Unicorn Publishing Group is a leading independent publisher with four imprints: Unicorn, visual arts and cultural history imprint; Uniform, specialising in military history; Universe, its historical fiction imprint; and Unify, which publishes philosophy titles.
Highlights across the imprints include Adrift - The Curious Tale of The Lego Lost at Sea, Cromwell, a history of sound Back To Bach, From Mozart to Moog and The Song of Seven Cloaks
Book SynopsisShirley, The Life of a Botanical Adventurer is the remarkable story of Dr Shirley Sherwood, scientist, author, travel writer, gardener as well as mother and grandmother. Following the tragic death of her brilliant scientist husband, Michael Cross, in a freak air crash in 1964, she was left as a 30-year-old widow with two young boys aged four and three. For the next twelve years she worked as a key member of the Nobel Prize-winning team which developed Tagamet, the first block-buster drug (sales of over $1 billion a year). After her marriage to Jim Sherwood in 1977, she left science to concentrate full-time on the huge task of restoring the fabled Orient-Express train, probably the most luxurious and exotic form of travel ever devised. The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, running between London and Venice, was relaunched in 1982, ninety-nine years after its first journey. Sherwood's history of the project sold more than 400,000 copies. The Orient-Express train was just the beginning. The Sherwoods went on to create the five-star Orient-Express Hotels company (now Belmond), which owned some of the finest hotels in the world, including the Cipriani in Venice, the Mount Nelson in Cape Town and the Copacabana Palace in Rio. They pioneered new train routes across the Alps, started the Eastern & Oriental Express running between Singapore and Bangkok- crossing over the Bridge on the River Kwai- opened up tourism in Myanmar with the first cruise ship to operate on the Irrawaddy, and took over the railways of Peru, which run all the way to Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca. Her most lasting achievement, the one of which she is proudest, is the Shirley Sherwood Collection of contemporary botanical art, which she started in 1990 and now includes over 1,000 paintings and drawings representing the work of more than 300 contemporary botanical artists from 36 countries. She has mounted exhibitions in many prestigious locations including the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, Kirstenbosch in Cape Town and the Real Jardin Botanico, Madrid. The Shirley Sherwood Gallery in Kew Gardens is the first museum to be dedicated to modern botanical art and her books, which often accompanied her exhibitions, have been largely responsible for re-establishing botanical art in its rightful place as an important art form. These are just some of the many achievements in a long and rich life, vividly described in this book.Trade Review"Shirley Sherwood put botanical art firmly back on the agenda with her incredible collection and her unremitting quest for only the very best." – Sir Roy Strong CH FRSL “A remarkable and sophisticated life of science, travel and passion for the best of contemporary botanical art." - Sir Peter Crane FRS "Shirley is an inspiration in how to use one’s gifts wisely and live life well. Her memoir is a delight." - Dame Mary Archer"this is a compelling tale of a life rich in incident and bravery" -- Steven Desmond
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Book SynopsisFirst published in 1956, Swifts in a Tower still offers astonishing insights into swifts' private lives along with thoughts about their life style and wider issues. Now more than sixty years later swifts have been studied even more thoroughly, with technology unimaginable in the 1950s. This continues to reveal even more of their secrets, so this edition, published in association with the RSPB for their Oxford Swift City project includes a new chapter by Andrew Lack, bringing the story of this remarkable bird into the 21st Century.
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Book SynopsisThe Jewish Brigade, a unit of the British Army during WWII, played a crucial role on behalf of the Jewish People, in the fight against Nazi Germany. Formed in 1944, it consisted mainly of Jewish Volunteers from Palestine and was covertly commanded by Shlomo Shamir (Rabinowicz), Later Major-General in the IDF. The Brigade participated in the Italian Campaign, distinguishing itself in the battles along the Senio River. Beyond combat, the Jewish Brigade was the first to meet and look after survivors of the Holocaust, facilitating their illegaljourney to Palestine. Many of the Brigade members became leading figures in the fledgling Israel Defence Forces (IDF). Under Shamir's guidance/leadership, the Brigade symbolised both Jewish dedicated pursuit of military goals and national aspiration, proving that Jewish Soldiers could fight as a unified force against a well-trained enemy and win. Their experience and networks within the British Army were critical in shaping the future military and political landscape of the nascent Jewish State.
