Travel writing Books

Book SynopsisA story about the author's 3,000-mile solo walk across an entire continent, from Namibia's Skeleton Coast to the Indian Ocean near Zanzibar.Trade Review'A fresh and hugely amusing perspective... a heartwarming reflection of Africa's people and places' Metro'A likeable and self-deprecating narrator... I found myself increasingly gripped' Observer'An honest and hugely amusing account... Sandham's love for Africa is contagious' South African Magazine'Classical account of one man's struggle to test himself against Nature... Hope we shall hear more of his travels' The Daily Telegraph'Frank and uplifting, a well-written account' Wanderlust'This is real old school adventure... Great stuff' Adventure Travel'Writes with down-to-earth glee of the personalities, hardships, pleasures and idiocy of a solo walk' Longitude Longitude'Warm and entertaining... It is his enthusiasm for adventure and the variety of human life that makes Traversa so memorable' New Statesman

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Book SynopsisThe surprising story of Ireland's beloved broadcaster.

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Book SynopsisThe celebrated twentieth-century travel writer's remarkable journey through the high Andes of Peru.Trade ReviewPatrick Leigh Fermor is an exquisite among travel writers ... Having a polished sense of poetry and a bright sense of humour, he outshines Lawrence ... This is a delicious book * Sunday Telegraph *Bringing the landscape alive as no other writer can, he uses his profound and eclectic understanding of cultures and peoples ... to paint vivid pictures - nobody has illuminated the geography of Europe better * Geographical Magazine *John Murray is doing the decent thing and reissuing all of Leigh Fermor's main books ... But what else would you expect from a publisher whose commitment to geography is such that for more than two centuries it has widened our understanding of the world? * Geographical Magazine *Enthralling and elegant prose ... There could be no better travelling companion than Patrick Leigh Fermor * Daily Mail *Leigh Fermor's use of English is as exhilarating as the stark beauty of the landscape he describes... there is no one so adept at evoking the melancholy of raw wilderness * Daily Telegraph *His grand style perfectly captures the country's generous people and magnificent landscape ... Leigh Fermor has an individual and attractive voice, his tales are charming and his mind open * Financial Times *He makes exotic and entertaining friends wherever he goes, has read everything, been everywhere, known everyone and writes like a dream * The Times *

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Book SynopsisTim Mackintosh-Smith concludes his travels in the footsteps of Moroccan traveller Ibn Battutah across the 'worlds beyond the winds'Trade Review'Landfalls is a beautifully written account of Islamic life and culture in the 21st century. Whether he is looking for proof of demons off the coast of an island in the Maldives or indulging in a delirious dance to the sound of an ancient Guinean musical instrument, his book is a joyous celebration of cultural diversity' * Sunday Times *'Well paced, erudite, amusing . . . almost always fascinating . . . Landfalls proves that reports of the death of the travel book are premature. Far from it. With its mix of literary adventure, biography and autobiography, this book suggests that, in the right hands, the genre can be as flexible, energetic and rewarding as ever' * Literary Review *'Captivating' * Scotsman *'In this exquisitiely written volume, Mackintosh-Smith establishes himself as a pre-eminent travel writer of his generation, comparable to an earlier D. H. Lawrence of Eric Newby' * Toronto Globe and Mail *'The long-awaited and dazzling conclusion to the Tim Mackintosh-Smith trilogy' * Country Life *'Mackintosh-Smith's third and final volume in the series . . . is as delightful as the first two. What draws readers in is his enthusiasm and wonder . . . Another fantastic voyage of two distinctive travel writers. Recommended for those interested in travel, history and Middle East study areas' * Library Journal *'An entertaining and learned travelling companion. And, if he persuades more people to read Ibn Battutah, so much the better' * TLS *'Mackintosh-Smith's zesty travelogue is packed with eccentric characters and anecdote' * FT *'Landfalls marks the dazzling conclusion to a trilogy' * Middle East *

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Book SynopsisAn engaging and often funny introduction to Arab culture through the experiences of an English family living in the Middle East.Trade Review“Inspiring, challenging, and valuable. It’s not easy to pigeon-hole as it’s autobiography combined with a hugely helpful and well-told narrative about the politics, ecology, cultures, and religions of the region at the crossroads of the world. If you’re puzzled by what’s on the news concerning Iraq, Syria, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and the rest of the Middle East, this is a great place to start. It’s told with humour and empathy, and most of all with deep love for the people and the places where many of today’s global tensions focus. Read it soon and you’ll not only be better informed, you’ll see the people and region quite differently.” -- Reverend Dave Bookless, Director of Theology, A Rocha International“This is Christianity bringing real hope to the wildlife, wild places, and the people of Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley and beyond. It is an extraordinary tale of faith in action with cultural and historical insights sandwiched in regional turmoil.” -- David Chandler, co-author of RSPB Guide to Birdwatching“This is a very readable and compelling account of a family living through tumultuous events in the Middle East. I can’t think of a better way of getting beneath the surface and understanding something of the culture, religion and politics of the region than through the very varied experiences of Chris and Susanna and their family. Having lived through some of these same events and seen their creative conservation work in Lebanon, I can vouch for the fact that it made a very significant contribution in a troubled country.” -- Reverend Colin Chapman, formerly lecturer in Islamic Studies, Near East School of Theology, Beirut, Lebanon“The environmental condition of the Middle East is easily forgotten amidst the maelstrom of politics and conflict. This rich and inspiring account of the Naylor family’s adventures in Lebanon, and the setting up of A Rocha’s project to help protect the priceless Aammiq wetlands in the Bekaa Valley, will help put many a conservation battle into perspective. It is thoughtful, wise, and compelling reading, with enough name-dropping of exciting fauna to make you thirst to go there yourself.” -- Dominic Couzens, bestselling natural history writer and author of Secret Lives of Garden Birds“More than the story of a remarkable and pioneering family and the conservation organization they led, Postcards from the Middle East gives a hard-won and deeply grounded perspective on a beautiful and troubled country whose history has come to affect us all. Chris Naylor’s knowledgeable affection for the landscapes and cultures he gave so much to understand, and for the Lebanese people whose current diaspora are found all around the world, shines through every page. With every chapter, we become the beneficiaries of his many years in the region; the extraordinary legacy of his working years there give him a wise and moderate voice that deserves to be widely heard.” -- Peter Harris, President and co-founder of A Rocha“Chris Naylor has reminded me of a carpet weaver in Medhat Bacha market in old Damascus. He was able to skilfully weave in various threads of culture, family, history, religion, mythology, and politics to produce a colourful carpet. Naylor’s lucid and conversational style makes the book an enjoyable reading. I appreciated his cultural sensitivity and authentic sincerity as he shares his and his family’s experiences and adventures. This book deserves to be placed next to Edward Said’s Orientalism, but I assure you that you will read it with lots of smiles and laughter!” -- Dr Riad Kassis, Director, Langham Scholars Ministry, Langham PartnershipTable of ContentsContentsMap of Lebanon 8Acknowledgments 9A Note on Transliteration of Arabic to English Text 10Introduction: To Picnic or Not to Picnic? 11Chapter 1: The Middle East and Back Again 21Chapter 2: The Keys to the House: The Arabic Language 39Chapter 3: Lebanon After the Civil War 55Chapter 4: A History Told in Stone 71Chapter 5: Grounded in the Valley 87Chapter 6: Mission Impossible 101Chapter 7: “Salaam Alaykum and Merry Christmas and Thanks Be to God” 115Chapter 8: How I Got a Gun 125Chapter 9: Crossing Cultures 141Chapter 10: The Day the World Changed 153Chapter 11: Myths, Legends, and Superstitions 165Chapter 12: Valentine’s Day 181Chapter 13: A Summer War 193Chapter 14: The Final Departure 209Chapter 15: A New Country 219Appendix 231The Naylor Family and the Middle East Timeline 237Suggested Reading 239Last Word… 240

