True stories of survival of abuse and injustice Books

Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES NO.2 BESTSELLERLike A Streecat Named Bob before it, Finding Gobi is a truly heart-warming story for animal lovers worldwideIn 2016, Dion Leonard, a seasoned ultramarathon runner, unexpectedly stumbled across a little stray dog while competing in a gruelling 155 mile race across the Gobi Desert. The lovable pup, who earned the name Gobi', proved that what she lacked in size, she more than made up for in heart, as she went step for step with Dion over the treacherous Tian Shan Mountains, managing to keep pace with him for nearly 80 miles.As Dion witnessed the incredible determination of this small animal, he felt something change within himself. In the past he had always focused on winning and being the best, but his goal now was simply to make sure that his new friend was safe, nourished and hydrated. Although Dion did not finish first, he felt he had won something far greater and promised to bring Gobi back to the UK for good to become a new addition to his family. Thi

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn the depths of Antarctic winter, hundreds of miles from land or rescue, a small fishing boat is swallowed by waves as high as houses. The captain is fatally slow to act, and then paralyzed by fear. The officers flee for their lives. Only the actions of Matt Lewis, a 23-year-old British marine biologist and one of the most inexperienced men aboard, will save the lives of the South African crew.Lewis is the last man off the sinking boat, and leads the escape onto three life rafts. There the battle for survival begins.Trade ReviewThis is brilliant . . Told with terrifying detail and heartfelt compassion -- Dermot O'LearyA story that reminds us of the unforgiving nature of the sea and the courage that lies within the everyday heroes that have found themselves in hell -- Bear GryllsA dramatic tale of survival in one of the most brutal situations on earth. Feels like reading the diary of a doomed man . . . so personal and chillingly real; totally takes you there in a way that is not always comfortable -- Steve BackshallReads like a sinister version of The Perfect Storm...Thrilling, compelling, unsettling, rewarding . . . This breakneck race of a book isn't just required reading for fans of waterborne peril; Harvard MBAs could also scour the pages as a case study in dysfunctional workplaces and woeful man management. It's like the Perfect Storm, but with gruesomely, even murderously, imperfect people * Sunday Times *A heart-thumping tale of tragedy and survival - minus the Hollywood ending * Daily Telegraph *A thrilling, horrifying and compelling portrait of human survival. Colossal terror unfolds on every page * The Bookseller, Books of the Year *For his compelling account of the hardships of fishing in remote Antarctic waters, and of what it means to abandon ship in a severe storm with inadequate equipment and a crew unprepared for survival. The book is objective but non-judgmental in its descriptiveness, so heightening the true sense of disaster. The style makes the book accessible to a wide public, but it is also essential reading for seafarers, fishermen and yachtsmen, as it concerns attitudes to safety and survival. A truly life-affirming and influential work. * The Mountbatten Maritime Award for best literary contribution - Certificate of Merit *

Read more less

Book SynopsisWinner of the National Outdoor Book Award and the Banff Mountain Book Award for Mountain Literature "Gripping, intense…Buried in the Sky will satisfy anyone who loved [Into Thin Air]." —Kate Tuttle, Boston GlobeTrade Review"Enthralling…phenomenal research and vivid writing create a memorable portrait not only of the events on the mountain but also of the people who make modern high-altitude climbing possible." -- Michael J. Ybarra - Wall Street Journal"Easily the most riveting and important mountaineering book of the past decade." -- Outside"An indispensable addition to the genre…a long-overdue historical correction to the familiar mountaineering story." -- Matthew Power - Men's Journal"An absorbing book that goes beyond the typical mountaineering tale…This book is mesmerizing." -- Sharon Haddock - Deseret News"It’s a testament to the thrills in this book that I scoured the notes, eager to learn how the authors wrote their account…The authors’ commendable documentary about the people who carry the gear is overtaken by the chilling adventure story of one terrible day on the mountain." -- Smithsonian Magazine"This compelling story brought back from K2’s slopes is a worthy tale about a little-known aspect of these high-stakes climbs." -- Colleen Kelly - Minneapolis Star Tribune"Through phenomenal research, Zuckerman and Padoan have dug deeper than anyone else into one of the most mysterious tragedies in mountaineering history. Thanks to their efforts, the heroism and humanity of the Sherpa climbers who saved lives shine through the chaos and grief of that awful day on K2." -- David Roberts, co-author of K2: Life and Death on the World's Most Dangerous Mountain and author of Limits of the Known"An informative and inspirational book…I couldn’t put it down." -- Jamling Tenzing Norgay, son of Tenzing Norgay, author of Touching My Father's Soul"Buried in the Sky reveals the heroic deeds of the Sherpa…[It] brings to light how immensely strong, loyal, and talented the Sherpa climbers are. Finally credit is given, where credit is due." -- Ed Viesturs, bestselling author of No Shortcuts to the Top and K2: Life and Death on the World’s Most Dangerous Mountain"I admired Buried in the Sky and enjoyed it, too. Because the authors did their homework and wrote their story well, and most of all, because credit is given at long last to those who deserve it most." -- Peter Matthiessen, author of The Snow Leopard"The Sherpas climb off the page and carry a narrative that is as fast and as gripping as their superhuman ascents." -- Michael Kodas, author of High Crimes: The Fate of Everest in an Age of Greed

Read more less

Book Synopsis''This book should rock Whitehall to its foundations.'' - Andy Burnham''This is crusading journalism at its best.'' - Lord OwenIn the 1970s and 1980s almost 5,000 people in the UK contracted HIV or hepatitis C after being infected by contaminated NHS blood products, including the notorious Factor VIII, yet no organisation or individual has ever been held to account. So far, more than 2,800 are known to have died, while tens of thousands more lives have been destroyed in the families of those affected.Caroline Wheeler has been reporting on this scandal - the worst treatment disaster in the history of the NHS - for over two decades. She has been integral to the campaign for justice for the victims and their families, and played a pivotal role in persuading Prime Minister Theresa May to agree to the infected blood inquiry in 2019, the findings of which are expected to be published in late 2023.Death in the Blood will be based Trade ReviewThis book should rock Whitehall to its foundations. It shows it was complicit in a criminal cover-up on an industrial scale lasting five decades. It should prompt major changes to the way Britain is run - starting with a duty of candour on all public servants. -- Andy Burnham, Mayor of Great ManchesterThis is crusading journalism at its best. Caroline Wheeler, a rookie reporter in Birmingham, hearing that contaminated blood transfusions had given hepatitis and HIV to a haemophiliac began to campaign for justice and has continued today as Political Editor of The Sunday Times. This book chronicles the long campaign, the denials and obstruction and why the Infected Blood Inquiry will soon bring some comfort to sufferers and their families. -- Lord OwenThis is the definitive analysis of the worst health scandal in British history. The terrifying lengths that the state went to to hide this outrage should chill us all. Wheeler's compassion in her approach to the horror she uncovered will stay with me forever. -- Professor Lucy Easthope, author of When the Dust SettlesCaroline shines a fierce light on the darkest of episodes. This is an important account based on years of meticulous investigation. It exposes the shame of how some of the most vulnerable were failed - and reveals the long fight to give a voice to those whose pain was silenced. -- Laura KuenssbergCaroline has been so supportive to the victims and survivors of the NHS contaminated blood scandal. She has been an integral part of our long fight for justice and enabled people like me to speak out with confidence, when there was little confidence before -- Ade Goodyear, former pupil at Treloar SchoolA gripping narrative, strengthened by Wheeler's longstanding connection to the story * Financial Times *Moving, angering * The Times *

Read more less

Book SynopsisHow one little girl survived a Japanese Prisoner of War camp. A powerful true storyTrade ReviewUnflinching . . . a devastating portrayal of a child's loss of innocence * The Observer *

Read more less

Book SynopsisAn extraordinary and moving story of two brothers from the American South who were stolen away to become circus freaks.Trade ReviewWhat makes her account compelling, however, is the history it offers of the lives black people had to endure in the decades following slavery, a history that seems all the more poignant in the aftermath of last year’s Black Lives Matter debates … [An] extraordinary tale of courage and grace John Burnside, Spectator -- John Burnside * Spectator *Jaw-dropping * Glasgow Herald *Pitiless about life in the Jim Crow South where, even in the 1920s, thousands of black Americans, some for crimes as trivial as hopping a train, were sold into labour camps and sent down slave mines … It is quite some story, and Macy has told it skilfully, vividly, compassionately -- Sukhdev Sandhu * Guardian *Compelling * Observer *Macy is a gifted storyteller and a dogged researcher and readers will be riveted by Harriet Muse's struggle to find her sons. * New York Times *A sturdy, passionate, and penetrating narrative. This first-rate journey into human trafficking, slavery, and familial bonding is an engrossing example of spirited, determined reportage * Kirkus *"It's the best story in town," a colleague told Beth Macy decades ago, "but no one has been able to get it." She now has, with tenacity and sensitivity. She gives a singular sideshow its due, offering these "Ambassadors from Mars" a remarkable, deeply affecting afterlife. -- Stacy SchiffAs compelling as Rebecca Skloot's The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks . . . both are absolutely stunning examples of narrative nonfiction at its best . . . Certain to be among the most memorable books of the year. -- Connie Fletcher * Booklist *Table of ContentsIntroduction - i: Prologue: I Am the True Vine Chapter - 1: Sit Down and Shut Up Chapter - 2: White Peoples Is Hateful Chapter - 3: And Still the Cry Against Us Continues Chapter - 4: your Momma Is Dead Chapter - 5: Some Serious Secrets Chapter - 6: A Paying Proposition Chapter - 7: He Who Hustleth While He Waiteth Chapter - 8: Comma, Colored Chapter - 9: The Prodigal Sons Chapter - 10: Not One Single, Solitary, Red Penny Chapter - 11: Adultery's Siamese Twin Chapter - 12: Housekeeping! Chapter - 13: Practically Imbeciles Chapter - 14: Very Good Old Colored Woman Chapter - 15: Wilbur and John Chapter - 16: God is Good to Me Section - ii: Epilogue: Markers Acknowledgements - iii: Acknowledgements Section - iv: Notes Index - v: Index