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Book SynopsisGoddesses of sex and light, fully owning their own bodies and sexuality with innate empowerment. This is how photographer Elizabeth Waterman describes the female adult entertainers featured in Candyland, a series of colorful and vibrant portraits designed to capture the unique personalities of the subjects. The actresses were very much a part of the creative process, adding their own ideas to create playful images celebrating their individual beauty and charisma. Waterman's previous book, Moneygame, an acclaimed photographic depiction of the world of strip clubs across the USA, inspired her to invite some of America's leading porn stars to take part in a project which reflects them through a female lens, shot against vibrant, sunlit Southern Californian settings. I liked showing them in deliciousness, excess, and fun and glory, said Waterman. The porn stars that I photographed were happy to be doing what they were doing, they loved having sex and they were good at it.
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Book SynopsisEmma Haworth is a painter of the urban scene. Her art is built upon meticulous observation of the ebb and flow of modern metropolitan life in the streets, the parks, the squares of London, New York, Paris and other great cities: it is a constantly shifting drama of moving people and changing light, played out in a great arena that is both architectural and natural. In To Everything There is a Season, Emma shows us an overview of her oeuvre and working practices.
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Book SynopsisIn Capital Offence award-winning investor Paul Musson shows how the world is becoming increasingly divided on many fronts. One of the root causes of this is that well-intended policymakers have drunk the something-from-nothing Kool-Aid and are convinced that there is such a thing as a free lunch. There isn't. They believe that debt-fueled spending is what leads to economic prosperity. It doesn't. The direct result of these central bank-supported policies is growing wealth disparity where some people are able to extract more from our economic system than they create, while others are left to foot the bill. Most books on this subject speak in a language understood only by those steeped in financial jargon; Paul Musson uses everyday language and analogies to help readers understand why the economy is moving in the wrong direction. The next generation is now poised to be worse off than its predecessors, not because they are less productive, but because older generations are benefiting at their expense an unsustainable and immoral reality. Paul Musson gives us steps for reform, and while the painful choices ahead are inevitable, facing them now will prevent even greater consequences later.
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Book SynopsisThis is the incredible story of why and how Winston Churchill in his mid-50s decided to write an autobiography designed to reshape his image and to reduce an overwhelming personal debt burden. The book, My Early Life, emerged from a truly Churchillian writing process that was both complicated and highly focused. An extensive dictation process using both external research and his own previously written materials created a rough draft. Then additional researchers, reviewers and publishers on two continents helped mold the final product. My Early Life is Churchill's Aeneid and many sections approach lyric poetry in the style of writing and in its visual and emotional impact. How all this came about is described and analyzed in this book. It further explores just how successful an endeavor this was and the global impact this book has had on literature and as a source for educational and literary publications.
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Book SynopsisEuphemia Lamb was painted and sculpted by many renowned artists during the period before the First World War, such as Augustus John, Henry Lamb, Ambrose McEvoy, Jacob Epstein and James Dickson Innes. She was at the vanguard of modern British art. She was also a literary muse for many leading writers of the period, including Virginia Woolf, Henri Pierre Roche and Aleister Crowley. Euphemia was the embodiment of the modern woman: sexually liberated, hard-working and ambitious. She used her connections in bohemian London and Paris to educate herself and advance the notion of what a woman could be in early twentieth-century British society. Euphemia was a pioneer who broke down barriers and her legacy survives in art and literature.
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Book SynopsisDr Henry Radcliffe (1819 1903) was a young Liverpool doctor, who joined the Californian gold rush in 1849, sailing to San Francisco via Cape Horn. He settled in Stockton where, when not prospecting for gold in the upper reaches of the San Joaquin River, he founded the first hospital in Stockton and became the proprietor and first editor of the Stockton Times, the first newspaper in Stockton. He was also one of the first trustees of the Stockton Methodist Church, the earliest (by a day) church in Stockton. The Doctor Digger is based on the letters of Dr Radcliffe, edited, with linking text, by his great, great, great nephew, John Radcliffe. Henry's letters describe expeditions to remote parts of the Southern Goldfields, encounters with indigenous tribes and tribulations with the Stockton Times, as well as his longings for home. The book also illustrates features of life in California, the Indian genocide, independence from Mexico and Statehood and the Mariposa War. When gold was discovered in Australia in 1851 Dr Radcliffe sailed for Sydney and made his way to the Victorian goldfields, finally settling in Ballarat. Later he became Honorary Physician at the Ballarat Base Hospital as well as maintaining a lucrative private practice. He died in 1903 a very old , but very alert man' and was buried next to the Eureka Soldiers Memorial in Ballarat Old Cemetery.