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Book Synopsis Follow much-loved Scottish comedian Billy Connolly across Route 66 on this unforgettable journey, filled with music, modern history and hilarious stories.Billy Connolly first dreamed of taking a trip on the legendary Route 66 when he heard Chuck Berry belting out one of the greatest rock ''n'' roll records of all time - and now he''s finally had the chance to do it. Travelling every one of its 2,278 miles on his custom-make motorbike, Billy''s journey takes him past many of the best-known icons in the US: the Gateway Arch in St Louis, Monument Valley and the Grand Canyon, and the funky neon-lit gas stations and diners that once lined the route.Billy also has the chance to get to know the people who call it home, from Mervin the Amish carpenter, to fellow banjo enthusiast and obsessive instrument collector Rob, to Angel, one of the many people determined to keep the spirit of the Mother Road alive. Funny, touching and inspiring in equal measure, the tales he gathers on the way tell the story of modern America.With his unrivalled instinct for a good story, and the gregariousness that has made him a comedy legend, Billy Connolly is the ultimate guide to the ultimate road trip.

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Book SynopsisCharley Boorman is back on his bike exploring the world''s second largest country - home to some of the most stunning and challenging terrain known to man. Canada is a country of extremes, and Charley knows all about pushing the limits. He goes dirt biking in New Brunswick, dives through old shipwrecks in Tobermory and rides along Butch Cassidy''s old Outlaw Trail. He also meets a fascinating mix of people on his journey. As he heads across Canada, he plays ice hockey with a legend of the game; spends a day as a Mountie cadet and nearly meets a ghost in Winnipeg . . . Written with Charley''s trademark enthusiasm and humour, Extreme Frontiers is fast-paced, hugely entertaining and packed with adventure (and rather a lot of mosquitoes).

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Book SynopsisA funny and poignant account of life in Buenos Aires, by a young prize-winning writer.

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Book SynopsisA humorous and affectionate look at modern Spain, and a celebration of the country''s greatest book, from the pen of a brilliant young writer.When in 1987 Miranda France spent a year living in Madrid, the post-dictatorship ebullience was at its height. Pornography and soft drugs were legalised alongside more basic freedoms, such as divorce, party-affiliation and kissing in the street. In 1998 she returned to make a journey through the great cities and towns of central Spain - Madrid, Toledo, Segovia, Salamanca and others. With the new prosperity, much has changed. But much has also endured, as she learns from the people she meets, who include a private detective, a shepherd, various nuns, two belly dancers and a Castilian separatist. She also discovers that Cervantes'' DON QUIXOTE'' published in 1605 and the most translated book after the Bible - is a work of genius which still helps to explain the Spanish character: today''s Spaniards still suffer from Don Quixote''s delusions, and are as stubborn, inflexible and unrealistic as they have always been.

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Book SynopsisForeigner Adrian Gill (a Scot) goes in search of the essence of England and the EnglishTrade Review'In a series of fascinating essays, Gill reveals there is a swell of suppressed anger in the English . . . Much of it is extremely funny, the reader is left with the queasy question: what if he is right?' * SUNDAY TIMES *'An entertaining polemic . . . A thought-provoking, some would say overdue, book that challenges the English self-image of genteel reserve' * CHOICE *'His prose floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee and, just when you least expect it, lands a deft and lethal blow beneath the belt' -- Terence Blacker * SUNDAY TIMES *'The author is on typically quick-witted form' -- Jim Blackburn * WANDERLUST *'It annoys, arouses feelings and forces one to confront received opinions. Whether one sides with it or not, one can admire the zest of the writing and applaud its splendid lack of political correctness' -- Beryl Bainbridge * MAIL ON SUNDAY *'He writes beautifully. His chapter on war memorials should be a set text, his defence of political correctness is bold and true, and he really nails the philosophy of the queue' -- Peter Watts * TIME OUT *'He's as much sentimentalist as satirist - listen to him, some time, eulogising stalking in Scotland - and, as everyone knows, he's very, very funny' * GQ *'The book not only evolves into a surprisingly evocative meditation on England and the English, but it also showcases Mr. Gill's gifts as a writer of rude invective, hyperbolic description and splenetic asides - a writer who seems to have inhaled the prose styles of Auberon Waugh, Clive James and Alexander Theroux and come up with an idiosyncratic voice all his own' -- Michiko Kakutani * NEW YORK TIMES *

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Book Synopsis''Try this tequila oil, Hugito. Just as the alcohol hits your stomach, the chilli will as well and blow it back into your brain. It will take your head off.'' Explorer Hugh Thomson takes on Mexico.It''s 1979, Hugh Thomson is eighteen, far from home, with time to kill - and on his way to Mexico. When a stranger tells him there''s money to be made by driving a car over the US border to sell on the black market in Central America, Hugh decides to give it a go.Throwing himself on the mercy of Mexicans he meets or crashes into, Hugh and his Oldsmobile 98 journey through the region, meeting their fate in the slums of Belize City.Thirty years on, Hugh returns - older but not necessarily wiser - to complete his journey.Trade ReviewA beautiful book, full of appreciation and aphorism, an unashamedly personal story...it takes the reader to places we may not have dreamed of going... * INDEPENDENT *A thrilling travelogue that rails against the homogenisation of the world. * TRAVELLER *Thomson's Mexico is one of beauty, humour and freedom, laced with a tantalising hint of danger. * WANDERLUST *Delightful, celebratory and honest....In a way it is the first installment of his now-complete trilogy, his Cochineal Red and The White Rock being two of the finest books on Latin America of recent years. -- Rory MacLean * GUARDIAN *Thomson steers through a series of hair-raising encounters with wit, wisdom and an easy charm... -- Kathleen Wyatt * TIMES *Utterly beguiling * INDEPENDENT *'A sublime and richly informative travelogue from a true heavyweight explorer * WATERSTONES BOOKS QUARTERLY *

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Book SynopsisA collection of dazzling travel pieces from SUNDAY TIMES journalist and critic A. A. GILL.From the moment he joined the SUNDAY TIMES, A.A. Gill has wanted to interview places - to discover the personality of a place as if it were a person, to listen and talk to it. A. A. GILL IS FURTHER AWAY is a wonderfully insightful and funny compendium of travel writing taken mostly from the SUNDAY TIMES, but also from GQ, TATLER and CONDE NAST TRAVELLER. Gill writes with a clarity and acerbity that conveys the intensity of his experiences in his travels around the world. His book includes essays on Sudan, India, Cuba, Germany and California. In each piece, there is a central image Gill uses as the key to unlocking the personality of a place.Trade Review'Gill is one of the handful [of journalists] whose pieces are worth collecting' -- Kate Saunders * SUNDAY TIMES *'Underlying all the hype, the wit, the glittering rococo brilliance of his style, there is also the most solid and underrated of journalistic virtues - the power to convey a scene in words so that readers feel they are present' * DAILY TELEGRAPH *Gill applies his acerbity on Sudan, India, Cuba, Germany and California, uncovering the personality of each place much as he does with his celebrity interviewees * NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC TRAVELLER *(Gill) never fails to write with power and wit * LONELY PLANET MAGAZINE *Describing each location with equal wonder, he makes Morris dancers sound as exotic as Madagascan tribes * SHORTLIST *Whatever his methods, not many writers can so succinctly drill down into a destination...punctuated with thoughts and ideas pulsating with wisdom -- Peter Myers * BUSINESS TRAVELLER REUTERS *If you like travel, brilliant writing and truly original thinking, then join the queue. -- Alice B-B * VANITY FAIR *As this collection of stories shows, few writers can get under the skin of a place as evocatively or effectively. -- Peter Moore * WANDERLUST *A highly diverting collection * GOOD BOOK GUIDE *