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisA superb study brilliant stories, hilarious observations and jaw dropping revelations about so many figures in public life we thought we knew but never understood' EMILY MAITLIS Loss and adversity are part of the human condition, but an imperfect past isn't always an indicator of what's to come. This book traces a pattern: why is it that often the people with the hardest beginnings in life children who experience displacement, disease, financial ruin, abandonment or bereavement become the most successful adults? And is there something to learn from those people, who perhaps have the strongest sense of what matters most?Of Britain's fifty-five prime ministers, twenty-five lost one or both of their parents as a child and 69 per cent suffered some form of serious childhood trauma. For their acclaimed podcast Past Imperfect, Thomson and Sylvester spoke to some such prime ministers, as well as pioneers and poets, CEOs and chefs, actors and archbishops, sports stars and Nobel prize-winniTrade Review PRAISE FOR WHAT I WISH I’D KNOWN WHEN I WAS YOUNG ‘This is a superb study of the way strength can emerge from childhood trauma – brilliant stories, hilarious observations and jaw dropping revelations about so many figures in public life we thought we knew – but never understood’Emily Maitlis ‘A punchy portrait of how character is forged in adversity. As an idiosyncratic, wide-ranging study, it works. Sylvester and Thomson have succeeded in avoiding “pity porn”; their book is provocative and even uplifting’The Times PRAISE FOR THE PAST IMPERFECT PODCAST ‘I promise not to praise Times podcasts unless I really like them. I’ve been recommending Past Imperfect to friends so it would seem unfair of me not to recommend it to readers. In Past Imperfect the paper’s crack interviewing team of Rachel Sylvester and Alice Thomson talk to politicians and celebrities about their pasts. Their theory is that all successful people are driven to achieve by childhood trauma. As a keen armchair psychologist I am fully behind this premise … Excellent’James Marriott, The Times

Read more less

Book Synopsis?The remarkable 200-year history of The RNLI and their invaluable role in British Maritime history. A beautiful book of kindness, courage, and community to treasure for years to come.Since 1824, people have counted on the RNLI to keep them safe on, in and next to the water. Over the last 200 years, an estimated 150,000 lives have been saved, and many more kept from harm by the incredible volunteers and donors who continue to honour the founding principle of the RNLI: to save every one.But where did our story begin and who were those pioneering life-savers?This is the story of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution's remarkable 200-year history, and their invaluable role in British Maritime History. People are at the heart of the RNLI, and this book explores the incredible work they've taken on over the last two centuries. Seeing huge societal, industrial and cultural shifts during this period, including two world wars in which they played a vital part, the RNLI have made a significant

Read more less

Book SynopsisDamian longs for home, but one man stands in his way Damian is just seven when he is taken in by foster carer Cathy Glass. His mother, Rachel, loves her three young children dearly, but she is vulnerable, naive and unable to cope on her own.Cathy sets about helping Damian overcome his eating issues, with the hope that he will eventually return home. But when Rachel's new boyfriend, Troy, arrives on the scene, Cathy becomes deeply concerned. She soon realises that Damian and his siblings are in great danger

Read more less

Book SynopsisApsley Cherry-Garrard (1886-1959) was one of the youngest members of Captain Scott's final expedition to the Antarctic which he joined to collect the eggs of the Emperor penguin. After the expedition, Cherry-Garrard served in the First World War and was invalided home. With the zealous encouragement of his neighbour, George Bernard Shaw, Cherry-Garrard wrote The Worst Journey in the World (1922) in an attempt to overcome the horror of the journey. As the years unravelled he faced a terrible struggle against depression, breakdown and despair, haunted by the possibility that he could have saved Scott and his companions.Trade ReviewThe best polar book there is * Observer *Probably the best adventure yarn ever published * Independent *Remains the masterpiece of heroic travel * The Times *The finest book ever written about Antarctic exploration as well as a great literary classicOver the greater part of a lifetime I have worn out two copies of the Antarctic's classic, Apsley Cherry-Garrard's The Worst Journey in the World * William Trevor *

Read more less

Book SynopsisCaroline Moorehead is a bestselling and prize-winning author, and the biographer of Bertrand Russell, Freya Stark, Iris Origo, Madame de la Tour du Pin and Martha Gellhorn. Her recent books a quartet focussed on resistance to dictatorship, particularly in Italy were shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize, the Orwell Prize and the Costa Biography Award. She lives in London.Trade ReviewBrilliant… It is refreshing to read a book that so confidently abandons the rhetoric of heroism and tries to see its subjects for who they were… Moorehead has had to master a huge amount of background material, and she pulls it off with skill and a remarkable lightness of touch -- Keith Lowe * Mail on Sunday *Riven with complexity… Stories of this weight could occupy several volumes and would still disorientate with all the possibilities – both altruistic and malevolent – of human nature -- Sinclair Mckay * Telegraph *Vivid...an unsparing yet balanced account of the Vichy years...we need books like this to make it impossible for us to forget. -- Alan Judd * Spectator *An especially poignant story… enthralling and meticulous book… amidst the horror of the Holocaust – and such horror is painfully evident in the lives of those left behind – this book shows that human kindness endured undimmed by the propaganda, the threats of violence and the vast rewards on offer for submitting to the will of Nazis -- Harry Hodges * Daily Express *Moorehead draws vivid portraits of those who helped…The emotional heart of the book beats in the children’s stories…The story does not end with Liberation. Moorehead, a biographer and historian, scrupulously records the emotional fallout from the children’s experiences -- Edward Stourton * The Times *

Read more less

Book SynopsisLOST1972. A plane has crashed in the Andes mountains. The passengers are hopelessly lost in one of the most isolated places on earth.ABANDONEDAlmost three months later, two of the survivors, emaciated and frozen, reach the authorities and lead a rescue team to the remaining fourteen passengers.ALIVEThe rescue team are shocked when they reach the crash-site. Food supplies have long gone, and the remains of the dead lie scattered among the fuselage. It is only too clear how these passengers have managed to stay alive ...Trade Review'One of the classic survival stories of all time - a story of the will to survive against impossible odds' * Daily Mail *Read's powerful account of the crash and its aftermath...what lingers are the moments of ingenuity, and the resilience of the human spirit. * Guardian *'It is inconceivable to me that this story could have been better told... a masterpiece of narrative' -- Graham GreeneRead handles the story so well * Evening Standard *An adventure story with a rare depth. * Seven *

Read more less

Book SynopsisA House in the Sky is the dramatic and redemptive memoir of Amanda Lindhout, a woman whose curiosity led her to the world''s most beautiful and remote places, its most imperiled and perilous countries, and then into fifteen months of harrowing captivity-an exquisitely written story of courage, resilience, and grace.As a child, Amanda Lindhout escaped a violent household by paging through issues of National Geographic and imagining herself in its exotic locales. At the age of nineteen, working as a cocktail waitress, she began saving her tips so she could travel the globe. Aspiring to understand the world and live a significant life, she backpacked through Latin America, Laos, Bangladesh, and India, and emboldened by each adventure, went on to Sudan, Syria, and Pakistan. In war-ridden Afghanistan and Iraq she carved out a fledgling career as a television reporter. And then, in August 2008, she traveled to Somalia-the most dangerous place on earth. On he

