Search results for ""Faber Faber""

The moon cast long shadows that crept through the park,Pumpkins grinned gruesomely lighting the dark,Inside her cottage, a witch cast a spell . . .And let out a gigantic hiccup as well!Now Hazel Broomstick was a witch in a fixBecause magic and hiccups are not a good mix . . .Poor Hazel Broomstick is heading for disaster on the eve of Halloween! Her hiccups are making her spells do some very funny things. Nobody wants a pink, fluffy witch''s cat, or a cute pumpkin! Luckily her friends are here to help . . . now what do witches find REALLY scary? . . . Knock, knock . . . it's a . . . FAIRY!

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I saw the streets, the lights, the cars, the people -Everything moving in different directions at the sametime. . .I wanted to make the map alive.In December 2008, an entrepreneur leaves a tech conference in Paris. As he stands on the street, unableto hail a cab, an idea lands with the falling snow: tap a button, get a ride.Ten years later, Mia drives nights in Manchester, Sean is recruited as the brightest new programmer and Tyler moves on to yet another new future.Brilliant Jerks tells the story of three people - a driver, a coder and a CEO - working for one tech monolith, but living worlds apart.Joseph Charlton's sleek, gripping and revelatory play, based on the creation of a multi-billion-dollar app, premiered at VAULT Festival, 2018, and was revived at Southwark Playhouse, London, in March 2023.

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The Second World War has shaped the modern world more than any other single event. This generous and haunting selection of English-language and translated poems includes verse written by servicemen who participated in the war - Keith Douglas, Alun Lewis, Randall Jarrell - as well as by survivors and witnesses of the Holocaust - Primo Levi, Nelly Sachs, Paul Celan - and civilians across Europe and beyond. It features work by important women poets - Elizabeth Bishop, H.D., Anna Akhmatova - exiles such as W. H. Auden and Berthold Brecht, and writers reporting from London, Paris, Warsaw, Moscow and New York, dealing with the terrifying impact and legacy of the conflict. Presented with a historical critical introduction and biographical notes, the result is a vital lyric testimony to the tragic global theatre of the war.

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''Poignant . . . deeply nostalgic.'' GLAMOUR''Strange, melancholy and beautiful.'' BRANDON TAYLOR''The supreme poet of solitude.'' SPECTATORThere was no past, no future, no words, nothing just the light and the yellow and the scent of dry leaves in the sun.Japan's internationally celebrated storyteller returns with five stories of healing and hope. Effortlessly beautiful, nostalgic and melancholy, the stories in Dead-End Memories explore the stories of five women who, following sudden and painful events, find solace in the blissful moments in everyday life.The daughter of a restaurant owner experiences a budding romance, accompanied by the ghosts of an elderly couple. After a scandalous near-death experience, an editor gains a new lease of life. A woman seeks refuge in the apartment above her uncle's bar after being betrayed by her fiancé. As Yoshimoto's gentle, effortless prose reminds us, one true miracle can be a

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Payback is a killer . . . ''This book was brilliant! . . . Rita is so complex and intriguing. I binged it!'' 5* reader review''Powerful . . . a first class thriller.'' 5* NetGalley review''I could not put this down.'' 5* NetGalley review Rita Marsh is a good person. By day, she runs a care home, looking after the elderly and infirm. By night, she's a vigilante, posing online as young girls and snaring the men who prey on them, exposing them for what they are. Rita has successfully kept her two lives separate for years. But when an old classmate returns from her past, her two worlds start to collide. With both of her selves unravelling, Rita will have to choose between justice and revenge. Is she a force for good or will she become someone to fear?Everyone is talking about The Revenge of Rita Marsh: ''I devoured it.'' CHRIS

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'This book distils what, at my advanced age, I feel able to say about music, musicians, and matters of my pianistic profession.' Ever since Alfred Brendel bid farewell to the concert stage after six decades of performing, he has been passing on his insight and experience in the form of lectures, readings and master-classes. This reader for lovers of the piano distils his musical and linguistic eloquence and vast knowledge, and will prove invaluable to anyone with an interest in the technique, history and repertoire of the piano. Erudite, witty, enlightening and deeply personal, A Pianist's A to Z is the ideal book for all piano lovers, musicians and music aficionados: rarely has the instrument been described in such an entertaining and intelligent fashion.