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Book SynopsisFaberge: The Twilight Years introduces an incredible album of rare drawings from Carl Faberge's leading workshop in St Petersburg that have come to light in the National Archive of Finland by pure chance. The album, stored unnoticed in the archive for almost a century, contains beautifully watercoloured drawings of objects produced by Faberge during the period 1914 - 1917, among these a whole array of elegant cigarette cases, table clocks and enchanting flower studies. Most of the drawings have a completion date, which means that the finished object exists somewhere. This has sparked a treasure hunt for these pieces. A great number of objects matching the drawings have been found and are illustrated in the book. Altogether eleven well known experts on the oeuvre of Faberge have written fascinating essays related to the drawings, their history, provenance, style and technique. These contributions make the book an important addition to our knowledge and understanding of the art of the great St Petersburg jeweller.
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Book SynopsisLondon is full of landmarks that you'll be very familiar with. From the historic St Paul's Cathedral and Tower Bridge to the modern-day architecture of The Shard. It is a city that is forever changing and full of surprises around every corner. But there are a few corners you will never see without looking through the eyes of this book. It will show you a reimagined version of these famous landmarks that will make you question what you see and have you asking, what is real? In this book, London towers transform into giant robots, stars are born from flowers, gateways to other worlds open up through the London Eye and show you a different reality. Every image in this book will show you a surreal version of London, taking you on a visual journey through the city you thought you knew.Trade Review"Robert John’s images take you to a place that is somewhere between a sci-fi novel and reality. Beams of light and dark shadows transport you through thestructures and skyline of London where urban grit interfaces with nature.” — Tom Chambers, photographer
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Book SynopsisIn this new study of personal relationships within the British (including Canadian) Command in 21st Army Group during the campaign in North-West Europe in 1944-1945, Malcolm Pill considers the scope and depth of these relationships, ranging from those of the Secretary of State for War to the Corps Commanders. Montgomery is central. His great success in the management of his own multinational team is contrasted with the hostility created and lack of success achieved with those outside his team. Pill explores the importance of his great skill with the written word. The relevance of these personal relationships to the success of Britain’s last major campaign as a great power is assessed as are the post-war consequences for those involved.
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Book SynopsisIn 1914, Princess Mary, the only daughter of King George V, was just 17. Yet with the world war two months old, the young princess was destined to make her mark. She would send a Christmas gift to all those serving in uniform, ‘afloat and at the front.’ With great determination, she set about her task to provide her gift to all those on active service. For Every Sailor Afloat, Every Soldier at the Front is the first time the full story of the princess’s gift has been told. Using original sources, texts and archives, and illustrating original surviving objects, this book unfolds the true story of the fund and its wider meaning, set, as it is, in the context of hope as provided by the unofficial Truce in No Man’s Land that has been so well documented. Princess Mary’s gift was extremely sophisticated; great pains were taken to ensure that the needs of its recipients were met, based on ethnicity, gender, religious observance and personal preference – the Gift Committee was way ahead of its time. By 1919, some 2.7 million people from across the British Empire had received the gift. Well-illustrated and fully sourced, this book will provide those interested in the first Christmas of the War a greater perspective of the achievements of its founder, of the meaning of the gift to the recipients, and of the nature of the gift itself, such that prevailing myths and misunderstandings of its constituents and recipients will be resolved.
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Book SynopsisThe book is an illustrated collection of projects carried out in silver and gold reflecting the many interesting personal stories that combine people with a place of significance portrayed in miniature for a special event in their lives. This is the story of forty years of making architecturally-based silverware, from small domes and columns on stud earrings to larger bespoke presentation pieces. The author charts her development from student days to acquisitions by the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts amongst others. Her insights into how to render buildings such as the Pantheon in Rome, the Sydney Opera House or Oxford’s Sheldonian Theatre into a brooch, a ring or a box make fascinating reading.
