Published diaries, letters and journals Books

Book SynopsisA first-hand account of one mans war service, as told through his wartime diary.

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Book SynopsisWilliam's war diaries reveals the day-to-day detail of his life at the front, as well as relating his experience of key events.

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Book SynopsisLetters for the Ages Behind Bars is a history of imprisonment told through the letters of people incarcerated over many centuries, for crimes committed or sometimes even for no reason at all. It is a story that runs from St Paul right up to the present day.The act of depriving someone of their liberty is one of humankind's most enduring responses to crime' through history. What society has sought to achieve over the years by doing so has shifted across the centuries and there is now a variety of purposes: to express disapproval; for the purpose of straight-up punishment through the removal of freedom; to protect the general public; to rehabilitate, perhaps even to forget about those with whom we simply cannot cope. The letters assembled here come from all parts of the world, and from time immemorial: Thomas Cromwell, Mary Queen of Scots, Eamon De Valera, Al Capone, Martin Luther King and many more.These letters not only reveal what it is like to

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Book SynopsisTo accompany the SOBER LIFE STORIES and HOW TO QUIT ALCOHOL, Sheldon Press is publishing THE SOBER LIFE JOURNAL, a new format to take advantage of the popularity of journaling – particularly in the sober space. Authored by Simon Chapple, the JOURNAL can be used alongside his other books on the road to sobriety, or in a stand alone fashion. The journal includes plenty of writing prompts, guided exercises and space for reflection with the intention to create something lasting and meaningful for those for whom the road to an alcohol-free life is part of a journey in self-discovery. 

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Book SynopsisSunday Times Political Book of the YearA Book of the Year pick in the New Statesman, Financial Times, Telegraph, Guardian, Mail on Sunday and The Times''A gossipy, amusing, opinionated account of what it''s like to be married to an MP . . . Good fun and eye-opening'' The Times''Riotously candid'' Decca Aitkenhead, Sunday TimesPick of 2020 by Craig Brown, Mail on SundayWhat is it like to be a wife of a politician in modern-day Britain? Sasha Swire finally lifts the lid. For more than twenty years she has kept a secret diary detailing the trials and tribulations of being a political plus-one, and gives us a ringside seat at the seismic political events of the last decade. A professional partner and loyal spouse, Swire has strong political opinions herself - sometimes more ''No, Minister'' than ''Yes''. She detonates the stereotype of Trade ReviewGloriously indiscreet * Daily Mail *A gossipy, amusing, opinionated account of what it's like to be married to an MP... Good fun and eye-opening * The Times *Riotously candid -- Decca Aitkenhead * Sunday Times *A glorious, compelling, jaw-dropping read * Evening Standard *They're the wickedest political diaries since Alan Clark's * Daily Mail *This gossipy, opinionated and frequently hilarious book could be the most entertaining political diary since Alan Clark's -- Charlotte Heathcote * Sunday Express *Ten years ago, reviewing Alastair Campbell's diaries for the Spectator, I concluded as follows: "Who will be the chroniclers of the Cameron government? Somewhere, unknown to his or her colleagues, a secret scribbler will already be at work, documenting the rise and, in due course, no doubt, the fall of this administration" Well, here it is. The diary covers not only the rise and fall of the Cameroons, but also the shenanigans surrounding Brexit and the inexorable rise of Boris, concluding at the end of last year when Sir Hugo (as he was by then) left parliament. No holds are barred. Sasha is candid, irreverent, occasionally outrageous and sometimes hilarious -- Chris Mullin * Spectator *A funny, indiscreet and dangerously honest account of the Cameron-May years * The Times *Imagine the Alan Clark diaries, but written by his wife Jane instead: all the high-octane political gossip, set against a backdrop of country house shooting weekends and boozy dinners at Chequers, but seen through the sceptical eyes of a woman one step removed from all the head-butting stags. But there's far more to this book than reheated pillow talk. There is an acute political intelligence at work, of the sort that makes one wonder what might have been had Swire not settled for experiencing politics vicariously through her husband -- Gaby Hinsliff * Guardian *Westminster diaries are judged on three levels: the details they leak, the political era they re-create and the central character of the author. Swire scores highly on all three. She is funnier and ballsier than Chris Mullin and if she falls short of Alan Clark it is only because he was so devilish -- Quentin Letts * The Times *Diary of an MP's Wife is an irresistible, informal history and a rare tell-all about what it's really like to live behind the headlines of British political life. No one sees more than an observant wife and Sasha Swire's beady eye makes her a natural reporter! Her sharp vignettes and tart sense of humor make for compulsive reading. I do hope she keeps going! -- Tina BrownShe is not a high-society bird-brain but an acute and intelligent observer - and very funny. An invaluable source for future historians of Britain -- Margaret MacMillan * New Statesman *Swire has literary ability, a quality that manifests itself in the colour with which she describes the show and the freaks within it... there have been no political diaries to match the insightfulness and style of these since Alan Clark's and, like his, they will become an essential point of reference for those who wish to understand the politics of the age they describe -- Simon Heffer * Telegraph *Swire's uncharitable musings have demonstrated that the disloyalist's diary still has the power to inflict acute embarrassment, long after the events -- Ben MacIntyre * The Times *As tell-all diaries go, they don't get more riveting than Lady Swire's juicy tales -- Alice Fuller * Sun *Diary of an MP's Wife [is] both compelling and shrewd. The pesky MP's wife may have a better sense of public taste than all the players strutting on the political stage. I can't wait for the next swathe of Swire diaries and the film rights for these ones -- Sarah Sands * Oldie *Smirking at the juiciest revelations in the publishing sensation of the year. Relish these stories for they may be the last laughs we get in a while * Scotsman *Lady Swire has a keen eye for detail and a waspish turn of phrase, which makes this a real page-turner. Lady Swire deservedly takes her place alongside Alan Clark, Chips Channon and Julian Critchley -- Lord Vaizey of DidcotRight now, I'm reading a gossipy book; it's a diary of a British MP's wife, Sasha Swire. Normally when I'm buying a book like that I buy it on Kindle because then nobody can see what I'm reading! But it wasn't available, so I actually ordered it by mail and I'm happy I did that -- Kim Campbell, Prime Minister of CanadaThe most gossipy and mischievous diarist since Alan Clark begins her account in 2010 when her husband, Hugo, is appointed minister of state in the Northern Ireland office, and is so excited that he insists on being called "minister" at home * Sunday Times *The small clique of people at the top are also exposed with waspish irreverence by Sasha Swire in Diary of an MP's Wife. Lady Swire may be a social pariah in Notting Hill and Chipping Norton right now but will, I suspect, like Alan Clark before her, be remembered for her indiscretions long after most of the current cabinet * Telegraph *The wildly indiscreet tale of life inside David Cameron's inner circle... as much fun to pick through as a box of Quality Street, and beneath the gossipy surface lies a razor-sharp analysis of the Cameroons' descent from their gilded heyday to being eaten alive by Brexit * Guardian *