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Swashbuckling, romantic, and full of the sights and sounds of Shakespeare's London, this sweeping YA fantasy trilogy debut is perfect for fans of Holly Black, Leigh Bardugo and J. Elle.Joan touched her fingers to the blade, felt the metal sing to her. It whispered its secrets . . .Sixteen-year-old Joan Sands is a gifted craftswoman and an exceptional swordsmith.So skilled is her technique that she is one of very few women employed at the Globe Theatre, directing William Shakespeare and his troupe of actors in fierce scenes of combat. Of course, it helps that Joan is blessed with the power to control metal, thanks to Ogun, head deity of all Orishas.But when a pact between the ancient Yoruba spirits and Fae is broken, only she can save the streets of London from peril. Joan must find a way to defeat them in battle by herself . . .Okay, perhaps her twin brother James, blessed with gifts from Oya, can be of some help! And, despite the simmering tensions of a love triangle between herself, Rose, and Nick, Joan has a community of people to protect and who will protect her in return.'Perfect for anyone looking for a fresh take on faerie magic.' Leigh Bardugo, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Shadow Bone'A groundbreaking addition to the fantasy genre..' Ayana Gray, New York Times-bestselling author Beasts of Prey'Every sentence will thunder through your bones.' Roshani Chokshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Gilded Wolves and the Aru Shah series'Wildly imaginative and refreshingly diverse . . . taut with intrigue.' J. Elle, New York Times bestselling author of Wings of Ebony

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Part of our collection of Young Adult Classics, this stunning Carnegie-winning tale takes us to a world of darkness and ice, where a shaman and a prince fight for their freedom.In the darkest hour of a freezing Midwinter, a night-walking witch adopts a newborn baby and carries her off in her house on chicken legs. She names her Chingis and teaches her the Three Magics. She grows into such a powerful witch that she rouses the jealousy of Kuzma, the bear-shaman.The Czar of this cold realm fears his newborn son, Safa, will out do him, and so imprisons the baby at the top of a tall tower, to live and die there without ever glimpsing the real world. Loneliness and confinement drive him to rage and despair until Chingis hears the crying of his trapped spirit and frees him.But now their enemies unite against them, with steel and deadly magic. Chingis and Safa's quest for freedom will take them even through the Ghost World into the Land of the Dead.A timeless and atmospheric tale of fierce magic.'Richly emotional and lavishly written.' Times Literary Supplement'Truly stunning and original.' Kirkus'Highly original, multidimensional tale.' Booklist

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I've spent a lifetime in the ebb and flow of powerIt brings its giftsBut then it's an intoxicantOne must beware lest one consumes too muchThe monarch.Her most powerful subject.Two women meet once a week for eleven years. One believes there is no such thing as society. The other has vowed to serve it.Moira Buffini's wickedly funny hit comedy imagines what the world's most powerful women, Margaret Thatcher and Queen Elizabeth II, talked about behind closed palace doors.Winner of the 2014 Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in an Affiliate Theatre, Handbagged was first performed in September 2013 and returned to Kiln Theatre, London, in September 2022.'A phenomenon.' Sunday Telegraph'Perfectly pitched between the comic and the serious.' Guardian

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Sam Riviere is a past master of taking and exploiting found' content and process and transforming it into poetry that captivates and unsettles. Here, he harnesses anxiety about AI only to exploit it for his own extraordinary ends. In this case, Generative Pre-trained Transformer 2 (GPT-2), an open source neural network , is used to produce poems that, stripped of the usual authorial clutter, find themselves nonetheless cohering around a voice that speaks of the uncertainties, fears and desires of a world that is desperately, poignantly and recognisably human.

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''A magnificent book.'' MIKE ATHERTON''Electrifying.''GUARDIAN''This isn''t just a book, it''s an intricate work of art.''IRISH INDEPENDENT''Tender, atmospheric - and hopeful.''iNEWSFrom the author of The Damned Utd and Red or Dead, an extraordinary novel about Britain, sport and our collective past.February 6, 1958, British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on take-off at Munich Airport. On board were the young Manchester United team, the Busby Babes', and the journalists who followed them. Twenty-one of the passengers died instantly, four were left fighting for their lives while six more were critically injured. Twenty-four hours later, Jimmy Murphy, the assistant manager of Manchester United, faced the press at the Rechts der Isar Hospital:What of the future, you ask? It will be a long, hard struggle. It took Matt Busby, Bert Whalley and mysel

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I still play to their chords.Livin within conventions.Livin within restrictions.Livin within a structure.Lettin someone write my narrative.Toye is preparing for his piano exam to get into a prestigious music school. He's doing it for the contacts, the opportunity, the love of art. But when he notices the lack of Black British history in his school's curriculum, he begins to question himself and the world around him. Toye wants to follow his dream. but he can't let these institutions write his story. He decides to teach his classmates about Black cultural icons himself, but quickly discovers that not everyone wants Black history to be celebrated.Dipo Baruwa-Etti's inspiring new play about the pressures of being young, gifted and ready to change the world premiered at Roundabout in Kingston, in a Paines Plough and Rose Theatre production, in July 2022.