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Book SynopsisIn Real Vanilla, Nature's Unsung Hero LittlePod's founder Janet Sawyer tells of her company's mission over the last fifteen years to save real vanilla which was under threat of being lost within a generation. They have made a huge difference, encouraging the development of vanilla paste in a tube, supporting farming communities in the world's equatorial regions and educating consumers all around the world about the importance and value of vanilla to the planet. Through LittlePod supporting a pioneering polyculture orchard in Indonesia, it has helped educate future generations about a precious plant that is the essence of sustainability. This is a fascinating story of how a determined woman used the empty nest' time in her life to build a company whilst learning about biodiversity, supporting farmers' livelihoods and creating a family of human relationships fondly known as LittlePodders'.
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Book SynopsisWritten by John Buxton and Don Heath, two experienced rail professionals, Lines of Power delivers a comprehensive record of the stuttering progress of electrification and modernisation of Britain's railway network, exposing the furtive manoeuvring by competing factions within the railway industry during the 1950s. The book is highly critical of the excessive scepticism of the Department of Transport (DoT later DfT) and the frequent disproportionate, and often imprudent, interventions by politicians that have collectively thwarted the opportunity to progress a more comprehensive and cost effective rolling programme' of electrification.
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Book SynopsisLife's Lessons Well Learned covers Martyn Bould's 60 years in the Cayman Islands as he helped it develop the islands time forgot' with a population of 10,000 into a thriving financial centre with a population of 80,000 from 130 different countries. He was the youngest developer of town houses as well as developing the Great House luxury condominium on Seven Mile Beach, introduced innovations from squash to cable TV. Life is of course a journey and not a destination, and Martyn Bould's autobiography includes many lessons from the ups and downs of life's twists of fate. The author's journeys include visiting 120 countries with his wife Vivian, meeting fascinating people along the way and climbing many figurative and literal mountains, including Kilimanjaro and Aconcagua in his 70s. He describes in detail his journey through life's successes and challenges, closely coupled with his cultural development journey of the talented Cayman society.
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Book SynopsisFrom the halls of Parliament to the depths of South-East Asian jungles, junior British MP Richard Reynolds embarks on a perilous journey that could alter the course of history. As the UK teeters on the brink of war, Richard uncovers a sinister conspiracy that threatens global stability. With dark forces at play both abroad and at home, he alone holds the key to preventing catastrophe. Driven by deeply personal stakes, Richard must navigate a treacherous path where failure is not an option.
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Book SynopsisOf all the ceramic processes, Maiolica truly requires a painter’s touch. Combining a confident sensitivity of brushwork and a vision of what might be once the subtle blends of oxides fuse with the tin glaze in the firing, it is both a rewarding and unforgiving art form. A Journey Painted in Clay celebrates the ceramic work of Agalis Manessi through its various forms of expression over a career spanning fifty years. Inspired by many historical and contemporary sources, her work is a fusion of her Mediterranean heritage and annual travels across Europe between Greece and London. Ideas are drawn from the experience of viewing subjects in churches, museums and galleries and observations directly from life. Animated vessels express a gentle humour that is offset by the suggestive poise of their condensed forms, camouflaged within the painted surface. Following in the tradition of English Delft, portrait dishes are softly coiled, with painted images built up of composite features worked up from notebook sketches. Modelled animals and figures take on a more enigmatic nature, communicating a silent yet eloquent poise. With a foreword from Jenni Lomax, curator and former director of Camden Arts Centre, and contributions from Megan Brooks, Tanya Harrod, Mina Holland, Marina Papasotiriou, Michael Petry and Liz Rideal.
