Search results for ""Faber Faber""

In this series, a contemporary poet selects and introduces a poet of the past. By their selection of verses and by the personal and critical reactions they express in their introductions, the selectors offer a passionate and accessible introduction to some of the greatest poets in history. William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was born in Cockermouth, Cumberland. In 1798 he published the Lyrical Ballads with Coleridge, settling shortly after in Dove Cottage, Grasmere, with his sister Dorothy. He died at Rydal Mount in 1850, shortly before the posthumous publication of that landmark of English Romanticism, The Prelude.

Read more less

Jago could feel the teeth sink into his skin. It burnt like a fire of molten lead that trickled through his veins. Jago Harker is trying to adjust to his new life at Hawks Moor. But when news reaches the house of a madman on the loose killing Vampyres, he knows it's only a matter of time before they come for his companion, Biatra. As the Second World War rages all around, Vampyre is set against Vampyre when two factions of the ancient cult clash in violence. And as he prepares to go to war with his greatest enemy yet, Jago will soon discover the truth about his own identity in a world where true power lies in the hands of the blood-drinkers and where, even in love, no one can be trusted.

Read more less

In this series, a contemporary poet selects and introduces a poet of the past. By their choice of poems and by the personal and critical reactions they express in their prefaces, the editors offer insights into their own work as well as providing an accessible and passionate introduction to some of the greatest poets in our literature.W. B. Yeats (1865-1939) was born in Dublin, and was educated in Ireland and England. He was instrumental in the development of a national Irish theatre - and in particular, the founding of the Abbey Theatre. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1923.

Read more less

**SHORTLISTED FOR THE JAMES TAIT BLACK PRIZE**By turns essay, memoir and cultural study, Finding the Raga is Amit Chaudhuri's singular account of his discovery of, and enduring passion for, North Indian music: an ancient, evolving tradition whose principles and practices will alter the reader's notion of what music might and can be.Tracing the music's development, Finding the Raga dwells on its most distinctive and mysterious characteristics: its extraordinary approach to time, language and silence; its embrace of confoundment, and its ethos of evocation over representation. The result is a strange gift of a book, for musicians and music lovers, and for any creative mind in search of diverse and transforming inspiration.''Supple, intricate and uncompromising, full of delicate observation and insight, Amit Chaudhuri's Finding the Raga immerses us in the rigorous beauty and cosmology of Indian classical music. It is also a lovin

Read more less

Winner of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, 1997. 'Carr's harrowing play has the scale and anguish of myth, and the immediacy of a contemporary anecdote.' Independent on SundayThere's a wolf tooth growin in me heart and it's turnin me from everywan and everthin I am.Portia Coughlan lives life in monstrous limbo, haunted by a yearning for her spectral twin brother lying at the bottom of the Belmont river, unable to find any love for her wealthy husband and children, seeking solace in soulless affairs, deeply afraid of what she might do.Portia Coughlan premiered on the Abbey Theatre's Peacock Stage, Dublin, in April 1996 and transferred to the Royal Court Theatre, London, in May that year. It was revived at the Almeida Theatre, London, in October 2023.'Taut and haunting, funny and sad . . . Carr plays with time and place to resonant, ultimately devastating effect.' The Stage'One of the most important Irish plays of the twentieth century.' Arts Review'Marina Carr goes to a deep place that has not just to do with society now but that touches an inner tragedy of existence. The female quality of her writing comes through not only in the way she writes about women, it's in the physicality in her writing. She is right in there with the cycles of life, with the blood and the dirt.' Joyce McMillan, New York Times

Read more less

Simon Armitage, Poet Laureate, brings new perspectives and energy to a timeless poetic subject.Blossomise celebrates the ecstatic arrival of spring blossom just as it acknowledges, too, its melancholy disappearance. Full of spirited leaps of imagination and language, the twenty-one poems hopscotch between intense momentary haikus that honour the Japanese traditions of the blossom festival and stand-alone lyrical pieces that take in the stylistic tones of ballads, hymns, songs, prayers and nursery rhymes. From a crashed Ford Capri wrapped around the immovable trunk of a cherry tree, to saplings flourishing among skyscrapers and urban sprawl, the fizz and froth of the annual blossom display is explored here both as an exuberant emblem of the natural world and a nervous marker of our vulnerable climate. Angela Harding responds to the poems in wonderful accompanying illustrations.Published in collaboration with the National Trust as part of their an

Read more less

Join Dostoevsky on his tumultuous honeymoon in this hypnotic cult classic , introduced by Susan Sontag.''A wonderful work of art.'' Jon McGregor''Extraordinary in its confidence and enchantment.'' Chris Power''Addictive, dreamlike and dazzlingly unique.'' Adam Thirlwell''Luminous, melancholy and enraptured.'' Chloe AridjisWhy was I reading this book now, in a railway-carriage, beneath a wavering, flickering, electric light-bulb . . Summer, 1867: The newlywed Dostoevsky and his young wife Anna - his one-time secretary - are travelling to the German spa resort of Baden-Baden on honeymoon. Their love is ecstatic, yet the author is plagued by demons: haunted by his crimes and punishments, consumed by fevers of jealousy, gambling to avoid mounting debts and shaken by epileptic fits. Winter, 1970s: Our Jewish narrator embarks on a pilgrimage from M