Read more less

Book SynopsisAs a child, Lily knew she was bad. By the age of 13, she had killed someone with a thought, spread untold disease, and spied on her friends. Only by performing a series of secret routines could she correct her wrongdoing. But it was never enough. She had a severe case of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, and it ruled her life. A startling true story.Trade Review'Often as chilling as Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar, but also full of so much inner and external turbulence that it reminded me at times of The Bourne Identity and Memento. Readers will root for Lily, even when she is attempting to run away from the realities - and sometimes authorities - chasing her ... an intense heart-rending roller coaster of a book ... Because We Are Bad is the most engaging and well-written account of mental health experiences I have read and should be on the reading lists of courses for mental health professionals.' – WILL BLACK, HUFFINGTON POST 'It's a fascinating read... Buy the book! Buy the book!' – JO GOOD, BBC RADIO LONDON'Remarkable... She writes with literary poise and a gift for mordant observation and self-deprecating humor that belie her youth. I hope this book finds a wide readership. It will offer solace to OCD sufferers who will understand that they are not alone and who might gain hope of remission; for other readers, it will provide a harrowing sense of what many OCD sufferers have to endure just to get through the day.' – SCOTT STOSSEL, WASHINGTON POST'A harrowingly honest memoir of profound psychological struggle. In her courageous book, the author offers compelling insight into the pain and destructive power of OCD as well as the resilience of a young woman determined to beat the odds.' – KIRKUS REVIEWS'London-based model and journalist Bailey offers an authentic and stunning account of her struggle with obsessive compulsive disorder in this beautifully-rendered memoir.' – PUBLISHERS WEEKLY'Because We Are Bad is an emotional, challenging read. Lily takes us deep into the heart of the illness but she is also a deft writer, and even the darkest moments are peppered with wit and wry observations.' – JAMES LLOYD, OCD-UK'A fascinating read. It's brilliantly written; I felt inside your head.' – RAY D'ARCY SHOW, RTE RADIO 1'I laughed, I cried. I could not put this book down. Intensely moving with flashes of black humour, Because We Are Bad is the compelling account of one young woman's experience of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.' – ROSANNA GREENSTREET, FREELANCE JOURNALISTTable of ContentsTABLE OF CONTENTS 1. CHESBURY HOSPITAL. Lily Bailey is in Chesbury Hospital, a private facility in London for patients with mental and physical illnesses. Lily is 19. 'The observation room is next to the nurses’ station; they keep you there until you are no longer a risk to yourself.' 2. MY FRIEND. Lily is in the playground, but her imaginary friend is not the others. She lives in her head all the time. 'Two of us sat side by side in my head, woven together, inseparable. She didn’t even have a name; she was just She. Really, it was hard to say where She ended and I began.' 3. THE LETTER. Lily gets a letter from school, which must contain terrible news. Lily hides the letter from her grandmother because this terrible news must not reach her father and mother. Lily is bad. Very bad. Her cousin has died: Lily killed him with a thought. 4. NEW SCHOOL. It is Lily's first day at Buxton House. The other children laugh at Lily. She repeats the words: 'Fresh start. Fresh start. Fresh start.' Lily creeps into her sister's room because Ella could stop breathing at any moment. It is important to check that Ella is alive. 5. MUM AND DAD. Lily is told to be concerned with hygiene when visiting the swimming pool. Lily resolves to take this very seriously. Her routines intensify. Intrusive thoughts pop into her head. Mum and Dad's arguing worsens. 6. SWEARING IN CHURCH. 'Church is not the place for these words, but we can’t make them go away. Fucking boring ass church. Crap, fuck, shit, wanker, cunt.' Lily is one of the best at maths, but when Lily makes a mistake her friend in her head says: 'Stupid. Stupid. Stupid'. 7. MOST APOLOGETIC GIRL. At the Buxton House Leavers’ Awards, Lily receives an unusual award. ‘I’m sorry I was laughing when you walked past me in the corridor yesterday. I want you to know it was about something Mia said. I wasn’t laughing at you.’ 8. HAMBLEDON. When she moves to boarding school, Lily's routines intensify. 'Recording our mistakes has become our full-time occupation. Most words are generated when interacting with other people, like at mealtimes or when everyone is hanging out in the dorm.' She lists her errors for 4 hours a day. 9. RUNNING FROM WORDS. Lily takes up athletics to flee from the lists that form in her heads. If she can run fast enough, the exertion - the sheer breathlessness - will silence her mind. 10. STUMBLING. Unable to keep up with her routines and overwhelmed with her lists, Lily's world finally collapses. She rushed to the bathroom. 'We curl up in a ball and rock back and forward. Normally the cold tiles make us feel better, but today they don't' 11. SPECIAL NEEDS DEPARTMENT. Lily has to take GCSEs and is awarded 'extra time' because she is a 'slow processor'. Her friend in her head takes issue with the extra time Lily has been given. She scolds her: 'Lying scummy cheat. Lying scummy cheat. Lying scummy cheat.' 12. COMING HOME. Lily feigns an illness so that she is discharged from school. Her mother picks her up and takes her to a homeopathic doctor who prescribes some pills. Her mother also takes Lily to a GP, who finds her iron is low. She is referred to a specialist 13. DOCTOR, DOCTOR. At a psychiatric hospital, Lily meets Dr Finch for the first time. Her friend insists there is no need to see this doctor. Has she ever let her down? Dr Finch says Lily has OCD: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. Her friend is unhappy. 'OCD is a mental disorder. What we do is good' 14. PILLS, PILLS, PILLS. Having an invisible friend is unusual in OCD, Dr Finch explains. She says that Lily is not a bad person, but is worried about being a bad person. Lily must do CBT, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. She tells Lily to rest from her routines. Lily's friend is unhappy and mocks her. 15. DRIVING. Lily goes on a car journey with Dr Finch. Lily's friend is protesting, whining. Dr Funch says: ‘You know who your “friend” reminds me of? A wife beater. She beats you up in your head and calls you names when you don’t do what she says, and you follow her instructions because you’re scared' 16. THOSE WHO LOVE ME. Dr Finch sets Lily homework of graded exposure. To help cure her OCD, she has to resist recording lists of people she cares the least about. Lily decides she must do everything to make Dr Finch happy. But Lily wants to stop taking the anti-depressants she has been prescribed 17. THAILAND. Working in a nursery in London, Lily fears she has abused the children or that their food is unhygienic. During a gap year at a Thai orphanage, Lily's intrusive thoughts mock her. Her friend cackles about the basic washing up: 'Are you going to get sick?' 18. DUBLIN. Lily starts an English degree at Trinity College, lodging at university halls in Rathmines. The voice in her head grows frantic during Freshers Week, and she writes to Dr Finch about managing her OCD. Dr Finch says: 'Tackling OCD involves taking risks to find out what actually happens' 19. IT IS MY FAULT. Things reach a crisis point in Lily's life and she decides to give up her battle against the voice in her head, her OCD, the endless list-making and routines. She is found by her university friends and an ambulance is called 20. MENTAL WARD. Lily is transferred from intensive care in an Irish hospital to the psychiatric unit. She tells the psychiatrist: ‘I’m a bad person. I spend my life trying to be good and it’s never enough.’ ‘Is there anything else?’ ‘I love my doctor. I’m obsessed by her. It’s not an OCD thing.' 21. HARLEY STREET. Back in London after returning from Ireland, Lily is festering, writing endless lists. She is taken to a private consultation in Harley Street. Dr Dax says she will admit Lily to a private hospital in London, Chesbury. Lily escapes from her parents and ends up in a high-rise flat. 22. URINE TEST. Worried that she will contract HIV and die, Lily is forced to give blood - and a urine sample is demanded. Lily recites the Old list: I am preoccupied with four categories: BITCH LIAR, BODILY FUNCTIONS and PERVERT. 23. LOSER, FRIEND. Lily's list-making continues apace as her obsessive compulsions continue even during treatment, but she finds a friend and soulmate in Frankie and they have adventures together, breaking into an old part of the Victorian hospital building. 24. SKATING. Lily complains that Dr Dax at Chesbury Hospital is not giving her CBT for her OCD. 'I scream at her and ask her why she keeps changing my medication without explanation. My SPOILT category is going into overdrive, but for once, I don’t care.' 25. ASHLEAVES. Lily is transferred to a rural hospital. She still goes through her OCD routines, including the list-making, but her medication is stablised – and she is given CBT to combat her obsessive behaviour 26. NURSERY. Discharged from the hospital, Lily starts work at a local nursery in London. 'I picture the 0.01% of germs that couldn’t be washed off by the antibacterial soap crawling from my naked fingers deep into an apple segment, ready to be delivered into the innocent mouth of an unsuspecting child' 27. JOURNALISM. Still suffering from OCD, Lily gets an internship at a local magazine and meets an attractive surfer dude, Doug. Lily wonders if she is introducing obscene terms into the articles she writes. Lily gets a dog, Rocky, and finds that she does not worry about him being unhygienic 28. ROCKY. Lily is encouraged to an OCD support class, where she finds talking to fellow sufferers helps. 'I remember what Dr Finch said: ‘Your routines feed off isolation'.' 29. THE TRUTH. Lily meets an older man and slowly comes to terms with her OCD. I have existed for 21 years. I didn’t live them all, but from now on I am hoping to. Sometimes... grey thoughts saunter in like unwanted dinner guests; the trick is not to invite them to sit at the table.'

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Award-winning International Bestselling Story of One Man's Six Year Detention in Australia ‘A powerfully vivid account of the experiences of a refugee: desperation, brutality, suffering, and all observed with an eye that seems to see everything and told in a voice that’s equal to the task.' - Phillip PullmanIn 2013, Kurdish journalist Behrouz Boochani sought asylum in Australia but was instead illegally imprisoned in the country’s most notorious detention centre on Manus Island. This book is the result.Boochani spent nearly five years typing passages of this book one text at a time from a secret mobile phone in prison. Compiled and translated from Farsi, they form an incredible story of how escaping political persecution in Iran, he ended up trapped as a stateless person. This vivid, gripping portrait of his years of incarceration and exile shines devastating light on the fates of so many people, as borders close around the world.No Friend but the Mountains is both a brave act of witness and a moving testament to the humanity of all people, in the most extreme of circumstances.'A brilliant book. No Friend but the Mountains can rightly take its place on the shelf of world prison literature . . . It is a profound victory for a young poet who showed us all how much words can still matter.' - Richard Flanagan, Booker Prize winning author of The Narrow Road to the Deep NorthTrade ReviewA chant, a cry from the heart, a lament, fuelled by a fierce urgency, written with the lyricism of a poet, the literary skills of a novelist, and the profound insights of an astute observer of human behaviour and the ruthless politics of a cruel and unjust imprisonment. -- Arnold Zable, author of the award-winning Jewels and Ashes and Cafe ScheherazadeThe systems of containment and control that the rich world applies to many thousands of migrants and refugees work by reducing people to a faceless presence to either be feared or pitied, but never listened to. In the face of this oppression, Behrouz Boochani's lyrical yet unsparing account is a vital act of resistance, and a unique examination of people pushed to life's extremes. -- Daniel Trilling, author of Lights in the DistanceNot for the faint-hearted, it's a powerful, devastating insight into a situation that's so often seen through a political - not personal - lens. * GQ *No Friend but the Mountains, quite apart from the extraordinary circumstances of its writing, gives us a powerfully vivid account of the experiences of a refugee: desperation, brutality, suffering, and all observed with an eye that seems to see everything and told in a voice that’s equal to the task. -- Phillip PullmanThis is a brilliant book. No Friend but the Mountains is a book that can rightly take its place on the shelf of world prison literature . . . It is a profound victory for a young poet who showed us all how much words can still matter. -- Richard Flanagan, Booker Prize winning author of The Narrow Road to the Deep NorthBoochani has created a book that resists classification. It overlaps with genres such as prison literature, philosophical fiction, clandestine philosophical literature, prison narratives, Australian dissident writing, Iranian political art, transnational literature, decolonial writing and the Kurdish literary tradition. * Guardian *A terrific book, extraordinary not only because of the near-impossible conditions in which it was written, but because it’s gripping, raw, honest, brutal and also deeply humane, poetic, spirited and even at times humorous. It’s a searing indictment of indefinite detention (something that still exists in the UK) and a reminder of what happens when we stop seeing migrants as human beings. -- Monica Ali, author of Brick LaneI was weeping within minutes. Bouchani has written a devastating and visceral account of modern displacement and its indignities. It is tangible, and sensory, and rooted in the human body--it stings to turn the page and yet it's impossible to stop. It should be taught in schools as a powerful and damning account of the most astonishing collective failure of our age. -- Dina Nayeri, author of The Ungrateful RefugeeUnder atrocious conditions [Behrouz Boochani] has managed to write and publish a record of his experiences (experiences yet to be concluded), a record that will certainly leave his jailers gnashing their teeth . . . the absorbing record of a life-transforming episode whose effects on his inner self the writer is still trying to plumb. -- J. M. Coetzee, winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature, New York Review of BooksA powerful book of witness that recalls the work of Primo Levi, and is sustained throughout by a profoundly collaborative and stunningly imagined translation. It demonstrates in every line how poetry - and translation - can also generate philosophy. Put it on every curriculum, now. -- Deborah Smith, Man Booker International Prize winning translator