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Book SynopsisUsing the diaries of Luftwaffe commanders, rare contemporary photographs and other previously unpublished sources, Robert Forsyth analyzes the human, strategic, tactical and technical elements of one of the most dramatic operations arranged by the Luftwaffe. Stalingrad ranks as one of the most infamous, savage and emotive battles of the 20th century. It has consumed military historians since the 1950s and has inspired many books and much debate. This book tells the story of the operation mounted by the Luftwaffe to supply, by airlift, the trapped and exhausted German Sixth Army at Stalingrad in the winter of 1942/43. The weather conditions faced by the flying crews, mechanics, and soldiers on the ground were appalling, but against all odds, and a resurgent and active Soviet air force, the transports maintained a determined presence over the ravaged city on the Volga, even when the last airfields in the Stalingrad pocket had been lost. Yet, even the daily figure of 300 tons of supTrade ReviewRobert Forsyth's skill at unearthing rare primary material has produced a remarkable and revelatory narrative. It gives a true insight into the near Herculean effort of the Luftwaffe to keep the trapped Sixth Army alive in history's bloodiest campaign. * Iain MacGregor, author of The Lighthouse of Stalingrad: The Hidden Truth at the Centre of WWII’s Greatest Battle *In this detailed account of the doomed attempt to keep the encircled German Sixth Army alive in Stalingrad by air, Robert Forsyth gives readers a fresh look at the precedents that led to the fatal decision to rely on an airlift and the tragedy that then unfolded. For anyone interested in both the detail and the difficulties of mounting the Stalingrad airlift, this book is essential reading. * Prit Buttar, Author of The Reckoning: The Defeat of Army Group South, 1944 *To Save An Army: The Stalingrad Airlift is easily the most detailed, day-by-day narrative of that critical moment in the Second World War which has been written to date. … [It] is a rich, data-driven military history, interlaced with compelling personal vignettes from pilots, aircrew, staff officers and evacuated soldiers. * Robert Forczyk, Author of Where the Iron Crosses Grow: The Crimea 1941–44 *It is military history at its best. * RAF News *A highly impressive work in all regards, and an essential read. * Aeroplane *There is no greater compliment than to say this is a worthy companion to Antony Beevor's acclaimed history of the ground battle, Stalingrad. * Flypast *A title which is absolutely essential reading for anyone interested in the Battle of Stalingrad and operations on the Eastern Front, generally. * Iron Cross *Table of ContentsPart One Conquest · The Demyansk and Kholm airlifts – dangerous precedents, 1941-42 · A summary of the advance of Army Group South (later Army Groups A and B) towards the Don from July 1942 and war aims (to September 1942) · The role and status of the Luftwaffe in support of German war aims in southern Russia from the summer of 1942, with focus on the Transportverbände, biographies of the airlift senior commanders such as Milch, von Richthofen, Fiebig, Pickert and Morzik, and the effect of their backgrounds and personalities on events; the transport units, their structures and the Luftwaffe’s multi-front commitments · Detailed descriptions of the six principal transport aircraft used in the Stalingrad airlift: Junkers Ju 52/3m – Heinkel He 111 – Heinkel He 177 – Junkers Ju 290 – Focke-Wulf Fw 200 – Junkers Ju 86 Part Two Crisis · A summary of Zhukov’s counter-attack, Operation Uranus, launched on 19 November 1942, and the encirclement of Sixth Army four days later · The decision by Hitler, Göring, Jeschonnek and the German high command to supply Sixth Army by air · The commencement of airlift (Phase 1 to mid-December), with flights landing at Gumrak and Pitomnik airfields inside the pocket carrying mainly fuel and ammunition; day-by-day description of events, command decisions, flights, effect of weather, enemy reaction and movement, analysis of supplies and tonnages, serviceability, units deployed, weather conditions etc. Mainly fuel and ammunition to 19 December based on Sixth Army requests · The stalling of the Hoth relief effort (Operation Winter Storm) by 23 December Part Three Catastrophe · Phase 2 and the climactic, doomed airlift from 24 December, with even the main Luftwaffe airlift depot base at Tatsinskaya under threat. Day-by-day description of events, command decisions, flights, effect of weather, enemy reaction and movement · From 26 December onwards the supply of food becomes the priority over ammunition and fuel · On 12 January, Pitomnik airfield in the pocket is lost; landings increasingly give way to air-drops as conditions worsen. Gumrak airfield lost on 22 January · Detail will range from the command decisions in Berlin, to air fleet and corps command-level, to operations by individual transport units Aftermath and conclusions Appendices Index

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Book SynopsisThe first scholarly edition of the Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes including a detailed introduction, an essay on the text, a textual apparatus and explanatory notesTrade Review"The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes not only features the great detective's earliest known cases, it also introduces his older and smarter brother Mycroft and brings us face to face with that Napoleon of Crime, the chilling Professor Moriarty. This is, in short, the volume through which Conan Doyle dramatically enlarges the Holmesian universe--and just one reason why any serious Sherlockian will want a copy of these stories in this handsome Edinburgh edition, superbly introduced and crisply annotated by Jonathan Cranfield." -Michael Dirda, author of the Edgar Award-winning On Conan Doyle

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Book SynopsisThe first volume of the definitive collection of Dylan Thomas's letters.Trade ReviewDylan Thomas's life and letters read like a cry of despair, interspersed with rare moments of happiness in Wales . . . A moving book. The pain is too real, the tragedy too pitiful to leave any reader untouched - Sunday TimesHis letters are as funny, and nearly as witty, as Oscar Wilde's, and sometimes almost as wise as Keats's - Sunday Telegraph

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Book Synopsis''Brilliantly entertaining and historically priceless'' Spectator''Fascinating ... as much a contribution to royal legend as to the history of the war'' Daily TelegraphAs Assistant Private Secretary to four monarchs, ''Tommy'' Lascelles had a ringside seat from which to observe the workings of the royal household and Downing Street during the first half of the 20th century.These fascinating diaries begin with Edward VIII''s abdication and end with George VI''s death and his daughter Elizabeth''s Coronation. In between we see George VI at work and play, a portrait more intimate than any other previously published.This compelling account also includes Princess Margaret''s relationship with Peter Townsend, and throws an intriguing new light on the way in which King George VI and Winston Churchill worked together during the Second World War. Lascelles was a fine writer - like most of the best diaries his are a delight tTrade ReviewElegant and precise ... a revealing glimpse into the drawing rooms of the great during the years of crisis and victory ... Lascelles was an excellent judge of character, and posterity has almost always proved him right * EVENING STANDARD *This fascinating volume is as much a contribution to royal legend as to the history of the war * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Most - though by no means all - of the facts we know already: it is the angle from which they are viewed and the humour and intelligence of the observer which make these diaries both brilliantly entertaining and historically priceless * SPECTATOR *Offers fascinating and hitherto unseen glimpses of some of the most significant figures of our age ... however, none emerges more engagingly than the diarist himself * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *Offers genuine insights into the role of the King's adviser * INDEPENDENT *A great read, written with humour and elegance * BELFAST TELEGRAPH *I greatly enjoyed KING'S COUNSELLOR -- Robert Harris * MAIL ON SUNDAY Book of the Year *

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Book SynopsisMunich 1919 is a vivid portrayal of the chaos that followed World War I and the collapse of the Munich Council Republic by one of the most perceptive chroniclers of German history. Victor Klemperer provides a moving and thrilling account of what turned out to be a decisive turning point in the fate of a nation, for the revolution of 1918-9 not only produced the first German democracy, it also heralded the horrors to come. With the directness of an educated and independent young man, Klemperer turned his hand to political journalism, writing astute, clever and linguistically brilliant reports in the beleaguered Munich of 1919. He sketched intimate portraits of the people of the hour, including Erich Mühsam, Max Levien and Kurt Eisner, and took the measure of the events around him with a keen eye. These observations are made ever more poignant by the inclusion of passages from his later memoirs. In the midst of increasing persecution under the Nazis he reflected on the fateful year 1919, the growing threat of antisemitism, and the acquaintances he made in the period, some of whom would later abandon him, while others remained loyal. Klemperer's account once again reveals him to be a fearless and deeply humane recorder of German history. Munich 1919 will be essential reading for all those interested in 20th century history, constituting a unique witness to events of the period.Trade Review"Klemperer guides us through the confusion of those troubled days in Munich with empathy, subtlety and a perceptive eye." - Christopher Clark, University of Cambridge, UK"Klemperer has once again proven himself to be a brilliant reporter and an intelligent essayist. A sensational testimony. - Die Zeit"With his talent for dramatic portrayals, for reflection, and his knack for boiling things down to their essence, Munich 1919 gives us a more intimate view of Klemperer than we've ever seen before." - Die Welt"Klemperer's ability to grasp moods and attitudes has a truly Dickensian quality." - Los Angeles Times"A message in a bottle, with real immediacy." - Sydney Morning Herald"A compelling chronicle" - The Times Literary Supplement“This account needs to be read for itself and its dramatic descriptions of chaos and political madness. But it also needs to be read as a harbinger of the future — and attitudes that shaped German acquiescence in, and belief in, the violent antisemitism of Nazi ideology" - The Jewish Chronicle"Klemperer’s diary provides an invaluable, unique perspective on the creation and suppression of the Munich Soviet Republic. Observing and recording how events unfolded from his university perch, Klemperer’s account conveys the sense of confusion, of isolation, and of uncertainty that pervaded… Born in Prussia to Jewish parents, Klemperer uneasily records how Bavarian particularism blurred anti-Prussianism, anti-Semitism, and anti-Bolshevism into a toxic brew of resentment, fear, and loathing. Klemperer’s Munich 1919. Diary of a Revolution will become essential reading for those interested in the Weimar Republic, Bavarian identity, and the backstory to the rise of Hitler and National Socialism." - H-Net: Humanities & Social Sciences Online ‘a sobering glimpse into an uncertain time when history might have tilted in a different direction. Through [Klemperer’s] writings, we can come to see how those first violent months of the Weimar Republic were only a prelude to the later catastrophe.’The Nation "This is a gem of a book."Journal of Modern HistoryTable of ContentsForewordChristopher Clark Notes on the text Munich 1919 Diary of a Revolution Politics and the Bohemian World February 1919 Revolution Two Munich Ceremonies February 1919 Revolution Munich After Eisner's Assassination February 22, 1919 Revolution The Events at the University of Munich April 8, 1919 Revolution The Third Revolution in Bavaria April 9, 1919 Revolutionary Diary April 17, 1919 April 18, 1919 Revolution Revolutionary Diary April 19, 1919 Revolution Revolutionary Diary April 20, 1919 April 21, 1919 April 22, 1919 Revolution Revolutionary Diary April 30, 1919 Revolution Revolutionary Diary May 2, 1919 May 4, 1919 May 10, 1919 Revolution Munich Tragicomedy January 17, 1920 Appendix The German Revolution of 1918-9: A Historical EssayWolfram Wette Chronology About this edition Picture credits Notes Index

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Book SynopsisPublished in 1924, The Life and Letters of Emily Dickinson is a biography by her niece Martha Dickinson Bianchi. Featuring detailed biographical essays and her letters, for the first time arranged chronically, the book stands as a retelling of her aunt’s life from the perspective of family in an attempt to challenge the image of Emily Dickinson as a cold, isolated woman of mystery. With an eye-catching new cover, and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of The Life and Letters of Emily Dickinson is a must-read biography reimagined for modern readers.