Read more less

FROM THE WINNER OF THE INDIE BOOK AWARD FOR FICTION 2021''With Ingrid Persaud's, assured, wizened and brilliant hand at the pen, these women become vitally, thrillingly, and unforgettably alive.'' MARLON JAMES''A voice that has a vibrancy of its own.' RACHEL JOYCE''A talented and engaging storyteller.'' Sunday Times''Persaud has a knack for finding the sublime in the ordinary.'' SARA COLLINS, GuardianFrom the award-winning author of Love After Love, comes an epic of wonder, danger and risk.This is the tale of four women.Popo: brilliant, vulnerable and stuck. She''s determined to free herself from the traps of her past.Mana Lala: a devoted mother - her only connection to her man is their little boy, and she will do anything to keep them both close.For Doris, well, he''s glorious and once she''s licked him into shape, her husband presents an opportunity to climb the social

Read more less

AS CELEBRATED ON BBC FRONT ROW'This breathtaking collection is a marvel.' Tayari Jones'Astute, brilliantly observed, timeless:' Jackie Kay'Exquisite ... These stories are all gems.' Mendez'You hold your breath, completely at her mercy.' Lucy CaldwellAnd she was becoming frightened too, looking at all those white faces pressed against the windowpanes.One Black family comes under attack as their little boy prepares to start at an all-white school.Friends plan a protest sit-in at the Rose Crest Tea Room, only to be arrested.The first Black student - always the 'Experiment' - retreats into her closet at a newly integrated college.And when a social worker enters a secluded woodland cabin, she meets the fate of all visitors . . .Tragically killed aged twenty-two in 1966, Diane Oliver's masterly stories resonate today with renewed urgency. Steeped in the nightmarish horror of life for the Black community in the Jim Crow-era American South, these chilling tales explore toxic racism and the human toll of activism for 'the cause' with heartbreaking empathy and wisdom. Depicting African American families whole and broken, daily injustices and life-threatening political struggle, Neighbors restores a lost star to the twentieth-century literary canon.

Read more less

'Loved it!! Gripping from first page to last, there is no let up!' 5* reader review'Absolutely fantastic debut novel. Intelligent thriller, great twists, strong women . . . Loved it!' 5* reader review'The twists are fast and furious. What an ending. Be still my racing heart!' 5* reader reviewDISCOVER YOUR NEXT FAVOURITE THRILLER Nobel Prize-winning scientist Sarah Collier has started to show the same tell-tale signs of Alzheimer's disease as her father: memory loss, even blackouts. So she is reluctant to accept the invitation to be the guest of honour at a prestigious biotech conference - until her husband Daniel, a neuroscientist, persuades her that the publicity storm will be worth it. The technology being unveiled at this conference could revolutionise medicine forever. More than that, it could save Sarah's life. In Geneva, the couple are feted as stars - at least, Sarah is. But behind the five-star luxury, investors are circling, controversial blogger Terri Landau is all over the story, and Sarah's symptoms are getting worse. As events begin to spiral out of control, Sarah can't be sure who to trust - including herself.'SENSATIONAL.' Clare Mackintosh'I RACED THROUGH IT.' Lucy Foley 'OUTSTANDING.' Harlan Coben'HEART-POUNDING.' Lucy Clarke, author of The Hike'IMMENSELY READABLE.' Sarah Hilary, author of Fragile'HIGHLY ADDICTIVE.' Alice Feeney, author of Daisy Darker'STUNNING.' Helen Fields, author of The Institution'PACY AS HELL.' Imran Mahmood, author of You Don't Know Me'ICILY TENSE.' Telegraph'HAS IT ALL!' L. J. Ross, author of Holy Island

Read more less

What makes us fall in love with a song? What makes us want to write our own songs? Do songs help? Do songs help us live better lives? And do the lives we live help us write better songs? Following publication of Let's Go (So We Can Get Back) and How To Write One Song, both New York Times bestsellers that cemented and expanded his legacy as one of America's best-loved performers and songwriters, Jeff Tweedy is back with another disarming, beautiful, and inspiring book.Featuring over fifty songs that have both changed Jeff's life and influenced his music-including songs by the Velvet Underground, Joni Mitchell, Otis Redding, Dolly Parton, and Billie Eilish-as well as thoughts on Jeff's own songs, World Within a Song asks why do we listen to music, why we love songs, and how music can connect us to each other and to ourselves.

Read more less

The Art of the Straight Line captures the energy of Lou Reed's worlds of Tai Chi, music, and meditation. It was edited by his wife, the artist Laurie Anderson.Lou Reed was a musician, singer, songwriter, poet, and founding member of the legendary rock band the Velvet Underground. He collaborated with many artists, from Andy Warhol and John Cale to Robert Wilson and Metallica. Reed had a groundbreaking solo career that spanned five decades until his death in 2013. Reed was also an accomplished martial artist whose practice began in the 1980s. He studied with Chen Tai Chi pioneer Master Ren GuangYi. This book is a comprehensive collection of Reed's writings on Tai Chi. It includes conversations with Reed's fellow musicians, artists, friends, and Tai Chi practitioners, including Julian Schnabel, A.M. Homes, Hal Willner, Mingyur Rinpoche, Eddie Stern, Tony Visconti, and Iggy Pop. The Art of the Straight Line features Reed's unpublished writings on the technique, practice, and purpose of martial arts, as well as essays, observations, and riffs on meditation and life.

Read more less

Lupercal was Ted Hughes's second collection, containing some of his most brilliant animal poetry. It confirmed his reputation as a major talent in British poetry. 'Hughes has found his own voice, created his own artistic world and has emerged as a poet of the first importance . . . What Ted Hughes has done is to take a limited, personal theme and, by an act of immensely assured poetic skill, has broadened it until it seems to touch upon nearly everything that concerns us.' Al Alvarez, Observer, 27 March, 1960In language that is by now utterly distinctive, the poems both describe and deliver a kind of psychic shock. Hughes's singularity of vision provides a ready symbiosis between theme and subject - the brute survival instinct of 'Hawk Roosting' or 'Pike', for instance; the rapturous attention bestowed upon 'An Otter' or 'The Bull Moses'; the pervasive legacy of human history that can be seen to saturate a Hughesian landscape.Lupercal is as vital and urgent today as it was when it was first published, its edict, implicit in every poem: to wake up, to pay attention.