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Book SynopsisA Passion for Fashion provides an amusing look at some of the clothes, underclothes, shoes and accessories worn by many of the more colourful characters in Blenheim Palace’s 300-year history, as well as a cautionary look at the role that arsenic, lead, mercury and mousetraps played in the fashions of the day. Adult and children’s fashions from the 18th and 19th centuries are examined, as well as contemporary style from renowned designers including Christina Stambolian, Stephen Jones, Christian Louboutin and most recently of all, Dolce & Gabbana. Blenheim Palace’s on-going relationship with the House of Dior, is celebrated with a look at the early catwalk shows of the 1950s, and the launch of Dior’s Cruise collection, which took place at Blenheim in May 2016. The Palace is renowned for many things, but one of its leading claims to fame is that it is the birth place of a certain Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill – twice prime minister of Great Britain and accomplished writer, artist, sometime bricklayer and arguably, in fashion terms, the inventor of the ubiquitous and ever popular ‘Onesie’! A Passion for Fashion brings 300 years of Blenheim style to life.Trade Review‘The ultimate visual treat for lovers of vintage fashion’ The Lady
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Book SynopsisBorn in London in 1890, Angela Thirkell was Sir Edward Burne-Jones’s granddaughter, J.M. Barrie’s goddaughter and a cousin of Rudyard Kipling and Stanley Baldwin. John Collier painted her portrait and she was drawn by John Singer Sargent and Thea Proctor. Between 1931 and her death in 1961, Angela published more than thirty books in a variety of genres. She began with the acclaimed family memoir Three Houses and later settled on her amusing Barsetshire series, inspired by Anthony Trollope but set in the present day. Angela Thirkell: A Writer’s Life tells the author’s story from her Kensington childhood to her two marriages and the birth of three sons, Graham McInnes, Colin MacInnes and Lance Thirkell, all of whom also entered the literary world. The book traces her decade in Australia where she wrote for magazines and newspapers and made radio broadcasts, followed by her return to London and her fortuitous meeting with a young publisher called Jamie Hamilton, which lead to her bestselling Barsetshire novels.Trade Review"[A] careful and sympathetic biography." * Times Literary Supplement *“[A] concise yet lavishly illustrated biography.” * New Criterion *"This is the book all Angela Thirkell enthusiasts have been wishing for. It illustrates so many instances of how she translated her own life into the fictional world of Barsetshire, and for those who haven't yet discovered her it will make them want to make that journey for themselves." -- Penny Alred, former chair of the Angela Thirkell Society"Hall's new biography of Angela Thirkell is detailed, highly readable, and revealing. Her wide-ranging research and a gallery of illustrations not seen before thoroughly revise our understanding of the formative influences on Thirkell's writing and life." -- Kate Macdonald, author of Novelists Against Social Change: Conservative Popular Fiction, 1920-1960
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Book SynopsisCountless dollars of art are stolen or looted every year, yet governments often consider art theft a luxury problem. With limited public law enforcement, what prevents thieves, looters and organised criminal gangs from flooding the market with stolen art? How can theft victims get justice – even decades after their loss? What happens if the legal definition of a good title is at odds with what is morally right? Enter the Art Loss Register, a private database dedicated to tracking down stolen artworks. Blocking the sale of disputed artworks creates a space for private resolutions – often amicable and sometimes entertainingly adversarial. This book is based on ten cases from the Art Loss Register’s archive, showing how restitutions were negotiated, how priceless objects were retrieved from the economic underworld and how thieves and fences end up in court and behind bars. A fascinating guide to the dark side of the global art market.
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Book SynopsisContemporary Chinese art has played a significant role in contributing to art globalisation; meanwhile, the trajectory of modernisation of art in China has not been rendered explicitly. This book aims to explore the context of Chinese art from the 20th to the 21st century, from three aspects: society, the individual and art forms. It is hoped to inject new vitality into the current obscure art historiography. The complicated issue regarding how to position globalisation and national identity is well discussed throughout the book, addressing the hardcore research questions in the field. This research selects the nine most representative artists: Lin Fengmian, Wu Dayu, Sanyu, Zao Wou-ki, Wu Guanzhong, Su Tianci, Wang Jieyin, Zhang Enli and Chen Yujun.
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Book SynopsisThe postcards in It’ll All Be Over By Christmas paint a picture of the First World War as experienced by those at home, at the front, in training, in hospital and in convalescence. These personal messages were sent from fathers to their wives and children, sons to family, friends and loved ones – sharing their thoughts, hopes and worries as well as the lighter side of life. There are cards from those at sea, in prisoner-of-war camps and those of the Central Powers. Featuring over 150 illustrations, including some rare examples, the book also demonstrates how the postcard was ulitised to enlist volunteers and boost morale through humour, sentimentality and propaganda. Postcards encouraged support of the war effort through fundraising, sending ‘comforts’ to those on the front line and promoting practical roles for women. This fascinating book offers a profound insight into the experiences of war through postcards, as well the part that they played in promoting it.
