfully authored by Fida Jiryis ... [this] is a dignified account of a remarkable Palestinian family, bravely dealing with the tragedies and tribulations before them.’ -- The Black Jacobin blog'Fida Jiryis's story, which at times reads like a thriller, has a unique trajectory which she negotiates with intelligence and eloquence, simultaneously illuminating profound and painful subjects about home and belonging.' -- Raja Shehadeh, author of 'Going Home: A Walk Through Fifty Years of Occupation''This is a beautiful and searing book. The inhuman interrogations, the torment of the vulnerable, the "slow eviction" of an entire people should be understood by all in whose name the impunity of Israel and Zionism is given, year after year. I salute you, Fida Jiryis.' -- John Pilger, award-winning journalist, scholar, and documentary filmmaker'An impressive account of an important period in Palestine's recent history. Part history, part personal narrative, the author skilfully entwines the details of her life with that of her eminent father, and shows the power of Palestinians writing about their own lived experience. Highly recommended.' -- Ghada Karmi, author of 'Return: A Palestinian Memoir''A tale of resilience and incredible courage, this powerful memoir fuses Jiryis's personal recollections with the narrative of her homeland and its people. This is a frank and moving story of humanity and steadfastness, giving real content to the sacred Palestinian right of return.' -- Ilan Pappé, Professor of History, University of Exeter, and author of 'Ten Myths About Israel''Since 1948, many Palestinians were born and raised in neighboring Arab states; others have lived and studied in the West; some managed to remain in their ancestral villages in Israel; still others have resided in West Bank cities that, since Oslo, are administered by the Palestinian Authority. Fida Jiryis is one of the very few Palestinians who have had all of these experiences and, as such, she is able to narrate her people's diverse modern history from a uniquely personal perspective. Passionate and provocative, Jiryis's is a story of tragic loss, hope and disappointment, homecoming and alienation.' -- Jonathan Gribetz, Associate Professor of Near Eastern Studies, Princeton University, and author of 'Reading Herzl in Beirut: The PLO's Research on Judaism and Israel''More than just an intimate memoir chronicling the tragedy of Palestinian history, Stranger in My Own Land is a finely detailed rendering of how love of family commingles beautifully and essentially with love of country.' -- Moustafa Bayoumi, author, scholar, and Guardian columnist'Fida Jiryis describes the spiritual damage to herself and her loved ones with ferocious honesty and precision. An essential story and a remarkable achievement.' -- Philip Weiss, founder and co-editor of Mondoweiss'Palestinian steadfastness stands out in this compelling book, in which Fida Jiryis artfully interweaves her family's history with that of her colonised homeland and people. Devoid of demonisation and sloganeering, it is a necessary, sobering testimony to Israel's systemic cruelty.' -- Amira Hass, journalist, Haaretz

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Book SynopsisShortlisted for the 2023 PEN/Jean Stein Book Award A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of The Year A Literary Hub Most Anticipated Book of the Year A rich history of wanderers, exiles and intruders. A haunting personal journey through Central Asia. An intimate reflection on mixed identity shaped by cultural crossings. In the late 1800s, a group of German-speaking Mennonites fled Russia for Muslim Central Asia, to await Christ’s return. Over a century later, Sofia Samatar traces their gruelling journey across desert and mountains, and its improbable fruit: a small Christian settlement inside the Khanate of Khiva. Named ‘The White Mosque’ after the Mennonites’ whitewashed church, the village—a community of peace, prophecy, music and martyrs—lasted fifty years. Within this curious tale, Sofia discovers a tapestry of characters connected by the ancient Silk Road: a fifteenth-century astronomer-king; an intrepid Swiss woman traveller; the first Uzbek photographer; a free spirit of the Harlem Renaissance. Along the way, in a voice both warm and wise, she explores her own complex upbringing as an American Mennonite of colour, the daughter of a Swiss-American Christian and a Somali Muslim. On this pilgrimage to a lost village and a near-forgotten history, Samatar traces the porous borders of identity and narrative. When you leave your tribe, what remains? How do we enter the stories of others? And how, out of life’s buried archives and startling connections, does a person construct a self?Trade Review'The White Mosque is a luminous, brilliant gaze into some of our most profound questions about identity, inheritance, and all that we carry forward as we move through this world. Page after page, Samatar writes with electrifying beauty, treading that fine balance between lush metaphor, philosophical evocation and unwavering clarity. This is a spellbinding, riveting book.' -- Maaza Mengiste, author of The Shadow King'Sofia Samatar's encyclopedic imagination, her voracious intensity toward literature, her luminous poetic voice, her attunement to the uncanniness and ghosts of history finds her in company with Olga Tokarczuk, W. G. Sebald, Jorge Luis Borges, and Maria Stepanova. The White Mosque may be her magnum opus: a mosaic that both shatters and illuminates.' -- Kate Zambreno, author of Drifts and To Write as If Already Dead'A story of pilgrimage, "a palimpsestic quest". The White Mosque is an oasis for the world-weary soul, a glorious and sensuous glimpse into histories edited out of mainstream conversations . . . Hurry, reader, settle into a seat with this book and prepare to be delighted.' -- Yvonne Owuor, author of 'Dust' and 'The Dragonfly Sea''There are very few contemporary writers—if any—who can match Sofia Samatar’s kaleidoscopic inventiveness and wonderful wit. She is a genius and The White Mosque is the most mesmeric book I’ve read in years.' -- Diriye Osman, author of Fairy Tales for Lost Children and The Butterfly Jungle'A brilliant quest narrative like none you’ve ever read. The White Mosque is a passionately researched memoir-helix, written by a genius of genre, and composed of strands of other histories twisted with Samatar’s own. As with all her books, one imagines Sofia Samatar emerging from the scene of its creation like a victor having wrestled questions and forces we are too timid, or not-equipped, to face on our own. Samatar conducts epic battles for her books—to make them real and to give form to what, before we read it, would have seemed impossible to imagine. The result is a work of profound scholarship and kaleidoscopic beauty.' -- Jordy Rosenberg, author of Confessions of the Fox'The White Mosque is a text of immense richness, complexity, and beauty. Tracing the Silk Road journey of 19th century Mennonites into central Asia and written with poetic grace, Sofia Samatar finds and marks out innumerable parallel paths across time, space, literatures, and histories, including her own personal story.' -- John Keene, MacArthur Fellow, and author of Counternarratives'Sofia Samatar is a writer's writer. There is sweetness and colour and shade. There is the collision and confrontation with various histories past, moments present. There is the shattering of shimmer and the mosaic of a lived life--lives past and gone that created a way for her breath and becoming. Sofia Samatar in The White Mosque wants to shift the breath of another, wants for words on the page and the sensations they conjure to move something of the inhalation and exhalation of one's breathing in noticeable even if excitable, even if calming, ways. And my breath was shifted. Not looking to simply confront the past, Samatar's memoir and memorial compels readers to think about how we handle the past, what we do with it in our hands and with our eyes, as well as how it works on us, produces an effect on us, changes us and what we know of our capacities, ideas, thoughts, imaginations. All this is sensed in the movement that Mennonites traversed toward the end of their world, movements that produce religious convergences and confluences. Is your life a pilgrimage, a journey, a wandering? Reading The White Mosque sets the stage for this kind of thinking, this line of questioning, urgent and necessary and present to take the breath away.' -- Ashon T. Crawley, author of Blackpentecostal Breath: The Aesthetics of Possibility and The Lonely Letters