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Book SynopsisThis collection of C. H. Spurgeon’s travel letters offer a rare insight into a different side of the famed preacher. Of the many telling phrases C. H. Spurgeon gave the world, one speaks to the way he, and his contemporaries, greatly valued letters, or what he called “gifts of the pen.” He lived in a golden age of letter–writing, and helped to make it so. The best letters, he knew, are written with caring reflection, love of the written word, wit, and a vivid sense of place. His travel letters model these gifts. His love of nature, history, culture, and art live—and breathe—in these pages. Rest and recreation, on holiday, when he could follow these interests, were meaningful, renewing gifts from God. He cherished them, and needed them. They lend a special, one–of–a–kind voice to this book. With a painter’s gifts, set amid the countryside of England, or places of Europe, Spurgeon’s Travel Letters are eloquent, and many times moving. His “gifts of the pen” shine in them. At long last, they have a place well–deserved, a place all their own. Now, we ourselves may travel with Spurgeon—discovering the world that he knew. And we may bless God for the privilege given in these letters. Trade ReviewThe picture we get of Spurgeon from this collection is of an affectionate husband, a lover of nature, a faithful friend, a happy Christian, and a devoted worshipper of God. … a unique and welcome addition to the growing corpus of published material on the Prince of Preachers. -- Alex DiPrima (Pastor, Emmanuel Church, Winston–Salem, North Carolina; Author, ‘Spurgeon and the Poor: How the Gospel Compels Christian Social Concern’)The Prince of Preachers’ sense of humor comes through loud and clear … as he meticulously noted the beauty of The Artist’s created world everywhere he traveled. -- Mary K. Mohler (Director, Seminary Wives Institute, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky)In a day when pastors are burned out and Christians are weary, these letters are a reminder that rest is God’s good gift. In his travels, Spurgeon models for us how we can enjoy God’s world in our rest with childlike faith and wonder, and so, be energized and equipped for faithful service. -- Geoffrey Chang (Assistant Professor of Historical Theology and Curator of the Spurgeon Library, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Kansas City, Missouri)

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Book SynopsisA heart-rending memoir of love, loss and the unique relationship twins share.More than thirty years ago, David Loftus’s cherished identical twin, John, passed away. Ever since, a day hasn’t passed without David feeling the loss. In 1987, after recovering from a brain tumour, John contracted meningitis and found himself back in hospital for treatment. David, as always, was by his side. They were opening their twenty-fourth birthday presents when a fatally miscalculated routine injection forced John into a coma. He died within two weeks. Over the past year, David has spent an hour every day remembering John and recording his story by hand. Diary of a Lone Twin is the product of that daily ritual – a powerful and deeply personal account that covers everything from enchanting and charmingly evoked childhood vignettes to the acute loneliness and raw pain that followed John’s death.In sharing this beautifully written diary, award-winning and internationally acclaimed photographer David Loftus provides a rare insight for anyone who wishes to understand the bond between identical twins, and the unique bereavement of a lone twin that few people will ever experience.Trade ReviewHauntingly powerful * Daily Mail *These diary entries fuel this moving exploration into the unique bond between twins and the grief when one dies. * Observer *Poignant and powerful -- Caroline Sanderson * The Bookseller *A beautifully written memoir full of poignancy, humour and wisdom. The conceit of using a diary written in the present as a touching off point for the reminiscences works excellently and adds a novelistic richness to what is already a powerful, stirring and uplifting testament to love. -- Ray Celestin, award-winning author of The Axeman's JazzBeautiful, emotional and somehow funny at times...David has put together something really special here, because of course there is such sadness, but mostly, there is love. -- Dawn O'PorterThis is as beautiful an account of loss as you will ever read, haunting and at times unbearably heart wrenching. A tribute to a lost brother and an excavation of the human heart in all its shades of light and dark. A gem. -- Rebecca FraynA gentle book by a gentle man about the loss of a twin brother. An intimate, searingly honest, deeply upsetting but also uplifting story of loss and love. -- Prue Leith

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Book Synopsis'We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed' Martin Luther King, Jr.In an era where our liberties are often under threat, Letters to Change the World sends reminders from history that standing up for - and voicing - our personal and political beliefs is not merely a human right but our duty, if we want to make change happen.Featuring Emmeline Pankhurst rallying her suffragettes, George Orwell's warning against totalitarianism, Nelson Mandela's consoling his children from prison, Time's Up condemning abuses of power, and much more, this collection will inspire you to stand up and speak up - now, for what really matters.'Remarkable, timely ... At a time of political uncertainty, the collection demonstrates the importance of speaking truth to power' GuardianTrade ReviewVisionaries, idealists and ordinary citizens speak out in this remarkable, timely anthology... At a time of political uncertainty, the collection demonstrates the importance of speaking truth to power. * Guardian *

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Book Synopsis**SPECTATOR BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020****TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020****SUNDAY EXPRESS BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020**'A new perspective on "Lilibet" as she fell for her future husband' Sunday Express, Books of the Year'For a glimpse into the lives of the young princesses these diaries are riveting' Daily Mail'A must if you love The Crown' Good Housekeeping'A wonderful book' A. N. Wilson, Spectator, Books of the Year'Funny, astute, poignant and historically fascinating' The Times'A compelling and revealing insight into the teenage life of the then Princess Elizabeth and her sister Princess Margaret' Richard Kay, Daily Mail'I loved reading this, so reminiscent of my own childhood' Anne Glenconner, author of Lady in Waiting'Fascinating insight into Elizabeth as a teenager' OK! Magazine************************The Windsor Diaries are the never-before-seen diaries of Alathea Fitzalan Howard, who lived alongside the young Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret at Windsor Castle during the Second World War. Alathea's home life was an unhappy one. Her parents had separated and so during the war she was sent to live with her grandfather, Viscount Fitzalan of Derwent, at Cumberland Lodge in Windsor Great Park. There Alathea found the affection and harmony she craved as she became a close friend of the two princesses, visiting them often at Windsor Castle, enjoying parties, balls, cinema evenings, picnics and celebrations with the Royal Family and other members of the Court.Alathea's diary became her constant companion during these years as day by day she recorded every intimate detail of life with the young Princesses, often with their governess Crawfie, or with the King and Queen. Written from the ages of sixteen to twenty-two, she captures the tight-knit, happy bonds between the Royal Family, as well as the aspirations and anxieties, sometimes extreme, of her own teenage mind. These unique diaries give us a bird's eye view of Royal wartime life with all of Alathea's honest, yet affectionate judgments and observations - as well as a candid and vivid portrait of the young Princess Elizabeth, known to Alathea as 'Lilibet', a warm, self-contained girl, already falling for her handsome prince Philip, and facing her ultimate destiny: the Crown.

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Book Synopsis'Beautiful . . . insightful, fascinating and moving. It's a lovely LOVELY book' Marian Keyes'This book made me cry' Sara Cox After Emma Kennedy's mother Brenda passed away, she found herself floundering, unable to make sense of the mysterious, charismatic but unpredictable woman who had been her mum.And then she found Brenda's letters, forgotten for years in the attic. As Emma made her way through decades of correspondence, she started to piece together the fractured relationships and buried secrets that had left their indelible mark on Brenda. Finally, she allowed herself to ask the question she couldn't as a child: who, really, was her mother?'This honest, insightful book is a touching tribute to her complex, inimitable mother' Daily Express'Remarkable' Dawn French'A beautiful, hilarious and bittersweet book' Mel GiedroycTrade ReviewBeautiful . . . insightful, fascinating and moving. It's a lovely LOVELY book -- Marian KeyesRemarkable -- Dawn FrenchA very personal and poignant detective story -- Sue PerkinsA beautiful, hilarious and bittersweet book -- Mel GiedroycThis book made me cry -- Sara CoxAbsolutely stunning -- Emma FreudAbsolutely riveting -- Alice ArnoldThis honest, insightful book is a touching tribute to her complex, inimitable mother * Daily Express *A moving study in how to love an unreasonable person * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisLaunched at the 1982 Notting Hill Carnival, The Voice newspaper captured and addressed a generation figuring out what it meant to be Black and British. Written for and by Black people, the newspaper shone a light on systematic injustices as well as celebrating Black Britain's success stories. From hard hitting news reports covering the murder of Stephen Lawrence to championing the likes of Sir Lewis Hamilton and Idris Elba, the newspaper has campaigned, celebrated and educated people for the last forty years.As well as celebrating amazing successes in sport, politics and the arts, The Voice documented everyday life in the community, from the emergence of a Black middle class in the '90s and the achievements of Black entrepreneurs to how different facets of the community were explored in contemporary music and literature. Since its small beginnings in Hackney, The Voice has also become a fantastic training ground for prominent journalists and figures including former politician Trevor Phillips, broadcaster Rageh Omaar and writer Afua Hirsch. Today, The Voice is Britain's longest running and only Black newspaper.Told through news reports, editorials and readers' personal letters, this emotive book documents the social history of Black Britain over the last four decades. Each chapter is illustrated with amazing newspaper pages from The Voice's extensive archives as well as iconic and dramatic front covers from 1982 to the present day.With a foreword from Sir Lenny Henry and written by former and current Voice journalists, this powerful book is a celebration of the ground-breaking paper which gave a voice to the voiceless.