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A contemporary thriller with ancient roots.The bark creeps up my body like a rising sea level. I wonder what will happen when it reaches my heart.When a woman tells a lie to her girlfriend, a seed is planted that grows in the darkness. Now roots are cracking through the pavement and branches are coming in at the windows. As she starts to see things that no one else can, she becomes the focus of some seriously unwanted attention.A queer urban fable about passion, power and photosynthesis, Rafaella Marcus's Sap, her first full-length stage play, opened at Roundabout @ Summerhall, as part of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, in August 2022.'A glorious tapesty of a play.' GuardianMost Promising Playwright, Off West End Award nominee.Winner: Summerhall Lustrum Award 2022Winner: SoHo Playhouse Medal of Excellence 2022

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I've given up on fighting for change.That's a strange, imperfect illusion that allowed confusion to reign in my life.I took a knife to its neck and sliced it open.When a passionate activist, Wunmi, is invited into a middle-class Black family's home, a fire is lit. The family members have always seen themselves as pillars of society: they are charity workers, therapists and politicians. But as they begin to realise what Wunmi really represents, their certainty begins to crumble, the tension rises and a suffocating ash starts to fill the air. Full of forensic fury and incandescent poetry, Dipo Baruwa-Etti's fiercely political new play opened at the Almeida Theatre, London, in September 2022.

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When they called saying your body had been found, I had one immediate thought. I remember thinking that maybe now I'd be free.Sam hasn't spoken to her mother Kath for three years when she learns that she's been found dead in the New Mexico desert.Travelling to the small town of Taos to identify the body, she discovers Kath had become embroiled in a shadowy enterprise, offering Sam an unimaginable chance to rebuild their broken relationship. But to do so, she must decide whether she can finish what her mother started.David Farr's compelling new play is both an unsettling science fiction and an intimate study of loss and bereavement, examining how artificial intelligence could alter our understanding of death, consciousness and the soul.A Dead Body in Taos opened at the Bristol Old Vic in September 2022.

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The third hilarious adventure featuring loveable Lin, everyone''s favourite Bad Panda.A documentary crew have come to the zoo, to film every day life with the animals. The only thing is that the reality is a bit boring so they ship in some animal actors. Lin and her best friend Fu are less than impressed with the prancing lion that wants to take centre stage. And the smaller animals in the zoo, the mites, are fed up of being overlooked. It''s time to unleash some bad pandaness! Insects and pandas unite to create an authentic show about real zoo life that promises to be anything but boring!

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Cheeky sun won't go to bed! He'll find any excuse to stay up. . . painting rainbows, drinking the sea, hiding behind mountains. . . but even the sun must go to bed. . . A vibrant, eye-catching, energetic picture book in Morag Hood's signature style. A great bedtime read which gives children a good giggle, and encourages them to go to sleep!

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In Liverpool everybody wanted to be in a band. On every street corner and in every cellar there were young fellas practising with guitars. But it was rare to see any girls on the new Merseybeat scene. It was inevitable that we would find each other . . .'In the early 60s, four friends from Liverpool formed a band. But this is not the fab four' story we know.Mary, Sylvia, Valerie and Pamela also known as The Liverbirds were one of the world's first all-female rock'n'roll bands. At an early gig, backstage at the Cavern Club, a young John Lennon told them that girls don't play guitars'. But they took that as a challenge. Despite the early scepticism, they won over tough crowds, toured stadiums, recorded two hit albums, and played with the Kinks, Rolling Stones and Chuck Berry all in the space of just five years.Now, the two surviving members of the band tell their incredible story in full for the first time capturing a lost era of li

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'A gorgeous love story and a hilarious political novel about precarity and abuse in the era of late capitalism.' Neel Mukherjee, author of Man Booker Prize-shortlisted The Lives of Others'Zink's confidence and authority as a writer are evident from Avalon's killer first sentences.' LA TimesBran's Southern California upbringing is anything but traditional. After her mother abandons her and joins a Buddhist colony, Bran is raised by her 'common-law stepfather' on Bourdon Farms - a plant nursery that doubles as a cover for a biker gang. She spends her days tending plants, slogging through high school and imagining what life could be if she had been born to a different family.Then she meets Peter-a charming, troubled college student from the East Coast - who launches his teaching career by initiating her into the world of art. The two begin a seemingly doomed long-distance relationship as Bran searches for meaning in her own surroundings. She knows how to survive, but now she must learn how to live.'Zink is a comic writer par excellence.' New Yorker'An extraordinary talent.' Daily Telegraph

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'Sparkling... funny, it is also cutting, a nearly forensic study of family conflict... both compulsively readable and thought-provoking.' New York TimesThe Oppenheimer triplets have been reared with every advantage: wealth, education, and the determined attention of at least one of their parents. But they have been desperate to escape each other ever since they were born.Now, on the verge of their departure for college and so close to their long-coveted freedom, the triplets are forced to contend with an unexpected complication: a fourth Oppenheimer sibling has just been born. What has possessed their parents to make such an unfathomable decision? The triplets can't begin to imagine the the power this little latecomer is about to exert - nor just how destructive she'll be to their plans . . .'Korelitz draws us in again, this time with her ease, grace and wit, in a satisfying novel that spans generations, lives, and fates.' Meg WolitzerFROM THE AUTHOR OF THE UNDOING - NOW A MAJOR TV SERIESWhat readers are saying:'Powerful, beautifully written, and well plotted.' 'Think Succession meets The Goldfinch...such captivating characters and plot with an excellent ending.''You don't want to skim over a single word of the exquisitely woven story.''This book will definitely stay with me for a long time. I loved it.'