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Book SynopsisIt remains one of the most penetrating and illuminating books on the island's elusive, alluring culture. National GeographicA House in Bali tells the fascinating story of renowned writer and composer Colin McPhee's obsession with Balinese gamelan music, and of his journey to Bali to experience it first-hand. In 1929, the young Canadian-born musician chanced upon rare gramophone recordings which were to change his life forever. From that moment, he lived for the day when he could set foot on the island where this music originated. He realized his dream and spent almost a decade there in the 1930s. Music and dance are second nature to the Balinese, and McPhee's writings and compositions proved seminal in popularizing gamelan music in the West. In this lovingly-told memoir, McPhee unfolds a beguiling picture of a society like no other in the worldstaggeringly poor in material terms, but rich beyond belief in spiritual values and joy. The young composer writes about his growing understTrade Review"It remains one of the most penetrating and illuminating books on the island's elusive, alluring culture." --National Geographic

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Book SynopsisMungo Park's account of his journeys into West Africa in 1795 and again in 1805 provided Europeans with their first reliable description of the interior of the continent. Though he failed in the object of his mission - to chart the course of the Niger River - he succeeded in leaving a unique record of everyday life before the exploitation of Africa by Europeans, as valuable today as it was then. His first-hand experiences of tribal justice, gold mining and the slave trade are recorded, as well as his own understated heroism, a story of courage, open-hearted friendship and betrayal.

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Book SynopsisDuring the war, Gerald Hanley spent several years in the remote and scorching deserts of Somalia. The rigours of living in such heat, and the difficulties of attempting to control blood-feuding nomads, led to the suicide of seven fellow-officers. Despite these problems, Gerald Hanley writes with great affection for the local clans, an affection that is untainted by sentimentality. Of all the races of Africa, there cannot be one better to live among than the most difficult, the proudest, the bravest, the vainest, the most merciless, the friendliest: the Somalis.Trade Review"the foremost writer of his generation" Ernest Hemmingway"

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Book SynopsisA full colour book in the travelogue style of the history, culture and diversity of places called Newcastle

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Book SynopsisReissue with new title and afterword of travel book previously published by Penguin in 1999 as Corsairville, about the Imperial Airways flying boats in Africa.Trade Review'A fascinating and strangely inspiring story' William Boyd; 'Beautifully told' Jeremy Clarkson; `Part history, part travelogue, part essay, it is a hybrid like the machines it celebrates, and like them, it gets triumphantly airborne. . . Some of the best reflective writing about nostalgia that I have ever read’ Francis Spufford, Evening Standard; `The extraordinary story of the Corsair is a good yarn, and yarns are as hard to come by in commercial flying these days as leather upholstery and hulls rubbed with beeswax’ The Times; `A proper piece of literature, beautifully written and grabbing one’s attention from the first lines … The description of people and places is the sort of thing you once would have expected from writers like Norman Lewis and Eric Newby - a wonderful read in its own right and journalism of the highest standard’ Pilot magazine

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Book SynopsisFiona Wilkie is Senior Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Roehampton, UK, and author of Performance, Transport and Mobility.Table of ContentsIntroduction Mobile Work Narratives of Theatre Travel Touring Circuits, Networks and Routes Staging Journeys Conclusion: Travelling Well Further reading

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Book SynopsisBritain's foremost woman travel writer Sara Wheeler records her life of adventure, from the Antarctic to Zanzibar. 'Funny, furious writing from the queen of intrepid travel' Daily Telegraph 'Intrepid and sparky, full of canny quips and lightly poetic observations' Mail on Sunday 'Magnificent and unusual... Glowing Still is a thoughtful and entertaining meditation on identity, geography and the position of the self in the world' Viv Groskop, Spectator Sara Wheeler is Britain's foremost woman travel writer.  Glowing Still is the story of her travelling life - what is 'important, revealing or funny' - in a notoriously testosterone-laden field.  Growing up among blue-collar Conservatives in Bristol where 'we didn't know anyone who wasn't like us', Wheeler knew she needed to get away. In her twenties she began a dramatic escape: Pole to Pole, via Poland.  Glowing Still recaTrade ReviewFunny, furious writing from the queen of intrepid travel * Daily Telegraph *[Wheeler is] an absolute hoot. But also deadly serious, fabulously well-read, thoughtful, self-deprecating - everything you'd want while slowly crossing some vast continent by bus or by train. Glowing Still is the next best thing to hopping on board with her... An ingenious piece of work... dozens of intriguing insights and remarks about the life of the travel writer * Daily Telegraph *Part travelogue, part memoir, Glowing Still smoulders with anger about [...] the historically contested place of women travel writers... It's also a funny and revealing account of her own journey as a writer... colourful, deceptively capacious... Wheeler excels at uncovering illuminating details about the people she meets * Times Literary Supplement *Magnificent and unusual... Glowing Still is a thoughtful and entertaining meditation on identity, geography and the position of the self in the world... [Wheeler writes] with humour, pathos and genuine curiosity about herself and her work, revealing the backstory to her many award-winning books -- Viv Groskop * Spectator *Martha Gellhorn is one of Sara Wheeler's heroines, and something of [Gellhorn's] feisty and defiant sentiments runs through her memoir, which is both enjoyable and impressive... Wheeler is remarkable for the sheer amount of travelling she has done over the last forty years * Literary Review *Intrepid and sparky, full of canny quips and lightly poetic observations... throughout her entertaining and thoughtful voyage through notebooks amassed over decades, any wistfulness is amply balanced by a sense of freedom * Mail on Sunday *[A] sprightly memoir of her life on the road... Wheeler clothes her experiences with humour and imagination * The Times *A great read, full of acute observation, strongly held beliefs, good stories, and telling detail, all leavened with wry humour * Sherborne Times *[An] excellent memoir, funny, fierce and challenging... Intensely curious and observant, [Wheeler] researches in depth and keeps detailed notebooks... If there is a certain melancholy in this book, there is also exhilaration, and hope -- Anne Chisholm * Tablet *One of the pleasures of this engrossing book is Wheeler's knack for bringing a country alive through small details * Daily Mail *[A] brilliant new memoir... Wheeler unearths the notebooks in which she has recorded her far-flung trips over the years -- Laura Antonia Jordan * Elle *