Read more less

The stunning debut story collection from the author of Foster and the Booker Prize shortlised Small Things Like These'A beautiful, tender work of great clarity.' Sebastian Barry'Simply put, Claire Keegan is one of the greatest fiction writers in the world.' George Saunders'Among the finest contemporary stories written recently in English.' ObserverA secret one-night tryst in the city. A sister's revenge. A love-struck doctor. A missing girl. In Antarctica, an astonishing sequence of stories, one of our most gifted writers illuminates human longing and fallibility in all its variety.

Read more less

Based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning book, American Prometheus, by Kai Bird amd MartinSherwin, the film stars Cillian Murphy stars as the physicist who designed the bomb thatdestroyed Japan in 1945 and, in the aftermath, said: 'I am become death, de-stroyer of worlds.'Also part of this ArtomicAtomic Age cast are Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Florence Pugh, andRobertr Downey,Jr.

Read more less

Introduced by Jeff VanderMeer - 'a classic: stunning, dangerous, darkly beautiful' - welcome to the post-apocalyptic White Lotus: a luxury hotel at the end of the world in this lost 1967 dystopia ...'Chilling and prescient.' Andrew Hunter Murray 'Elemental and true.' Kiran Millwood Hargrave 'Mesmerizing.' Sandra Newman 'Like someone from the future screaming to us.' Salena GoddenThe day we came up from the shelters four people were found dead on the steps of the hotel. Welcome to Termush: a luxury coastal resort like no other. All the wealthy guests are survivors: preppers who reserved rooms long before the Disaster. Inside, they embrace exclusive radiation shelters, ambient music and lavish provisions; outside, radioactive dust falls on the sculpture park, security men step over dead birds, and a reconnaissance party embarks.Despite weathering a nuclear apocalypse, their problems are only just beginning. Soon, the Management begins censoring news; disruptive guests are sedated; initial generosity towards Strangers ceases as fears of contamination and limited resources grow. But as the numbers - and desperation - of external survivors increase, admist this moral fallout, they must decide what it means to forge a new ethical code at the end (or beginning?) of the world ...Translated by Sylvia Clayton

Read more less

** Adapted into the Oscar-nominated film adaptation, An Cailín Ciúin / The Quiet Girl **From the author of the Booker-shortlisted Small Things Like These, a heartbreaking, haunting story of childhood, loss and love by one of Ireland's most acclaimed writers.'A real jewel.' Irish Independent'A small miracle.' Sunday Times'A thing of finely honed beauty.' Guardian'Thrilling.' Richard Ford'As good as Chekhov.' David MitchellIt is a hot summer in rural Ireland. A girl is sent to live with foster parents on a farm, not knowing when she will return home. In the strangers' house, she finds a warmth and affection she has not known before and slowly begins to blossom in their care. But in a house where there are meant to be no secrets, she discovers how fragile her idyll is.

Read more less

With over A QUARTER OF A MILLION copies sold in the series, everyone's favourite Hedgehog and Tortoise are BACK with the message that Christmas is about being with the ones you love. 'Merry Christmas!' said Fox.'Merry whatmas?' said Hedgehog.'Merry whichmas?' said Tortoise.You see, it was Hedgehog and Tortoise's first Christmas.So they didn't know what Christmas was.Fox thinks Christmas is about presents, Badger thinks it's about pudding, Magpie thinks it's about singing . . . Tortoise and Hedgehog begin to feel rather overwhelmed with all the noise and fuss. But in a quiet moment of reflection they learn the most important lesson of all: Christmas is about being with the ones you love.

Read more less

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'It will do your soul good to read this.' NIGELLA LAWSONA balm for our times from the internationally bestselling author of Wintering.Our sense of enchantment is not only sparked by grand things. The awe-inspiring, the numinous, is all around us, all the time. It is transformed by our deliberate attention. The magic is of our own conjuring.'A total joy . . . Thoughtful, patient and beautifully written, like walking with a friend as dusk settles, this is the book your soul needs right now.'CARIAD LLOYD'Beautifully written.'PHILIPPA PERRYFeeling bone-tired, anxious and overwhelmed by the rolling news cycle and the pandemic age, Katherine May seeks to unravel the threads of a life wound too tightly. Could there be another way to live - one that feels more meaningful, more grounded in the places beneath our feet? One that would allow us to feel more connected, more rested and at ease, even as seismic changes unfold on the planet?Craving a different path, May explores the restorative properties of the natural world and begins to rekindle her sense of wonder. It is a journey that takes her from sacred wells to wild moors, from cradling seas to starfalls. Through deliberate attention and ritual, she finds nourishment and a more hopeful relationship to the world around her.Enchantment is an invitation to each of us to experience life in all its sensual complexity and to find the beauty waiting for us there.