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Book SynopsisTyrell and Julia booked to travel on the Titanic with their two sons to introduce them to their American grandfather, but the children were too ill to travel. Julia persisted in going without them. The fatal and tragic decision not only led to the unnecessary loss of her husband, it was to haunt her for the next fifty years. Why was she so determined to go? In a letter written to her sons, as her death approached, she claimed the purpose of the visit was to gain her wealthy father's support for his son-in-law's ambition to stand as a Member of Parliament.' Yet Tyrell had shown no enthusiasm for making the journey, as Julia had already made the trip alone, the previous year quite safely. From the Carpathia Julia cabled her father, Henry Siegel, to have clothes from his department stores ready for the Titanic's survivors. In 1992 and 2002 her son and grandson learnt from chance encounters with New Yorkers of Julia's father's shocking fall from grace, the grandfather who owned a famous
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Book SynopsisThis work captures personal experience of the Army's Surgeon General as a military doctor in crisis and war, spanning 30 years from Northern Ireland; through Kosovo to the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns; culminating in the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russo-Ukraine war. Poetry provides the ability to say what is otherwise difficult or unpalatable. Some of the poems are critical and challenging. Some are humorous, as dark humour is a well-recognised resilience tool of the soldier. All are observationaland all are grounded in the realities of crisis and conflict. It is likely you have read war poetry from the perspectives of the combat soldier: but this book is the alternative perspective of those who manage the consequences of war. The work exposes that saving lives in conflict, picking up the human pieces, takes a toll on the carers. Writing these poems has been a means for the author to sustain mental resilience and to cope with serial morally injurious events.
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Book SynopsisMost guitarists today think of the USA as the land of the guitar. Classical guitars come from Spain but rock, jazz and folk guitars must surely be American? They know the great' names Gibson, Epiphone, Fender, Gretsch, Martin. How many of them know that Christian Friedrich Martin was born in Markneukirchen, Germany, in 1796 and emigrated to the USA at the age of thirty-seven? The Bate Collection is a museum of musical instruments in the University of Oxford and owns a collection of guitars donated by the author. Half of them were made by German-speaking Czech craftsmen expelled from their homeland after the Second World War, resettling in Bavaria; the other half by their former neighbours in Saxony, with whom they had worked closely for three centuries but who now found themselves behind the Iron Curtain. This book offers a summary of the socio-political background and the way it led to the decline and almost the extinction of what was once the most productive centre of stringed-instrument making in the world. Lavishly illustrated with photos of all of the carefully-researched instruments in the collection, plus a unique guide to help the collector to identify the maker of his instrument.
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Book SynopsisPedlars, Poseurs and Performers is a compelling insight into the world of the Portobello Street market. Fifty years of photographs, which go beyond the stalls, shops and cafés normally associated with it. Each picture features, where possible, the subject's name and the date the picture was taken. Some of the characters shared their stories with Brian Jaquest while being photographed in his studio. The non-conformist approach to the layout of the book represents the chaotic experience of a street market. The photographs and texts describe each category in the book's title: pedlars, poseurs and performers. This book is not only a visual record of the characters who have made the Portobello Street market famous over generations but is also a collection of fascinating photographs taken from the point of view of an insider. Pedlars, Poseurs and Performers is an in-depth photographic history which takes the reader into the ticking heart of the Portobello Road.
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Book SynopsisThe Architect's Edge is a bold exploration of architecture, leadership and business, offering invaluable insights for creative entrepreneurs and industry leaders. Gareth Stapleton, an award-winning architect and project manager, shares practical wisdom from decades of global experience. Drawing from real-world projects, he demonstrates how architects and leaders can navigate the complexities of modern business while maintaining creative integrity. This book challenges conventional wisdom and offers actionable strategies for driving long-term value and innovation. Whether you're an aspiring architect, a seasoned leader or a creative professional seeking to make an impact, this handbook equips you with the tools to build lasting value, inspire innovation and lead with confidence.
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Book SynopsisHow did a marginal dialect spoken in the late ninth century by 200,000 people become the world's language spoken by 1.6 million people today?In Amorous or Loving? The Highly Peculiar Tale of English and the English, Sir Rupert Gavin charts the unique evolution of our language into the resulting hodge-podge that is now the lingua franca of the world. He argues that English is ideal as the global language, not just by accident of history, but by fundamental construction and constitution. Further, he examines how all of this was determined not just by our unique language, but also our geography, our weather, our religion, the extraordinary status of London, and by a handful of inspirational figures some well-known and some hardly known today at all.