Read more less

Book Synopsis**WINNER OF THE 2019 MOORE PRIZE ****THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER**‘A riveting account of the multiple outrages of the criminal justice system of Alabama. A harrowing masterpiece’ Guardian‘Hinton somehow navigates through his rage and despair to a state of forgiveness and grace’ IndependentAt age 29, Anthony Ray Hinton was wrongfully charged with robbery and murder, and sentenced to death by electrocution for crimes he didn’t commit. The only thing he had in common with the perpetrator was the colour of his skin.Anthony spent the next 28 years of his life on death row, watching fellow inmates march to their deaths, knowing he would follow soon. Hinton’s incredible story reveals the injustices and inherent racism of the American legal system, but it is also testament to the hope and humanity in us all.‘You will be swept away in this unbelievable, dramatic true story’ Oprah WinfreyTrade Review[Hinton] is a remarkable storyteller. You will be swept away in this unbelievable, dramatic true story * Oprah Winfrey *Nelson Mandela spent 27 years in prison for opposing a racist system in South Africa. Anthony Ray Hinton spent 30 years on death row because a racist system still exists in America. Both emerged from their incarceration with a profound capacity to forgive. They are stunning examples of how the most horrendous cruelty can lead to the most transcendent compassion. -- Archbishop Desmond TutuAnthony Ray Hinton's memoir of his wrongful imprisonment...is a riveting account of the multiple outrages of the criminal justice system of Alabama. But that isn't what makes this a genuine spiritual experience: that comes from the nearly biblical capacity of the author to endure, to forgive, and finally to triumph...his book is a harrowing masterpiece. * Guardian *A wonderful memoir...A story of forgiveness and struggle - and a story of friendship and imagination * Book of the Day, Observer *This incredibly moving chronicle...is one staggering revelation after another, but also a lovely portrait of kindness, warmth and how faith is its own reward...On death row he somehow navigates through his rage and despair to a state of forgiveness and grace. * Independent *

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe inside story of a case that illustrates the horrific perils of unchecked prosecutorial overreach, written by the man who experienced it firsthand.Raj Rajaratnam, the respected founder of the iconic hedge fund Galleon Group, which managed $7 billion and employed 180 people in its heyday, chose to go to trial rather than concede to a false narrative concocted by ambitious prosecutors looking for a scapegoat for the 2008 financial crisis. Naively perhaps, Rajaratnam had expected to get a fair hearing in court. As an immigrant who had achieved tremendous success in his adopted country, he trusted the system. He had not anticipated prosecutorial overreach—inspired by political ambition—FBI fabrications, judicial compliance, and lies told under oath by cooperating witnesses. In the end, Rajaratnam was convicted and sentenced to eleven years in prison. He served seven and a half. Meanwhile, not a single senior bank executive responsible for the financial crisis was even charged. Uneven Justice is the story of his bewildering and confounding prosecution by forces who, quite frankly, were looking for bigger game. When Rajaratnam refused to support the narrative that would make that happen, he and the Galleon Group became collateral damage. A cautionary tale with implications for us all, Uneven Justice is both a riveting page-turner and an eye-opening lesson in the vagaries of justice when an unscrupulous prosecutor is calling the shots.Trade Review“The book, "Uneven Justice," makes a persuasive case that this prosecution served to cover up the embarrassment of the Obama DOJ's malfeasance and advance the ambitious Bharara's career. But it's most important point is that the entire justice system is rigged against defendants. Obviously, few people are going to sympathize with a billionaire hedge fund manager. But that's the point. That's not the book's goal. His case is done. The book is a genuine, serious, in-depth study of all the ways federal prosecutors have unchecked power to destroy people. Federal prosecutors routinely threaten people's families, conceal exculpatory evidence, exploit the fact that almost anything is a crime, and in general have rigged the system to make acquittal almost impossible. If it takes Rajaratnam to help expose that, this book is welcomed.” -- Glenn Greenwald, Pulitzer Prize winning Journalist, NY Times Best Selling Author and former constitutional lawyer

Read more less

Book SynopsisNEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERAn extraordinary insight into life under one of the world's most ruthless and secretive dictatorships and the story of one woman's terrifying struggle to avoid capture/repatriation and guide her family to freedom.As a child growing up in North Korea, Hyeonseo Lee was one of millions trapped by a secretive and brutal communist regime. Her home on the border with China gave her some exposure to the world beyond the confines of the Hermit Kingdom and, as the famine of the 1990s struck, she began to wonder, question and to realise that she had been brainwashed her entire life. Given the repression, poverty and starvation she witnessed surely her country could not be, as she had been told the best on the planet?Aged seventeen, she decided to escape North Korea. She could not have imagined that it would be twelve years before she was reunited with her family.Trade Review‘The most riveting TED talk ever’ Oprah ‘Harrowing’ Wired ‘A sad and beautiful story of a girl who could not even keep her name, yet overcame all with the identity of what it is to be human’ Jang Jin-sung, author of ‘Dear Leader’ ‘Stirring and brave … true, committed, unvarnished and honest. Lee has made her own life the keyhole to the present, inside and outside of North Korea’ Scotsman ‘Remarkable bravery fluently recounted’ Kirkus

Read more less

Book Synopsis''An intriguing and mesmerising book'' Ben FogleMy life is free, random and spontaneous. This in itself creates enormous energy and clarity in body and mind - Miriam LancewoodMiriam Lancewood is a young Dutch woman living a primitive, nomadic life in the heart of the mountains with her New Zealand husband. She lives simply in a tent or hut and survives by hunting wild animals, foraging edible plants and using minimal supplies. For the last six years she has lived this way, through all seasons, often cold, hungry and isolated in the bush. She loves her life and feels free, connected to the land and happy.This book tells her story, including the very practical aspects of such a life: her difficulties learning to hunt with a bow and arrow, struggles to create a warm environment in which to live, attempts to cross raging rivers safely and find ways through the rugged mountains and dense bush. This is interwoven with her adjustment to a very slow pac

Read more less

Book SynopsisA NEW YORK TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR, WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR BIOGRAPHYA New York Times bestseller, the incredible true story of a couple that escaped slavery in the South and eventually made their way to the UK, Africa and beyond.The remarkable true story of Ellen and William Craft, who escaped slavery through daring, determination, and disguise, with Ellen passing as a wealthy, disabled White man and William posing as 'his' slave.In 1848, a year of international democratic revolt, a young, enslaved couple, Ellen and William Craft, achieved one of the boldest feats of self-emancipation in history. Posing as master and slave, while sustained by their love as husband and wife, they made their escape together across more than 1,000 miles, riding steamboats, carriages, and trains that took them from bondage in Georgia to the free states of the North.Along the way, they dodged slave traders, military officers, and eve

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe Dive is a thrilling narrative nonfiction in the tradition of The Perfect Storm and Apollo 13.They were out of their depth, out of breath, and out of time. It was 1973. Two men were trapped in a crippled submarine 1,700 feet below sea. They only had enough air to survive for two days. On the ocean's surface there was a hastily assembled flotilla of rescue ships from both sides of the Atlantic. The world held its breath to await word of a rescue.In a routine dive to fix the telecommunication cable that snakes along the Atlantic sea bed, their mission had gone badly wrong. There was a catastrophic fault on board the Pisces III, and Roger Chapman and Roger Mallinson's mini-submarine went tumbling to the ocean bed almost half a mile below.The crippled sub and its crew were trapped far beyond the depth of any previous sub-sea rescue. They had just two days' worth of oxygen. However, on the surface the best estimates for a rescue of these men was a minimum of three days' time.The Dive is Trade Review‘An unbelievable, completely true story that is so taut and brilliantly told I defy anyone not to cherish every breath they take’ Denise Mina

Read more less

Book SynopsisExtraordinary' Woman&HomeA Roaring Girl was loud when she should be quiet, disruptive when she should be submissive, sexual when she should be pure, masculine' when she should be feminine'. Meet the unsung heroines of British history who refused to play by the rules.Roaring Girls tells the game-changing life stories of eight formidable women whose grit, determination and radical unconventionality saw them defy the odds to forge their own paths.From the notorious cross-dressing thief Mary Frith in the seventeenth century to rebel slave Mary Prince and adventurer, industrialist and LGBT trailblazer Anne Lister in the nineteenth, these diverse characters redefined what a woman could be and what she could do in pre-twentieth-century Britain.Bold, inspiring and powerfully written, Roaring Girls tells the electrifying histories of women who, despite every effort to suppress them, dared to be extraordinary.Trade Review'An extraordinary, vivacious account of eight remarkable invisible women whose stories were crying out to be heard.’ Paula Byrne ‘Extraordinary’ Woman&Home ‘Brilliant…Gung-ho girl power’ Simple Things magazine ‘Terrific!’ Diane Atkinson ‘Joyful, energetic, meticulously researched’ Professor Vivien Gardner, University of Manchester ‘A really fascinating book that delves deep and proves that history is populated by unconventional women who’s stories often go untold.’ RED Online ‘Pulls back the curtain on women’s history to tell eight extraordinary tales of courage and determination over 300 years’. S magazine ‘A bold and thought-provoking read’ CANDIS ‘Roaring Girls is a slice of inspiration from pre-20th century Britain’ Tatler