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''A total joy to read.'' Harriet Tyce''Confirms Charlotte Vassell as one of the most exciting new voices in crime fiction.'' Erin Kelly''A stylish saga of cops and inverted snobbery.'' The TimesSome people are inOn the last Saturday in August, politicos and socialites trade tidbits of gossip and sips of Pimm's under the tasteful bunting of a Richmond garden party. They'd never guess that the police are just a stone's throw away, pulling a body out of the river Thames.Some people wish they wereThe drowning appears to be a tragic accident until Detective Caius Beauchamp gets an unexpected tip. The victim, it seems, had enemies in high places. Did being on the wrong side of them get her killed?Either way, being out is absolute murderPraise for Charlotte Vassell''s debut The Other Half ''Brilliantly compulsive . . . I could not stop reading this book.'' DENISE MINA<

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Andrew Motion has been close to the centres of British poetry for over fifty years.Sleeping on Islands is his clear-sighted and open-hearted account of this remarkable career. It takes us from scenes of a teenage home-life coloured by tragedy and silence where writing was as much a refuge as an assertion to the excruciations of early public appearances, to the decade he spent as Poet Laureate, promoting and ensuring the central place of poetry in a nation's character. Along the way, we hear about the risks and sacrifices involved, as well as the difficulties of sustaining a commitment to writing within a helix of other obligations. We see in close-up the significance of Motion's formative relationship with W. H. Auden and his subsequent friendship with Philip Larkin. And during his time as Laureate, we witness memorable encounters with Royalty and Prime Ministers, and discover the costs and complications that accompany such a high-profile role.

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''Innovative and original.'' Colm Tóibín''Unforgettable.'' Alejandro Zambra''A punk novel with prose as mysterious as it is beautiful.'' Nicole Flattery ''Pol Guasch must be one of the best young writers working today.'' Catherine LaceyThe arrival of a blistering debut voice in international literature, and a radical work of literary fictionpoetic, provocative, artful and singular.In a deserted village, an unnamed young man waits for an opportunity to escape. Society has been militarised, the dead lie unburied and thugs patrol the land. As he waits, he marks the days that pass and writes to his lover Boris, with whom he shares an animal desire. In a series of impassioned dispatches, Napalm in the Heart unearths what it means to survive when language and nature fail, to refuse to give up when everything is lost.

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Santa needs a new reindeer in this third hilarious Christmas must-have picture book, from the duo who brought you Santa's New Beard and Santa's New Sleigh!One week to go 'till Christmas Day,The final touches underway,A ribbon here, a flourish there,And presents piled up everywhere.Santa smiled. 'What could go wrong?'He didn't have to wait too long . . .Out of the sky a whirling blur,Of antlers, legs and soft brown fur,Came crashing through the workshop roof,And that's how Rudolph sprained his hoof . . .Oh no! Another Christmas disaster! The sleigh can't fly without Rudolph. Luckily, head engineer Lizzie is on hand to help . . . introducing ROBO-REINDEER! Christmas is saved once more.

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Classic Richard Scarry: Join Postman Pig as he delivers post across Busytown!Join Richard Scarry's beloved Postman Pig for a day of discovery and adventure! With deliveries to the police station, the doctor's office, the library and many more, young readers will see how those in their communities go about the day. This classic story is, indeed, a very special delivery.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

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I'm a killer I told youI told you that all alongYou were the dummy to believeI could ever be anything elseTwo teenagers fall in love on Long Island. There's fun and dancing, sports and team spirit, there's the woods and beer and physical hard work. But it's 1938, the world is on the brink of war, and their wholesome summer camp is exclusively for American youth of German descent. As their mutual attraction deepens, so they become intoxicated by the Nazi ideology that fuels the camp, an ideology that will culminate in global atrocity and genocide.Inspired by the real Camp Siegfried, Bess Wohl's play premiered at the Old Vic Theatre, London, in September 2021.

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There were so many things that Tortoise wanted to do.So many games to play and rocks to climb.Oops.Tortoise was stuck.Tortoise was not happy.Tortoise is not having a good day and now he's stuck in a hole and is far too upset for hugs. Hedgehog sits and waits and then makes Tortoise laugh - taking the time to let the moment pass, and acknowledge how Tortoise feels.