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Book SynopsisWhen Aisha Sarwari moved to America as a young woman, she set out to create her own identity and story. Born in Uganda, she had never lived in South Asia, yet struggled to reconcile the cultural expectation to be a ‘good Muslim girl’ with her desire for equality and acceptance. After she met Yasser, a Pakistani law student, they returned to their ancestral country and married. Little did they know that a brain tumour would become a near-lethal third wheel in their relationship. The cancer gnawed at Yasser’s personality, provoking aggressive outbursts. Was the illness still the explanation for his violence, or had it become an excuse? Aisha began to see their marriage within a bigger picture—of an oppressive society, and of the tug between feminist principles and personal happiness. Between Africa, America and Pakistan, Heart Tantrums and Brain Tumours is a unique story of identity and belonging, misogyny and motherhood, patriarchy and partnership. Its searing honesty and political passion reveal one woman’s battle to redefine the rules—by fighting for, and sometimes with, the man she loves.Trade Review‘A searing account of one woman’s journey in Pakistan through career, marriage, abuse and her husband’s life-shattering cancer.’ -- The Guardian, '50 Brilliant Holiday Reads 2023'‘The book tackles deeply ingrained societal norms and familial expectations that have, for far too long, silenced women’s voices in the South Asian community.’ -- The News on Sunday‘In complicating everything we know and feel about the ‘Pakistani woman stereotype’… Sarwari breaks down the monolith of women’s identity in Pakistan.’ -- Dawn‘A ferocious, piercing, and powerful narration of a Pakistani woman’s struggle with misogyny, abuse, identity, and patriarchy … a captivating memoir … a magnificently well-told story … a necessary work of art calling out the frailty of human psychology.’ -- Glamsham'A powerful, intelligent, raw and disturbing book.' -- Mohsin Hamid, author of 'The Reluctant Fundamentalist' and 'Exit West''Genuinely moving. Exceptional.' -- Moni Mohsin, author of 'The Diary of a Social Butterfly' and 'Tender Hooks''A beautifully written, moving story. The power of words hasn't been better evoked!' -- Shashi Tharoor, Indian MP and author of 'Inglorious Empire: What the British Did to India''A brilliant book. Tragic, painful and yet so inspiring.' -- Nadeem Farooq Paracha, journalist, historian and author of 'Soul Rivals' and 'Points of Entry'

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Book Synopsis-----------------------------'Touching and on occasion profoundly moving ... The connections and affinities that fill this book enliven, enlighten and delight.' STEPHEN FRY'Beautifully written and insightful.' RAYNOR WINN'Searle creates a powerful sense of place. You can sniff the air and touch the trees.' MICHAEL PALIN-----------------------------A lyrical journey through life, love and natureWeaving together personal stories, Threads deals with the meanings of intimacy, vulnerability and our affinities with people and places, both wild and tame. It is a deep exploration of the encounters that lend quiet networks of grace to our busy lives.William Henry Searle casts an eye back to episodes spent in close and tender relationships with members of his family, childhood friends, animals and loved ones, in places that range from his father’s scrap metal yards, to the jungles of Borneo, an Oregon river and the Swiss Alps. In thoughtful, elegant prose, Searle celebrates the quiet conversations that nourish us, and the everyday patterns of connection that give meaning to our human existence.-----------------------------'An exceptionally rich celebration of the natural world, by turns rapturous and melancholy, and often – in strikingly original ways – both at the same time.' SIR ANDREW MOTIONTrade ReviewTouching and on occasion profoundly moving ... The connections and affinities that fill this book enliven, enlighten and delight. * Stephen Fry *An exceptionally rich celebration of the natural world, by turns rapturous and melancholy, and often – in strikingly original ways – both at the same time. * Sir Andrew Motion *Beautifully written and insightful. * Raynor Winn *Searle creates a powerful sense of place. You can sniff the air and touch the trees. * Michael Palin *

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Book Synopsis'Anti-Social is brutally honest, exceptionally funny and terribly sad - a scything indictment of broken 21st century Britain. I could not put it down.' THE SECRET BARRISTER'A fascinating insight into a job that stitches together the cracks in compassion in our communities' RENI EDDO-LODGE, bestselling author of Why I Am No Longer Talking To White People About Race'Superb. This hysterically funny and moving memoir of an anti-social behaviour officer is a real eye-opener that hits all the right notes' FRANKIE BOYLE__________________Anti-Social is the diary of a disillusioned local authority worker whose job it is to keep people happy, or at least away from each other's throats. That's hard enough at the best of times, but when your day features secret hoarders, violent disputes over dance music and litigious arms dealers, the total breakdown of local society is never far away. The only thing keeping it together are the chronically underfunded officers charged with patching the fraying threads of civilisation, and they have a hard enough time keeping themselves together. This is an urgent, timely but, most of all, hysterically funny memoir of a life spent working with the people society wants to forget and the problems that nobody else can resolve. This book will make you laugh, cry and boil with rage, all within a single sentence. Updated with a new chapter for the paperback edition__________________'Get this book ... I'm telling you now, you will absolutely love this guy, what he has to say and the book that he has written. In equal parts devastating and dark and incredibly funny.' NIHAL ARTHANAYAKE'Laugh-out-loud funny. The delivery is punchy and the humour dark - think Irvine Welsh minus the Scottish vernacular' EXPRESS'Think Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt but with more dead bodies ... It's a gloriously cynical read but it's also sympathetic and deeply empathetic.' KATHY BURKE'Riveting and brilliantly written... a potent cocktail of heartbreak and horror; wickedly funny, wearily endearing and absolutely enraging' CAROLINE SANDERSON, Bookseller'A funny, thoughtful look into one of the toughest jobs I can imagine' SHAPPI KORSANDI'I absolutely loved it. It reads like a novel, has that page-turning quality everyone looks for in a good book but it delivers the punch that only true life can - funny obviously but with humanity and warmth for people at the edges of society most in need of our understanding and compassion' KIT DE WAAL, author of My Name Is Leon'Brilliant. This deserves to be a huge success - funny, sad and heartbreaking' LORRAINE KELLY__________________Reader reviews for Anti-Social:'The timing of this book could not be better''Politicians of all hues should be made to read this book''Readable and compulsive''Well written and stunningly well observed''The author and all his long-suffering, dedicated colleagues deserve dustbin lid-sized medals''It had me in stitches, it had me in tears''Top-drawer stuff ... utterly riveting''I don't often take the time to review books here, but would very much recommend Anti-Social.'Trade ReviewAnti-Social is brutally honest, exceptionally funny and terribly sad - a scything indictment of broken 21st century Britain. I could not put it down. -- The Secret BarristerSuperb. This hysterically funny and moving memoir of an anti-social behaviour officer is a real eye-opener that hits all the right notes -- Frankie BoyleI absolutely loved it. It reads like a novel, has that page turning quality everyone looks for in a good book but it delivers the punch that only true life can - funny obviously but with humanity and warmth for people at the edges of society most in need of our understanding and compassion.A fascinating insight into a job that stitches together the cracks in compassion in our communities -- Renni Eddo-Lodge, author of Why I'm No Longer Talking to White People About RaceA gruesome and darkly comic insight into the life of a ASB Officer. Think Adam Kay's This is Going to Hurt but with more dead bodies (and not just human ones) and an abundance of cat shit. It's a gloriously cynical read but it's also sympathetic and deeply empathetic. Being an ASB Officer comes across as one of those "rotten but somebody's got to do it jobs" and I was glad that in these cases, that that somebody was the author. -- Kathy Burke