Read more less

Book SynopsisCompelling and essential . . . will appeal to everyone who enjoyed Adam Kay's This Is Going to Hurt' Philippa PerryIn this powerful and deeply personal memoir, award-winning GP Dr Laura Marshall-Andrews introduces us to the patients who have shaped her radical approach to medicine.Over the course of a decade spent on the frontline of the NHS, Dr Laura witnessed lives being adversely affected by one-size-fits-all treatments. Determined to create change, she began to envisage a new way to care that prioritised the lived experience of her patients.Created with the help of doctors, artists and complementary health practitioners, Dr Laura's pioneering holistic approach was revelatory. From those whose lives were changed by ineffective' drugs, to those for whom alternative therapies, kindness and trust proved transformative, her patients began to flourish.What Seems To Be The Problem? is a heartfelt story of hope, and an urgent call for change in our NHS at a time when it is most in need.Trade Review‘Compelling and essential . . . will appeal to everyone who enjoyed Adam Kay’s This Is Going to Hurt’ Philippa Perry ‘Vital . . . the radical GP changing lives.’ The Observer ‘A wonderful and very important book which movingly describes how a GP both cared for and learned from her patients, and, as a result, opened up a new way for us to think about health and care.’ Lord Nigel Crisp, former NHS Chief Executive ‘This is the story of one brave GP’s fight with an often-soulless medical bureaucracy, to create the kind of doctor’s surgery that most of us wouldn’t dare dream of, and to champion a standard of care all our patients deserve. Adventure story, memoir, political call-to-arms, and heartfelt love letter to those she has spent her whole career looking after, WSTBTP is the most important book written by a doctor I’ve read in years.’ Gabriel Weston, surgeon and author of Direct Red: A Surgeon's Story ‘Offers fascinating insight into the day-to-day dramas of being a GP, as well as the incredible diversity of their patients’ Dr Amanda Brown, bestselling author of The Prison Doctor

Read more less

Book SynopsisGrimly fascinating engrossing' Daily Mail NINE HISTORIC CRIMES. ONE FAMILIAR OBSESSION.In early modern England, murder truly was most foul. Trials were gossipy events packed to the rafters with noisome spectators. Executions were public proceedings which promised not only gore, but desperate confessions and the grandest, most righteous human drama. Bookshops saw grisly stories of crime and death sell like hot cakes.This history unfolds the true stories of murder, criminal investigation, early forensic techniques, high court trials and so much more.In thrilling narrative, we follow a fugitive killer through the streets of London, citizen detectives clamouring to help officials close the net. We untangle the mystery of a suspected staged suicide through the newly emerging science of forensic pathology. We see a mother trying to clear her dead daughter's name while other women faced the accusations sometimes true and sometimes not of murdering their own children.These stories are pieceTrade Review Praise for Great and Horrible News: ‘Grimly fascinating…vivid detail… The early moderns were obsessed by stories of death, crime and justice,’ Adams states in her introduction. Her book, which covers the two centuries between 1500 and 1700, proves her point with a succession of grisly but engrossing cases’ Daily Mail ‘A true crime treat from former police officer Blessin Adams. Great and Horrible News looks at what we can learn from early modern Britain when it comes to justice and criminality’ Janice Hallett ‘Bleakly fascinating . . . police investigator turned academic Blessin Adams explores nine historic crimes . . . stimulating non-fiction’ Independent, BEST BOOKS OF MARCH ‘This gory history of crime shows that our obsession with lurid podcasts is nothing new . . . Adams, a police officer turned historian, has poured over coroners’ inquest records, court documents, pamphlets, newspaper articles, parish archives, ballads, wills, letters and diaries to restage nine grim stories of crime in England between 1500 and 1700. As an ex-copper, Adams is greatly interested in developments in forensic pathology in this period, which are superbly reconstructed from the sources’ The Times ‘Perfect for fans of true-crime, this is a bone-chilling and brilliantly researched account of murder, cruelty, and scandal in Tudor and Stuart Britain. I couldn’t put it down, but I sincerely regret reading it alone in the countryside. A fantastic debut’ Gareth Russell, author of Young and Damned and Fair ‘At once an intriguing true crime examination of historical crime and a sociological dive into Britain’s history, Adams does a stellar job of introducing a nonet of little-known crimes, running the gamut from suicide to child abuse to murder, that while not for the faint of heart, quickly become engrossing to read’ Set the Tape

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE GRIPPING, TERRIFYING STORY OF A BRUTAL STRUGGLE FOR SURVIVAL ON THE UPPER SLOPES OF THE HIMALAYAN K2, THE WORLD''S MOST HOSTILE TERRAIN. ''Unputdownable. A portrait of extreme courage, folly and loss, leavened by a small dose of survival'' Financial Times________________K2, August 1st, 2008. Thirty climbers are attempting the summit of the most savage mountain on Earth. They make it. But before they start their descent an ice shelf collapses, sweeping away their ropes. It is dark. Their lines are gone. They are low on oxygen. And it is getting very, very cold. How many will make it down alive?________________ ''A gripping hour-by-hour dissection of events in the Western Himalayas over three deadly days. A fitting shelfmate to the modern classic Into Thin Air. A cracking read'' Sunday Times''The best mountain-disaster memoir since Into Thin ATrade ReviewRiveting and powerful; an extraordinary story of an extraordinary tragedy. Reading No Way Down is the closest you can come to being on the summit of K2 on that fateful day -- Sir Ranulph FiennesA gripping hour-by-hour dissection of events in the Western Himalaya over three deadly days... a fitting shelfmate to the modern classic Into Thin Air -- Brian Schofield * Sunday Times *Stories of heroism, sadness and extraordinary endurance against all the odds are woven into a thrilling drama -- Christopher Hudson * Daily Mail *Unputdownable... a portrait of extreme courage, folly and loss, leavened by a small dose of survival' * Financial Times *Artfully and assiduously pieces together an account of a fractious day in brutal real time. Fatality by fatality... devastating * New York Times *A tour de force of a book...a triumph of storytelling * Associated Press *Probably the best mountain-disaster memoir since Into Thin Air * Mail on Sunday *One of the best books I've ever read. But take it to the beach at your peril - it's impossible to put down. Sunburn is guaranteed * Outdoor Science *

Read more less

Book Synopsis''That''s what happened, I think, struggling to stay afloat as the ocean pummels me from all sides. I must have blacked out -- exhausted, dehydrated, even a little delirious -- and hit the water.And no one saw it happen.''''When I heard Brett had fallen overboard, after twelve hours I said, There''s no way anyone can survive longer than that in the ocean - I certainly couldn''t do it. This is an incredible, incredible story.''Oscar Chalupsky, Twelve times Molokai Paddleboard World ChampionIn April 2013, fifty-year-old Brett Archibald was on board a surf-charter boat, making a night-time crossing of the Mentawai Strait off Sumatra, Indonesia. In the middle of a storm, ill with severe food poisoning, Brett was being sick overboard when, for a moment, he blacked out. When he came to, he found himself alone in the raging sea, being spun as if in a washing machine. Sixty miles from shore, Brett saw the lights of his boat disappearing into the darTrade ReviewTerrifying and awe-inspiring. * Wall Street Journal *A compelling book. * Times *One of the most compelling stories of survival you will read. * Daily Mail *When I heard Brett had fallen overboard, after twelve hours I said, 'There's no way anyone can survive longer than that in the ocean -- I certainly couldn't do it.' This is an incredible, incredible story. -- Oscar Chalupsky, twelve-time Molokai Challenge surfski world champion

Read more less

Book SynopsisFrom Torey Hayden, the number one Sunday Times bestselling author of One Child comes The Invisible Girl, a deeply moving true account of a young teen with a troubling obsession and an extraordinary educational psychologist's sympathy and determination to help.Eloise is a vibrant and charming young teen with a deeply caring nature, but she also struggles with a worrying delusion. She’s been moved from home to home, and her social workers have difficulty dealing with her habit of running away. After experiencing violence, neglect and sexual abuse from people she should have been able to trust, Eloise has developed complex behavioural needs. She struggles to separate fact from fiction, leading to confusion for the social workers trying to help her.After Torey learns of Eloise's background she hopes that some gentle care and attention can help Eloise gain some sense of security in her life. Can Torey and the other social workers provide the loving attention that has so far been missing in Eloise's life, or will she run away from them too?Trade ReviewHayden is a fine storyteller, recounting the touching bonds that form among children and between Hayden and her students. * Washington Post *Torey Hayden deserves the kind of respect I can’t give many people. She isn’t valuable, she’s incredible. The world needs more like Torey Hayden. -- Boston Globe

Read more less

Book SynopsisPowerful, fascinating and deeply moving - this book pushes aside our lazy images of human migration and refugees. I loved it. RODDY DOYLE, author of LoveTHE BESTSELLING MEMOIR - SHORTLISTED FOR THE IRISH NATIONAL BOOK AWARDS BIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR'I carry my troubled homeland within me; I hide it like a crime.'Growing up in conservative Saudi Arabia, Suad Aldarra felt stifled by the strictures placed on women. She yearned for the vibrant Syrian streets of her family's origin. When the opportunity arose to study at Damascus University, she jumped at the chance to move to a city she loved and to experience a degree of freedom she'd never known.But when the war started, everything changed. Suddenly Suad was thrown into a world of relentless pressure desperately looking for a way out. Her degree in software engineering was the saving grace that allowed her to travel to Ireland on a working visa. Yet reaching safety came at a price ...I Don't Want to Talk About Home is not a memoir about war and destruction. It's not about camps or boats. It's about the enduring love for a home that ceased to exist, building a life out of the rubble, and the parts of yourself you lose and find when integrating into a new world.Illuminating, vivid, and insightful, this is such a timely book. LOUISE O'NEILL, author of IdolFull of heart, honesty and hard-learnt wisdom... a captivating journey across continents, history and culture. I literally couldn't put this book down.JAN CARSON author of The RapturesTrade ReviewPowerful, fascinating and deeply moving - this book pushes aside our lazy images of human migration and refugees. I loved it. -- Roddy Doyle, author of Love Full of heart, honesty and hard-learnt wisdom, I Don't Want To Talk About Home addresses complex issues about identity, belonging and family. This book took me on a captivating journey across continents, history and culture. Suad Aldarra possesses a rare gift to when it comes to storytelling; I literally couldn't put this book down. -- Jan Carson, author of The Raptures Illuminating, vivid, and insightful, this is such a timely book. -- Louise O'Neill, author of Idol This is a heart-wrenching memoir. Suad's courage, resilience and determination to find a place she can now call home, shines through. A beautiful book that I read in one sitting. -- Sinead Moriarty, author of Yours, Mine, Ours It is difficult to convey in a few words how much I loved this book. Full of heart-wrenching moments, it moved me to tears frequently, tears of both empathy and joy.A beautiful evocation of a lost home and a lost homeland, tender, heartfelt, elegiac, full of humorous and wry observations that create a vivid picture of a vibrant world little known, understood, or appreciated in the west, it gives identity, humanity, and dignity to all those too often dismissed as faceless and nameless 'refugees' or 'migrants.' -- Arnold Thomas Fanning, author of Mind on Fire