Read more less

** SOON TO BE A MAJOR HBO SERIES STARRING JODIE COMER **A YOU MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR'A startlingly funny sex comedy with dark undertones that's high on quirk and scabrous wit.' Sunday Times, 'Books of the Year''By turns funny, eccentric and raunchy.' Grazia'Made me laugh and think too much (the right amount?) about sex and death and honesty.' MONICA HEISEY 'Offbeat, unhinged and brilliant.' Stylist'Utterly addictive. . . I laughed so hard it ached.' GILLIAN ANDERSON'Juicy, salacious and compelling. Trauma shouldn't be this fun.' SARA PASCOEGreta liked knowing people's secrets. That wasn't a problem. Until she met Big Swiss.Big Swiss. That's Greta's nickname for her - she is tall, and she is from Switzerland. Well that's how Greta imagines her; they haven't actually met in person. Nor has Greta actually ever been to Switzerland.What Greta doesn't know is that she's about to bump into Big Swiss in the local dog park. A new - and not entirely honest - relationship is going to be born.A relationship that will transform both of their lives . . .Readers are obsessed with Big Swiss:'Thing thing is a riot.' 'Slightly deranged, endlessly entertaining, and weirdly touching.' 'Kooky, funny, and very gripping.' 'Beagin really understands the human condition.' 'From the dark, dry comedy to the conversations surrounding sexuality, trauma and the complexities of our relationships to one another, this book had it ALL.' 'I absolutely adored this!' 'Bonkers but brilliant. I was hooked from the get go.''Darkly funny, wildly eccentric and impossibly great.' 'I loved this book all the way through, couldn't put it down.' 'I devoured this book.' 'Wonderful, witty, thought-provoking.' 'Got me out of a reading slump and heartbroken it's over.'

Read more less

'Striking.' ELLE France 'Brave.' iNews 'Powerful.' TLS 'Urgent.' Evening Standard 'Original.' CosmopolitanIn these essays, Leïla Slimani gives voice to young Moroccan women who are grappling with a conservative Arab culture that at once condemns and commodifies sex. In a country where the law punishes and outlaws all forms of sex outside marriage, as well as homosexuality and prostitution, women have only two options for their sexual identities: virgin or wife. Sex and Lies is an essential confrontation with Morocco's intimate demons and a vibrant appeal for the universal freedom to be, to love and to desire.'Leïla Slimani has a knack for breaking taboos. . . Sex and Lies is well executed: the novelist paints vivid portraits of her interviewees.' The Times'Slimani trusts in her outrage, in the force of her own voice, and the voices of the women she listens to.' Guardian

Read more less

'Engrossing.' Mail on Sunday'A powerful and compelling family saga.' CHRISTINE MANGAN'Beautifully atmospheric.' Financial TimesFROM THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF LULLABYMorocco, 1968. The air is electric. Anything feels possible, and Mathilde is determined to celebrate it. Doesn't she have the right to enjoy life, after dedicating her best years to the war and then to this farm?Looking out at her elegant garden, Mathilde reflects on all she has achieved. Now in a newly independent country intoxicated by its own sense of freedom, she yearns for a radiant future.But her babies are now grown up, and Mathilde is about to learn that life can take wild and unexpected turns.Acclaim for The Country of Others:'A panoramic, ambitious tale.' The Times'Exceptional.' SALMAN RUSHDIE'Captivating.' Elle' I loved it and didn't want it to end.' CLAIRE MESSUD'As wild and lush as a wildflower meadow.' Observer

Read more less

A TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR>Ian Leslie's acclaimed new book reveals the secrets of how to disagree without fighting, and shows how mastering the techniques of productive disagreement can transform every aspect of our lives. 'One of my favourite writers . . . Beautifully argued, desperately needed.'MALCOLM GLADWELL'Invaluable. The world will be a better place if everyone reads this book.'PHILPPA PERRY'A cool bath of sanity in a world of frenzied hot takes.'HELEN LEWIS'Perspective-shifting in important ways.'OLIVER BURKEMANWhat is the secret of happy relationships?How do companies build collaborative cultures?What lies behind some of the greatest scientific and creative breakthroughs?The surprising answer is: conflict.Whether it's at work, at home or in public, confronting our differences is the only way to make the most out of them. How to Disagree is about how to do that successfully.Drawing on essential lessons from world-class experts on how to disagree well and combining them with inspiring stories of productive disagreements from science, technology and the arts, Ian Leslie reveals how we can reap the benefits of diverse viewpoints in an era that feels more divided than ever.'I nodded and underlined my way through the book's nearly 300 pages of eloquent, thoughtful advice . . . If you want to argue better, Leslie's manual will be invaluable.'THE TIMES'Leslie has a way of bringing fresh perspectives and telling anecdotes to obdurate subjects. Here he talks to everyone from hostage negotiators to divorce lawyers to show how conflict has driven successful companies and technological advances, and to offer ways to harness it in daily life.'NEW STATESMAN***How to Disagree was previously published in 2021 under the title Conflicted.

Read more less

The Philokalia is a foundational collection of texts written between the fourth and the fifteenth centuries by spiritual masters of the Orthodox Christian tradition.First published in Greek in 1782, translated into Slavonic and later into Russian, The Philokalia has exercised an influence far greater than that of any book other than the Bible in the recent history of the Orthodox Church, and it continues to be read more and more widely.Only a selection of texts from The Philokalia has hitherto been available in English. This is the first complete translation into English from the original Greek in five volumes, the first of which was published by Faber in 1979. It is concerned with themes of universal importance: how we may develop our inner powers and awake from illusion; how we may overcome fragmentation and achieve spiritual wholeness; how we may attain the life of contemplative stillness and union with God.As in the first four

Read more less

Richard Scarry's classic book that takes readers all around town!Join Lowly Worm, Huckle Cat, and other beloved characters for a day in Richard Scarry's Busy, Busy Town. Visit the school, the farm, the post office, and many more fun and exciting places in this classic book that teaches little ones all about what goes on in their very own communities.A beautifully produced Faber-Scarry publication.Praise for Richard Scarry:'Awe-inspiring.' Dapo Adeola'Treasure troves of detail.' Chris Mould'A delight.' Sara Ogilvie'What a talent.' David Tazzyman'One of my favourite illustrators.' Allen Fatimaharan