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Book SynopsisThe heart-warming story of how a tiny hedgehog helped one man find hope. 'Could you look after it for a couple of days? . . .' So begins the extraordinary friendship between veterinarian Massimo, who is at a low spot in his life, and a tiny, orphaned hedgehog. Only a few days old, covered with soft, white quills and mewling quietly, this little creature will turn around his life forever. Through the sheer force of Ninna's personality - curious, playful, affectionate - and the sudden, unexpected paternal protectiveness he feels nursing her back to health, Massimo reconnects with the world - and finally begins to feel like home. But as Ninna wakes from her first hibernation, she grows up, like any teenager, longing for freedom. A creature of the wild, she craves the free range of the woods beyond Massimo's house. Massimo must accept that Ninna is ready to move on . . . but one little hedgehog saved and released into her natural habitat is a new beginning for Massimo: setting up a sanctuary for the injured, orphaned, fragile - but with a will to live so strong it is truly contagious. A Handful of Happiness is their funny and life-affirming story - a celebration of our favourite prickly wildlife creature, which will make you laugh and cry. Perfect for animal lovers and fans of A Streetcat Named Bob, Arthur, Finding Gobi and Monty Don's Nigel.Trade ReviewI loved curling up with this adorable book -- Helen Brown * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisONE WAY TICKET is the story of a man and modern cycling.Jonathan Vaughters is one of the leading figures in world cycling, a record-breaking mountain climber, Tour de France stage winner and former teammate to Lance Armstrong. He is now manager of the renowned Education First World Tour team.In ONE-WAY TICKET: Nine Lives and Two Wheels he describes a journey from driven teenage prodigy, travelling to races in the back of his Dad's station wagon, to an obsessive determination to make it big - whatever the cost. He tells the story of his transformation from poacher to gamekeeper, detailing his painful decision to finally come clean about his own doping - and to persuade others to do likewise - by providing more than enough shocking testimony to USADA (US Anti-Doping Agency) to explode the Armstrong myth.Working in collaboration with The Times' critically acclaimed cycling correspondent Jeremy Whittle, Vaughters reveals the ease with which, his illusions shattered, he walked away from European racing. He documents his own suffering in races, the trials of establishing a team and mentoring young riders, and the dizzying highs of success in races such as the Tour de France, Giro d'Italia and Paris-Roubaix.Jonathan Vaughters shares his unique experience to lift the lid on a world he has both loathed and loved. Along the way he details the fights and fall-outs with cycling's leading figures, including Lance Armstrong, Pat McQuaid, Johan Bruyneel, Bradley Wiggins and Dave Brailsford.

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Book SynopsisMusic, Magazines & MayhemBetween 1994 and 1997, James Brown's loaded magazine became the must-buy and must-be-in publication of the decade. It won every award going, year after year, and came to define not only its audience but also a generation. Bright, loud, funny, provocative, ambitious and careless, loaded was read from the barracks of Afghanistan to the England dressing room at Euro '96. It captured a hedonistic lifestyle of alcohol, cocaine and more. The last great hurrah before the end of the century. It was the biggest noise in the golden generation of magazine publishing, rocketing from zero to half a million sales in a matter of months. What MTV had been to the 80s, loaded was to the 90s.ANIMAL HOUSE follows James Brown's remarkable career from a high school drop-out fanzine writer with few qualifications to NME features editor aged 22, and loaded founder at 27. In between, his mother died in tragic circumstances and gradually his own drug and alcohol use began to take over. Loaded's unexpected success legitimised (and paid for) James's lifestyle, and it wasn't until he crashed and burned at GQ, and went through rehab, that any sense of perspective kicked in.Recuperating on the island of Mustique whilst plotting his return with Oz founder Felix Dennis, James was asked by neighbour Lord Patrick Lichfield: "How on earth did you manage to sell so many magazines whilst taking so many drugs?"This book is his answer.Trade ReviewA boisterous and often touching autobiography. What shines through most of it is that Brown really did love the trade of journalism, a sort of Harry Evans with a habit * Financial Times *A gripping read... A brilliant memoir! * Closer *A shocking read that we couldn't put down * Bella *

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Book SynopsisA humorous and honest account of an ex-pat reporter’s life in the south west of France. Packed with amusing anecdotes and true stories about the characters and places of the region. A must for anybody even thinking about crossing the Channel for the good life in rural France! Every summer thousands of Brits and other Europeans head to the south west of France for bliss, beauty and freedom. It’s great for a holiday - but what’s it like to actually live and work there? That is what reporter Chris Bockman decided to find out when he set up a Press Agency in Toulouse. His project was doomed (apparently) - he was constantly told by industry sages that nothing goes on there out of season. But he soon discovered that the strange characters, ambitious local politicians, vain sportsmen and yes, badly-behaving foreigners provided more than enough material to keep newsrooms happy. There are the politicians preaching the benefits of Brexit while living a grand life in France. There is also one village in the Pyrenees where many flock believing when the inevitable end of the world comes, it will be the sole place that will survive. More stories include treasure-seekers convinced of a Catholic Church cover-up, the downright dishonest practices in the truffle markets and other inhabitants of the region who have included ex-terrorists and murderers on the run. This is an inside look at the peculiarities of human nature and life on the other side of the Channel, with characters and places you’ll love, Are You the Foie Gras Correspondent? is a book for anybody thinking to pull up stakes and moving to where life is “slower-paced” or has a fascination with the true life in France’s southern provincial cities and countryside.