Read more less

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

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe incredible true story of one man's imprisonment for the gospel; his brokenness, God's faithfulness and his eventual freedom. In 1993, Andrew Brunson was asked to travel to Turkey, the largest unevangelised country in the world, to serve as a missionary. Though hesitant because of the daunting and dangerous task that lay ahead, Andrew and his wife, Norine, believed this was God's plan for them. What followed was a string of threats and attacks,but also successes in starting new churches in a place where many people had never met a Christian. As their work with refugees from Syria, including Kurds, gained attention and suspicion, Andrew and Norine acknowledged the threat but accepted the risk, determining to stay unless God told them to leave. In 2016, they were arrested. Though the State eventually released Norine, who remained in Turkey, Andrew was imprisoned. Accused of being a spy and being among the plotters of the attempted coup, he became a political pawn whose story soon became known around the world. This is Andrew's remarkable story of his imprisonment and journey of faith.

Read more less

Book Synopsis'Powerful and Important' Guardian'Powerful' Financial Times'More twists and turns than a Hollywood spy thriller' Spectator'A story we all need to hear' New Statesman'Gripping... Araujo's accretion of detail has a powerful effect' New York Times*Shortlisted for the Moore Prize for Human Rights Writing*Deep in the heart of the Amazon, an entire region has lived under the control of one notorious land baron: Josélio de Barros. Josélio cut a grisly path to success: having arrived in the jungle with a shady past, he quickly made a name for himself as an invincible thug who grabbed massive tracts of public land, burned down the jungle and executed or enslaved anyone trying to stop him.Enter Dezinho, the leader of a small but robust farm workers' union fighting against land grabs, ecological destruction, and blatant human rights abuses. When Dezinho was killed in a shocking assassination, the local community held its breath. Would Josélio, whom everyone knew had ordered the hit, finally be brought to account? Or would authorities look the other way, as they had hundreds of times before?Dezinho's widow, Dona Joelma, was not about to let that happen. After his murder, she stepped into the spotlight, orchestrating a huge push to bring national media attention to the injustices in the Amazon.Set against the backdrop of Bolsonaro's devastating cuts to environmental protections, Brazil's rapidly changing place in the geopolitical spectrum, and the Amazon's crucial role in climate change, Masters of the Lost Land is both a gripping epic into one of the last wild places on Earth and an urgent illustration of how people are fighting for - and winning - justice for their futures and the environment.Trade ReviewGripping... Araujo's accretion of detail has a powerful effect * New York Times *Heriberto Araújo tells a story you likely haven't heard before... this book is uniquely informative about one of the most important social conflicts of our time * Prospect *A compelling and forensically researched piece of investigative reporting... [with] more twists and turns than a Hollywood spy thriller. * Spectator *Such narrative diligence feels like a necessary corrective to a reality mired in crime and cover-up... this book tells a story we all need to hear. * New Statesman *A meticulously researched, vivid and complex picture of the violence and corruption at the heart of the Amazon * Geographical *[A] deeply researched report from the front lines of the battle for the Amazon. * Publishers Weekly *An arresting examination of the history of extreme deforestation and violence in the Brazilian Amazon... Excellent * Kirkus Reviews *A gripping true crime mystery that transports readers into the heart of the Amazon to witness the human toll of its destruction and the incredible will of its people to fight for the future of this unique place - and the planet. Masterfully reported and engagingly written, this is a must-read. * Greg Grandin, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The End of the Myth *This is journalism at its absolute best, made even more impressive when one considers the obstacles, obfuscation and threats so often encountered there when trying to ferret out the truth... an essential book. * Joe Jackson, author of The Thief at the End of the World: Rubber, Power, and the Seeds of Empire *With a journalist's insight and a scholar's scrutiny, Heriberto Araujo tells the timeless story of dominance, displacement, murder and social injustice that drive large-scale environmental destruction * Roman Dial, author of The Adventurer’s Son *A tour de force... Araújo's masterful reporting from the frontlines in the war for the world's most important tropical biome should be required reading for policy makers, and for anyone who cares about the fight for social and environmental justice for Amazonia's forest peoples. * Jeremy M. Campbell, author of Conjuring Property: Speculation and Environmental Futures in the Brazilian Amazon *Heriberto Araújo, drawing on his years of research, has written an essential journalistic account of the murder, mayhem and mind-boggling corruption surrounding the assault on the Amazon. * Dr. Gary Sick, Columbia University, Board Member of Human Rights Watch *Heriberto Araujo does a significant service to Amazonia by providing a look into the social hell that accompanies the destruction of the Amazon rainforest... No one can read this account without coming to the conclusion that we must prevent such events from continuing. * Philip M. Fearnside, National Institute for Research in the Amazon *Highly readable * The Economist on China's Silent Army *Fascinating and vivid * Spectator on China's Silent Army *Truly impressive * Financial Times on China's Silent Army *Table of Contents1: The Escape 2: The Criminal Syndicate 3: Terror on the Nut Road 4: The Chainsaw Murder 5: The Boomtown 6: Early Challenges 7: Crickets and Cattle 8: No Longer Meek 9: Hunting Souza 10: Nowhere to Hide 11: Nothing Shining in Eldorado 12: Death and Salvation 13: An Unusual Case 14: The Evidence Man 15: A Cause Larger Than Death 16: The Law of the Gun 17: Land or We Burn the Jungle 18: Amazonian Justice 19: Sink or Swim 20: The Widow Must Fall 21: "Load the Trucks" 22: She Is Out 23: The Trial 24: A Certain Sense of Justice 25: Epilogue

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERWhen a fancy car pulls up outside six-year-old Marie's home in Oldham, in 1959, she is told she is going on holiday...In fact, she is taken to live in a convent, overseen by a cruel and sadistic nun.There, a horrific ritual of physical, sexual and mental abuse begins.Marie feels unable to share details of her suffering with anyone. Until years later, when a police investigation is launched, and she realises that the time has finally come to tell the truth...

Read more less

Book SynopsisLee Johnson was a man with simple dreams. All he wanted was a steady job and a nice home for his wife and children, something better than the hard life he knew growing up. He never imagined that he would become the face of a David-and-Goliath showdown against one of the world’s most powerful corporate giants. But a workplace accident left Lee doused in a toxic chemical and facing a deadly cancer that turned his life upside down. In 2018, the world watched as Lee was thrust to the forefront of one the most dramatic legal battles in recent history. The Monsanto Papers is the inside story of Lee Johnson’s landmark lawsuit against Monsanto. For Lee, the case was a race against the clock, with doctors predicting he wouldn’t survive long enough to take the witness stand. For the eclectic band of young, ambitious lawyers representing him, it was a matter of professional pride and personal risk, with millions of dollars and hard-earned reputations on the line. For the public at large, the lawsuit presented a question of corporate accountability. With enough money and influence, could a company endanger its customers, hide evidence, manipulate regulators, and get away with it all, for decades? Readers will be astounded by the depth of corruption uncovered, captivated by the shocking twists, and moved by Lee’s quiet determination to see justice served. With gripping narrative force that reads like fiction, The Monsanto Papers takes readers behind the scenes of a gruelling legal battle, pulling back the curtain on the frailties of the American court system and the lengths to which lawyers will go to fight corporate wrongdoing.Table of ContentsIntroduction: Creve Coeur Chapter 1. Getting Dirty Chapter 2. Railroad Avenue Chapter 3. Making a Case Chapter 4. Joining Forces Chapter 5. Going after Goliath Chapter 6. In the Interests of Justice Chapter 7. Corporate Secrets Chapter 8. A Risky Plan Chapter 9. Just Past Midnight Chapter 10. Lizard Man Chapter 11. A Question of Science Chapter 12. San Francisco Showdown Chapter 13. The Cavalry Chapter 14. Staying Alive Chapter 15. The Trial Begins Chapter 16. For the Defense Chapter 17. An Unusual Case Chapter 18. Fighting Until the Last Breath Chapter 19. The Last Word Chapter 20. Verdict Epilogue: A Leaf That Doesn’t Die A Note on Sources Acknowledgements About the Author Index

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe heartwarming, inspiring final chapter in the life of Max the Miracle dog