Read more less

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER''Radically new and engaging.'' MATTHEW WALKER''Not only will every reader remember better afterward, they''ll also never forget this life-changing book.'' SIDDHARTHA MUKHERJEE''Ranganath turns much of what we think we know about memory on its head.'' DANIEL J. LEVITIN''Just fabulous . . . You learn that you don''t have to be a victim to your past and the way you used to think you have agency because of the fact that the brain can change.'' DR RANGAN CHATTERJEEWe talk about memory as a record of the past, but here''s a surprising twist: we aren''t supposed to remember everything. In fact, we''re designed to forget.Over the course of twenty-five years, Charan Ranganath has studied the seemingly selective and unreliable nature of human memory to find that our brains haven't evolved to keep a comprehensive record of events, but to extract

Read more less

'A woman's defiant fight to write.' ObserverBeing categorised as black and female does not constrain my writing. Writing assures me that I am more the merely blackness and femaleness. Writing assures me I am.This paradigm shifting essay collection weaves the personal and political in an illuminating exploration of internationally acclaimed novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga's complex relationship with race and gender. At once philosophical, intimate and urgent, Dangarmebga's landmark essays address the profound cultural and political questions that underpin her novels for the first time. From her experience of life with a foster family in Dover and the difficulty of finding a publisher as a young Zimbabwean novelist, to the ways in which colonialism continues to disrupt the lives and minds of those subjugated by empire, Dangarembga writes to recenter marginalised voices.Black and Female offers a powerful vision toward re-membering - to use Toni Morrison's word - those whose identities and experiences continue to be fractured by the intersections of history, race and gender.

Read more less

The dystopian classic, introduced by Stephen King. When a group of schoolboys are stranded on a desert island, what could go wrong?ONE OF THE BBC'S '100 NOVELS THAT SHAPED OUR WORLD''The first book with hands - strong ones that reached out of the pages and seized me by the throat. It said to me, 'This is not just entertainment; it's life or death.' ... I've been thinking about it ever since, for fifty years and more.' Stephen King'One of my favorite books - I read it every couple of years.' Suzanne Collins, author of The Hunger GamesWhat are we? Humans? Or animals? Or savages? What's grown-ups going to think? Going off-hunting pigs-letting fires out-and now!A plane crashes on a desert island. The only survivors are a group of schoolboys. By day, they explore the dazzling beaches, gorging fruit, seeking shelter, and ripping off their uniforms to swim in the lagoon. At night, in the darkness of the jungle, they are haunted by nightmares of a primitive beast. Orphaned by society, they must forge their own; but it isn't long before their innocent games devolve into a murderous hunt ...'Thrills me with all the power a fiction can have ... Exemplary.' Ian McEwan'An existential fable backlit with death's incandescent glare.' Ben Okri'Violently real ... An apocalyptic novelist [who writes with] humanist rage and defiance.' Marlon James'Beautifully written, tragic and provocative.' E. M. Forster'A fragment of nightmare.' New Statesman'A post-apocalyptic, dystopian survivor-fantasy ... [A novel] for all time ... A cult classic.' Guardian'Stands out mightily in my memory ... Such a strong statement about the human heart.' Patricia Cornwell'Terrifying and haunting.' Kingsley AmisWhat readers are saying:'Every real human being should read this ... This is what we are.''It's brilliant, it's captivating, it's thought provoking and brutal and for some, its truly terrifying.''It can be read and re-read many times, and every time something new will appear.''There is a reason why this is studied at school ... Excellent read.''This is one of the few books I've read that I keep on my Kindle to read again.''I revisit this every few years and it's always fresh and impressive ... One of the best books I've ever read.'

Read more less

A Guardian Best Book of the YearA Dazed Best Novel of 2023An unmissable banger.' ALICE SLATERA meta-meditation on the mysteries, malice, and minutiae of adolescence.' TOM BENNYou've never read anything like this.' JULIA ARMFIELDDo you know what happened already? Did you know her? Did you see it on the internet? Did you listen to a podcast? Did the hosts make jokes?Did you see the pictures of the body? Did you look for them?It's been nearly a decade since the horrifying murder of sixteen-year-old Joan Wilson rocked the small seaside town of Crow-on-Sea. Based on hours of interviews with witnesses and family members, and even correspondence with the killers themselves, journalist Alec Z. Carelli has constructed what he claims is the definitive account' of the crime. It's a riveting snapshot of lives scarred by tragedy, and a town left in

Read more less

In 1940 Sergei Rachmaninoff, living in exile in America, broke his creative silence and composed a swan song to his Russian homeland. What happened in those final haunted years and how did he come to write his farewell masterpiece, the Symphonic Dances?Rachmaninoff left Petrograd in the throes of the Russian Revolution in 1917. He was 44 years old, at the peak of his powers as composer-conductor-performer, moving in elite Tsarist circles and running the family estate, his refuge and solace. He had already written the music which, today, has made him one of the most popular composers of all time: the second and third Piano Concertos and two symphonies. Reeling from the trauma of a life in upheaval, he wrote almost no music and quickly had to reinvent himself as a fêted virtuoso pianist, building up untold wealth and meeting the stars, from Walt Disney and Charlie Chaplin to his Russian contemporaries and polar opposites, Prokofiev and Stravinsky. Still, the melancholy of leaving his homeland never lifted. Using a wide range of sources, including important newly translated texts, Maddocks' immensely readable book conjures impressions of this enigmatic figure, his friends and the world he encountered. It explores his life as an emigré artist and how he clung to an Old Russia which no longer existed. That forging of past and present meets in his Symphonic Dances (1940), his last composition, written on Long Island shortly before his death in Beverly Hills, surrounded by a close-knit circle of Russian exiles.