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Book SynopsisThe island of Gigha is a small gem, the most southerly of the true Hebridean islands, lying just off Tayinloan on Scotland's Kintyre peninsula. Gigha's good harbours, fertile land, mild climate and strategically useful position have given it a fascinating history. Catherine Czerkawska relates the sometimes turbulent story of the people of Gigha, from the settlers of prehistoric times, through successive incomers including the Celts, the Vikings, and the McNeill lords of this island. A few years ago Gigha was the subject of the largest community buyout in British history, and she brings the story up to date, in examining the relationship between a contemporary island community and its own rich past. The author, like so many people, fell helplessly in love at first sight with Gigha and returns to it time and again. This book explores just what it is that makes the island such an enchanting place.

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Book SynopsisMatt Woodcock returns with this sequel to the bestselling ‘Becoming Reverend’. Follow Matt’s journey as he starts work at one of Hull’s oldest, biggest and emptiest churches. It’s a shadow of its former self, with a small congregation and huge bills to pay. Adding the entrepreneurial (and somewhat excitable) Matt to their clergy line-up is the last throw of the dice for this 700-year-old institution. But is Matt ready for such a tough first assignment? Are his new flock – or his new colleagues – ready for the whirlwind that’s about to descend? And can Matt realize his vision of a thriving church without wrecking his home life in the process? As this real-life diary reveals, Matt’s life being Reverend can be every bit as fraught, funny and fascinating as it was becoming one.Trade Review'Matt’s honesty, wild humour and huge love of humans shines like gold in this book. He is one super gifted chap. I loved it. Read it now!' -- Zoe Ball‘I have known Matt Woodcock for a number of years and it was my privilege to ordain him. God’s Holy Spirit dwells in him, taking him on an adventurous Jesus-shaped journey. Matt writes with his characteristic humour and honesty. It’s a story of God’s love. In reading this book, let’s all find God’s loving heart for each of us.’ -- Archbishop John Sentamu

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Book SynopsisThis extraordinary diary is written by the 27th Earl of Crawford and Balcarres, who was an eminent MP for 18 years until the death of his father in 1913 when he was ennobled. His sense of duty drove him to join the RAMC as a Private (a commission would have been easily provided) and he served in a humble capacity in field hospitals in France without revealing his identity. His diaries and letters reflect the stark contrast between his privileged home life and the one he volunteered for in France and Flanders. Remarkably he is never heard to complain or regret his decision although he is often critical of his 'seniors'. Lord Crawford's pre- and post- war diaries The Crawford Papers (edited by Prof Vincent) describe his peacetime experiences and this book fills in a needy gap. His self- control must have been incredible as he found himself under the direction of far less intelligent and knowledgeable men holding more senior rank. This is a unique document which throws fascinating new light on what it meant to be a junior rank.

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Book SynopsisMore Letters of Note is another rich and inspiring collection, which reminds us that much of what matters in our lives finds its way into our letters.These letters deliver the same mix of the heartfelt, the historically significant, the tragic, the comic and the unexpected. Discover Richard Burton's farewell note to Elizabeth Taylor, Helen Keller's letter to The New York Symphony Orchestra about 'hearing' their concert through her fingers, the final missives from a doomed Japan Airlines flight in 1985, David Bowie's response to his first piece of fan mail from America and even Albus Dumbledore writing to a reader applying for the position of Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor at Hogwarts.Including letters from:Jane Austen, Richard Burton, Helen Keller, Alan Turing, Albus Dumbledore, Eleanor Roosevelt, Henry James, Sylvia Plath, John Lennon, Gerald Durrell, Janis Joplin, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Janis Joplin, Hunter S. Thompson, C. G. Jung, Katherine Mansfield, Marge Simpson, David Bowie, Dorothy Parker, Buckminster Fuller, Beatrix Potter, Che Guevara, Evelyn Waugh, Charlotte Brontë and many more.Trade ReviewAnother mailbag stuffed with funny, heartbreaking and passionate letters ... engaging, eclectic, geekily and gleefully enthusiastic and laugh-out-loud funny * * The Times * *Funny, shocking and poignant, More Letters of Note must be one of the most entertaining books of the year * * Financial Times * *From the genuinely funny: Marge Simpson duelling with First Lady Barbara Bush to the truly heart-breaking: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg's last goodbye to their children before execution. Usher's book is unlike anything else you have read. After all, where else can you find out why Norman Mailer refused money to his father, or how Janis Joplin felt before breaking America? Exactly * * GQ * *Shaun Usher's More Letters of Note mines the archives for more gems of the epistolary arts * * Guardian * *Some of the letters will make you laugh, other heartbreaking examples will make you cry * * Independent * *Reading through them is addictive, like dipping into a bag of variously tempting assorted candies, knowing that the next one will always bring surprise and pleasure. Usher has an evident knack for selecting letters that land with the force of a good short story, with personalities and dramatic arcs emerging swiftly, from just a page or two. Many of the writers are famous people, caught in a moment of accessibility and rawness or off-the-cuff virtuosity * * New Yorker * *A gloriously presented compilation * * Financial Times * *The literary equivalent of a box of chocolates - bite-sized and pure addictive pleasure . . . The result is beautifully produced, with photographs and colour facsimiles of much of the correspondence. A gorgeous Christmas present * * Sunday Times * *Full of warmth . . . Wondrous * * Independent * *Beautiful . . . If you don't find at least something that interests you in this book you are not a proper human being. (And unless you find almost all of it gripping I can't imagine having a conversation with you) * * Spectator * *Open the pages of the anthology and the appeal is immediately obvious * * Observer * *It is inspiring, and often sad, funny, and occasionally quite surreal * * GQ * *An amazing collection * * Monocle Arts Review * *Praise for Letters of Note: Funny, tragic, brilliantly incisive, historic, lyrical, romantic and studiedly offensive, this stupendous compendium of letters ancient and modern is my book of the year. You will never tire of it' -- STEPHEN FRYFunny, sad, startling letters * * Daily Telegraph * *

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Book SynopsisAS HEARD ON RADIO 4'Utterly wonderful' NINA STIBBE, author of Love, NinaTwenty hours have gone since I last wrote. I have been thinking of you. I shall think of you until I post this, and until you get it. Can you feel, as you read these words, that I am thinking of you now; aglow, alive, alert at the thought that you are in the same world, and by some strange chance loving me. In September 1943, Chris Barker was serving as a signalman in North Africa when he decided to brighten the long days of war by writing to old friends. One of these was Bessie Moore, a former work colleague. The unexpected warmth of Bessie's reply changed their lives forever. Crossing continents and years, their funny, affectionate and intensely personal letters are a remarkable portrait of a love played out against the backdrop of the Second World War. Above all, their story is a stirring example of the power of letters to transform ordinary lives.Trade ReviewUtterly wonderful -- NINA STIBBE * * author of LOVE, NINA * *The modern reader is swept along in a gushing sea of yearning, lust, fear, regret and relentlessly candid emotion, and is constantly reminded of the enduring power of letters to transform ordinary lives * * Daily Telegraph * *An immensely affecting set of letters * * Financial Times * *A record - spontaneous, immediate and unassuming - of the implacable triumph of love -- John Carey * * Sunday Times * *These letters are magnificent * * Daily Mail * *Barker and Moore start to fall in love by letter . . . And what a sweaty, lusty love it turns out to be * * Guardian * *What, one longs to know, is going to happen next to Chris and Bessie? . . . The thrillingly intensive experience that they lived through will continue to resonate for as long as those sheets of paper are read -- DIANA ATHILL * * Literary Review * *It's a delight, from the hesitancy of the first letters to the deep, fervent and repeated declarations of love and affection later . . . But it is the openness of the letters that leaves the lasting impression - you get a sense that writing these letters was an opportunity to communicate more freely and deeply than would have been possible elsewhere, even in the most intimate whisperings of pillow talk * * Skinny * *The sheer intensity of their mutual passion, set against the volatility of the war, is heady stuff indeed * * Good Book Guide * *Anyone who has ever got a date using Facebook or Tinder should read this and see what romance really looks like * * Sun * *