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Book SynopsisSaturnine and quick-tempered, the formidable North Sea is often overlooked even by those living within a stone's throw of its steel-grey waters. But as playground, theatre of war and cultural crossing-point, it has shaped the world in myriad ways, forged villains and heroes, and determined the fates of nations. It's not all grim, though: the seaside holiday was born on North Sea beaches, and artists, poets and writers have been as equally inspired by glinting sun on the wave-tops as they have the drama of a winter storm. With a wry eye and a warm coat, Tom Blass travels the edges of the North Sea meeting fishermen, artists, bomb disposal experts, burgermeisters and those who have found themselves flung to the sea's perimeters quite by chance. In doing so he attempts to piece together its manifold histories and to reveal truths, half-truths and fictions otherwise submerged...Trade ReviewTom Blass's The Naked Shore is a wonderfully bracing journey around the North Sea. His gaze misses nothing, and his robust prose glitters with story and lore and surprise -- Philip Marsden, author of 'Rising Ground'The sunless subject of the narrative, which threatens to be monotonous, turns out of be almost kaleidoscopically varied ... Blass opens the performance with a virtuoso summary of its history ... Terrifically enjoyable -- Jan Morris * Literary Review *The more I read the more I loved it, precisely because the subject is so slippery between the fingers. Because this is not the rocky definable obvious romanticism of the Atlantic shore, is it, but something much subtler and shiftier and siltier than that: islands which are the remains of half eroded polders, Europe's edgelands, where definitions are scarcely available and lives are half forgotten, a world of marginalia filled with half identities and half histories, leftover stories and arbitrary distinctions. What is lovely about this book is the patience and confidence with which he slowly unfolds his chosen, cold, muddy, delicate world, the shards and twigs and lumps of peat, the social distinctions that do or don't matter, the lives of the herring and the fishermen who long for them, the encountered realities, all conveyed wittily, modestly, lightly, melancholically, full of brilliant findings and unforgettable rediscovered octopussies. The whole book I felt at the end is like a beach which he has strolled along with such a generous eye picking up all the disregarded things that took his fancy. So bravo! Such a good way of conveying the nature of the thing he has explored through the manner of writing about it. Nothing imposed; everything seen for what it is. Above all, you end up really liking him -- Adam NicolsonRich, illuminating and enjoyable ... Blass’s attentiveness and curiosity are such that you are seldom a few pages from encountering an invigorating detail. An arresting fact. Or fantastical coast dwellers and obscure communities. There is much to savour ... An invigorating and atmospheric account of a world that is central to our identity, and it is to Blass’s credit that he keeps its own true nature hovering somewhere only just out of view. * Observer *Blass writes sentences that soar ... He has done enough poking and nuzzling around its waters to make a good effort at giving this dour, dramatic sea is vast, multilingual, beguiling due. * Guardian *Who would have thought that a book about a treacherous expanse of freezing, grey-green water, feared by mariners through the centuries, could turn out to be such a delight? A large and colourful cast of characters marches through the book * Daily Mail *In a wonderfully English way ... Tom Blass zigzags from the Thames Estuary via the British and continental coasts to Shetland, journeying to the desolate edges ... He champions a subtlety of vision, a determination to discern the marvellous in the unprepossessing ... Blass traces telling historical patterns ... Blass’s descriptions of them are a great pleasure in what becomes a fine travel book ... If neither he nor the reader falls for the subject of The Naked Shore, its details reveal a sea bordered here and there by worlds brightly unexpected and transporting -- Horatio Clare * Daily Telegraph *Captivating ... Rich, evocative prose ... The Naked Shore vividly describes some of the wildest, windswept corners of the North Sea and its remote coastal communities ... Part travelogue, part history book and part anthropological study, Blass’s intensely rewarding memoir succeeds in scattering some light into the North Sea’s cold and murky depths, revealing both its wonders and its indivisible relationship with humanity. * Independent *Tom Blass’ riveting new book, The Naked Shore, is so extremely good that we hope it will bring a warmth and richness to your early spring reading. That said, you’ll probably want to dive into this fabulous account somewhere indoors rather than settling down on a blustery beach -- Non-fiction Book of the Month * Guardian *A hugely enjoyable anti-tour, and a wonderful eulogy to an implacable ocean -- Joanna Kavenna * Times Literary Supplement *‘This book records the ambiguous charm of estuaries, discovers the link between herring and sterling, tells strange tales of the Half-Islands and transforms the chilly Northern waters into a realm of mystery and intrigue’ * Daily Mail *

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Book Synopsis''This is the story of how, on 29 May, 1953, two men, both endowed with outstanding stamina and skill, reached the top of Everest and came back unscathed to rejoin their comrades. ''Yet this will not be the whole story, for the ascent of Everest was not the work of one day, nor even of those few anxious, unforgettable weeks in which we prepared and climbed this summer. It is, in fact, a tale of sustained and tenacious endeavour by many, over a long period of time... We of the 1953 Everest Expedition are proud to share the glory with our predecessors.''Sir John HuntTrade Review'An exceptionally lucid and consecutive narrative of a great adventure. It tells an epic story.' * TLS *

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Book SynopsisHenry James wrote of Venice: ''You desire to embrace it, to caress it, to possess it . . .'' whereas Mark Twain found St Mark''s ''so ugly . . . propped on its long row of thick-legged columns, its back knobbed with domes, it seems like a vast, warty bug taking a meditative walk''. Reactions to Venice have been, throughout the ages, astonishingly different. John Julius Norwich has put together a dazzling anthology, drawing on the writings of Byron, Goethe, Wagner, Casanova, Jan Morris, Robert Browning and Horace Walpole, among many others. The pieces range from the sixth century, when the early lagoon-dwellers lived ''like sea-birds in huts, built on heaps of osiers'' to the exquisite city of eighteenth-century revellers and nineteenth-century art lovers. The city''s many diferent guises are shown as both its citizens and visitors saw them. This wonderful volume from the Traveller''s Reader series also contains maps, engravings and notes on history, art, archTrade ReviewA brilliant historical anthology . . . which I read from cover to cover, relishing the author's witty selection of writings. - SpectatorAnother excellent volume in the Traveller's Reader series. - Times

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Book SynopsisEverything creaks and bends in heavy seas what will not bend will simply snap. So many times I wondered how much load we could carry in a powerful storm without breaking apart. If we flooded any faster I would drown in seconds.Patrick Dixon spent years working as a doctor at University College Hospital, while his wife Sheila was a magistrate high-pressure careers that demanded long hours away from their home, family and passion for sailing. It is a frustrating story many occasional sailors can relate to, but unlike most, Patrick and Sheila realised early enough that they could only bend so far before something snapped, they could only take on so much before they drowned. This is their story of how they made changes (some more challenging than others) that they knows other sailors could make too, regardless of where they are at the moment how they changed their priorities but managed to sustain a new career that fitted in around life rather than the other way round. It is also thTrade ReviewA touching memoir - interspersed with useful sailing tips and life lessons, Salt in the Blood is full of unique perspectives. The Dixons tell their story with poignancy. You'll feel as though you're standing right beside them. * RNLI magazine *The authors have bared their souls and carefully chronicled an important time in their lives. It would be a useful read for those about to follow in their footsteps, as there are many lessons to be learned, while the more experienced will enjoy the ride and may learn things that will surprise them. * Flying Fish, the magazine of the Ocean Cruising Club *A touching memoir…gently paced and full of unique perspectives. This book is perfect for the aspiring sailor – its practical philosophy will inspire and engage anyone who has salt in the blood. * Lifeboat Magazine *

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Book SynopsisWhat caused Dickens to leap out of bed one night and walk 30 miles from London to Kent?How did a small town on the Welsh borders become the second-hand bookshop capital of the world?Why did a jellyfish persuade Evelyn Waugh to abandon his suicide attempt in North Wales? A multitude of curious questions are answered in Britain by the Book, a fascinating travelogue with a literary theme, taking in unusual writers'' haunts and the surprising places that inspired some of our favourite fictional locations. We''ll learn why Thomas Hardy was buried twice, how a librarian in Manchester invented the thesaurus as a means of coping with depression, and why Agatha Christie was investigated by MI5 during the Second World War. The map of Britain that emerges is one dotted with interesting literary stories and bookish curiosities.