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Book SynopsisSally Urwin and her husband Steve own High House Farm in Northumberland, which they share with two kids, Mavis the Sheepdog, one very Fat Pony, and many, many sheep. Set in a beautiful, wild landscape, and in use for generations, it's perfect for Sally's honest and charming account of farming life. From stock sales to lambing sheds, out in the fields in driving snow and on hot summer days, Diary of a Pint-Sized Farmer reveals the highs, lows and hard, hard work involved in making a living from the land. Filled with grit and humour, newborn lambs and local characters, this is the perfect book for anyone who has ever wondered what it's like on the other side of the fence. 'I am going to do the whole bloody lambing. I'm going to lamb all the lambs. I imagine myself lean and strong, with thin thighs, in attractive waterproof overalls, striding through the lambing shed like I own it. I spend the rest of the evening searching through eBay for waterproof trousers, short leg, size 14, that don't look like a pair of plastic bags stitched together at the crotch.'Trade ReviewUrwin's account of a year on High House Farm, with its mix of arable land and 200 sheep in windswept Northumbria, is no rural idyll. But it's full of passion for the realities of life lived knee-deep in the countryside ... Despite the hardships, Urwin still finds the fun in rural life * Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis'Tenacious, revelatory, and humane.' - Paul Theroux 'The Buried is the kind of book that you don't want to end and won't forget. With the eye of a great storyteller Peter Hessler weaves together history, reporting, memoir, and above all the lives of ordinary people in a beautiful and haunting portrait of Egypt and its Revolution.' - Ben Rhodes Winner of the The Peter Mackenzie Smith Book Prize 2021 In 2011, while revolution swept across Egypt, Peter Hessler was reporting on the everyday lives and ancient secrets of a country in turmoil. The result is this unforgettable work of literary and documentary brilliance. In The Buried, Hessler traces the human stories alongside the broader sweep of historic events: Tahrir Square, the massacres and the coup form the background, but so too do ancient cults, buried cities in the desert and dead pharaohs with huge ambitions. Most important are the people forging their lives in this world. We follow rubbish collector Sayyid; Arabic teacher Rifaat; and Manu, a translator. There are also the Chinese immigrants who have built a lingerie empire, politicians and ingenious archaeologists. Together, they raise the question: is revolution just repetition, or can things ever really change?Trade ReviewDrawing both from daily life and from interviews with highly placed political figures, the book is an extraordinary work of reportage ... Sensitive and perceptive * Wall Street Journal *It is both beautiful and heartbreaking ... Hessler has a genius for structuring a narrative. ... Every page is vivid and engaging, and each chapter packs in surprises. * Literary Review *Peter Hessler is one of the finest storytellers of his generation. -- Larissa MacFarquharAt once engrossing and illuminating ... this stakes a strong claim to being the definitive book to emerge from the Egyptian revolution. * Publishers Weekly *This is writing at its best and highly recommended for anyone interested in Egypt, modern or ancient. * Library Journal *Hessler introduces unexpected prisms of enquiry and the intimate perspective of an endlessly curious observer ... The book achieves a great deal. It provides outstanding reportage of the Arab Spring but, better yet, are Hessler's accounts of the people he encountered. ... this spirited, deeply insightful book. * Geographical *Original, richly layered, and often delightful reporting. Hessler has a sharp sense of humor, a gift for observation, a healthy skepticism, and a knack for using memorable characters and anecdotes to demonstrate larger truths . . . This is what reporting can be at its best: clear-eyed and empathetic, an addition to the historical record. * New York Review of Books *Hessler 'spin[s] golden prose from everyday lived experience ... The result is a small triumph, one of the best books yet written about the Arab spring. -- William Dalrymple * Guardian *Nuanced and deeply intelligent-a view of Egyptian politics that sometimes seems to look at everything but and that opens onto an endlessly complex place and people. * Kirkus Starred Review *Destined to become the title that all first-time visitors to Egypt are urged to pack. . . . Hessler is an extraordinary writer. * Foreign Affairs *The Buried is wonderfully impressive, not a conventional travel book at all, but the chronicle of a family's residence in Egypt, in a time of revolution - years of turmoil in this maddening place. And yet Peter Hessler remains unflustered as he learns the language, makes friends, puts up with annoyances (rats, water shortages, mendacity) and delves into the politics of the present and the ancient complexities. It is in all senses archeology - tenacious, revelatory, and humane. -- Paul TherouxThe Buried is the kind of book that you don't want to end and won't forget. With the eye of a great storyteller Peter Hessler weaves together history, reporting, memoir, and above all the lives of ordinary people in a beautiful and haunting portrait of Egypt and its Revolution. -- Ben Rhodes, author of The World As It is: A Memoir if the Obama White HouseIn The Buried, Peter Hessler brings to life the secret history of the Arab Spring, masterfully weaving together a memoir of his time in Cairo with the hidden, intimate lives of ordinary Egyptians. With lyrical prose, Hessler introduces us to a side of the Middle East we never see in news accounts: an enterprising garbage collector, a gay man skirting police repression, an Arabic language instructor nostalgic for the country's socialist past. These stories unfold on the backdrop of Egypt's 5,000-year-old history, as we learn about the parallels Egyptians draw to their pharaonic past. Witty and deeply humane, The Unburied is unlike any other book I've read about the Egyptian revolution, and stands as a remarkable testament to the country's extraordinary history and to the struggle for human freedom. -- Anand Gopal, author of NO GOOD MEN AMONG THE LIVING: America, the Taliban and the War Through Afghan EyesThe Buried ... is Mr. Hessler's closely observed, touching and at times amusing chronicle of this tumultuous time. Drawing both from daily life and from interviews with highly placed political figures, the book is an extraordinary work of reportage ... Sensitive and perceptive, Mr. Hessler is a superb literary archaeologist, one who handles what he sees with a bit of wonder that he gets to watch the history of this grand city unfold, one day at a time. * Wall Street Journal *It is both beautiful and heartbreaking ... Hessler has a genius for structuring a narrative. Here he has crafted a miraculously coherent arc out of several disparate themes ... Every page is vivid and engaging, and each chapter packs in surprises. * Literary Review *Peter Hessler is one of the finest storytellers of his generation. The beauty of his writing is subtle and cumulative-it gets under your skin. After his years in China, Hessler moved with his family to Cairo during the electric, chaotic days of protests in Tahrir Square. Through him, you come to know many Egyptians as he came to know them-casually, intimately, forming deepening ties. And through them you experience Egypt's turbulent recent history as it was happening, as it felt to live through it. -- Larissa MacFarquhar, author of STRANGERS DROWNINGPraise for The Oracle Bones 'One of the most profoundly original books about China * The Economist *A swirl of interconnecting stories and histories make up Peter Hessler's extraordinary, genre-defying second book * Daily Telegraph *[An] extraordinary survey of contemporary China...really quite unforgettable * The Observer *Praise for River Town 'Written with great clarity and affection, River Town should be read by anyone with any interest in finding the Chinese less inscrutable * The Times *If you read only one book about China, let it be this * Jonathan Mirsky *