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Book SynopsisNew paperback of the acclaimed, sharply immediate diary written from the heart of Occupied Paris by a classic German writer 'Delicately drawn, inventive and unmistakably Parisian' Financial Times The writer Felix Hartlaub died in obscurity at just 31, vanishing from Berlin in 1945. He left behind a small oeuvre of private writings from the Second World War: fragments and observations of life from the midst of catastrophe that, with their evocative power and precision, would make a permanent place for him in German letters. Posted to Paris in 1940 to conduct archival research, Hartlaub recorded his impressions of the unfamiliar city in notebooks that document with unparalleled immediacy the daily realities of occupation. With a painter's eye for detail, Hartlaub writes of the bustle of civilians and soldiers in cafés, of half-seen trysts during blackout hours and the sublime light of Paris in spring. Clouds Over Paris is a unique testament to the persistence of ordinary life through disaster.Trade Review'[Hartlaub's] descriptions are delicately drawn, inventive and unmistakably Parisian - albeit a Paris steeped in interminable cloud and temporarily decked in swastikas... a portrait that intrigues all the more for its half-finished format and its curious provenance... an intriguing anomaly, an unsolvable enigma, and, ultimately, a story cut short.' - Financial Times'Representing a valuable addition to the German canon of Parisian war journals, Felix Hartlaub's fragmentary impressions give us a glimpse of a literary career that could have been' - TLS'The greatest literary talent of his generation' - Die Welt'Clouds Over Paris is the most fascinating account of how normal war can seem, how the most everyday issues seem more important than the biggest historical issues of the day' - Jewish Chronicle'With gentle irony, Hartlaub depicts the institutionalised mendacity of the German occupiers, so wary of the wiles of the French, yet so easily seduced by the lies of their own bellicose propaganda' - The Critic

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Book SynopsisIn the archives of the Memorial International Human Rights Centre in Moscow is an extraordinary diary, a rare first-person testimony of a commander of guards in a Soviet labour camp. Ivan Chistyakov was sent to the Gulag in 1937, where he worked at the Baikal-Amur Corrective Labour Camp for over a year. Life at the Gulag was anathema to Chistyakov, a cultured Muscovite with a nostalgia for pre-revolutionary Russia, and an amateur painter and poet. He recorded its horrors with an unmatchable immediacy, documenting a world where petty rivalries put lives at risk, prisoners hacked off their fingers to bet in card games, railway sleepers were burned for firewood and Siberian winds froze the lather on the soap. From his stumbling poetic musings on the bitter landscape to his matter-of-fact grumbles about his stove, from accounts of the conditions of the camp to reflections on the cruelty of loneliness, this diary is unique - a visceral and immediate description of a place and time whose repercussions still affect the shape of modern Russia.Trade ReviewThe diary of Ivan Chistyakov is unique - a narrative of the brutal conditions in Stalin's Gulag, told from the point of view of one of the captors... Told with a telling eye for detail, the diary is a crushingly bleak portrait of casual violence, unfulfillable quotas, endless fights and escape attempts, inefficiency and injustice - all played out against the deadly dark and cold of a Siberian winter... Perhaps the most chilling psychological insight offered by the diary is the portrait of a humane man conforming to an inhuman system... There is no redemption in The Diary of a Gulag Prison Guard - only a portrait of the banality of evil, and the part that the daily compromises made by a single broken man, play in a vast machine of terror -- Owen Matthews * Spectator *Written in a beautiful, educated hand [...] these notebooks are, so far, unique in confirming the insight of the gulag inmate Varlam Shalamov: that the system dehumanised the guards as much as the prisoners -- Donald Rayfield * Literary Review *A record of this sensitive man's rapid dehumanisation -- Robert Eustace * Sunday Telegraph *A rare and fascinating insight into the Soviet camp system, and a reminder that the imprisoned weren't its only victims -- Anna Reid, author * Leningrad *

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Book SynopsisShortlisted for the James Tait Black biography prize 2019'A moving memoir.' Sunday Times'Gripped me from the first page.' Clover Stroud, author of My Wild and Sleepless Nights'A gripping read... a riveting piece of writing.' Radio 4__________What do our possessions say about us? Why do we project such meaning onto them? What becomes of the things we leave behind?Only after her mother's death does Susannah Walker discover how much of a hoarder she had become. Over the following months, Susannah has to sort through a dilapidated house filled to the brim with rubbish and treasures - filling bag after bag with possessions. But what she's really in search of is a woman she'd never really known or understood in life. This is her last chance to piece together her mother's story and make sense of their troubled relationship. What emerges from the mess of scattered papers, discarded photographs and an extraordinary amount of stuff is the history of a sad and fractured family, haunted by dead children, divorce and alcohol. The Life of Stuff is a deeply personal exploration of mourning and the shoring up of possessions against the losses and griefs of life, which also raises universal questions about what makes us the people we are.__________'Compelling and moving.' Ruth Hogan'An excellent memoir.' Cathy RentzenbrinkTrade ReviewI found Susannah’s book absolutely fascinating. She writes with admirable honesty and the result is a compelling and moving account of her mother’s life and relationships as told by the apocalyptic accumulation of "stuff" she left behind. Susannah’s book is not only a brave testament to an imperfect but precious relationship, but also a reflection on the similarities, however uncomfortable, between mother and daughter. It is a book I know I shall read again. * Ruth Hogan, author of THE KEEPER OF LOST THINGS *A gripping read... a riveting piece of writing * Saturday Review, BBC Radio 4 *An excellent memoir... I finished this book in awe of the sheer interest to be had reading about ordinary people and their lives, but perhaps the point is that no life is ordinary; there is always treasure hidden in the rubbish if we look for it. -- Cathy Rentzenbrink * The Times *A moving memoir. * Sunday Times *Beautifully written ... a powerfully evocative description of [Walker's] interest in the meaning of things. * Charles Saumerz Smith, Chief Executive of the Royal Academy *This extraordinary, beautiful memoir gripped me from the first page. Susannah Walker writes especially well on home and motherhood, yet never resorts to cliche or sentimentality. I loved this book and it moved me profoundly, whilst also making me look at my own life - and the stuff I carry with me - with a new eye. The mess of her mother’s life might frame this book, but Walker is really concerned with human relationships, and in her writing addresses big questions about what it means to be both a mother and a daughter, the power of memory and the devastating loss all of us feel with the passing of time. * Clover Stroud, author of THE WILD OTHER *This is a cracking book ... Walker is a brilliant writer. * Viv Groskop, author of THE ANNA KARENINA FIX *If Marie Kondo has taught us all to ruthlessly clear our lives of stuff, then Walker compels us to think carefully about what we’ll hang on to. -- Jean Hannah Edelstein * The Pool *An intimate and moving memoir ... a revealing story of a mother/daughter relationship. * Woman & Home *With bold prose and ceaseless courage, Susannah Walker tells a mother-daughter story like no other... It is incredibly refreshing to finally read something from the perspective of the child of a hoarder. It is a must-read if you have a parent with a serious hoarding disorder or even if you just suspect hoarding tendencies. I really couldn't put this book down. * Stelios Kiosses, Psychotherapist and Presenter of Channel 4's The Hoarder Next Door *A touching memoir. * Good Housekeeping *

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Book SynopsisShifting Sand is the journal of Julian Berry, then a 17-year-old archaeologist, written on-site during excavations in Deir Alla, Jordan, in 1964. The dig was organized by the University of Leiden and led by Dr Henk Franken who was looking to find a material context for Old Testament narratives, and to build a stratigraphic chronology to mark the transition from the Bronze through to the early Iron Ages based mainly around pottery finds. When the author was working on the site, three clay tablets were discovered from the late Bronze Age with early Canaanite inscriptions, that when translated in 1989 showed that Deir Alla was the Biblical Pethor, and that it had been attacked by Israelites from Pithom in Egypt. Later a wall inscription was found in Aramaic dating to 880-770BCE referencing the prophet Balaam. Berry was as much interested by what was going on above ground as below, and kept a detailed journal of the daily lives of the archaeologists and life in the camp. The dig also had many fascinating and famous archaeologists visiting, including Father Roland de Vaux, and Diana Kirkbride. During breaks from the dig Berry went on a number of journeys in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria and he describes their cities, but also the very tranquil agricultural countryside that he found at that time. He discovered adventure when a drunk taxi driver tried to murder him as he resisted his advances; later he was caught up in a revolt against Hafez al-Assad in Homs, father of Bashir, and was asked by a taxi driver if he had come to Damascus to see the public hanging. Above all this book should be read as fascinating insight into the lives of archaeologists over 50 years ago, and the very close links between the European team, the Arab workmen, and the daily life in a simple mud-brick village.Table of ContentsForeword; Introduction; Diary Entries, 1964; Appendix; Postscript