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''A killer read with twist after twist.''JANICE HALLETTSo many great twists and a truly chilling villain Swanson's best one yet.' MARK EDWARDS''A clever, ingenious, edge-of-your-seat thriller.'' LIV CONSTANTINE ''The stakes are high, the body count is higher, and yet I would still follow Lily anywhere.'' STACY WILLINGHAMFROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE KIND WORTH KILLINGTwo years ago, Martha didn't know that Alan existed. Now, they're married it was easy to say yes to someone so sweet.But when Martha thinks she sees Alan's mask slip, she starts to fear that the conferences he travels the country to attend might be a cover for something far more sinister.As her research unearths a string of dead women, she enlists the help of Lily Kintner, an old friend from grad school. What Martha doesn't know is that Lily has a dark side of her own . . .<

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The extraordinary true story of the Stasi's poetry club: Stasiland and The Lives of Others crossed with Dead Poets Society.'A magnificent book . . . at once touching, exquisite, devastating and extraordinary.'PHILIPPE SANDS, author of East West Street and The Ratline'A vivid, funny, and imperturbable portrait of Soviet Russia's most loyal satellite.'NELL ZINKBerlin, 1982. Morale is at rock bottom in East Germany as the spectre of an all-out nuclear war looms. The Ministry for State Security is hunting for creative new weapons in the war against the class enemy - and their solution is stranger than fiction. Rather than guns, tanks, or bombs, the Stasi develop a programme to fight capitalism through rhyme and verse, winning the culture war through poetry - and the result is the most bizarre book club in history.Consisting of a small group of spies, soldiers and

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EVERYTHING TO PLAY FOR - A NEW BOOK BY QI ELVES JAMES HARKIN AND ANNA PTASZYNSKI - IS AVAILABLE FOR PREORDER NOW*The perfect gift for the incurably curious* This edition includes all new, even more ingenious questions and answers! It was previously published in hardback as Funny You Should Ask . . . Again.'The best trivia book of the season.' THE SPECTATOR'Mind-blowing.' DAILY MAIL'Genuinely interesting.' POPULAR SCIENCEWhich lottery numbers should I pick?Is it true that we are made entirely of stardust?Can dogs tell the time?Why do songs get stuck in my head?If Rome wasn't built in a day, how long did it take?Do plants make noises?Where is last Wednesday?These are just a few of the questions put to the QI Elves by the listeners of BBC Radio 2's The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show. This book is a collection of their cracking, unexpected and frequently hilarious answers. Chock full with extra facts and illustrations from the Elves, 222 QI Answers to Your Quite Ingenious Questions will spark wonder and joy.Includes a foreword from Zoe Ball.***For more from the team behind QI's hit TV show check out the QI FACTS series of books, @qikipedia and listen to their weekly podcast at nosuchthingasafish.com or visit qi.com

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Of the twenty chapters that make up these Memoirs, seventeen appear here in print for the first time, unearthed by the editors from the Harvard Archive. They include intense depictions of Lowell's mental illness and his efforts to recover, and conclude with reminiscences of other writers - T. S. Eliot, Robert Frost, Ezra Pound, John Berryman, Anne Sexton, Hannah Arendt, and Sylvia Plath. Memoirs demonstrates Lowell's expansive gifts as a prose stylist and provide further evidence of the range and brilliance of his achievement.

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** With an introduction by Mariana Enríquez **A Granta Book of the Year'Cruel and strange and colourful.' Catherine Lacey 'Brimming with life, humour and a vital twist of darkness.' Alexandra Kleeman ''A hellishly tender and hilariously twisted Little Women.' Pola Oloixarac 'Ruthlessly ambitious and honest.' Dizz TateCousins is the jewel in Venturini's oeuvre - mischievous and stylish, vital and mysterious . . . and completely original. It is the story of four women from an impoverished, dysfunctional family in La Plata, Argentina. Neighborhood mythologies, family, female sexuality, vengeance, and social mobility through art are explored and scrutinized in the voice of an unforgettable protagonist, Yuna, who stares wildly at the world in which she is compelled to live; a voice unique in its candidness, sharp edge and utterly breathtaking power.