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Book SynopsisCasey Gerald's story begins at the end of the world: on New Year's Eve 1999, Casey gathers with the congregation of his grandfather's black evangelical church to witness the rapture. The journey that follows is a beautiful and moving story of a young man learning to question the dreams of success and prosperity that are the foundation of modern America. Growing up gay in an ordinary black neighbourhood in Dallas, his parents struggling with mental health problems and addiction, Casey finds himself on a remarkable path to a prestigious Ivy League college, to the inner sanctums of power on Wall Street and in Washington DC. But even as he attains everything the American Dream promised him, Casey comes to see that salvation stories like his own are part of the plan to keep others from rising. Intense, incantatory, shot through with sly humour and quiet fury, There Will Be No Miracles Here is an extraordinary memoir that forces us to judge our society not on those who rise highest, but on those left behind along the way.Trade ReviewSomehow Casey Gerald has pulled off the most urgently political, most deeply personal, and most engagingly spiritual statement of our time by just looking outside his window and inside himself. Extraordinary -- Marlon JamesCasey Gerald's book is urgent, mesmeric, soaring, desperately serious, wounded and, at times, slyly, brilliantly comic. The world he creates is vivid, the invocation of the personal and the political sharp and knowing. The style is flawless, the pace perfectly judged. Electrifying -- Colm TóibínMagnificent... at turns exuberant, humorous, unsentimental, imaginative, keen. ... The locus of the book is [Gerald's] extraordinary journey. ... Along the way, he learns plenty about his country, the elites who run it and the underclass subject to their rule. He often relays his insight with indelible aphorism. ...His life, and this memoir, serve as proof of his prodigious talents, of the truth that, for the gifted like him, struggles ... can yield something miraculous. * New York Times Book Review *A memoir of a religious, gay black man coming to terms with his own nuanced achievement of the American dream in the new millennium ... hardly a by-the-numbers memoir, this is a powerful book marked by the author's refreshingly complicated and insightful storytelling * Kirkus *Undeniably inspirational...a literary and often dark look at the effects the national virtue of self-reliance can have on the people who live according to it, with particularly moving passages about the atmosphere of stress, pain, and racial divides on college campuses * Vanity Fair *Searing . . . rendered in vivid, painful, and regularly funny reminiscence. But more than anything else, this bildungsroman is a wry document of American class strata. * O, The Oprah Magazine *

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Book SynopsisIn 1981 Tim Guest was taken by his mother to a commune in a small village in Suffolk. It was modelled on the teachings of the famous Indian "guru", Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, who preached an eclectic doctrine of Eastern mysticism, chaotic therapy and sexual freedom. Both were given Sanskrit names, dressed entirely in orange and instructed to completely abandon their former identities. Tim - or Yogesh, as he was now known - spent the rest of his childhood in Bhagwan's various communes in England, Oregon, Pune and Cologne. While his mother meditated, chanted and ran therapy groups, Yogesh lived a life of unsupervised freedom, occasionally catching glimpses of the strange behaviour of the adults around him. In 1985 the movement collapsed after Bhagwan's arrest and Yogesh was once again Tim, about to start life at a secondary school in North London, alone with the secret of his extraordinary childhood. In his first book, now in a new edition, Guest describes the other-worldly experience of growing up in an environment of unsupervised freedom and often disturbing adult behaviour.Trade ReviewA sweet book...[creating] a shocking but affectionate image of the Orange people * Time Out *Guest writes both touchingly and evocatively...an intriguing read * Evening Standard *A book to make you thankful for your boring childhood * Marie-Claire *A must-read, an extraordinary, harrowing, sometimes hilarious account * The Herald *Funny, gently ironic, closely observed, poignant and moving. Guest makes an astonishingly mature debut * Spectator *Guest's story seems to encapsulate the essential weirdness, not only of his childhood, but also of the period...compelling and poignant * Times Literary Supplement *Hilarious and heartbreaking, it says much for the human spirit...a beautiful written account * Daily Mail *Tim's Guest extraordinary account of his childhood is a survivor's tale, poignant, funny and wise * Sunday Times *

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Book Synopsis*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2022 BARBELLION PRIZE* *A BBC Radio 4 Book of the Week* As seen on Sky Arts Book Club with Elizabeth Day and Andi Oliver An eye-opening account of disability, identity, and how robotics and technology are changing what it means to be human - from the bestselling author of Anatomy of a Soldier Harry Parker's life changed overnight, when he lost his legs to an IED in Afghanistan. That took him into an often surprising landscape of a very human kind of hacking, and he wondered, are all humans becoming hybrids? Parker introduces us to the exhilarating breadth of human invention - and intervention. Grappling with his own new identity and disability, he discovers the latest robotics, tech and implants that might lead us to powerful, liberating possibilities for what a body can be. 'I loved Hybrid Humans. A way of looking at the future without nostalgia for the past' - Jeanette WintersonTrade ReviewFascinating ... Parker's writing is elegant and often lyrical ... As someone who has lived as a "hybrid" for more than a decade, Parker never forgets the realities of everyday life, which encompass both pain and beauty. This may be a tour of the scientific avant garde, but the focus is always on the human heart and mind -- Book of the Day * Observer *Harry Parker has explored the cutting edge of interaction between humanity, computing and AI ... a captivating and cautionary travel guide to a new world -- Gavin Francis, author of Adventures in Human BeingI loved Hybrid Humans. It is modest, wise ... and a way of looking at the future without nostalgia for the past -- Jeanette WintersonA terrific writer -- Elizabeth DayHybrid Hymans is an argument for the work of salvage ... The cracks - the brokenness intimating precarity and mortality - create value and even beauty, as well as ways to connect with others * Times Literary Supplement *Absorbing ... Parker takes us on a tour of the weird and wonderful world where man and machine meet * Daily Mail *