Read more less

Book SynopsisA David and Goliath battle for truth A specialist in GM foods and pesticides, the biologist Gilles-Éric Seralini has studied their toxicity and effects on people's health for many years. In September 2012, for the first time in a major scientific journal (Food and Chemical Toxicology), he published a study showing the effect on the liver and kidneys of two of Monsanto's flagship products: Roundup weedkiller and the GM foods created to absorb it. Images from the study of tumor-ridden rats fed with GM foods and Roundup went viral. The study was a PR disaster for Monsanto. The multinational soon bounced back and did everything in its power to cover up the study—leaning on the publishers to retract the findings. Monsanto began a series of smear campaigns to discredit Seralini and fellow researchers and intimidate their supporters, while pumping out their own collection of fake research findings and testimonies. These practices were met with huge suspicion, but there was no concrete evidence until, in 2017, Monsanto was ordered to publish tens of thousands of confidential documents in a class-action lawsuit presented by thousands of individuals afflicted with serious illnesses from their use of Roundup. The "Monsanto Papers" that were produced subsequently proved the company’s cynical attempts at a cover-up as well as its fraudulent practices. Gilles-Éric Seralini and Jérôme Douzelet delved into the documents and discovered how, in the pursuit of its own short term economic interests, Monsanto used sophisticated methods of deceit to bypass legislation devised to protect millions of people. Seralini and Douzelet discovered how Monsanto managed to provide phony assessments to conceal the poisons its products contain, thus deceiving the public authorities and the scientific and medical communities. Trade Review“Monsanto knew for decades that glyphosate-based herbicides cause cancer and a lethal coterie of other devastating illnesses. Rather than warning consumers and customers, Monsanto massaged the science, defrauded regulators, bribed prominent researchers, captured and corrupted the EPA pesticide division, and systematically lied to the global public that its deadly herbicide was safe. Roundup degraded public health, impoverished our soils, extirpated species, obliterated small farmers, and deprived the public of their fundamental civil right of informed consent. Monsanto made a special project of discrediting and destroying scientists, advocates, and reformers who exposed its corrupt coverup. The most prominent among these was heroic French toxicologist Gilles-Éric Seralini. In 2018, I was fortunate enough to be a part of the legal team that finally brought Monsanto to justice. We relied heavily on Dr. Seralini’s research and counsel to achieve this victory.”—Robert F. Kennedy Jr., founder of Waterkeeper Alliance, founder, chairman of the board, and chief legal counsel for Children’s Health Defense, and counsel to Morgan & Morgan “The bravest man I have ever met. The truth always comes to light eventually. Thank you, Gilles-Éric.”—Frédérick Lemarchand, professor of sociology, University Caen Normandy “Written by one of the most published scientists in the domain, quoted 55,952 times in the ‘Monsanto Papers,’ this laser-sharp analysis shows how the agribusiness pesticide giant poisoned public regulations, research, and democracy.”—Louise Vandelac, PhD, Department of Sociology and Institute of Environmental Sciences, University of Québec in Montreal "An essential contribution to understand the manipulation of science in the service of profit maximization, by one of the main players in the debate." —Olivier De Schutter, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food "David against Goliath, such is the disproportionate fight of Gilles-Éric Seralini against the ‘Hydra Monsanto,’ an emblematic victory on a planetary scale, where courage and probity triumph!"—Philippe Desbrosses, author, farmer, doctor of science in environment. “The demonstration of Professor Seralini, rigorously supported by his great culture in human sciences, allows him not to confuse science and technoscience.”—Yves Dupont, PhD, researcher in human sciences “The work of Professor Seralini is of prime importance; it is a glimmer of hope coming from a certain science at the service of Humanity and Life on earth.”—Claude Gruffat, Member of the European Parliament “I have had the chance to work on several occasions with Professor Gilles-Éric Seralini, a world specialist in pesticides and genetically modified organisms. His meticulous work, his expertise and his complete testimonies have served us to denounce numerous abuses or frauds by international companies, making possible to develop European legislation on pesticides always in the direction of greater protection of health and the environment, and to successfully support various appeals before the French courts and even before the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECHR). The expertise of an independent researcher and whistleblower like Professor Seralini is invaluable, rare, and beneficial for safeguarding the general interest and health in the face of financial interests.”—Maître Guillaume Tumerelle, lawyer specializing in rural law, France “The Monsanto Papers provides an insider’s account of how corporate power is used to destroy a scientific career when a multinational cannot control the experimental evidence of its unsafe herbicide. Seralini’s account is a ‘David and Goliath’ story that reveals the corruption of a regulatory system, the conflicts of interest among corrupted toxicologists, and the battle between scientific truth against a company’s billion-dollar product.”—Sheldon Krimsky, Lenore Stern Professor of Humanities and Social Sciences at Tufts University, author of Conflicts of Interest in Science “Monsanto’s response to Dr. Seralini’s work on the toxicity of one of its products demonstrates how far corporations will go in corrupting science for profit.”—Leemon McHenry, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy at California State University, Northridge and medical ethics consultant to the Baum, Hedlund law firm

Read more less

Book SynopsisAbducted from Africa, sold in America.A deeply affecting record of an extraordinary life- Daily TelegraphA major literary event: a newly published work from the author of the American classic Their Eyes Were Watching God, with a foreword from Pulitzer Prize-winning author Alice Walker.The true story of one of the last-known survivors of the Atlantic slave trade.In August 1931, famed anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston travelled to Alabama to visit ninety-year-old Cudjo Lewis, a former slave.Over three months, Cudjo shared heart-rending memories of his childhood in Africa; the horrors of being captured fifty years after slavery was outlawed and held in the Ouidah barracoons for selection by American slavers; the harrowing ordeal of the Middle Passage aboard the Clotilda with over one hundred other souls; and the years he spent in slavery.Barracoon brings to life Cudjo's singular voice in an invaluable contribution to history and culture, a work as poignant as it is profound.Trade Review“That Zora Neale Hurston should find and befriend Cudjo Lewis, the last living man with firsthand memory of capture in Africa and captivity in Alabama, is nothing shy of a miracle. Barracoon is a testament to the enormous losses millions of men, women and children endured in both slavery and freedom—a story of urgent relevance to every American, everywhere.” Tracy K. Smith, Pulitzer Prize winning author of Life on Mars and Wade in the Water “Zora Neale Hurston’s genius has once again produced a Maestrapiece.” Alice Walker, Pulitzer Prize winning author of The Color Purple “Barracoon is a powerful, breathtakingly beautiful, and at times, heart wrenching, account of one man’s story, eloquently told in his own language. Zora Neale Hurston gives Kossola control of his narrative— a gift of freedom and humanity. It completely reinforces for me the fact that Zora Neale Hurston was both a cultural anthropologist and a truly gifted, and compassionate storyteller, who sat in the sometimes painful silence with Kossola and the depth and breadth of memory as a slave. Such is a narrative filled with emotions and histories bursting at the intricately woven seams.” Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun “A searing reminder of how recently American slavery ended, and the depth of the pain it caused.” The Economist “A deeply affecting record of an extraordinary life.” Daily Telegraph “Barracoon and its long path to print is a testament to Zora’s singular vision amid so many competing pressures that continue to put us at war with ourselves.” Huffington Post Books of the Year – The Economist Best Books of 2018 – New York Public Library Best Books of 2018 – NPR Best Books of 2018 – SELF.com Best Non-Fiction Books of 2018 – TIME

Read more less

Book SynopsisBlaine Harden is a reporter for PBS Frontline and a contributor to the Economist, based in Seattle, having completed a tour as the Washington Post's bureau chief in Tokyo. He is the prize-winning, acclaimed author of two books: Africa: Dispatches from a Fragile Continent and A River Lost: The Life and Death of the Columbia and the author of Escape from Camp 14.Trade ReviewThis is a story unlike any other because Shin is one of the few, if not only, long-term prisoners to have escaped from the North Korean gulag . . . The integrity of this book, shines through on every page. -- Barbara Demick, author of Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea‘Harrowing . . . Harden’s account of Shin’s extraordinary, perilous journey through North Korea and into China (which has a history of sending asylum seekers back to North Korea) and later to South Korea is gripping stuff . . . bearing witness will be Shin’s legacy’ Daily Mail‘Harden sheds light on the horrors of North Korea, with a gripping account of the story of Shin In Geun’ Financial Times - Favourite Books of 2012'Until recently, full accounts of life in this famine-riven dystopia were hard to come by. Then a couple of years ago, Barbara Demick's Nothing to Envy provided excoriating testimonies of refugees who had managed to escape into China and then on to South Korea. The picture those witnesses drew of North Korea was of one vast and brutal gulag. Now comes Escape From Camp 14, a still more harrowing account of the gulag within the gulag, the huge prison camps that litter the more remote provinces of this benighted country. Written by Blaine Harden, an experienced American journalist, it tells the extraordinary story of Shin Dong-hyuk, the only person born in the gulag to have escaped’ Guardian‘Harden knows a lot about North Korea and he wears his knowledge lightly . . . Harden deserves a lot more than ‘wow’ for this terrifying, grim and, at the very end, slightly hopeful story of a damaged man still alive only by chance, whose life, even in freedom, has been dreadful’ Literary ReviewHarrowing story of a young man’s flight from one of the slave labor camps where as many as 200,000 political unreliables — a category that includes not just those who run afoul of authority but their relatives for three generations — are sent to be starved, tortured and ultimately worked to death. Harden’s book, besides being a gripping story, unsparingly told, carries a freight of intelligence about this black hole of a country’ * New York Times *‘A skilfully researched piece of book-length journalism uncluttered, as far as seems reasonable, with emotion. It is old now, the saying that for evil to exist, good men must do nothing. And that is what you take away, more than anything, from Harden's book. More than why the crimes against humanity are happening in the first place, more than whose responsibility it is to stop them, the question is why — for the sake not of politics but of mankind — is nobody in power doing anything about it?’ SpectatorIn depicting the depravity of North Korean prison life, Harden’s book is an important portrait of man’s inhumanity to man’ Washington Post