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'Death and detection . . . the perfect mix.' The Times'An excellent page turner . . . the best so far.' 5* reader review'Nordic noir at its best.' PeopleAs the spring warmth melts the ice, divers search the wreckage at the bottom of the Ångermanland River - but the murdered man they recover was put there much more recently than the historic artefacts they were seeking. Local Detective Eira Sjödin, newly pregnant and not talking about it, is proud to be put in charge of the investigation - until she discovers the man's identity, and the evidence begins to point towards her own family. As Eira works to piece together the truth from the long-buried evidence and her mother's fragmented memories, she isn't sure she is prepared for the revelations this truth might unleash.Readers love Tove Alsterdal:'A brilliant story with a very likeable police detective as the focus of all the twists and turns.' 5* reader review'Superb. An intricate story which felt very personal.' 5* reader review'Twists and turns and dead ends galore!' 5* reader review'I flipping loved it.' 5* reader reviewPraise for the High Coast series: 'Dark, disturbing, evocative, and clever.' Chris Whitaker'Strong characters, a great sense of place and plot twists galore.' Sunday Times Crime Club'Atmospheric, immersive and utterly compelling.' M. W. Craven'What a terrific twisting roller-coaster of a thriller.' Peter James'A tantalising mystery, executed with perfection . . . Tove Alsterdal writes with such intelligence and finesse.' Thomas Enger

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OLD GOD'S TIME (MARCH 2023), SEBASTIAN BARRY'S STUNNING NEW NOVEL, AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOWFrom A Long Long Way, his Booker shortlisted novel about the Irish soldiers who fought for Britain during the First World War to his Donal McCann starring hit play, The Steward of Christendom; from his first Costa Book of the Year winning novel The Secret Scripture to his second, Days Without End, a decade later, Sebastian Barry's writing career has been as long and varied as it has extraordinary.Intimate, revealing and generous of heart, these three lectures - written and delivered as part of his three year tenure as the Laureate for Irish fiction - reflect on his life and career so far, and some of the formative moments and people he's met along the way.

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Introduced by Helen Castor, lose yourself in an epic naval journey in the second novel in the Booker Prize-winning historical fiction Sea Trilogy by the author of Lord of the Flies.This tropical nowhere was the whole world - the whole imaginable world.A decrepit warship is becalmed halfway to Australia, stilled in an ocean wilderness of heat and sea mists. In this surreal, fête-like atmosphere, a ball is held with a passing ship: the passengers dance and flirt, while beneath them seaweed like green hair spreads omniously over the hull. Half-mad with fear, drink, love and opium, both vessel and passengers feel themselves going to pieces: and the very planks seem to twist themselves alive as the ship comes apart at the seams . . . 'Fantastic ... Gems tumble off the pages ... A strong sense of drama ... Much of the pleasure of reading his work is his original imagery.' Annie Proulx'No living writer has represented the fragility of man's experience so marvellously as Golding.' AS Byatt'It is in Golding's magnificent, therapeutic, terrifying descriptions of seascapes that the deepest meanings can be found.' Kate Mosse'Stunning . . . As exciting as any thriller.' Sunday Times'A feat of imaginative reconstruction, as vivid as a dream.' Daily Mail'Tells an utterly absorbing tale, in language of immense force and subtlety.' Financial TimesTo The Ends of the Earth: A Sea Trilogy - Book Two

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THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLEROPRAH DAILY'S #1 Book of 2023A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERGOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICKFINALIST FOR THE NEW AMERICAN VOICES AWARDAMAZON EDITOR'S CHOICE & TOP TWENTY NOVEL OF THE YEAR'A Brilliant, satisfying, compassionate mystery.' GABRIELLE ZEVIN 'I can't remember a book with more layers. . . I was riveted through the last page.'JODI PICOULT'Gorgeous . a layered and innovative exploration of family, love, happiness, and race.' JEAN KWOK'Stunning!' JO BROWNING WROEWe didn't call the police right away. Later, I would blame myself, wonder if things might have turned out differently if I hadn't shrugged it off, insisting Dad wasn't missing missing but just delayed, probably still in the woods looking for Eugene.Mia Parkson's life is turned upside down when her stay-at-home dad, the family's anchor, goes missing. The only witness? Eugene - her younger, nonspeaking teenage brother. As the Police struggle for leads, and her mother and twin brother struggle to keep things together at home, Mia gains access to key clues about her father's disappearance. Headstrong, hyper analytical, and with secrets of her own, she decides to try and solve the case. But could Mia's impulsive actions be putting her whole family in danger?

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Everyone's favourite (socially distanced) characters return to help us through this challenging period.Hedgehog is waiting for his friend Tortoise to wake up. But where is he and when will he wake?Hedgehog's friends are all very lovely, but they just aren't as much fun at the beach, or at hide and seek, or at holding hands, or at hugs. Tortoise begins to stir - the one boulder that Hedgehog didn't think he could lift to turn . . . Tortoise has been dreaming of Hedgehog. And the hug that follows is their best yet!A charming and touching new tale from the creators of the bestselling While We Can't Hug!