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Book SynopsisWe all live online now, but what does that mean in IRL? How do strange subcultures on reddit affect our local shopping centres, what do night gyms owe to Twitter, and where can we really go to get some decent sleep? Our every move online is watched, but can we see ourselves? In these wide-ranging, witty essays, Roisin Kiberd offers immersive insight into the strange worlds, habits and people who have grown up with the internet, and shows the way our world is changing to fit the online fever-dream. Unsettling, clear-sighted and perversely fun, she traces the lines between Netflix and nap hotels, vaporwave music and camgirls, self-optimisation and insomnia, dating apps and a grand unified theory of Monster Energy Drinks. As well as holding up the zeitgeist for scrutiny, she turns an equally frank eye on her own life online, and asks what we have gained, what we have lost, and what we have given willingly away in exchange for this connected world.Trade ReviewExtraordinary -- Mark O'ConnellWildly impressive, interesting and entertaining * The Irish Times *A blistering collection ... marvellous ... profoundly, touchingly human. * Irish Daily Mail *Blazingly smart * Business Post *Gripping and fascinating -- Andrew Marr, Start the Week, BBC Radio 4Lion-hearted in its honesty, and insightful to the point of brilliance. -- Lisa McInerneyRoisin Kiberd is a Dante of the internet, leading us through the infernal circles of our online damnation. The Disconnect is a brilliant debut collection - unsettling, illuminating, and perversely fun - by a writer of extraordinary style and intellectual range. -- Mark O'Connell, author * To Be A Machine *Excellent: full of sharp analysis of life online, insomnia, dating apps and with a grand unified theory of Monster Energy drinks ... I felt both seen and like I could see more after reading this collection. -- Amy Liptrot, author * The Outrun *Roisin Kiberd has found the words to capture what it feels like to live, as they say online, 'in the bad timeline.' ... The joy lies in Kiberd's lucid prose, in the possibilities she presents, in her clarity of thought. -- Nicole Flattery, author of 'Show Them a Good Time'Both a warning about our lives in the worst of all possible worlds and the silent scream of every child birthed in the Internet's fractured womb. A long overdue message delivered by a writer with a first-rate intellect and curiosity who's unafraid to turn heat-vision on the self and, thus, all selves. -- Jarrett Kobek, author of 'I Hate the Internet'Spectacular. A book that takes on, makes sense of, and triumphs over that shapeless techno-dread with which we're now so sickeningly familiar. It's lion-hearted in its honesty, and insightful to the point of brilliance. All I'd hoped for and exactly what I needed. -- Lisa McInerney, author of The Glorious HeresiesAs deep as it is wide-ranging, The Disconnect is a smart, timely, and beautifully intimate investigation into how the internet is turning us all inside-out. -- Ian Maleney, author * Minor Monuments *One of our brightest young writers. -- Martin Doyle * Irish Times *It's sharp, sad and funny ... If you, like me, have ever had to cut yourself off from an endless scroll and then felt the existential weight of being at once plugged into and removed from the rest of the world, then this book is for you. -- Vicky Spratt * Refinery 29 *I can't wait for Roisin Kiberd's The Disconnect - the sharpest writer with the most glorious and zippy mind. -- John Patrick McHugh, author of Pure GoldA rare and wonderful attempt to acknowledge that, for many of us now, the distinction between "real-life" and the more nebulous realities that the internet provides us with have, in a very real sense, broken down. * Dublin Review of Books *Setting the rise of technology and the companies that harness it against her own upbringing, personal struggles, the alienation of working freelance in post-austerity Ireland, Kiberd wades through the depths of the internet's effects on her personally, the places it's driven her to, and what she's taken away from it. A wake-up call, cause for self-examination, and a valuable piece of cultural anthropology. -- Mike McGrath-Bryan * Irish Examiner *Superb -- Claire Hennessy * Irish Examiner *Kiberd is an enlightening and laser-sharp conversationalist, always keen to pursue a tangent if she sees one running off into the distance. Her book is equal parts absorbing and disconcerting, while her weaving of opinions, in-depth research and confessional soul-searching is indicative of a writer unafraid to poke her nose into areas usually left covered ... Sharp-witted, self-aware, extremely confessional * Irish Independent *Kiberd has a knack for describing with laser precision the shape and mood of an event, experience or emotion and a real skill for applied analysis. * The Irish Times *Illuminating and insightful ... Fresh and unique * RTE Guide *Kiberd's writing is funny and frank, punchy and poetic, emotional and earnest. She writes with bravery and honesty about her struggles with depression, bulimia and anxiety -- JP O’Malley * Irish Independent *This excavation of internet life was a treat -- Niamh DonnellyMade me cry, laugh and feel less alone. -- Rebecca Liu * White Review *