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Book SynopsisWriters and poets, academics and art critics, mathematicians and experimental scientists, churchmen and politicians, women of strong opinions gather for a summer weekend in the 1870s. Is it real, or is it a fantasy?One thing's sure: their debates about life's aims, rural and urban living, love and money, civilization and belief, the social framework, the past, the present and the future take us to the heart of the Victorian dream and its reality: the idea that their society exemplified Progress'. What did Progress' mean? Were things (and which things) getting better? What did better' mean? And for whom?The history of the world before the Victorians, from Aberdeen to Africa, showed a particular form of equality for almost everyone: an equality of poverty and no prospects, with kindness often in short supply. Victorians wanted to change that world, thought they were changing it, did change it. They did it in a human way: a melange of muddle, vision, certainty, doubt, too slow for many, too fast for some. Yet their changes were decisive both for creating the modern world, but also for revealing the dilemmas attached to mass living in urban, technological societies, as well as the moral flaws in imposing one civilization's or one person's beliefs on another. Most remarkably of all, the upheaval in making major transitions in every area of life, which produced revolutions and violence across Europe, in the Americas and in Asia, was carried out at least in Britain itself almost entirely peacefully. The past will always be a foreign country for those unwilling to engage with its people. Whether viewing the lives of rulers or the ruled, 'Being Victorian' corrects innumerable preconceptions.
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Book SynopsisFrom childhood, Christopher Miles was fascinated by celluloid. This love of the moving image announced itself early: he was just 12 when the BBC screened his first film in 1951. To be a filmmaker, Miles had to sidestep parental plans to enrol him in the family steelworks. He had already been filming in communist China and Argentina when he escaped to Paris where he made his first professional film. Later, working mostly in Europe and America, Miles made a string of intriguing and unusual films, two exploring his obsession with D.H. Lawrence, others bringing works by Jean Anouilh and Jean Genet to the big screen. He writes revealingly of his relationship with his father, of whether he is related to the royal family, and of the host of key figures in the film industry he worked with. Among the stars of his films are Ian McKellen, Ava Gardner, John Gielgud, Susannah York, Franco Nero and Charlotte Rampling. This compelling account goes behind the scenes, setting the films in context and giving the reader a very personal view of contemporary film-making.
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Book SynopsisAfter The Dance delves into the intriguing life of South African artist Le Roux Smith Le Roux (19141963), a brilliant yet obsessive outsider who was appointed Deputy Keeper of the Tate Gallery in 1950 at the age of thirty-six. Renowned for his sharp intelligence and methodical approach, Le Roux boldly questions the price paid by Director Sir John Rothenstein for the Degas sculpture, Li le Dancer, Aged Fourteen. While Le Roux excels in his professional life, his personal relationships are chaotic. The biography unveils the complexities of a talented man whose life was tumultuous as it was remarkable. The narrative describes the Great Tate Affair (19521954), offering a fresh perspective that challenges the accepted narrative shaped by Rothenstein's flawed account. Through meticulous research and compelling storytelling, this book invites readers to reconsider one of art history's most controversial episodes.