Read more less

Beautiful.' Daily Mail''True, unflinching, powerful, lyrical'' Kate Mosse''Wonderful, inviting, wholesome.'' Observer''Beautiful and very honest.'' CAITLIN MORAN''It''s quite an achievement to shine a light of truth on the often idealised, always understated, role of the farmer''s wife.'' RAYNOR WINNThis honest and heartwarming memoir offers a portrait of the labour and glory of keeping a home and raising a family. Weaving past and present, Helen Rebanks shares her highs and lows, from the emotional journey to the birth of her first child, and the endless improvisation of each night's dinner, to the dog gobbling up her daughter's freshly-made birthday cake. These are days that have shaped her, and the ways she finds the quiet strength to keep going. In its own quiet way, [The Farmer's Wife] is a manifesto: every woman has the right to choose the life they want.' Mail on Sunday

Read more less

SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION 2023THE SUNDAY TIMES HISTORY BOOK OF THE YEAR'Profoundly moving.' EDMUND DE WAAL'A work of searching scholarship, acute critical observation, philosophical heft, and deep feeling.' ALEX ROSS'A rare book: extraordinarily powerful - magisterial, meticulously rich and unexpected, deeply affecting and human.' PHILIPPE SANDSA remarkable and stirring account of how music acts as a witness to history and a medium of cultural memory in the post-Holocaust world.When it comes to how societies commemorate their own distant dreams and catastrophes, we often think of books, archives, or memorials carved from stone. But in Time's Echo, Jeremy Eichler makes a revelatory case for the power of music as culture's memory, an art form uniquely capable of carrying forward meaning from the past. Eichler shows how four towering composers - Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg, Benjamin Britten and Dmitri Shostakovich - lived through the era of the Second World War and the Holocaust and later transformed their experiences into deeply moving works of music, scores that carry forward the echoes of lost time. A lyrical narrative full of insight and compassion, this book deepens how we think about the legacies of war, the presence of the past, and the profound possibilities of art in our lives today.

Read more less

THE OBSERVER GRAPHIC NOVEL OF THE MONTH, 'a beautifully observed masterpiece''I loved it- it's quiet and funny and anxious, most of all it's dreadfully human. Really great.' EVIE WYLD'Joy, terror, good jokes, bad decisions, mystery moustaches - this book has them all, and more!' JOFF WINTERHART'It is amazing. Really just perfect comic writing, in both senses.' STEPHEN COLLINSLove, friendship, fraud and the stories we tell...Frank only wanted three things this year- to perform stand-up comedy, go to therapy, and to keep his house plants alive.Then Giorgio got hit by a bus.As Frank moves in with Giorgio to help him recover, he begins to suspect that the perfect life Giorgio has been sharing online may be nothing more than a web of lies and scams. Finding himself unable to break free from his friend's complicated life, has Frank become Giorgio's unwitting accomplice?

Read more less

In 1956 Sylvia Plath wrote to her mother, Aurelia Plath: 'I feel I'm developing a kind of primitive style of my own which I am very fond of. Wait til you see. The Cambridge sketch was nothing compared to these.'Sylvia Plath cited art as her deepest source of inspiration but, while her poetry is celebrated around the world, her drawings are little known. This volume brings together drawings from 1955 to 1957, the period she spent on a Fulbright scholarship from the US at Newnham College, Cambridge. During this time she married Ted Hughes and travelled with him to Paris and Spain.First published as a catalogue for an exhibition at the Mayor Gallery, the tiny drawings in pen and ink are exquisitely observed. They include Parisian rooftops, trees and churches.

Read more less

A ROUGH TRADE and PITCHORK BOOK OF THE YEAR'A guide to rediscovering the joys of creating that we all felt as children.'NEW YORK TIMESOne of the century's most feted singer-songwriters, Wilco's Jeff Tweedy, digs deep into his own creative process to share his unique perspective about song-writing and offers a warm, accessible guide to writing your first song, championing the importance of making creativity part of your everyday life and experiencing the hope, inspiration and joy that accompanies it.'Fascinating.' ROUGH TRADE'Eloquent.' INDEPENDENT'Nourishing.' PITCHFORK'A proselytiser for the act of songcraft.' FINANCIAL TIMES'A smart, funny, relentlessly practical guide.' GQ'Delightful.' ESQUIRE'Incisigve.' VULTURE'A book written by a musician that doesn't relay autobiographical details in some form of (even loose) chronology is unusual; they typically have their own story to tell and that's it, good or bad. Writing a book that goes some way to explaining the process behind their songwriting is something else altogether. Jeff Tweedy, in How to Write One Song, achieves this.'IRISH TIMES

Read more less

FROM THE WINNER OF THE 2021 PULITZER PRIZE IN POETRYWhen My Brother Was an Aztec is a work of courage and invention - one that foregrounds the particularities of family dynamics and individual passion against the backdrop of Western mythologies and a deeply rooted cultural history. Natalie Diaz's arresting debut explores a brother's addiction and its devastating effects on a household, while offering a political critique of our nations and their pasts. It acknowledges absences and uncomfortable silences, as well as conjuring vivid voices and presences, from Antigone and Houdini to Huitzilopochtli and Jesus.Stolen cowboy boots, violins on fire; a mariachi band playing in the bathroom, a black bayonet carried between the shoulder blades; the beauty of busted fruit, the sight of hellish visions - Diaz both revels and reveals through her distinctive use of language and imagery, bringing to life every intimate and communal encounter, blooming abundance from scarcity. The result is a wrenching portrayal of sacrifice, want, despair and fortitude that feels truly transformative.