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Book SynopsisA vibrant, surprising and thought-provoking collection of essays from an exciting new literary voice who has been compared to John Jeremiah Sullivan, David Foster Wallace and Janet MalcolmTrade ReviewAgain and again, IMPOSSIBLE OWLS proves that Brian Phillips is a cultural codebreaker of the highest order, unlocking the hidden systems of our mad world. Hilarious, nimble and thoroughly illuminatingA rich mix of derring-do, insightful analysis and creative non-fiction . . . funny, sharp, obsessive and very readable * i NEWSPAPER *Brian Phillips's essays are out of this world: big-hearted, exhaustive, unrelentingly curious, and goddamned fun * THE MILLIONS *An absolute blast . . . I couldn't get enough of this book: Phillips is the perfect adventure guide ? down for anything, talented enough to translate the experience * BUZZFEED *Phillips is a long-form journalist of the old school, a deep research artist, and a killer stylist. His digressive and frequently hilarious explorations . . . recall the work of John Jeremiah Sullivan and the late David Foster Wallace, with a dash of Janet Malcolm. IMPOSSIBLE OWLS is an absorbing and totally distinctive exploration of wildly disparate corners of our world * VOGUE *Brian Phillips has a way of making you care about the things he cares about in the way he cares about them, which is passionately, almost obsessively . . . invigorating and muscular . . . the book is a must-get * ELLE *Big, powerful, beautiful essaysPhillips takes readers down unexpected paths that are as world-expanding as they are entertaining * TIME MAGAZINE *These far-flung tales all share the same inspirational spark: Brian Phillips's soulful, intrepid spirit, and his masterful ability at turning everyday curiosities into epic quests that you can't stop readingGet lost in this captivating essay collection, which brings to life both the extraordinary and the mundane * VULTURE *Takes you deep into worlds both far-flung and familiar - tiger trails, tiny towns of the Yukon, Route 66, a Walmart parking lot. Brian Phillips riffs and reports with abiding curiosity and incisive humour. A fantastic, transporting readWitty, pensive, sometimes whimsical, always truthful, IMPOSSIBLE OWLS is testament to Phillips's gift for enchantment, and his genius for knowing exactly where our alienation from the world meets our sympathy for itI love that this is a book of highways and historical touchstones and large geographic shifts. But I also love that at the heart of those bigger things, there is the gentle touch of Brian Phillips underneath it all, creating a landscape for a reader to see not his work, but to better see themselves[Phillips] has now established himself as a master of long form reporting that is indistinguishable from the literary essay, through which he bares witness to our contemporary moment * LOS ANGELES REVIEW OF BOOKS *

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Book SynopsisTobias Buck arrived in Madrid in December 2012, in time to celebrate the bleakest Christmas the city had seen in a generation. Capital and country were reeling from a series of economic shocks that had brought Spain to the brink of ruin. The housing boom had dramatically turned to bust, a large chunk of the nation''s banking system was in state hands, businesses were closing across the country, debt was spiralling out of control and unemployment levels had reached a record high.AFTER THE FALL presents a rich and vivid portrait of contemporary Spain at a critical moment in the country''s history. The book tells the story of Spain''s long boom and sudden bust, the brutal economic crisis that followed, and the political and social aftershocks that reverberate to this day. It explores the origins of the separatist movement in Catalonia, and its bitter clash with the Spanish government that culminated in a failed secession referendum and a divisive declaration of independence. ItTrade ReviewMixing forensic reporting with insightful analysis, AFTER THE FALL captures the chaos of Spain's turbulent recent history with aplomb . . . a superbly documented, diligent account on Spain's recent travails - and its slow, painful route out of them -- Oliver Balch * FINANCIAL TIMES *Buck understands economics, but he also understands people. Spain's crisis is told as an engaging story of human folly. This is a superb book about a fascinating country - an easy read about difficult times -- Gerard DeGroot * THE TIMES *An elegant and insightful examination of Spain . . . the book goes beyond politics to offer a deeply sympathetic portrayal -- Matthew Campbell * THE SUNDAY TIMES *Buck is a good listener and an intelligent observer who is not judgemental and does not claim to know all the answers.After the Fall is an excellent guide to what has been happening in Spain in recent years -- David Gilmour * LITERARY REVIEW *[An] insightful and readable study of modern Spain -- Gideon Rachman * FINANCIAL TIMES, Best Books of 2019 *Tobias Buck belongs in the distinguished lineage of writing about Spain that was so brilliantly started by Richard Ford. Much like Ford in the 1830s, as clear-sighted and unflattering as deeply sympathetic to the many charms of the country and the predicaments of its people, Tobias Buck has written a most accurate account of what Spain looks like right now and what seemingly insurmountable challenges it is having to live up to . . . required reading -- ANTONIO MUÑOZ MOLINAWhen Spain ran the gauntlet of Basque terrorism and military subversion to reach democracy, it garnered universal admiration. In the years that followed, that image was tarnished by endemic corruption but countered by the spectacular international impact of Spanish companies. When Tobias Buck arrived in 2012, Spain was in the midst of an existential crisis. The financial crash, political corruption, the mismanagement of the Catalan independence movement and the impact of the crisis on ordinary Spaniards are perceptively analysed in his illuminating and elegant account. It is a grim story but a treat to read -- PAUL PRESTON

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Book Synopsis''For most of my lifetime, half of my own continent had been chilled by a Cold War and concealed behind an Iron Curtain. Now there was the prospect of being able to travel through once-forbidden lands; of making a voyage of discovery on my very own doorstep . . .''In New Europe, Michael Palin embarks on a very different kind of adventure: a journey around the Europe he has never known. Along the way he meets Romanian lumberjacks, celebrates the summer solstice in Latvia and takes in some traditional olive oil wrestling in Turkey. This is an unmissable odyssey through twenty different countries from one of our most beloved travel writers.

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Book SynopsisDan Boothby had been drifting for more than twenty years, without the pontoons of family, friends or a steady occupation. He was looking for but never finding the perfect place to land. Finally, unexpectedly, an opportunity presented itself. After a lifelong obsession with Gavin Maxwell's Ring of Bright Water trilogy, Boothby was given the chance to move to Maxwell's former home, a tiny island on the western seaboard of the Highlands of Scotland.Island of Dreams is about Boothby's time living there, and about the natural and human history that surrounded him; it's about the people he meets and the stories they tell, and about his engagement with this remote landscape, including the otters that inhabit it. Interspersed with Boothby's own story is a quest to better understand the mysterious Gavin Maxwell.Beautifully written and frequently leavened with a dry wit, Island of Dreams is a charming celebration of the particularities of place.Trade ReviewEvocative. . .A lively, often funny tribute to the place and to the people he meets there. . .Island of Dreams shows him emerging from the shadow of his hero to become a gifted writer himself * Daily Mail *Enigmatic yet compelling . . . The book returned me to an adolescent passion for Maxwell's Ring of Bright Water -- Katharine Norbury * Guardian *I was gripped from start to finish by Dan Boothby's ISLAND OF DREAMS. . . Never overdone, pretentious, self-absorbed or sentimental, it is written with skill and expertise with all the conviction and authority it needs to enthrall. The descriptive passages are traced with deep sensitivity and richly evocative of people, turning seasons, the loneliness of island life, and the enticing contours of the location. This is a fitting and poignant tribute to the enduring value of the Ring of Bright Water Trilogy, written as a personal quest of devotion and discovery. Boothby's disarmingly personal approach draws you into the thrall and mystique of Maxwell's literary landscape by revealing as much about the writer's self as weaving a love-spell to the island and its ghosts -- Miriam Darlington, author of OTTER COUNTRYIsland of Dreams, like its inspiration Raven Seek Thy Brother, becomes an elegy - not for a lost way of life, but for a dream tenaciously pursued and regretfully abandoned -- Ariane Bankes * Literary Review *This lovely book offers an elliptical portrait of the enigmatic Gavin Maxwell, and an equally elliptical portrait of its author. A delightful meditation on the impossibility of really knowing anyone, not least ourselves. -- Katharine Norbury, author of THE FISH LADDERBoothby is entranced by Gavin Maxwell, not because of otters, nor through any overt kinship with the boys who shared the writer's odd life, but because Maxwell seemed always to occupy the debatable lands between the self one knows, the self that is reflected in others and the self that only exists in the act of writing. . .The message - one message - of this remarkable, deceptive book is that not much stays, in any state, and that belonging, like ownership, is only ever partial and never-finished * National *The writing is as crisp as the coastal air, shot through with the humour of humanity and bright animal magic * Saga *