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Book SynopsisCaroline Louise Ransom Williams (1872-1952) is remembered as the first American university-trained female Egyptologist, but she is not widely-known in the history of science. Her mentor was James Henry Breasted, well-known as the first American Egyptologist and founder of the Oriental Institute at the University of Chicago. As long as they worked together and as much as they depended on each other professionally, Ransom Williams is little more than a footnote in the published history of archaeology. She was a successful scholar, instructor, author, and museum curator. She also had personal struggles with her mother and her husband that affected the choices she could make about her career. This book presents the correspondence between Ransom Williams and Breasted because the letters are crucial in piecing together and allowing an in-depth analysis of her life and career. The written conversation, comprised of 240 letters between the two, shows that Ransom Williams had a full life and productive career as the first American female Egyptologist. Through these letters, we see part of a life that is unique while at the same time analogous to other professional women in the period. This edition is the first book-length discussion of Ransom Williams’ life and career.Table of ContentsEditorial Principles; Preface, by Anne S. Flannery; Biographical Introduction; The Correspondence, 1898-1935; Epilogue: 1935-1952; Appendix; Character Index; Bibliography

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Book SynopsisThis hilarious, relatable, and interactive journal is the perfect companion for those nine (or ten?!) months of excitement, milestones, hormone swings, and baby/fruit size comparisons. Right this very moment, you're growing a tiny life in your body and with that life-growing comes a lot of feelings-some beautiful, some exhilarating, and some straight-up ridiculous. You'll have a lot on your mind and with The Big Journal for Pregnant People you can record all the ups, downs, and in-betweens. With playful prompts, brilliant quotes, pregnancy facts, straight-talking advice, and plenty of space to draw, this book is a must-have for anyone who wants to make some time for themselves before that precious arrival changes, well, everything.Most baby books are about the baby. This one is for you. Now go grab a pencil, you've got memories to make.

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Book SynopsisRed Odyssey: Liverpool FC 1892-2017, is a uniquely affectionate and often deeply moving history of one of the greatest sporting institutions on the planet. Born in the fire of boardroom conflict and launched into the humble surroundings of the Lancashire League, Liverpool Football Club not only endured but rose to conquer all of Europe, leaving its local rivals trailing in its wake. This journey through the ages represents a thrilling sporting odyssey, packed with heroes and foes, victors and villains. It features tales of conquest and heroic homecomings as well as soul-crushing defeats. Its people have endured great tragedy and fought for both redemption and vindication. Modern-day Liverpool supporters, standing on the shoulders of their forebears, are tough, gritty, irreverent and united. These qualities have sustained them for 125 years, and they run through the book like a golden thread. Red Odyssey is 125 individual love letters to Liverpool FC and its people, written with a Scouse accent.

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Book Synopsis'Charming, touching and very very funny' Jenny Colgan'Simply too good' Daily MailFrom the author of the Times bestselling A Chip Shop in PoznanONE HOUSE. TWO HOUSEMATES. THREE REASONS TO WORRY: WINNIE AND BEN ARE SEPARATED BY 50 YEARS, A GULF IN CLASS, AND MAJOR DIFFERENCES OF OPINION.When hunting for a room in London, Ben Aitken came across one for a great price in a lovely part of town. There had to be a catch. And there was. The catch was Winnie: an 85-year-old widow who doesn't suffer fools.Full of warmth, wit and candour, The Marmalade Diaries tells the story of an unlikely friendship during an unlikely time. Imagine an intergenerational version of Big Brother, but with only two contestants. One of the pair a grieving and inflexible former aristocrat in her mid-eighties. The other a working-class millennial snowflake. What could possibly go wrong? What could possibly go right?Out of the most inauspicious of soils - and from the author of The Gran Tour - comes a book about grief, family, friendship, loneliness, life, love, lockdown and marmalade.Trade ReviewCharming, touching and very very funny * Jenny Colgan *Displays a keen eye for the humour of everyday life ... underneath it all is the wonderful story of two people born half a century apart, learning lessons from each other. * Daily Mail *Warm, funny and perceptive -- Jane Shilling * Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis‘If the face that Brexit Britain presents to the world today had been the face we had presented when going for the Games… no chance. In less than a decade it feels like we have taken that Olympic spirit, the mood of London 2012, and created a Britain which represents the very opposite of all it represented, and felt like, at the time.’ – Introduction, Alastair Campbell Diaries, Volume 8 It’s 2010 and Britain stands at a crossroads. After thirteen years in power, Labour find themselves out in the cold as David Cameron takes office – with a little help from the Liberal Democrats. As the country begins its journey into austerity and, eventually, to Brexit, Alastair Campbell must grapple with his own future. The Blair–Brown years are over, with the stage set for a bitter leadership contest that will test loyalties and friendships to the limit. There are battles closer to home, too, with Campbell still torn between domestic and political life while his own and his family’s mental health come under increasing strain. From the controversial Rose Garden speech, through the sunny optimism of the Olympics, to Cameron’s cavalier attitude to not one but two referendums, and culminating in the critical 2015 election, Volume 8 of Campbell’s acclaimed diaries is a must-read for anyone wondering how we got to where we are today – and how things might have been different.

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Book SynopsisAcclaimed as one of the sharpest political intellects of his generation, David Laws saw his ministerial career nosedive before it had begun when, after only seventeen days as Chief Secretary to the Treasury, he was forced to resign when unintended breaches of parliamentary expenses rules came to light. You can't keep a good man down, however, and he returned to government, where he was also responsible for the implementation of the coalition agreement and planning the Lib Dems' strategy in the run-up to the 2015 election. David began writing a diary in March 2012 and continued writing it throughout his ministerial career and up to the 2015 election, which devastated the Liberal Democrats in Parliament.Frank, acerbic, sometimes shocking and often funny, Coalition Diaries chronicles the historic Liberal Democrat-Conservative coalition government, offering extraordinary pen portraits of all the personalities involved, some of whom were cast aside at the election or put to the knife after Brexit, while others are active in today's government.

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Book SynopsisLambda Literary Award Finalist - LGBTQ Anthology2019 Over the Rainbow Recommended Book ListDedicated to trans women everywhere, this inspirational collection of letters written by successful trans women shares the lessons they learnt on their journeys to womanhood, celebrating their achievements and empowering the next generation to become who they truly are.Written by politicians, scientists, models, athletes, authors, actors, and activists from around the world, these letters capture the diversity of the trans experience and offer advice from make-up and dating through to fighting dysphoria and transphobia.By turns honest and heartfelt, funny and furious or beautiful and brave, these letters send a clear message of hope to their sisters: each of these women have gone through the struggles of transition and emerged the other side as accomplished, confident women; and if we made it sister, so can you!Trade ReviewA must-read collection of letters from truly inspirational women. Packed with essential advice, stories of overcoming adversity, and uplifting messages of hope for anyone starting transition. This wonderful book shows that our community really is like a family, and most importantly: we've all got your back, sis. -- Sarah O'Connell, host of The Sarah O'Connell Show on YoutubeOverflowing with hard-won wisdom and compassionate insight, Charlie Craggs' To My Trans Sisters is a love letter to our community from the women who understand, better than anyone, what our world is like. An invaluable resource for any trans person - and those that love us. -- Jennifer Finney Boylan, author of She's Not There and Long Black VeilThis inspiring collection of letters is essential reading for anyone thinking about transitioning and feels alone, or who wants to understand the diverse experiences trans women have. The messages of hope, humour and triumph over adversity make this book a powerful tool, regardless of where the reader is on the gender spectrum. -- Sarah Savage, co-founder of the Trans Pride Brighton charity and author of Are You a Boy or Are You a Girl?This invigorating anthology, written by trans women for trans women, is a welcome departure from the established genre of texts about trans individuals that seek to explain their lives and experiences for a presumed audience of primarily cisgendered individuals. Editor Craggs, a trans activist and founder of Nail Transphobia, assembles over 70 letters written by trans women, sharing the advice they wish they had been given earlier in life. Rather than documenting the psychological or physiological steps of self-discovery and transition, these letters discuss transness as embedded in fully individual lives. 'Don't get lost in the transition!' writes Kate Stone, founder of Novalia, a groundbreaking printing company. Fashion designer Gogo Graham's advice is more sobering: alluding to the threat of violence many trans people face, she writes, 'Find shoes in which you feel able to run.' Contributors are predominantly from the United States and Britain, though a scattering of letters, such as entries by Audrey Mbugua, a transgender activists based in Kenya, and Miss SaHHara, a singer-songwriter from Thailand, provide global context. The impressive professional and activist credentials of the letter writers, who include the creator of the transgender pride flag and the first transgender officer to serve openly in the U.K. military, might leave the reader wishing for a few unexceptional voices. Yet these women's success stories help counteract media narratives of tragedy without glossing over the pervasive discrimination and violence trans women, particularly trans women of color, face daily. While this book is written for a trans audience, cis readers will find value in reading a work not written primarily for them. (Nov.) -- Publishers WeeklyA touching and inspiring anthology of letters edited by Craggs (founder of Nail Transphobia),this offering collects missives of advice for transgender women. Brief biographies precede each letter, allowing readers to get a sense of the background of the writer. Letters come in different formats: traditional letters, letters to the writer's self, poetry, single sentences, and more. Craggs gathers an astonishingly diverse cadre of contributors, who offer both practical and emotional advice. A full range of emotions are represented in the raw, allowing for celebration, anger, and beyond. The work is appropriate for reading straight through or for picking up at different points, delivering the experience of transgender women, nonbinary individuals, and more. Cisgender readers will get a sincere look into the lives of many trans individuals and glean excellent guidance for embarking on any personal journey, while trans readers will find a range of strengthening reflections. VERDICT A triumph in topics of gender and women's studies, this anthology is unlike anything available today and is a must-have for those seeking to understand the trans community on a myriad of levels. -- Library Journal, Starred ReviewTable of ContentsN/A