Read more less

The rediscovered classic: an unforgettable memoir by a trailblazing black woman in post-war London, introduced by Bernardine Evaristo ('I dare anyone to read it and not come away shocked, moved and entertained.')Benjamin Zephaniah: 'A must-read. Her life makes you laugh. Her life makes you cry. Get to know her.'Jacqueline Wilson: 'A superb but shocking memoir about a brilliant teacher, imaginative, resilient and inspiring.'Steve McQueen: 'Gilroy blazed a path that empowered generations of Black British educators.'Diana Evans: 'Important, enlightening and very entertaining, full of real-life drama ... Inspirational.'David Lammy: 'This empowering tale of courage, resistance, and triumph is a breath of fresh air.'Alex Wheatle: 'A pioneer in many fields and wonderful example for all of us ... Essential reading.'Christie Watson: 'A beautiful memoir of one woman's strength and dignity against the odds.'Being denied teaching jobs due to the colour bar. Working in an office amidst the East End's bombsites. Serving as a lady's maid to an Empire-loving aristocrat. Raising two children in suburbia. Becoming one of the first black headteachers in Britain.In 1952, Beryl Gilroy moved from British Guiana to London. Her new life wasn't what she had expected - but her belief in the power of education resulted in a revolutionary career. Black Teacher, her memoir, is a rediscovered classic: not only a rare first-hand insight into the Windrush generation, but a testament to how one woman's dignity, ambition and spirit transcended her era.

Read more less

Pomerantsev is emerging as the pre-eminent war reporter of our time. ObserverFrom one of our leading experts on disinformation, the incredible true story of the complex and largely forgotten WWII propagandist Thomas Sefton Delmer - and what we can learn from him today. In the summer of 1941, Hitler ruled Europe from the Atlantic to the Black Sea. Britain was struggling to combat the powerful Nazi propaganda machine, which crowed victory and smeared its enemies. But inside Germany, there was one notable voice of dissent from the very heart of the military machine, Der Chef, a German whose radio broadcasts skilfully questioned Nazi doctrine. He had access to high-ranking German military secrets and spoke of internal rebellion. His listeners included German soldiers and citizens. American officials and even the President tried to to decipher what it meant for the future of the war. But what these audiences didn't know was that Der Chef was a fiction, a character created by the British pro

Read more less

***Available for pre-order now***The gorgeous, pocket-sized edition of the two brand-new Talking Heads***As seen on BBC1 and iPlayer*** 'Given the opportunity to revisit the characters from Talking Heads I've added a couple more, both of them ordinary women whom life takes by surprise. They just about end up on top and go on, but without quite knowing how. Still, they're in good company, and at least they've made it into print.' Alan Bennett's twelve Talking Heads are acknowledged masterworks by one of our most highly acclaimed writers. Some thirty years after the original six, Bennett has written Two Besides, a pair of monologues. Each, in its way, is a devastating portrait of grief. In An Ordinary Woman, a mother suffers the inevitable consequences when she makes life intolerable for herself and her family by falling for her own flesh and blood; while The Shrine tells the story behind a makeshift roadside shrine, introducing us to Lorna, bearing witness in her high-vis jacket, the bereft partner of a dedicated biker with a surprising private life. The two new Talking Heads were recorded for the BBC during the exceptional circumstances of coronavirus lockdown in the spring of 2020, directed by Nicholas Hytner and performed by Sarah Lancashire and Monica Dolan.The book contains a substantial preface by Nicholas Hytner and an introduction to each, by Alan Bennett.

Read more less

Two brand-new monologues in the Talking Heads series, as seen on BBC1 and iPlayer 'Given the opportunity to revisit the characters from Talking Heads I've added a couple more, both of them ordinary women whom life takes by surprise. They just about end up on top and go on, but without quite knowing how. Still, they're in good company, and at least they've made it into print.' Alan Bennett's twelve Talking Heads are acknowledged masterworks by one of our most highly acclaimed writers. Some thirty years after the original six, Bennett has written Two Besides, a pair of monologues. Each, in its way, is a devastating portrait of grief. In An Ordinary Woman, a mother suffers the inevitable consequences when she makes life intolerable for herself and her family by falling for her own flesh and blood; while The Shrine tells the story behind a makeshift roadside shrine, introducing us to Lorna, bearing witness in her high-vis jacket, the bereft partner of a dedicated biker with a surprising private life. The two new Talking Heads were recorded for the BBC during the exceptional circumstances of coronavirus lockdown in the spring of 2020, directed by Nicholas Hytner and performed by Sarah Lancashire and Monica Dolan.The book contains a substantial preface by Nicholas Hytner and an introduction to each, by Alan Bennett.

Read more less

*The #1 Sunday Times Bestseller**Longlisted for the Booker Prize 2021**A Barack Obama Summer Reading Pick*'A delicate, haunting story' The Washington Post'This is a novel for fans of Never Let Me Go . . . tender, touching and true.' The Times'The Sun always has ways to reach us.'From her place in the store, Klara, an Artificial Friend with outstanding observational qualities, watches carefully the behaviour of those who come in to browse, and of those who pass in the street outside. She remains hopeful a customer will soon choose her, but when the possibility emerges that her circumstances may change for ever, Klara is warned not to invest too much in the promises of humans.In Klara and The Sun, Kazuo Ishiguro looks at our rapidly changing world through the eyes of an unforgettable narrator to explore a fundamental question: what does it mean to love?