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Book SynopsisFrom the author of 1,000 Places to See Before You Die, a rallying cry to get off the couch and out into the world. WHY WE TRAVEL is filled with personal stories and anecdotes, quotes that inspire, and reasons to motivate–plus images so lush you can’t wait to be there. For years Patricia Schultz has been telling us where to travel, and we love listening. Now, in telling us why to travel, she reveals what makes her such a compelling guide and what makes travel such a richly rewarding experience. There’s the time she was on safari in Zambia yet found her most lasting memory in a classroom of five-year-olds. The comedy of mishaps that she and friends endured on a canal trip through southern France—and how it brought them together in an unexpected way. She quotes favorite authors and luminaries on the importance of travel and, in a series of memorable aphorisms, gets to the essence of why to travel. And gives us a few travel hacks, too. Travel is, as the writer Pico Iyer says, the thing that causes us to “stay up late, follow impulse, and find ourselves as wide open as when we are in love.” Why We Travel is all about rekindling that feeling. Just book a ticket, pack a bag, and dive headlong into an adventure.Trade Review"Patricia Schultz has happily once again woven her wisdoms and recommended wanderings into an uplifting gem of a new book." —Forbes

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Book SynopsisAt a time of climate crisis, isolation and social breakdown, Driving with strangers is a manifesto to alter how we think about our place in the world. Veteran hitchhiker and lifelong aficionado of hitchhiking culture, Purkis journeys through the history of hitchhiking to explore the unique opportunities for cooperation, friendship, sustainability and openness that it represents.Join Purkis on the kerbside, in search of Woody Guthrie as he examines the politics of the travelling song, deep on a Russian hitch-hiking expedition, or considering the politics of travel and risk on the ‘Highway of Tears’ in British Columbia, Canada. The reader is taken on a panoramic road trip through a century of hitchhiking across different decades, countries and continents.Purkis, a self-styled ‘vagabond sociologist’, is the perfect passenger to accompany you on a journey away from isolation, social distancing, closed borders and into a better understanding of why and how strangers can enrich our lives.Trade Review'This book is an ambitious, comprehensive and fascinating celebration of the righteous pursuit of hitchhiking. I hope it inspires new hitchers and convinces uncertain readers.' Amy Liptrot, author of The Outrun'A marvelous, profound look at the art of hitchhiking: it is a journeying, questing book, opening up avenues of exploration, following curiosity-paths, creating networks of thoughts and discursive, fascinating politics. This is a book with a world within its covers: I am richer for having read it.'Jay Griffiths, writer and author of Wild: An Elemental Journey'At a time when cultivating human connection has never been more important, Driving with strangers is a wonderful tribute to the great art of hitchhiking and what it can teach us. Purkis takes us on a fascinating journey and opens up worlds of wisdom, story, and possibility. This is a captivating book that pays tribute to the remarkable power of the thumb to connect humanity.'Ruairí McKiernan, Irish Times No. 1 bestselling author of Hitching for Hope: A Journey into the Heart and Soul of Ireland 'The hope expressed in Driving with Strangers is that the continuing presence of young hitchhikers – long before middle age when most of us, including Purkis himself, appear to give it up – and others who share their general outlook means an alternative future remains possible. Though the capacity-building and political re-imagining that Purkis would like to see emerge seems almost unrealisable in these conflictual and alienating times, we should not forget the mutuality and generosity that were brought to the forefront of everyday life during the COVID-19 pandemic. If that could be harnessed in a political movement, we might even find ourselves hitchhiking again.' Professor Tim Newburn, LSE Review of Books'Whether you are a scholar or a (former) hitchhiker, I reckon it will be difficult for you not to like Jonathan Purkis' book.'Patrick Laviolette, Sociology'From the emotion of the first ever "thumb out" experience and the immediate discovery of all manner of life on the road, through to the fascinating unfolding history of how hitching has ebbed and flowed through the decades. Crossing continents, political time-zones and yesteryear travel scenes, this delightful narrative continues through to today’s world of technology dominated travel environments. On the basis that travel will always be a force for good, enhanced by direct human communications, Jonathan Purkis’ commentary, observations and stories will remain travel relevant for further decades to come. A cracking read and wonderful journey.'Jono Vernon-Powell, Founder and Managing Director, Nomadic Thoughts (Worldwide Travel)'Purkis sees hitchhiking as a symbol of an alternative economic system and more sensible way of interacting between people than the doomed conditions that now prevail.'Svenska Dagbladet -- .Table of ContentsPrologue: ‘A Romantic, gallant and even brilliant adventure’1 The intention of a tradition: Definitions of hitchhiking 2 How to think like a hitchhiker: An introduction to vagabond sociology3 In search of Woody Guthrie: Singing the politics of hitchhiking4 ‘Maybe we will meet a nice person’: Hitchhiking, conflict, human nature5 The great European adventure trail: Hitchhiking as a measure of freedom6 The Alaska Highway hitchhiker’s visitor’s book: The personality of the ‘extreme hitchhiker’7 The power of the gift without return: Hitchhiking as economic allegory8 The myth of the great decline: Hitchhiking and the increasing levels of trust in the world9 Climatic dangers: Hitchhiking and the relative realities of risk10 Good news from Vilnius: The rich life of hitchhiking in former communist countries11 A prescription for hitchhiking? Travel and talk in the age of pandemics and extinctionAfterword: The bookcase at the end of the roadAcknowledgments: A hitchhiker’s guide to the journeyNotesBibliography

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Book SynopsisFrom childhood, Charles Dickens was fascinated by tales from other countries and other cultures and he longed to see the world. In Dickens and Travel, Lucinda Hawksley looks at the journeys made by her great great great grandfather. Dickens is usually perceived as a London author, yet in the 1840s, he whisked his family away to live in Italy for year, and some years later took up residence in Switzerland and then Paris. He travelled widely in Europe, long before the arrival of high-speed rail, toured America (twice) and Canada and, before his untimely death, was planning a tour of Australia. Dickens and Travel enters into the world of the Victorian traveller and looks at how Dickens's journeys affected his writing.