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Book SynopsisThe raw, relatable call-to-arms memoir, breaking the silence on postnatal depression - from the bestselling author of Animals and Adults 'I am so grateful for this beautiful, honest book. It has helped me immeasurably' Pandora Sykes 'I loved this book' Clover Stroud 'Totally relatable ... had me laughing and crying in equal measures' Christie Watson 'Dazzling' The i An Unmissable Memoir, Stylist A Hot Summer Book, Refinery29 Six months after the birth of her son, Emma Jane Unsworth finds herself in the eye of a storm. Nothing - from pregnancy to birth and beyond - has gone as she expected. A birth plan? It might as well have been a rough draft! Furious and exhausted, her life is the complete opposite of what it used to be. She's swapped all night benders for grazed labia and Whac-a-Moling haemorrhoids. How did she end up here? In this brave, vital account of postnatal depression, Emma tells her story of despair and recovery. She tackles the biggest taboos around motherhood and mental health, from botched stitches and bleeding nipples to anger and shame. How does pregnancy adapt our brains? Is postnatal depression a natural reaction to the trauma of modern motherhood? And are people's attitudes finally changing? After the Storm is a celebration of survival, holding out a hand to women everywhere. 'This book will make new mums feel accompanied, which is the most sacred thing' Jenn Ashworth 'Hilarious, heart-breaking and wise' Leah Hazard, midwife and author 'Truth and power and lots of LOLs too. I loved it' Amy Liptrot 'A brave and compelling part memoir, part manifesto' Marie ClaireTrade ReviewA beautifully-written, raw - and totally relatable - account of new motherhood that had me laughing and crying in equal measures. Emma Jane Unsworth is the real deal -- CHRISTIE WATSONThis is a brave and important work. Unsworth is unflinchingly honest about her experiences, and her beautiful, hilarious, clever writing elevates her story into something universal ... I loved this book -- CLOVER STROUDPuts into language an experience almost impossible to describe; I am so grateful for this beautiful, honest book. It has helped me immeasurably -- PANDORA SYKESAn excellent book. Truth and power and lots of LOLs too. I loved it. Emma Jane Unsworth is a wonder -- AMY LIPTROTThis book is truly brilliant. Packed with intense bursts of knowledge, understanding and humour. Unsworth's style is so direct and approachable, this book is the best company for anyone going through the loneliness and isolation of new motherhood. This book will make new mums feel accompanied, which is the most sacred thing -- JENN ASHWORTHA breath-takingly brave and honest memoir of motherhood's darkest moments, by turns hilarious, heart-breaking and wise. After The Storm should be required reading for birthing people and their partners, and for those who support and care for them -- LEAH HAZARD, author and midwifeA brilliant, deeply personal and honest book from a writer who is an expert at being humane, funny and vulnerable -- NIKESH SHUKLAFunny, gruelling, wonderful. I felt as though I were with her every step of the way. I loved it -- CLAUDIA HAMMONDThis great, brave and brilliant book will really resonate with anyone who has/had PND (or those around them who - hopefully - will want to try and understand) -- NADIA SHIREENA compulsive read, one that any mother will recognise parts of herself within, even if she has not, like Unsworth, experienced brutal PND * Irish Independent *Postnatal depression is not supposed to make you laugh but brutal honesty and dazzling humour are part of Emma Jane Unsworth's award-winning literary arsenal ... Her first foray into non-fiction is a brave and compelling part memoir, part manifesto ... Within 140-pages Emma has wrung herself out, taken us to the darkest corners of her mind and made us laugh at the sheer madness of new motherhood * Marie Claire *Dazzling ... skewers the injustices and quirks of maternity, from how women are treated as public property from the minute they conceive to the absurdity of "rock 'n' roll Baby Sensory" classes. But its emotional directness is what bowls you over the most -- Gwendolyn Smith * The i *Refreshing, brave and often funny ... This is a true celebration of survival * Woman's Own *Funny and perceptive ... Oh, what a book ... Articulately capturing the sense of despair, exhaustion and disappointment brought on by motherhood even when you love the child you've created, [this book] delves deeper into what happens to women's bodies and brains - as well as the physical scars and huge emotions - with humour and scientific insight -- Francesca Brown * Stylist *A call to arms to centre the mental health of new mothers and push back against the taboos that force so many to feel they must suffer in silence * Refinery29 *

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Book SynopsisBig Snake Little Snake is a cascade of true stories by DBC Pierre, recorded while on his way to make a short film with a parrot in Trinidad, which not only examines the nature of gambling, the love affair between gambler and game and the mindset of obsessive practitioners, but aims to shed light on the invisible odds and outrageous chances of everyday life on Earth. Snakes symbolise a road in a Trinidadian numbers game based on dreams and superstition. The inquiry was prompted by a little snake on Pierre's doorstep. 'If writers were athletes, DBC Pierre would be hanging out with the skydivers, the stunt-snowboarders and the white-water rafters' Independent 'One of the most original and seriously funny narrative voices' ObserverTrade ReviewPraise for DBC Pierre: 'If writers were athletes, DBC Pierre would be hanging out with the skydivers, the stunt-snowboarders and the white-water rafters.' * Independent *One of the most original and seriously funny narrative voices * Observer *Dangerous, smart, ridiculous and very funny * The New York Times *Pierre's writing is heady, reaching glorious heights of linguistic invention * Independent *

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Book Synopsis'I was so captivated by this book, so utterly drawn in and overwhelmed by the emotional force of it, that it stayed in my bloodstream, it felt, long after I'd finished it.' Nigella Lawson 'Sharp and engrossing' Roxane Gay As the bookish daughter of a travelling salesman, Jami Attenberg was drawn to the road. Her wanderlust led her to drive solo across America, and eventually on travels around the globe, embracing - for better and worse - all the messy life she encountered along the way. As she travelled she was crafting, grafting and honing her work, piecing together a living and career, and wrestling with a deep longing for independence while also searching for community, and eventually, a place she might want to stay in for good. This remarkable memoir reveals the defining moments that pushed her to create a life, and voice, she could claim for herself. Exploring themes of friendship, independence, class and drive, I Came All This Way to Meet You is an inspiring and singular story of living the creative life, and finding one's way home.Trade ReviewI Came All This Way to Meet You is a love story; it shows us a way to love art and our lives and our souls...It's Eat Pray Love for Nick Cave fans. -- Emily Flake, New Yorker cartoonist and author of That Was AwkwardA wise and witty glimpse behind the travels and travails of one of our most beloved contemporary novelists ... brims with humor, humility, pathos, and intelligence. I gulped down every page and finished sated, as if I'd spent a long weekend with a dear friend. -- Melissa Febos, author of GirlhoodJami Attenberg is undoubtedly a writer's writer and a phenomenal talent ... The book is an embrace. It is a love letter to work and to friendship. I Came All This Way to Meet You is a compelling literary treasure and Attenberg is a real wonder. -- Kristen Arnett, author of With TeethThis stunning work explores home not solely as geographic place, but really a mobile metaphor for the relationships we consistently run to and away from. Jami Attenberg cements her place as one of our greatest, most agile writers. -- Kiese Laymon, author of Heavy and Long DivisionI Came All This Way to Meet You gives a generous and captivating glimpse into Jami Attenberg's work, intellect, and heart. A must not just for fans of her fiction but for anyone who wonders: 'why write, and how? -- Jean Hannah Edelstein, author of This Really Isn't About YouHonest, generous and propulsive. I loved it -- Francesca Segal, author of Mother ShipIlluminating... made me feel like I'd found a kindred spirit. * Red *Whipsmart ... Prepare to be inspired. * Evening Standard *Comic and very human ... a brilliant reminder that being unsure, leading a messy life and, above all, trusting yourself to get where you need to go, can apply to us all * Stylist *Not your average writer's memoir, this one takes in wanderlust, independence and the creative life * Guardian 2022 Books Highlights *Marvellous... I laughed out loud -- Rachel Cooke * Observer *Deeply personal accounts of failure and sadness and how she found her voice as a writer ... Moving * Jewish Chronicle *I have always enjoyed [Jami Attenberg's] deceptively simple writing. Actually it's undeceptively simply. She has a voice that doesn't pretend to be cleverer or weaker than you. -- Sophie Heawood, author of The Hungover Games