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe first-person account of a 26-year-old who fought in the war in Sierra Leone as a 12-year-old boy.My new friends have begun to suspect that I haven''t told them the full story of my life.Why did you leave Sierra Leone?Because there is a war.You mean, you saw people running around with guns and shooting each other?Yes, all the time.Cool.I smile a little.You should tell us about it sometime.Yes, sometime.'This is how wars are fought now: by children, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s. There are more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide and it is estimated there are some 300,000 child soldiers fighting. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them.What is war like through the eyes of a child soldier? How does one become a killer? How does one stop? Child soldiers have been profiled by journalists, and novelists have struggled to imagine their lives. But until now, there has not been a first-person account from someone who came through this hell and survived. Ishmael Beah, now twenty-fivTrade Review'A corrosive, eloquent and illuminating account of a child soldier's life, and it makes you look at the news with a fresh eye. What he has done is to make his situation imaginable for us, and stop us from simply turning away in horror. That is the best gift he could give the world.' Hilary Mantel ‘Gives the war a painfully human dimension and reminds us of its pointlessness…If the pathos of this book helps to persuade the puppeteers of the estimated 300,000 child soldiers fighting today to put down their guns, then Beah will have done more than all those A47s ever have.' The Times ‘A lucid, pensive, beautifully written account of a madness that he has the bravery to revisit head–on.’ TLS ‘Few of those boy soldiers have told their story as eloquently as Ishmael Beah.’ Sunday Telegraph 'The arming of children is one of the greatest evils of the modern world, and yet we know so little about it because the children themselves are swallowed up by the very wars they are forced to wage. Ishmael Beah has not only emerged intact from this chaos, he has become one of its most eloquent chroniclers. “A Long Way Gone” is one of the most important war stories of our generation. We ignore its message at our peril.' Sebastian Junger 'A ferocious and desolate account of how ordinary children were turned into professional killers.' The Guardian 'Beah makes no excuses for his actions and is entirely lacking in self pity, but the honesty of his memoir reveals the full horror of a war in which the brutalisation of children was commonplace…Beah is a living testament to the endurance of the human spirit.' Sunday Times ‘Ishmael Beah has achieved the seemingly impossible task of helping us to imagine the reality behind the statistics by empathising with just one of the many thousands of children who are soldiers around the world – a remarkable book.’ The Guardian

Read more less

Book SynopsisJackson is aggressive, confrontational and often volatile. His mother, Kayla, is crippled with grief after tragically losing her husband and eldest son. Struggling to cope, she puts Jackson into foster care.Cathy, his carer, encourages Jackson to talk about what has happened to his family, but he just won't engage. His actions continue to test and worry everyone.Then, in a dramatic turn of events, the true reason for Jackson's behaviour comes to light

Read more less

Book SynopsisAfter taking a few weeks off work, Casey is presented with a new foster child: 14-year-old Elise, whose Mum left her at just five years old.At first, she's no trouble at all, that is until she falsely accuses another carer, Jan, of acting inappropriately towards her. It turns out this isn't the first lie Elise has told her previous carer was constantly following up allegations Elise had made of people bullying her, trying to have sex with her, or hurting her physically. With some reservations, Casey agrees to take Elise on long-term, but when she makes some dark claims about her mum, Casey doesn't know whether to believe her. In any case, she is determined to find out the truth

Read more less

Book SynopsisTrade ReviewTotally gripping … A fascinating, revelatory and surreal WWII story of almost incredible courage and unspeakable horror – how a Polish resistance fighter helped reveal the secret of the final solution from inside Auschwitz * Simon Sebag Montefiore *A remarkable book. Fairweather’s account is often harrowing; but it is an important account of the suffering and tragedy in Nazi death camps, told using many previously unpublished sources - and from a new perspective. * Peter Frankopan *Well-researched, well-written and searingly memorable, Jack Fairweather’s book reminds us of the capacity for nobility in the human soul in times of unimaginable peril * Andrew Roberts, bestselling author of ‘Churchill: Walking with Destiny’ *Few books have enthralled, incensed and haunted me as “The Volunteer” has done. There were times I felt compelled to set it aside. There were others when hours of reading passed in what felt like moments … This is a story that has long deserved a robust, faithful telling, and he has delivered it * Wall Street Journal *An extraordinary story * The Times *Superbly written and breathtakingly researched … a story of incalculable value delivered in the most compelling prose I have read in a long time * Sebastian Junger, #1 New York Times bestselling author and award-winning journalist *What distinguishes The Volunteer is Fairweather’s meticulous attention to accuracy … if it sometimes seems as though there is nothing left to uncover about the Holocaust, Fairweather’s gripping book proves otherwise * The Spectator *Combines the verve of a thriller with the detailed evidence of the sober, hideous truth -- Anne de Courcy * The Telegraph *A searing account … a fitting memorial to one of Poland’s greatest war heroes and a shaming indictment of the western allies’ failure to act * Sunday Times *A forceful narrative with unstoppable reading momentum, Fairweather has created an insightful biography of a covert war hero and an extraordinary contribution to the history of the Holocaust. * Starred booklist review *Witold Pilecki is one of the great—perhaps the greatest—unsung heroes of the second world war ... Jack Fairweather's meticulous and insightful book is likely to be the definitive version of this extraordinary life * Economist *An outstanding achievement ... a harrowing tale, revealing the depths of human depravity, redeemed by the shining courage and nobility of one of humanity's heroes. * Patrick Bishop, bestselling author FIGHTER BOYS *

Read more less

Book SynopsisBut above all, he tells the nail-bitingly poignant human story of the families waiting ashore, of the desperate efforts of British, Norwegian and Russian rescuers, and of the Kursk sailors, trapped in the aft compartnemt, waiting for rescue, as a horrified world followed their battle to stay alive .Trade ReviewIt takes you through each nail biting moment, willing it to turn out differently. Heartbreaking, humane and, at times, all too vivid. I’ve rarely read such a gripping work of non fiction. -- COLIN FIRTHThe Kursk was once the pride of the Russian navy and a symbol of state power . . . her story, harrowingly detailed . . . stands as a testament to the bravery and loyalty of men to a nation that failed them -- Martin Robson * THE TIMES *Gripping . . . a moving tragedy redeemed by acts of extraordinary courage . . . has the plot, the tension and the excitement of a film -- Orlando Figes * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH *

Read more less

Book SynopsisA tiny puppy, neglected and abused, and the foster carer determined to heal her. When tiny puppy Princess is dumped at the doors of the Barby Keel Animal Sanctuary by her owners, the brown and white boxer is suffering from horrendous injuries resulting from a car accident. Having been operated on by an incompetent vet, her front leg has been amputated in a botched surgery, leaving her weak and barely able to stand. With gentle love and care, Barby and her team at the Sanctuary work hard to give this brave little dog a second lease of life. Playful and loving, despite her difficult start in life, Princess is desperate for a forever family to call her own. But Barby is heartbroken as she watches Princess get rejected over and over again by potential owners who are put off by her terrible injury. Will Princess ever find someone to love her?

Read more less

Book SynopsisWith bullets flying, wounded soldiers scream out in pain as the Chinook comes in to land in one of the most dangerous parts of Afghanistan. At the machine''s controls is one man and if he doesn''t stay calm then everyone could die. That man is Flt Lt Alex ''Frenchie'' Duncan and he''s been involved in some of the most daring and dangerous missions undertaken by the Chinook force in Afghanistan. In this book he recounts his experiences of life under fire in the dust, heat and bullets of an active war zone.At 99ft long, the Chinook is a big and valuable target to the Taliban, who will stop at nothing to bring one down. And yet Frenchie and his crew risk everything because they know that the troops on the front line are relying on them. Sweating the Metal is the true story of the raw determination and courage of men on the front line - and it''s time for their story to be told.Trade Reviewwith action so real your Dad will be spitting sand out of his mouth, this gripping account of a Chinook pilot's bravery under enemy fire in Afghanistan will transport him right to the frontline. * News of the World *'Sweating the Metal is a description of the Afghan war from the cockpit, the highs and lows of combat-flying at its most dramatic'. * Daily Telegraph *

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe book Researchers Remember: Research as an Arena of Memory Among Descendants of Holocaust Survivors, a Collected Volume of Academic Auto-biographies is composed of over 30 essays written by prominent researchers worldwide belonging to the “Second Generation” and “ Third Generation” of Holocaust offspring. Each essay traces the author’s path to a research profession, focusing on the influence of their family’s Holocaust background at various crossroads of their life.Table of ContentsIntroduction - David Clark: - A Legacy of Displacement and the Search for Home - Samuel Juni: Righting a Life Which Started on the Wrong Foot - Ela Karpowicz: Becoming - Abraham J. Peck: Towards the Holocaust: A Son of Survivors in Search of Himself - Abraham Z. Reznick: The Holocaust and I - Bela Ruth Samuel Tenenholtz: Nature or Nurture and My Search for Roots - Judith Tydor Baumel- Schwartz: In the Beginning There Was Auschwitz - Dov Dori: My Mother the Hero - Yehudit Judy Dori: From Holocaust to Breaking the Glass Ceiling - Dov Eichenwald: I Have No Other Country - Zehavit Gross: “I Didn’t Choose to be a Second Generation” - Anita H. Grosz: Would the Real Anita Please Rise - Jacqueline Heller: Surviving Survivors - Naomi Levy: On Being Second Generation and My Major Life Choices - Hilda Nissimi: The Holocaust Is a Black Hole - Katalin Pécsi- Pollner: Rewriting My Identity – From “Feeling Jewish” to Discovery of My Heritage - Haim Taitelbaum: Pass the Parcel - Dorota Glowacka: Hide and Seek: A Conversation with My Father in Three Voices - Susan Jacobowitz: Singing History - Shmuel Refael: A Greek- Jewish Family in a German Bauhaus - Dov Schwartz: Academia as a Voyage of Survival - Anita Winter: My Parents’ Story Is Also My Story – But Different - Dan Carter: My Heritage - Emmanuel Friedheim: Between the Shoah and Masada – An Unfulfilled Historical Journey - Rahel Jarach- Sztern: Memory, Tradition, Family: A Second Generation as Mother and Researcher - Rina Krautwirth: (Re)affirming the Past: Growing Up as the Child of a Holocaust Survivor - Liat Steir- Livny: From Holocaust “Intrusions” to Holocaust Research - Daniela Ozacky Stern: Reflections of a Third- Generation Holocaust Scholar - Ariel Zellman: Coming Home - Contributors

Read more less

Book SynopsisWerner Herzog has produced, written and directed more than fifty feature and documentary films, including the multi-award-winning Grizzly Man, Aguirre, The Wrath of God, Fitzcarraldo, My Best Fiend, Cave of Forgotten Dreams, Nosferatu, Lessons of Darkness, Littler Dieter Needs To Fly, Into the Inferno, Meeting Gorbachev and Encounters At The End of the World. He has also directed many operas and published more than a dozen books of prose including Conquest of the Useless and Of Walking In Ice. The Twilight World is his first book in decades.

Read more less