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Book SynopsisAs read on BBC Radio 4 'Book of the Week'Shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year AwardLonglisted for the RSL Ondaatje Prize'Sherman’s is a special book. Every sentence, every thought she has, every question she asks, every detail she notices, offers something. The Bells of Old Tokyo is a gift . . . It is a masterpiece.' - The SpectatorFor over 300 years, Japan closed itself to outsiders, developing a remarkable and unique culture. During its period of isolation, the inhabitants of the city of Edo, later known as Tokyo, relied on its public bells to tell the time. In her remarkable book, Anna Sherman tells of her search for the bells of Edo, exploring the city of Tokyo and its inhabitants and the individual and particular relationship of Japanese culture - and the Japanese language - to time, tradition, memory, impermanence and history.Through Sherman’s journeys around the city and her friendship with the owner of a small, exquisite cafe, who elevates the making and drinking of coffee to an art-form, The Bells of Old Tokyo presents a series of hauntingly memorable voices in the labyrinth that is the metropolis of the Japanese capital: An aristocrat plays in the sea of ashes left by the Allied firebombing of 1945. A scientist builds the most accurate clock in the world, a clock that will not lose a second in five billion years. A sculptor eats his father’s ashes while the head of the house of Tokugawa reflects on the destruction of his grandfather’s city (‘A lost thing is lost. To chase it leads to darkness’).The result is a book that not only engages with the striking otherness of Japanese culture like no other, but that also marks the arrival of a dazzling new writer as she presents an absorbing and alluring meditation on life through an exploration of a great city and its people.Trade ReviewSherman’s is a special book. Every sentence, every thought she has, every question she asks, every detail she notices, offers something. The Bells of Old Tokyo is a gift . . . It is a masterpiece. * Spectator *[Sherman's] perambulations around the bells yield fascinating, frequently moving narratives . . . In Tokyo's every nook and cranny, she finds the possibility of something profound, something elevating. * New Statesman *A subtle, beautifully written meditation . . . Profoundly moving . . . The bells of old Tokyo are no longer heard, but this lyrical yet serious work deserves ringing endorsement. * Literary Review *Delightful . . . Bells is unknowable, but brilliantly so. * Japan Times *A completely extraordinary book, unlike anything I have read before. At once modest in tone and vast in scale and ambition . . . Delicately wrought, precise, lucid and strange as a dream. -- Olivia LaingBeautifully written, surprising, original and humane . . . A truly stunning debut. -- Joanna KavennaThe Bells of Old Tokyo is part personal memoir, part cultural history, but wholly unique. The fragile, fragmentary poetry of its prose so beautifully captures the transience of Tokyo time, the constant cycle of destruction and reconstruction, and the nostalgia for that which has been lost and yet wonder at all that remains to be found. It is the best book I have read about Tokyo written this century, and deserves to take its place alongside the works of Donald Richie, Edward Seidensticker and Paul Waley as one of the great interpretations of this great city. -- David PeaceIt is very possible – refreshingly, exhilaratingly, possible – for a great book to exist that is all at once a memoir, a travelogue, a history book, and an examination of what defines a culture and its people: their customs, arts, architecture, habits, and priorities. That is what The Bells of Old Tokyo is. It is also a masterwork. * Books and Bao *Good travel writing is often hard to come by - it’s a delicate balance of bringing a destination to life while also informing of its noteworthy aspects, but Anna Sherman does so flawlessly. * Japan Today *A staggering reassembling of an ancient city turned neon metropolis . . . An exceptional and exceptionally original piece of writing. * The Big Smoke *A fascinating portrait of a city and its people, epic and intimate at the same time * The Weekly Times *Only a handful could match Sherman for respectful curiosity, detailed knowledge and sensitivity to her surroundings. * Canberra Times *A reading treasure . . . A work of literary art . . . Magnificent both in its content and in the exquisite, lyrical writing of its author. * Cape Times *In her haunting, beautiful debut travel narrative, Anna Sherman takes the reader along on her quest to find the bells of old Tokyo, illuminating a lost world hidden in plain sight . . . The Bells of Old Tokyo paints an intricate, rich portrait of this labyrinthine city . . . as much a history of Japan as it is a travelogue. * South China Morning Post *Sherman’s writing is elegant and accessible, and the story of Tokyo quickly becomes the story of time itself. -- Best Books of Summer 2019 * Uproxx *A beautifully written evocation of a place and a philosophical inquiry into the nature of time itself. An astonishing gift. * Shelf Awareness *A tour-de-force mapping, in four dimensions, of the amazing place we call “Tokyo.” I realized I barely know the city . . . So much is dealt with so beautifully – Mishima, the 1945 firebombs, the tangle that is Shinjuku . . . Wonderful . . . -- Liza DalbyAn enchanting read, drawing you into Sherman’s Tokyo world in a way that makes you wonder why you shouldn’t fly there right this minute, with her book as the only guide you’ll ever need. -- Xu Xi

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Book SynopsisA SPECTATOR and PROSPECT Book of the Year'Ceaselessly interesting, knowledgeable and evocative' Spectator'A fresh way to write history' Alan Johnson'A quirky, amused, erudite homage to France . . . ambitious and original' The Times_____France: An Adventure History is a profoundly original and endlessly entertaining history of France, from the first century BC to the present day, based on countless new discoveries and thirty years of exploring France on foot, by bicycle and in the library.Beginning with the Roman army’s first recorded encounter with the Gauls and ending with the Gilets Jaunes protests in the era of Emmanuel Macron, each chapter is an adventure in its own right. Along the way, readers will find the usual faces, events and themes of French history – Louis XIV, the French Revolution, the French Résistance, the Tour de France – but all presented in a shining new light.Graham Robb does not offer a standard dry list of facts and dates, but instead a panorama of France, teeming with characters, full of stories, journeys and coincidences, giving readers a thrilling sense of discovery and enlightenment. France: An Adventure History is a vivid, living history of one of the world’s most fascinating nations by a ceaselessly entertaining writer in complete command of subject and style._____'A rich and vibrant narrative . . . clear-eyed but imaginative storytelling' Financial Times'Full of life' ProspectTrade ReviewRobb's concise and fast-paced writing pedals along with never a dull paragraph . . . a dazzling and moving contribution to a long tradition. * Sunday Times *A stunning history of France... Graham Robb deserves to be a national treasure. * Spectator *A quirky chronicle of our neighbour . . . a witty, free-ranging homage to the French people. * The Times *Delightful, discerning, and charmingly irreverent. * Kirkus *Robb's perspectives are refreshing as well as deeply researched. * Booklist *With joy, curiosity and more than a dash of ambition Robb brings 2,000 years of French history to life. * Washington Post *A complete history of France from Caesar's time to now . . . Thanks to the way Robb does his research - often literally getting on his own bike to sniff things out - it is tres facile to go along with him. * Prospect *Graham Robb writes history on two wheels and in four dimensions. * Wall Street Journal *

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Book SynopsisIn March 2022, Michael Palin travelled the length of the River Tigris through Iraq to get a sense of what life is like in a region of the world that once formed the cradle of civilisation, but that in recent times has witnessed turmoil and appalling bloodshed. In the journal he kept during his trip he describes the war-ravaged city of Mosul and the children he encounters growing up amid its ruins. He contemplates the graffiti-strewn ruins of Saddam Hussein's former palaces, and he notes the constant presence of armed guards. But there are patches of light amid the dark: boisterous New Year celebrations in Akre, the friendliness of generals and colonels at 'Checkpoint Cheerful', and public poetry readings in Baghdad. People getting on with their lives.At the same time, Michael charts the course of one of the great rivers of the world, showing how the water that gave life to such ancient settlements as Babylon and Ur is now becoming a scarce and hotly contested resource. And he considers the role that Iraq's other great natural resource - oil - plays in both providing wealth and threatening political stability.Illustrated throughout with colour photographs taken on the trip, and permeated with his warmth and humour, this is a vivid and varied portrait of a complex country.Trade ReviewA fantastic book. -- Nihal Arthanayake * BBC 5Live *