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Book SynopsisFour popular novelists of the same generation each wrote a novel inspired by a holiday that the author spent in France. In the nineteen-fifties, Rumer Godden based The Greengage Summer on her recollections of her family’s 1923 battlefield-tour manqué in the Champagne region. Margery Sharp’s 1936 holiday in Southern France led to ‘Still Waters’ and The Nutmeg Tree: both the short story and the novel are set in and around the region of Aix-les-Bains. In 1955, Daphne Du Maurier first visited the department of Sarthe to research French family history; the novel The Scapegoat was the immediate result of the holiday. And in 1966, Stella Gibbons’ last trip to the continent took the form of a visit to an old friend in her summer home near Grenoble. The stay is obliquely reflected in The Snow-Woman, in which a similar holiday leads a never-married septuagenarian to experience a renaissance of sorts.Trade Review"This is a very original literary study of the work of four British writers who, though still remembered today, are not as celebrated or read as much as they deserve to be. Through the prism of visits to France in the novels and stories of these writers, Anne Hall explores the delicate and subtle interplay of relations between those two nations in fiction. It is elegantly written, illuminating and informative. There is some fascinating original scholarship here, but, above all, Four French Holidays is highly entertaining and tempts you to go and read for yourself (if you haven’t already) or re-read the works under consideration." Reggie Oliver, nephew and biographer of Stella Gibbons
£21.25
Book SynopsisBangladesh has been shunned by tourists from the moment it was created in 1971. Henry Kissinger described it as a basketcase. Poverty and humanitarian disasters defined Bangladesh in the ensuing decades. When Rupert Grey arrived in Dhaka in 1992, a sign announced that arrivals were ‘Welcome to Bangladesh before the tourists get here’. They still haven’t. Grey first came to Bangladesh as a London lawyer armed with three FM2 cameras. Many journeys and 30 years later he is a photographer armed with a useful legal background. The catalysts were Chobi Mela, the festival of photography, and its founder Shahidul Alam, an acclaimed photographer, human rights activist and Time magazine’s Person of the Year in 2018. This book charts Grey’s love affair with Bangladesh, including an epic transcontinental journey through India to Chobi Mela in a vintage Rolls-Royce, later portrayed in the award-winning, Sharon Stone produced film Romantic Road. His photographs, mostly taken on film, speak powerfully of the cultural vitality and energy which Kissinger missed, and which inspired Grey’s Homage to Bangladesh. As a libel and copyright lawyer Rupert has represented national papers, politicians, bankers, celebrities and explorers. He serves on the board of a number of front-line charities in the arts, education, photography and marine exploration. He has travelled on foot and horseback, by dug-out canoe, dog sledge, camel, elephant, bush-plane and Land Rover to the wild places of the earth. His photographs have been exhibited in several countries including Bangladesh, and his articles have been widely published. He lives with his wife Jan in a remote thatched cottage in Sussex, England, with their three daughters nearby.Trade Review"an extraordinary book ... about his dazzling photography, revealing how that medium can open our eyes to the reality of a crowded, diverse and profoundly interesting country." Geographical
£24.00
Book SynopsisThe Art of Michael Fell explores the artist's life, work and influences, with perspectives from leading figures in the world of art criticism, painting and print making.
£24.00
Book SynopsisRoger Bamber, for fifty years one of Britain’s leading photojournalists, has poured his life’s work into this unique reflection of a career that encompassed not only riots and bombings and the crazy world of rock and pop in the twentieth century but recorded with a sympathetic eye the demise of traditional British industries and the old steam railways. His graphic photographs are well known for their distinctive, often wryly humorous, style and strong visual impact and have been widely published worldwide. He was British Press Photographer of the Year, twice British News Photographer of the Year and won many awards for his features on the arts. Towards the end of his career he worked mainly for the Guardian and was happiest finding creative people with a story to tell. He preferred working outdoors, ideally within sight of the sea, and showcasing ordinary people – celebrating just how extraordinary all of us can be.Trade Review“A true pictorialist, he captures the beauty of shape and form, always with a wry sense of humour and even a twist of anarchy.” – Eamonn McCabe "A wonderful showcase of a photographer who captured the music, politics and social changes of the latter half of the 20th century like no one else." – I News "A picture editor's dream, whose distinctive eye created engaging and striking images that captured an ordinary moment in an extraordinary way." – Sussex Life "An IRA bomb victim, a miniature railway obsessive and Thatcher with a handful of cow dung – these superb images tell a vivid tale of Britain" – The Guardian
£32.00
Book SynopsisAlthough Hong Kong has produced many internationally renowned architects and designers who have contributed significantly to its cityscape, there are many talented local architects who have played the role of an unsung hero in shaping this beautiful city. This book aims to capture the stories of theses talents whose unique work should be more widely known and appreciated. This lavishly illustrated book is the first to provide this essential showcase.
£32.00
Book SynopsisThe Graphic Design Sourcebook delves into the vast array of graphic design that surrounds us wherever we go, and has done so ever since printing was invented. Yet everyday graphics have mostly been ignored as an art form. From Victorian song sheets to French perfume labels, early matchboxes to decorative greetings cards, appealing cigarette packets to enticing holiday brochures, colourful advertisements to racy night club tickets, these miniature masterpieces deserve artistic recognition. With over a thousand images, The Graphic Design Sourcebook is both an inspiring source book and a treasure trove of ideas; a true cornucopia of communication.Trade Review"eye-catching advertising goldmine" Daily Mail
£24.00