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Book SynopsisIn Letters of Note: New York, Shaun Usher curates a collection of extraordinary written exchanges about the Big Apple, from the marvelling of wide-eyed newcomers and the devoted outpourings of native citizens, to the frustrated outcries of the dispossessed and the fond reminiscences of old-timers. Includes letters by: Italo Calvino, Ralph Ellison, Kahlil Gibran, Helen Keller, Martin Scorsese, Saum Song Bo, Anaïs Nin & many moreTrade ReviewPraise for Letters of Note: The literary equivalent of a box of chocolates - bite-sized and pure addictive pleasure . . . The result is beautifully produced, with photographs and colour facsimiles of much of the correspondence * * Sunday Times * *Addictive, like dipping into a bag of variously tempting assorted candies, knowing that the next one will always bring surprise and pleasure * * New Yorker * *A gloriously presented compilation * * Financial Times * *As a guide to letters that deserve a wider readership, Usher's compilation is hard to beat * * Scotland on Sunday * *Quite literally the most enjoyable volume it is possible to imagine. Every page is a marvel * * Spectator * *It is hard to see how Letters Of Note could ever be surpassed * * Mail on Sunday * *Funny, tragic, brilliantly incisive, historic, lyrical, romantic and studiedly offensive, this stupendous compendium of letters ancient and modern is my book of the year. You will never tire of it -- Stephen FryIt is inspiring, and often sad, funny, and occasionally quite surreal * * GQ * *A wonderful collection of magical missives . . . It'll have you reaching for pen and paper * * Evening Standard * *A truly extraordinary reading experience * * Big Issue * *

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Book SynopsisIn Letters of Note: Cats, Shaun Usher collects together the most engaging missives that celebrate, eulogise, rail against and analyse the idiosyncratic ways of our feline companions.Nikola Tesla, Elizabeth Taylor,Charles Dickens, Anne Frank,T.S. Eliot, Raymond Chandler,John Cheever, Florence Nightingale,Rachel Carson, Jack Lemmon& many moreTrade ReviewA wonderful collection of magical missives . . . It'll have you reaching for pen and paper * * Evening Standard * *Praise for Letters of Note: It is hard to see how Letters Of Note could ever be surpassed * * Mail on Sunday * *The volume is so well-produced it could become an heirloom, passed down through generations * * Huffington Post * *Quite literally the most enjoyable volume it is possible to imagine. Every page is a marvel * * Spectator * *Addictive, like dipping into a bag of variously tempting assorted candies, knowing that the next one will always bring surprise and pleasure * * New Yorker * *A gloriously presented compilation * * Financial Times * *The literary equivalent of a box of chocolates - bite-sized and pure addictive pleasure . . . The result is beautifully produced, with photographs and colour facsimiles of much of the correspondence. A gorgeous Christmas present * * The Sunday Times * *

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Book SynopsisThe perfect Mother's Day gift - a compulsive collection of the world's most entertaining, inspiring and powerful letters with mothers at their heart, curated by the founder of the global phenomenon lettersofnote.comIn Letters of Note: Mothers, Shaun Usher gathers together exceptional missives by and to mothers, celebrating the joy and grief, humour and frustration, wisdom and sacrifice the role brings to both parent and child. Includes letters by:Caitlin Moran, Sylvia Plath,Martin Luther King Jr., George Bernard Shaw,E.B. White, Laura Dern, Louisa May Alcott,Edna St. Vincent Millay, Bette Davis,Richard Wagner, Martha Gellhorn& many moreTrade ReviewThe letters range from the famous to the quietly heroic. None is more poignant than that written in 1950 by the Czech socialist politician Milada Horáková to her sixteen-year-old daughter. Horáková had been arrested and sentenced to death for treason, and the letter was written the night before her execution. Heartbreaking * * Observer * *Praise for Shaun Usher: Another mailbag stuffed with funny, heartbreaking and passionate letters . . . engaging, eclectic, geekily and gleefully enthusiastic and laugh-out-loud funny * * The Times * *Shaun Usher's More Letters of Note mines the archives for more gems of the epistolary arts * * Guardian * *Funny, tragic, brilliantly incisive, historic, lyrical, romantic and studiedly offensive, this stupendous compendium of letters ancient and modern is my book of the year. You will never tire of it' -- STEPHEN FRYFrom the genuinely funny: Marge Simpson duelling with First Lady Barbara Bush to the truly heart-breaking: Julius and Ethel Rosenberg's last goodbye to their children before execution. Usher's book is unlike anything else you have read. After all, where else can you find out why Norman Mailer refused money to his father, or how Janis Joplin felt before breaking America? Exactly * * GQ * *Funny, shocking and poignant, More Letters of Note must be one of the most entertaining books of the year * * Financial Times * *Some of the letters will make you laugh, other heartbreaking examples will make you cry * * Independent * *Reading through them is addictive, like dipping into a bag of variously tempting assorted candies, knowing that the next one will always bring surprise and pleasure. Usher has an evident knack for selecting letters that land with the force of a good short story, with personalities and dramatic arcs emerging swiftly, from just a page or two. Many of the writers are famous people, caught in a moment of accessibility and rawness or off-the-cuff virtuosity * * New Yorker * *A gloriously presented compilation * * Financial Times * *The literary equivalent of a box of chocolates - bite-sized and pure addictive pleasure . . . The result is beautifully produced, with photographs and colour facsimiles of much of the correspondence. A gorgeous Christmas present * * Sunday Times * *

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Book Synopsis'Being asked to write about Kafka is like being asked to describe the Great Wall of China by someone who's standing just next to it. The only honest thing to do is point.' Joshua Cohen, from his preface to He: Shorter Writings of Franz KafkaThis is a Kafka emergency kit, a congregation of the brief, the minor works that are actually major. Joshua Cohen has produced a frame that refuses distinctions between what is a story, a letter, a workplace memo and a diary entry, also including popular favourites like The Bucket Rider, The Penal Colony and The Burrow. Here we see Kafka's preoccupations in writing about animals, messiah variations, food and exercise, each in his signature style.Cohen's selection emphasises the stately structure of utterly coherent logic, within an utterly incoherent illogical world, showing how Kafka harnessed the humblest grammar to metamorphic power until the predominant effect ceases to be the presence of an unreliable narrator, but the absence of the universe's only reliable narrator. Who is God.