Read more less

An epic tale of trees of power and a world under threat, from the author of the bestselling Five Realms series.Here come the roots of the Shadow Tree.Whatever they touch will never get free.Liska lives in Arborven, a city surrounding an extraordinary tree that gives all those living there special powers. As a shapeshifter, Liska is training as a warrior. When she discovers that the Tree is under threat, it is her duty to act - but she can't convince anyone to listen to her. So with Lug, whose power over earthworms is dismissed as useless, and a ghost-girl, Elowen, she goes on an epic journey to defeat the worst threat their world has ever known.Illustrated by Chris Wormell this is a richly woven and thrilling fantasy with a wonderful affinity between humankind and nature - a current and vital message for young readers everywhere.'An epic, exciting feat of imagination.' - Kiran Millwood Hargrave, author of The Girl of Ink and Stars'Utterly compelling; brilliant.' - BookTrust'A vivid world full of wonder, magic and fantastical creatures.' - The Scotsman

Read more less

Murder in the Cathedral, written for the Canterbury Festival in 1935, was one of T. S. Eliot's first dramatic achievements, and it remains one of the great plays of the century. It takes as its subject matter the martyrdom of Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, depicting the events that led to his assassination, in his own cathedral church, by the knights of Henry II in 1170. Like Greek drama, the play's theme and form are rooted in religion, ritual purgation and renewal, and it was this return to the earliest sources of drama that brought poetry triumphantly back to the English stage at the time. This anniversary edition marks 850 years since Becket's dramatic murder, and eighty-five years since Eliot's play was first performed.

Read more less

Lose yourself in bestselling author Lawrence Durrell's sublime novel about a group of English tourists trapped in the minotaur's labyrinth on Crete ... 'Spellbinding ... A fine storyteller.' Guardian'Superb ... Quite simply a lovely work of art.' New York TimesA group of English tourists have come ashore from their cruise ship to explore the island of Crete. This motley crew - including a painter, spiritualist, spinster, soldier, convalescent, and elderly couple - are holidaying to seek respite from a broken post-war world. But their journey reaches a disastrous climax when they visit a cave reputed to be the legendary labyrinth of the minotaur, and become trapped within ...Set in the glorious Mediterranean landscapes which Lawrence Durrell so famously evoked in his travel writing and novels, The Dark Labyrinth is a morality tale unlike any other. Artfully blending horror and humour, comedy and tragedy, witty allegory and profound philosophy, it is a sublime novel, as refreshing today as it was decades ago. 'Superb, not only in the great passages of poetical description but also [the] casual wit and the brilliance of comment.' Observer'Will amuse those who enjoy satires on English manners and morals, engage readers who like a build-up of suspense and delight lovers of the sensuous world of the Greek islands.' New York Times

Read more less

Lose yourself in this vivid travelogue evoking the historic Mediterranean island of Sicily by the king of travel writing and real-life family member of The Durrells in Corfu. 'A magician.' The Times Despite decades spent poetically chronicling Mediterranean life in Rhodes, Cyprus and Corfu, celebrated travel writer Lawrence Durrell had never set foot on the largest island: Sicily. For years, his friend Martine begged him to visit her on this sun-kissed paradise, but it took her sudden death to finally bring him to its shores - and he is not disappointed. Joining an eccentric tour group, Durrell immerses himself in the island's spectacular archaeological remains, and becomes dizzy with Sicily's rich history: its mysterious myths and meanings. Featuring unpublished poems and illustrated with elegant engravings. Sicilian Carousel is a gem that ranks with Durrell's finest work.'Readers who have been to Sicily will love this book. Readers who have not been to Sicily will love this book.' Paul Fussell 'Like long letters from a civilized and very funny friend - the prose as luminous as the Mediterranean air he loves.' Time

Read more less

Lose yourself in this classic prize-winning memoir of life in 1950s Cyprus on the brink of revolution by the legendary king of travel writing and real-life family member of The Durrells in Corfu. 'Stunning.' André Aciman 'Masterly ... Casts a spell.' Jan Morris'Invades the reader's every sense ... Remarkable.' Victoria Hislop'These days I am admiring and re-admiring Lawrence Durrell.' Elif Shafak'Our last great garlicky master of the vanishing Mediterranean.' Richard Holmes'Exceptional ... Revelatory ... A master.' Observer'He writes as an artist, as well as a poet . Profoundly beautiful.' New StatesmanCyprus, 1953. As the island fights for independence from British colonial rule, ancient conflicts between Turkish and Greek Cypriots trouble the glittering Mediterranean waters. Into the brewing political storm enters Lawrence Durrell, yearning for the idyllic island lifestyle of his youth in Corfu.He settles into a dilapidated villa, and with his poet's eye for beauty - and passable Greek - vividly captures the moods and atmospheres of island life in a changing world. Whether collecting folklore or wild flowers, describing the brewing revolution or eccentric local characters, Durrell is a magician with words: and the result is not only a classic travel memoir, but an intimate portrait of a community lost forever.WINNER OF THE DUFF COOPER MEMORIAL PRIZE'Brilliant ... Never for a moment does Durrell lose the poet's touch.' New York Times

Read more less

Rosie Raccoon was up to no goodout and about in a grand neighbourhood.It seems Rosie is up to no good as she breaks into the houses of Bear, Flamingo and Snake, but when Officer Skunk catches her in the act all she has taken is junk! But Rosie has a plan to recycle these treasures and make something new . . .With a topical environmental theme, Lou's fantastic rhyming text and Julia's adorable illustrations, this picture book will be irresistible to young readers.

Read more less

I wasn't in any particular hurry to kill him. What was important was to make sure that the deed was done without suspicion settling on me.Follow P D James, 'Queen of Crime', as she takes us into the mind of a man who has waited decades to enact his patient, ingenious revenge on a school bully. A small, dark, treat, 'The Part-Time Job' is published in this special edition - for the first time in book form - in celebration of what would have been P.D. James' 100th birthday.

Read more less