Category Archives: Travel Guides
Frost on my Moustache
Frost on my Moustache” sees Tim Moore inspired by the swashbuckling travelogues of Victorian diplomat Lord Dufferin, as he sets out to prove his physical and spiritual worth before his sceptical Nordic in-laws by retracing Dufferin`s epic voyage to Iceland and Spitzbergen.Dufferin`s battles with icebergs, polar bears and the deep potations of hospitable Norsemen is
Closely Observed Trains
For gauche young apprentice Milos Hrma, life at the small but strategic railway station in Bohemia in 1945 is full of complex preoccupations. There is the exacting business of dispatching German troop trains to and from the toppling Eastern front; the problem of ridding himself of his burdensome innocence; and the awesome scandal of Dispatcher
Lost Camels of Tartary
John Hare has made three expeditions to the Mongolian and Chinese Gobi deserts, the first in 1993 with Russian scientists and the second and third with Chinese scientists in 1995 and 1996. The book records the amazing adventures he has experienced on those expeditions and will record details of the 30-day walk on foot in
The Scramble for Africa 1876-1912
In 1880 Africa was largely unexplored. By 1910, just thirty years later, almost all of this huge continent had been carved up by the five major powers. This is the first full-scale study of that extraordinary episode in history.
A Tall Man in a Low Land – Some Time Among the Belgians
It is normal for British travel writers to head south for a destination that is hot, exotic, dangerous, or all three. The author of this book chose a country which is damp, safe and of legendary banality: Belgium. But can any nation whose most famous monument is a statue of a small boy urinating really
Tales From the South China Seas
This work chronicles the adventures of the last generation of British men and women who went East to seek their fortunes. Drawn into the colonial territories scattered around the South China Sea, they found themselves in an exotic, intoxicating world. It was a land of rickshaws and shanghai jars, sampans and Straits Steamers, set against
Leo the African
From his chlidhood in Fez, having fled the Christian Inquisition, through his many journeys to the East as an itinerant merhcant, Hasans story is a quixotic catalogue of pirates, slave girls and princesses, encompassing the complexities of a world in a state of religious flux. Hasan too is touched by the instability of the era,
Long Walk to Freedom
The memoirs of an outstanding moral and political leader. This autobiography re-creates the drama of the experiences that helped shape his life. A compelling read.
The Rock of Tanios
An exploration of myth, passion and loyalty from the Lebanon`s troubled past, The Rock of Tanios is another superbly rich and rewarding novel from the author of Samarkand and Leo the African. Expertly controlling his multi-faceted narrative with prose of great beauty and power, Maalouf delves into the history of an extraordinary life: that of
The Rise & Fall of the British Empire
THE RISE AND FALL OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE covers the history of British expansion overseas from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries. Narrative and analysis are interwoven with revealing eyewitness quotation to provide keen insight into the minds of those involved in conquering, settling and ruling the greatest Empire the world has seen. Throughout, there
Up North
The North. Where does it begin? Where does it end? And is it all whippets, black pudding and queer folk going rounds saying “There`s nowt so queer as folk”? Fresh from the PJ O`Rourke School of Diplomatic Journalism, southern jessie Charles Jennings finds himself in need of Answers. With something approaching trepidation, Jennings packs his
The Little Book of Feminist Saints
`A beautifully illustrated tome honouring 100 exceptional women dating back to 630BC` RedA Stylist Must-read Book of 2018`This finely illustrated book is brimful of startling anecdotes about females who flouted traditional gender roles` Observer`Short, snappy and inspiring, these mini biographies celebrate women who headed out into the world determined to make a difference` Psychologies`Essential reading
Dust Tracks On A Road
With a new introduction by JESMYN WARD`Zora Neale Hurston was a knockout in her life, a wonderful writer and a fabulous person. Devilishly funny and academically solid: delicious mixture` MAYA ANGELOUFirst published in 1942 at the height of her popularity, Dust Tracks on a Road is Zora Neale Hurston`s candid, exuberant account of her rise
Jonah`s Gourd Vine
With a new introduction by JESMYN WARDBorn on the wrong side of the creek, John Buddy Pearson, the son of a slave, has come a long way since his shoeless days. With some schooling, a job and marriage to clever Lucy Potts, his fortunes are looking up. But, unable to resist the lure of women
The Virago Book Of Witches
A collection of more than fifty stories about witches from around the world. There are tales of banshees, crones and beauties in disguise from China, Siberia, the Caribbean, Armenia, Portugal and Australia. The characters featured include Italy`s Witch Bea-Witch, Lilith, Kali, and Twitti Glyn Hec. Alluring women, enchantresses, wise old ladies and bewitching women: they
Only in Naples: Lessons in Food and Famiglia
`See Naples and die`, said Goethe. But Katherine Wilson saw Naples and started to live. Katherine is fresh out of college when she arrives in Naples to intern at the US Consulate. There she meets handsome, studious Salvatore, and finds herself enveloped by his family – in particular by his elegant mother, Raffaella, who begins
Wave Me Goodbye: Stories of the Second World War
This collection of short stories written by women when war was a way of life includes some of the finest women writers of that generation. War had traditionally been seen as a masculine occupation but these stories show how women were equal if different participants. Here, war is less about progress on the frontline of
Outsiders; Five women writers who changed the world
An exciting and provocative look at the women who wrote the novels that changed the literary world.In five chapters – `Prodigy`, `Spinster`, `Visionary`, `Outcast`, `Dreamer`, Lyndall Gordon will look into the connections between creativity and outsiders in particular lives – the lives of Mary Shelley, Emily Brontรซ, George Eliot, Olive Schreiner and Virginia Woolf.
This Hostel Life
This Hostel Life tells the stories of migrant women in a hidden Ireland. From a day in the life of women queuing for basic supplies in an Irish direct provision hostel to a young black woman`s depiction of everyday racism in Ireland, Melatu Uche Okorie`s nuanced writing shines a light on the injustice of the
Between the Stops: The View of My Life from the Top of the Number 12 Bus
This long-awaited memoir from one of Britain`s best-loved celebrities – a writer, broadcaster, activist, comic on stage, screen and radio for nearly forty years, presenter of QI and Great British Bake Off star – is an autobiography with a difference: as only Sandi Toksvig can tell it.”`Between the Stops` is a sort of a memoir,