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Book Synopsis'The definitive back story of Mount Everest' Stewart Weaver, co-author of Fallen Giants 'Craig Storti has given us the Everest book that we've needed all along' Scott Ellsworth, author of The World Beneath Their FeetThe seventy-one-year quest to find the world's highest mountain.The Hunt for Mount Everest is the seldom-told story of how the last remaining major prize in the history of exploration was identified, named and at last found. This is Everest, the prequel: a high-drama tale, filled with larger-than-life characters and quiet heroes, traverses the Alps, the Himalayas, Nepal and Tibet, the British Empire, the Anglo-Russian rivalry known as The Great Game, the disastrous First Afghan War, and the phenomenal Survey of India. Encountering spies, war, political intrigues, and hundreds of mules, camels, bullocks, yaks, and two zebrules, this account uncovers the fascinating saga leading up to the fateful day in late June of 1921, when two English climbers, George Mallory and Guy Bullock, became the first westerners - and almost certainly the first human beings - to set foot on Mount Everest.Trade ReviewTense and detailed ... A lively and useful addition to the shelves of Everestiana -- John KeayA rich and fascinating book that tells the story of Everest in glimpses from unexpected angles, revealing one face then another, discovering surprising new routes through well-trodden terrain. Getting to the top isn't the point - the point is the mountain itself -- Nick HuntA very readable and entertaining account of the earliest days of Everest, with a cast of great characters and driving narrative which reaches a terrific climax in 1921 -- Mick ConefreyA compelling account of the essential back story to the epic 20th century attempt by British mountaineering expeditions to ascend the world's highest mountain ... This is great mountaineering history -- Maurice Isserman * co-author of Fallen Giants *To climb the world's highest mountain was one thing; to find it quite another. In this compelling new contribution to the cultural history of mountaineering, Storti composes the definitive back story of Mount Everest -- Stewart Weaver * co-author of Fallen Giants *Craig Storti has given us the Everest book that we've needed all along ... The Hunt for Mount Everest is the necessary, and admirably written, historical prelude to the great age of Himalayan mountaineering -- Scott EllsworthAn entertaining and enlightening account of how the British identified the highest mountain, ensured that it was their preserve, and made the first attempt to climb it. -- Peter Gillman

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Book SynopsisSunday Telegraph's FIVE BEST BOOKS FOR FOODIES this Christmas - 'a must read... packed full of nostalgic food memories, weaving in family, friendship and love.' "Are you hungry darling, shall I make you an omelette?"My mother's omelettes are slightly overdone but always generous in cheese and well-seasoned. My omelettes are just the same, though more often slightly underdone and less carefully considered. And like my stories, they come in many forms. You might get one late at night, after a little too much wine and alongside a little too much information. I might spend a long time on one that's just a touch extravagant. And many are for the people I care about most, thrown together and with more cheese than is strictly necessary.Collected here are things I've done, things I've seen, things I've thought, and most importantly, things I've tasted. They're slices of parts of my life. Call them omelettes, if you like. I hope you enjoy them.'Jessie's life seems to have seamlessly brought her forth on a magic carpet of food, peppered by lots and lots of laughs. Her stories are a joy to read, although probably not as much fun as they are to live. Deliciously entertaining'. - Yotam Ottolenghi 'Gobbled this up in 90 minutes. A dreamy food memoir which is stuffed full of warmth and feeling and fun. If you love Table Manners you'll adore this book by Jessie Ware. Now I'm gagging for some hot buttered toast.' - Bella Mackie 'Love it, laughed cried in parts.... I so enjoyed reading about Jessie's life through food .... Childbirth and Bolognese forever imprinted on my mind.' - Angela Hartnett'Joie de vivre is the bass note throughout the pages of Omelette' - Harper's Bazaar'A delicious fusion of memoir and ode to food.' - Grazia'A charming and funny memoir ... you want to eat everything she describes' - Daily Mail'A must read' - Stella Magazine'A great one for foodies who live for nostalgia' - GQ'A charming and funny memoir' - Irish Daily Mail 'A love letter to friends, first loves, faith and family, but most importantly - to food' - ReactionTrade ReviewJessie's life seems to have seamlessly brought her forth on a magic carpet of food, peppered by lots and lots of laughs. Her stories are a joy to read, although probably not as much fun as they are to live. Deliciously entertaining. -- Yotam OttolenghiJoie de vivre is the bass note throughout the pages of Omelette * Harper's Bazaar *A delicious fusion of memoir and ode to food * Grazia *A charming and funny memoir ... you want to eat everything she describes * Daily Mail *A great one for foodies who live for nostalgia * GQ *A love letter to friends, first loves, faith and family, but most importantly - to food * Reaction *A charming and funny memoir * Irish Daily Mail *Love it, laughed cried in parts.... I so enjoyed reading about Jessie's life through food .... Childbirth and Bolognese forever imprinted on my mind. * Angela Hartnett *Gobbled this up in 90 minutes. A dreamy food memoir which is stuffed full of warmth and feeling and fun. If you love Table Manners you'll adore this book by Jessie Ware. Now I'm gagging for some hot buttered toast. * Bella Mackie *

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Book Synopsis'Dan's book demonstrates that the future will belong to the peacemakers - the true heroes among us.' - Bear GryllsWhen thirty-three Chilean miners stepped into the light, alive and well, after sixty-nine days entombed in the earth, the world experienced a rare treat - some good news. Was this an anomaly, or are there other untapped glimmers of hope, hidden behind the headlines?Armed with a camera, a notebook, and a perilous sense of curiosity, Dan Morrice embarks upon a global journey to meet the peacemakers - unsung heroes, forging peace in extreme environments, from war-torn nations to disaster zones.From Chilean miners to Syrian refugees, from ex-football hooligans in Britain, to revolutionaries in Israel-Palestine, Dan discovers how the most unlikely people are rediscovering Christian faith and rewriting the fractured history of our time. At the apex of his journey, Dan's interviews lead him on a five-hundred-mile walk across the Negev Desert to find their source of hope first-hand.In a generation tired of divided nations and negative news, Finding the Peacemakers tells the unreported story of a global movement overcoming the odds to build peace in troubled times. 'One of the most inspiring books I have read for many years.' - Baroness Caroline CoxTrade ReviewA very compelling story * Church Times *Dan's book demonstrates that the future will belong to the peacemakers - the true heroes among us. * Bear Grylls, adventurer *This engaging, excellent and insightful book is a great read. It is thought-provoking, heart-warming and potentially life-changing. Highly recommended - read it and share it. -- Revd Canon J.JohnOne of the most inspiring books I have read for many years -- Baroness Caroline CoxThe power of this book is that it's written by an ordinary guy who took a leap of faith and found himself in extraordinary places meeting extraordinary people. -- Dan Green, Founder & Director of Bridges for CommunitiesBe warned, these are powerful stories from radical people: they will challenge you, inspire you and invite you to join them in a brave new world -- Simon Guillebaud, Founder of GLO Burundi and author of Choose LifeDan is no ordinary geography teacher. He is more like Indiana Jones. Overflowing with an adventurous spirit and inquisitive mind, he hunts not for buried artefacts but for buried stories. -- Andy Frost, author of Long Story ShortDan's book is truly inspirational. His journey and insights into the lives, cultures and hearts of people from different countries and continents across the world are an encouraging and awesome read. Miracles are happening all around us. -- Pat Lam, Director of Rugby at Bristol Bears

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