Category Archives: Travel Guides
Falling Leaves
Falling Leaves is the story of an unwanted Chinese daughter growing up during the Communist Revolution, blamed for her mother`s death, ignored by her millionaire father and unwanted by her Eurasian step mother. A story of greed, hatred and jealousy; a domestic drama is played against the extraordinary political events in China and Hong Kong.Written
The Lubetkin Legacy
`Lively . . . a joy to read` – The TimesShortlisted for the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse prizeFrom the bestselling author of A Short History of Tractors in UkrainianNorth London in the twenty-first century: a place where a son will swiftly adopt an old lady and take her home from hospital to impersonate his dear departed
The Story of the Scrolls
In “The Story of the Scrolls – The Miraculous Discovery and True Significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls” Dead Sea Scrolls scholar Geza Vermes relates the controversial story of their discovery and publication around the world, revealing cover-ups, blunders and academic in-fighting, but also the passion and dedication of many of those involved. He shares
Religion for Atheists: A Non-believer`s Guide to the Uses of Religion
Alain de Botton`s “Religion for Atheists” looks at the God debate with fresh eyes “All of us”, whether religious, agnostic or atheist, are searching for meaning. And in this wise and life-affirming book, non-believer Alain de Botton both rejects the supernatural claims of religion and points out just how many good ideas they sometimes have
Mr Lynch`s Holiday
Mr Lynch`s Holiday is the new comic novel by Catherine O`Flynn, the bestselling and prize-winning author of What Was Lost and The News Where You Are. `I`m looking forward to seeing you and Laura and getting my first taste of “abroad”.` Eamonn Lynch stares at the letter announcing his father`s imminent arrival. His first thought:
Phone
`WHATEVER YOU DO hang on to the phone. . . . . . . . ! . . . . . . . . ! Feel the smoothness of its bevelled screen . . . . . . . . ! . . . . . . . . ! Place your thumb in the
In Defence of Dogs: Why Dogs Need Our Understanding
What would dogs ask for, if they knew how? In the “Sunday Times” bestseller “In Defence of Dogs” John Bradshaw, an anthropologist at Bristol University who has been at the centre of the latest research into what makes dogs tick, gives us the answers. Overturning the most common myths about dogs` emotions and behaviour, this
The Postmistress
“The Sunday Times” bestseller “The Postmistress” by Sarah Blake is a heart-rending and profoundly moving story of love and loss in World War II. It is 1940, and bombs fall nightly on London. In the thick of the chaos is young American radio reporter Frankie Bard. She huddles close to terrified strangers in underground shelters,
Tickling The English
Nostalgia, identity, eccentricity, gin drinking and occasional violence…these are just some of the themes that stand-up comedian Dara O Briain explores in “Tickling the English”. O Briain moved to England many years ago, but when he takes his show on tour around the country – from deserted seaside towns and remote off-shore islands, to sprawling
Zeitoun
Dave Egger`s “Zeitoun” is the powerful, ultimately uplifting true story of one man`s courage when confronted with an awesome force of nature followed by more troubling human oppression.In August, 2005, as Hurricane Katrina blew in, the city of New Orleans had been abandoned by most citizens. But resident Abdulrahman Zeitoun, though his wife and family
Eastern Approaches
Fitztroy Maclean was one of the real-life inspirations for super-spy James Bond, and reading Eastern Approaches it`s easy to see why.After adventures in Soviet Russia before the war, Maclean fought with the SAS in North Africa in 1942. There he specialised in hair-raising commando raids behind enemy lines, including the daring and outrageous kidnapping of
Jamie`s Italy
In Jamie’s Italy, Jamie Oliver travels the gastronomic country of Italy, paying homage to the classic dishes of each region and searching for new ideas to bring home, resulting in a collection of recipes old and new that will bring the best of Italian cooking into our kitchens. Jamie’s Italy is a colourful and accessible
On Fishing At Sea
In “On Fishing at Sea” you see how through twenty-two casts, Britain`s best-known freshwater fisherman quits land in favour of the sea. There, he discovers the many pleasures of the coast: wild shores, unpredictable waves, the violent collision of the elements, and, of course, fish that glisten and dart beneath a never-still surface.From childhood remembrances
Crude World: The Violent Twilight of Oil
“Crude World” offers a passionate look at some of the most awful places in the world: the violent, repressive and polluted countries that are also where oil is extracted. Peter Maass follows the journey of oil and shows how the substance sullies so much of what it touches, poisoning land and rivers, promoting political bloodshed
A Year In The Woods – The Diary of a Forest Ranger
A Year in the Woods is a fantastic journey deep into the heart of the English countryside as we take a look inside a job that most people won`t have a first hand experience with. Colin Elford spends his days alone – alone but for the deer, the squirrels, the rabbits, the birds, and the
Somme: Into the Breach
`The best new narrative of the battle thus far, reflecting his gifts for fluent prose and moving quotations.` Max Hastings, Sunday TimesNo conflict better encapsulates all that went wrong on the Western Front during World War I than the Battle of the Somme in 1916. The tragic loss of life and stoic endurance by troops
The Cretan Runner
The Creatan Runner is a blistering account of George Psychoundakis` activities across mountainous terrain, come blazing summer or freezing winter.Psychoundakis was a young shepherd boy who knew the island of Crete intimately when the Nazis invaded by air in 1941. He immediately joined the resistance and took on the crucial job of war-time runner. It
The Pursuit of Italy
The “Pursuit of Italy” traces the whole history of the Italian peninsula in a wonderfully readable style, full of well-chosen stories and observations from personal experience, and peopled by many of the great figures of the Italian past, from Cicero and Virgil to Dante and the Medici, from Cavour and Verdi to the controversial political
The Education of A British-Protected Child
The pieces here span reflections on personal and collective identity, on home and family, on literature, language and politics, and on Achebe`s lifelong attempt to reclaim the definition of `Africa` for its own authorship. For the first thirty years of his life, before Nigeria`s independence in 1960, Achebe was officially defined as a `British Protected
The Watchers: A Secret History of the Reign of Elizabeth I
The acclaimed and enthralling story of the dark side of Elizabethan rule, from Stephen Alford Elizabeth I`s reign is known as a golden age, yet to much of Europe she was a `Jezebel` and heretic who had to be destroyed. The Watchers is a thrilling portrayal of the secret state that sought to protect the