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Book SynopsisA Sunday Times Book of the YearAll royalties from sales of this book go to The Big IssueIf you could write a letter to your younger self, what would it say?Over 10 years ago, The Big Issue began to ask some of the best-known, most interesting and most successful figures in entertainment, politics, food, sport and business to give advice, offer hope and share a few jokes with their younger selves. They opened up, in ways they never had, to interviewer Jane Graham, reflecting on their lives and themselves with affection, sympathy and sometimes disbelief. This collection of 100 of the most incredible letters includes Paul McCartney on how he found inspiration, Olivia Colman on overcoming confidence problems, Mo Farah on the importance of losing, Arianna Huffington on knowing your motivations, Jamie Oliver on trusting your instinct and many, many more, including Rod Stewart, Margaret Atwood, Buzz Aldrin, David Cameron, Eddie Izzard, Desmond Tutu, Neil Gaiman, Ruby Wax, Ranulph Fiennes, Tracey Emin, Ian McEwan, Michael Palin, Melanie C, Tim Peake, Dionne Warwick and Ewan McGregor.Letter to My Younger Self is a revelatory and profound exploration into the wit and wisdom that age brings, and of the unique insights that looking back can reveal.Proceeds from the sales of this book go to The Big Issue to continue their work dismantling poverty and promoting social justice."A truly wonderful book ... a gateway to intelligent, learned and genuinely inspiring stories, moments and people ... We would highly recommend it ... It's a fab cause and put together seamlessly." Magic Radio - October Book Club Pick'The answers make for great reading.' Sunday Mirror'This collection is full of insightful stories that will make you think about how you live your own life, and how you want to live it in the future.' Woman's Weekly Trade ReviewA thoughtful, funny and moving book. -- Alastair Mabbott * The National Scot *Like all the best ideas, it's simple. A hundred famous people, from Hollywood stars to sporting heroes, were asked [...] what they'd say to the younger version of themselves. The answers make for great reading. -- Book review * Sunday Mirror *This collection is full of insightful stories that will make you think about how you live your own life, and how you want to live it in the future. And the best bit is that all the royalties from the sale of the book will go to The Big Issue. -- Book of the month review * Woman's Weekly *

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Book SynopsisWhen in March 2020 the Covid pandemic led the Government to impose a total lockdown Gabriel Josipovici decided that he would respond to a unique situation by writing an essay a day for a hundred days, prefacing each with a diary entry, keeping track of the changing seasons as well as the pandemic. As organising and generating principle for the essays he chose the alphabet, and the result is a stimulating kaleidoscope of topics from Aachen to Zoos, passing by Alexandria, Luciano Berio, Ivy Compton-Burnett, reflections on his own early works The Echo-Chamber and Flow, Langland's Piers Plowman, the idea of repetition in life and art, and much else. Josipovici reminds us that he has previously 'plundered episodes in my life to illustrate the intertwining of memory and forgetting, the desire to remember and the need to forget', and here he has someone say to him: 'You don't seem to be afraid of revealing a great deal about yourself.' 'I don’t think I feel it that way,' he responds. 'I can "reveal" precisely because it does not seem to be part of me. It seems to belong to someone else, a writer I have lived with, an immigrant I have known.' Loquacious, funny and incautious, this surprising book is in effect a kind of expressionist self-portrait as well as a meditation on a hundred days of the pandemic.Trade Review'Gabriel Josipovici is one of our most brilliant writers - every new book is an event to look forward to.' - Deborah Levy, Man Booker Prize Nominee

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Book SynopsisThe lines, circles, ticks, hooks, dots and dashes of Pitman shorthand used by some postcard writers during the early twentieth century are obscure to most people. Could the mysterious messages contain scandalous gossip, tales of adventure or declarations of undying love?Fifty Mysterious Postcards presents fascinating examples from the ‘Golden Age’ of the postcard, each with a message written in the dying art of Pitman shorthand. The rules of Pitman have changed since the postcards were written and posted over 100 years ago, but careful transcription has unlocked their meaning to bring stories of penfriends, sweethearts, holidays and the First World War to life once more.Trade Review“The format mostly features spreads with the postcards – beauty scenes, landmarks, cute animals – with the original name and address written longhand and the message in shorthand.” * Best of British magazine *

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Book SynopsisIn 1697, a 34-year-old woman mounted her horse and set off on a 3,000-mile journey which over two summers would take her to every county in England. Her name was Celia Fiennes. It was a time when women didn’t do such things. It could be gruelling, unhealthy and dangerous. As she discovered, most roads were unsigned, marshy tracks, lodgings could be filthy and vermin-ridden, and highwaymen lay in wait for the unwary.Luckily for us, Celia Fiennes kept a detailed diary about the places she saw and the people she met. She reports on the brutal justice system and political shenanigans of the time, and is fascinated by industry and commerce – workshops, shipping and especially coal-pits and tin mines. What she tells us is significant as the Industrial Revolution would soon change England forever.Yet this remarkable woman and her story have, until now, been largely neglected.In England From a Side-Saddle, historian and journalist Derek J. Taylor seeks to put that right. As we follow the route Celia Fiennes took, we see through her eyes an England of 320 years ago, and learn of the courage, determination and curiosity of one woman who was centuries ahead of her time.

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Book SynopsisThe artist and writer Yevgenia Belorusets was in her hometown of Kyiv when Russia's invasion of Ukraine began on the morning of February 24, 2022. For her and millions of Ukrainians, reality changed overnight. She set out to document the war and its effects on the ordinary residents of the country: the relentless sound of sirens and gunfire; intense moments of connection and solidarity with strangers; the struggle to make sense of a good mood on a spring day. Published each day in German by the newspaper Der Spiegel and in English by ISOLARII, War Diary had an immediate impact worldwide. Issued here with a new preface and more recent entries by the author, it stands as a unique monument to the devastation and resilience of a city under siege.Trade Review'How do you remain an artist at such a moment of terror? One answer might come in the form of Belorusets's war diary which she began publishing as the invasion started and which has gained the appreciation of writers like Margaret Atwood and Miranda July' - Atlantic'The surreal circumstances Belorusets depicts, both in her writing and in the accompanying photographs, set against the drama of war are quietly disturbing. A compelling portrait of a nation under siege as well as the inspiring resilience of ordinary Ukrainians' - Kirkus Reviews

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Book Synopsis Presenting the 1937 diaries of John F. Kennedy’s tour of Europe, this volume offers insights into his early experiences on a continent under the shadow of Nazism. In 1937, while still a student, John F. Kennedy undertook a grand tour of Europe with his close friend and traveling companion, Lem Billings. On this journey he began to keep a diary, which is reproduced here in full and provides an unadulterated account of his thoughts and feelings. Superficially, it presents a picture of two young men enjoying their summer, sightseeing, going to the movies, bars and night clubs; but behind this we find, in Kennedy’s political observations and encounters, the looming shadow of Nazism. In retrospect there are blind spots and misjudgments, but also insights of great topicality, for example on populism, and propaganda and its potent effects. On this trip and during his later travels in Germany, Kennedy engaged with the crucial questions of his later presidency: How does a dictatorship work? How is an alternative concept of society to be countered? And how can an impending war be averted? Kennedy’s European and Russian policies and also his famous Berlin speech of 1963 (“Ich bin ein Berliner”) are to be understood against this background. In addition to numerous archive photographs, this volume contains Kennedy’s complete diary of his 1937 trip to Europe and, as a counterpart, the “Scrapbook” of Lem Billings who documented it from his perspective.Trade Review “Professor Lubrich has written a brilliant Introduction that examines both the background to Kennedy's travels in 1937 and provides a preview of his subsequent visits to Germany in 1939, 1945, and 1963." • Philip Cassier, Welt am SonntagTable of Contents Acknowledgements About this book Introduction: “Hitler seems so popular here”: John F. Kennedy’s Travels in Germany Between Insight and Misperception Oliver Lubrich Editorial Principles Images 1939-1945 John F. Kennedy—European Diary, July—September 1937 Kirk LeMoyne Billings—Scrapbook, 1937 Images 1937 Travel Itinerary and Timetable Bibliography

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Book SynopsisHighgate Cemetery is perhaps Britain's most celebrated cemetery, best-known as the last resting place of Karl Marx. But also, of such luminaries as George Eliot and Michael Faraday, and still a sought-after burial ground with the likes of George Michael and Lucian Freud more recently interred alongside another 170,000 mostly ordinary Londoners. Adding to the attraction of celebrity names and fascinating histories is the lure of its remarkable architecture, a striking mix of Classical, Gothic and Egyptian styles setting its catacombs in a dramatic vista which for years was crowned by a spreading Cedar of Lebanon. An unchallenged Grade One landscape. But it has faced a major challenge in fighting the dereliction and the unfettered spread of self-seeded foliage while running short of grave space since it was abandoned by its original owners fifty years ago. Since then, it has been kept going by volunteers. In 2019 they had accumulated enough resources to begin a long-term conservation programme. But first they had to shepherd a Private Bill through Parliament to allow them to reclaim ancient grave-space to keep the Cemetery alive. This is a diary of the two years it took, the unexpected challenges along the way, which included Covid, and some reflections about life in the Cemetery.

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Book SynopsisThe first-hand story of two people's emigration journey, told through their original letters. It draws parallels between this couple's situation, in the 1920s, and that of their parents, grandparents and other relatives, who emigrated in previous times and to different countries.

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Book SynopsisNavigate the journey of grief with compassionate guidance and healing activities tailored to support you through every stage of your personal healing processWith simple advice and guided activities, this workbook is a comforting companion to support you through your healing journey after experiencing loss Grief is the natural response to loss, and it's something that affects everyone at some point in their lives. It can manifest itself in many ways - sadness, panic, confusion, anger - and it's often completely unpredictable. If you're experiencing grief, you may feel isolated and alone, but this guided workbook is here to support you through each step of this personal journey. Filled with activities for exploring your emotions and coming to terms with your grief, this book will help you begin the gradual healing process. Inside you will find: - An overview of what grief is and how you might experience it -

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