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Book SynopsisI have yet to decipher what the word ''brave'' truly describes, but one thing is evident to me, judging by the number of things that do scare me, I am no braver than the next person. From his early days at Hartbeespoort Snake and Animal Park, to his military conscription during the late ''70s and up to his internationally renowned TV shows on Animal Planet, herpetologist and wildlife photographer Austin Stevens takes us through his extraordinary encounters with some of the world''s most dangerous creatures. Be it staring down a black mamba or trying to retrieve an escaped chimpanzee, these accounts are often exciting and hilarious in equal measure as Stevens dispels the myths surrounding these widely-feared creatures. Running Wild, Stevens''s fourth book, is reflective and personal. He touches on his relationship with his wife Amy, and describes dealing with depression after suffering a string of terrible misfortunes including a horrific car crash, a vicious knife attack and his struggle to rebuild a shattered life. Running Wild is the captivating story of a restless adventurer as he evolves from curator of reptiles, to wildlife photographer, author and film maker. Having faced adversity and mortality more than once, Austin shares with us his reminiscences of past experiences. With never a dull moment, Running Wild will render the reader both fearful and elated.

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Book Synopsis***'Footie book of the year.' - The SunTROY DEENEY is best known as Watford FC's former captain and a thorn in Arsenal's side. But behind the successful and gritty football persona is a remarkable story of resilience.In this brutally honest and inspirational memoir, Troy shares what it was like to grow up on Europe's largest council estate, where his mum worked three jobs and his father, a notorious drug dealer, was frequently in and out of prison.He shares stories of self-sabotage, from simply not turning up to Aston Villa's football trials as a teenager, playing while drunk to being imprisoned for affray at the height of his career.But Troy never gave up, even when it meant playing professional football with an ankle tag. He went on to score 20+ goals in three successive seasons and became the Club Captain, an FA Cup finalist, promotion winner and Watford's record scorer. He also became an outspoken player advocate and - in an age of bland footballer interviews - is a sought after voice on football and footballers today.Engaging, endearing and insightful, this book is where Troy comes to terms with his turbulent past.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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a huge range and FREE tracked UK delivery on ALL orders.

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Book SynopsisWith the imminent arrival of her third child, veterinary surgeon, Gillian Hick, decides to abandon the perils of mixed animal practice, in a favour of setting up a small animal practice from home. When neighbouring farmer, John Armstrong, drops in for a cup of tea and stays to build the new veterinary clinic, the dream becomes a reality. As the practice begins to take on a life of its own, the practicalities of running a twenty-four/seven on call business, with the help of her husband and her three exuberantly, enthusiastic pre-school children begins to take its toll. From hatching goslings on a moonlit night, to late night calls to celebrity donkeys; from delivering new-borns, to assisting in the final farewells of much-loved patients, the circle of life continues as Gillian struggles to hang on to, not only her sense of humour, but also the last remaining threads of her sanity!

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Book SynopsisSolace is that feeling of calm and comfort, that sense of peace that is all around us when we are open to finding it. Writer and photographer Catherine Drea explores the solace to be found in nature and creativity. She reflects on loss, the cycle of life and the healing power of family and community. She muses on the joy of finding a place to call home, the escape that travel brings and the exhilaration of plunging into our waters – all the while embracing the therapeutic power of observing the ordinary and the everyday. With the passing seasons, her camera captures fleeting moments in nature – the light and lie of the land with its precious wildlife: among them sentinel robins, elusive Irish hares and serene swans. Solace is quite simply a balm for the soul. ‘In this beautiful book Catherine Drea explores deeply emotive issues, calms the mind, soothes the soul, and focuses her sensitive lens on the wonders of the natural world.’ Alice Taylor, author of To School through the FieldsTrade ReviewIn this beautiful book Catherine Drea, while delicately exploring deeply emotive issues, calms the mind, soothes the soul and, through the sensitive lens of her camera, focuses the eye on the wonders of the natural world -- Alice TaylorCatherine explores the solace she finds in the natural world…Her beautiful photographs enhance the text as she shares the beauty that surrounds her. The verdict: A gentle, meditative book encouraging us to slow down and appreciate the things that connect us. -- Irish Examinerin this moving memoir, photographer and artist Catherine Drea explores solace found in the cyclical nature of seasons and indeed our lives, lives often unfathomable and dark with shadows.… Ultimately a book of seasons where nature photography dominates, the pages are as leaves, each overturn revealing thoughts, wildlife and poetry, both in Irish and English… Although a feminine book, its importance is for all. Amid this technological invasion, is what was once considered New Age/Alternative now becoming mainstream, as humans, spiritual beings, need more than ever to experience magic and mystery in woodlands or under starlit skies? -- Irish ExaminerWhat a wonderful book, not just the photographs which are incredible but also the sentiment in the book … the journey through nature … just a wonderful book -- East Coast FM’s Morning ShowTable of ContentsA word from the author 8 Spring – The lie of the land 10 1 Setting out 13 2 This landscape 23 3 When spring comes 35 4 Nesting 43 Summer – The inner landscape 52 5 The rose-petal path 55 6 An encounter with the wild 71 7 Wild summer 81 8 Lost and found 93 Autumn – Twists and turns along the path 106 9 Seeking light 109 10 Wandering further afield 131 11 Soulfire 143 12 Ripening 155 Winter – Breathing space 164 13 Hibernation 167 14 Healing 181 15 Map-making 199 16 Beginning again and again 213 The poets 224

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Book SynopsisBorn to a small fishing community on the Shannon, Patsy Peril grew up with a traditional gandelow boat. Ardnacrusha, the enormous hydro-electric station, threatens the river's wildlife. It is Patsy's mission to save the Shannon's wild salmon.

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Book SynopsisThrust into a hostile world, and unable to comprehend the language, Heike, an immigrant and ‘enemy’ child, struggles to understand the English islanders as she adjusts to the new identity demanded of her. Intent on escaping the traumas of growing up in fascist Germany and the horrors of its post-war desolation, Heike’s mother will marry the charismatic English officer she met during the Allied occupation of Lüneburg. Her daughter, who will be known as ‘Susanna’ from now on, must be kept innocent of her mother’s past and grow up to be English. As this memoir of displacement, national character, and misunderstandings unfolds, S M Saunders becomes the detective in her own story, searching for the truth that will reconcile her double identity and conflicting emotions. But this is far from a misery memoir. This is a tale of love—the narrator’s intense love for the extraordinary and eccentric English people whose positive influences not only shaped her and her mother, but also lent her the strength to come to terms with both her own identity and with her mother’s complex, harrowing story. Susanna: the making of an English girl explores a childhood that is sad, beautiful, funny, rich in detail and marked, above all, by love.

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