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From Carnegie winning author, a coming-of-age novel about friendship and loyalty across neighbourhood lines - illustrated by award-winner, Akhran Girmay.A lot of the stuff that gives my neighbourhood a bad name, I don't really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing.Nah, not his thing. Ali's got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there's a dude looking for trouble - and, somehow, it's always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy's gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it's all small potatoes; it's not like anyone's getting hurt.And then there's Needles. Needles is Noodles's brother. He's got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It's cool, though: everyone on their street knows he doesn't mean anything by it.Yeah, it's cool . . . until Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to be . . . somewhere they never should've been - where the people aren't so friendly, and even less forgiving.'A funny and rewarding read.' Publisher's Weekly, Starred Review'Fiction with heart . . . unexpectedly gorgeous.' Booklist'Moving and thought-provoking . . . defies readers' expectations.' Kirkus

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This is bout those menwho stripped him of his crown,treated that charcoal skin like concrete.Peace will only comewhen I make em come undone. Femi is visited by her brother's ghost. He takes her into the past, revealing the final moments before his murder. But with a lack of evidence, and eyewitnesses considered unreliable, Femi is determined to set things right herself.Dipo Baruwa-Etti's The Sun, the Moon, and the Stars explores trauma, rage and the extent one young woman will go in her quest for justice. The play premiered at Stratford East, London, in June 2021.

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Hedgehog and Tortoise were the best of friends. They wanted to give each other a great, big hug. But they weren't allowed to touch. "Don't worry," said Owl. "There are lots of ways to show someone you love them." So the two friends wave to each other, blow kisses, sing songs, dance around and write letters. And even though they can't hug and they can't touch, they both know that they are loved. A gorgeous, uplifting, inspiring picture book that makes social distancing fun!

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A PITCHFORK MUSIC BOOK OF THE YEARA radical, literary and intimate insight into one of the twentieth century's most vital vocalists. 'Tongson serves up a number of astute observations about fantasy, projection, longing, normalcy, and aberrance.' MAGGIE NELSON'Deftly weaves memoir, history, and cultural criticism to highlight the dynamic relationship between artists and listeners.'PITCHFORKIn the '60s and '70s, America's music scene was marked by raucous excess, reflected in the tragic overdoses of young superstars such as Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. At the same time, the uplifting harmonies and sunny lyrics that propelled Karen Carpenter and her brother, Richard, to international fame belied a different sort of tragedy - the underconsumption that led to Karen's death at age thirty-two from the effects of an eating disorder.In Why Karen Carpenter Matters, Karen Tongson (whose parents named her after the pop icon) interweaves the story of the singer's rise to fame in the 1960s and '70s with her own trans-Pacific journey between the Philippines - where imitations of American pop styles flourished - and Karen Carpenter's home ground of Southern California. Tongson reveals why the Carpenters' chart-topping, seemingly white-washed musical fantasies of 'normal love' have profound significance for her - as well as for other people of colour, LGBT+ communities, and anyone outside the mainstream culture usually associated with Karen Carpenter's legacy.This hybrid of memoir and biography excavates the destructive perfectionism at the root of the Carpenters' sound, while finding the beauty in the singer's all-too-brief life.'Engrossing . . . a triumphant delight.' 4COLUMNS'Heartfelt . . . excellent . . . breathtaking.' EXCLAIM!'Will resonate with readers who have never even heard of Carpenter.' LITERARY HUBMUSIC MATTERS: SHORT BOOKS ABOUT THE ARTISTS WE LOVE- Why Solange Matters by Stephanie Phillips- Why Marianne Faithfull Matters by Tanya Pearson- Why Karen Carpenter Matters by Karen Tongson

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The rise and fall and triumphant rise from the ashes of Lenny Henry during the 80s and 90s.'Moving and ebullient' Daily Telegraph 'Relayed with characteristic exuberance and self-deprecation' Guardian Rising to the Surface traces Lenny Henry's career through the 80s and 90s. The 16-year-old who won a talent competition, now has to navigate his way through the seas of professional comedy, learning his craft through sheer graft and hard work.We follow Lenny through a period of great creativity - prize-winning tv programmes, summer seasons across Britain, the starring role in a Hollywood film, and stand-up gigs in New York. But with each rise there is a fall, the most traumatic being the death of his mother. But by the end of the book he has been able to rise through a sea of troubles and breaks out to the surface to accept the Golden Rose of Montreaux for his work in television.

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You can't escape the shadows . . .The Elite are imprisoned, the Reaper King is once again banished from the world and the city of Nubis is trying to return to normal. So is Mia, but it's not so easy. Coming to terms with new powers and being the tamer of two umbra, she's also plagued by nightmares. Is the fear all in her imagination? Or are the agents of darkness somehow planning another assault? Once again, Mia's skills and resilience will be tested to their limit.This is the second book in the sensational Umbra Tales series, illustrated by Ana Latese.

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The launch of an outstanding debut fantasy series.'A fresh, wild, gripping adventure.' Kieran Larwood, author of The Legend of Podkin One-Ear'A thrilling, highly imaginative and action-packed fantasy.' Louie Stowell, author of Otherland and Loki'Thrilling . . . a wonderful adventure.' L. D. Lapinski, author of The Strangeworlds Travel Agency'I absolutely loved it.' Tolá Okogwu, author of Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun'Pulse-pounding action.' A. F. Steadman, author of Skandar and the Unicorn ThiefBeware of the shadows, the Reaper King is coming . . .Mia always dreamed of being an umbra tamer until she met the wild creature on the Nightmare Plains. Since that day, she prefers to stay safe within the walls of Nubis. Safe, that is, until a surprise attack. With her parents captured, Mia's only hope is to travel to the City of Light to find help. But with only her little brother, two friends and one solitary tamed umbra, the journey feels impossible. Mia not only has to overcome her fears, she also has to learn to harness her umbra taming abilities if they are to complete the quest in time.For fans of Amari and the Night Brothers, The Legend of Podkin One-Ear and Nevermoor, this is the first in the sensational Umbra Tales series, illustrated by Ana Latese.

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FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE SECRET LIFE OF COWS'Elegiac, funny, warm and wise, The Wisdom of Sheep will delight country folk and city dwellers alike.' KATHERINE MAY'A wonderful antidote to the hectic pace of modern life.' JAMES OSWALDWe talk about people behaving like sheep, which assumes that sheep all behave in the same way. That has not been my experience.Some are affectionate, others prone to head-butting. Some are determinedly self-sufficient, others seek our help when they need it. And some can be trusted to lead the flock home. They are as individual as we are.Farm animals are familiar to us from childhood stories, but little did we know that their inner lives are full of complexity, deep bonds and family dramas. Rosamund Young has been an organic farmer for over forty years and this is her record of a life at the beck and call of the animals while observing and preserving the abundant wildlife at Kite's Nest Farm. It is a story of joy, discovery, cooperation and sometimes heartbreak. We learn about sheep growing old disgracefully, the intelligence of supposedly 'bird-brained' hens, 'conversations' between cows and why you should never send a text whilst milking . . .'Delightful.' ALAN BENNETT, ON THE SECRET LIFE OF COWS

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The visionary masterpiece, tracing a riverboat crew's dreamlike jungle voyage ...'My new all time favourite book ... A magnificent, breathtaking and terrifying novel.' Tsitsi Dangarembga'An exhilarating experience ... Makes visions real and reality visions ... Genius.' Jamaica Kincaid'A masterpiece: I love this book for its language, adventure and wisdoms.' Monique Roffey'Revel in the inviolate, ever-deepening mystery of Wilson Harris's work.' Jeet Thayil'The Guyanese William Blake . Such poetic intensity.' Angela CarterI dreamt I awoke with one dead seeing eye and one living closed eye ...A crew of men are embarking on a voyage up a turbulent river through the rainforests of Guyana. Their domineering leader, Donne, is the spirit of a conquistador, obsessed with hunting for a mysterious woman and exploiting indigenous people as plantation labour. But their expedition is plagued by tragedies, haunted by drowned ghosts: spectres of the crew themselves, inhabiting a blurred shadowland between life and death. As their journey into the interior - their own hearts of darkness - deepens, it assumes a spiritual dimension, guiding them towards a new destination: the Palace of the Peacock ... A modernist fever dream; prose poem; modern myth; elegy to victims of colonial conquest: Wilson Harris' masterpiece has defied definition for over sixty years, and is reissued for a new generation of readers.'One of the great originals ... Visionary ... Dazzlingly illuminating.' Guardian'Amazing ... Masterly ... Near-miraculous.' Observer'Staggering ... Both brilliant and terrifying.' The Times'The most inimitable [writer] produced in the English-speaking Caribbean.' Fred D'Aguiar'Extraordinary ... Courageous and visionary ... It speaks to us in tongues.' Pauline Melville

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SHORTLISTED FOR THE POETRY PIGOTT PRIZE IN ASSOCIATION WITH LISTOWEL WRITERS' WEEKThroughout these poems, with their roaming sense of first-person, the speakers' minds are cavernous and echoic, primal and sophisticated, observant and raw, in and out of control of themselves. The effect is unpredictable and thrilling, at once a dark art and an illumination of unease and loss and wishfulness. The collection features disquieting songs of a mutable self alongside poignant elegies, interior journeys and subtle (and not so subtle) ripostes to the legacy of Trumpism - while elsewhere encounters with ghostly feet and tongues of fire consort with riffs on Baudelaire, Rilke and Laforgue. These poems twinkle with mischief and humour, making for a pungent and haunting read. Riordan - a poet whose strong, rippling influence is felt by all in his wake - affirms his reputation at the forefront of contemporary poetry.

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