Products
The End of Men, Christina Baird-Sweeney ( paperback May 2022)
£8.99
GLASGOW, 2025.
Dr Amanda Maclean is called to treat a young man with a mild fever. Within three hours he dies. The mysterious illness sweeps through the hospital with deadly speed.
This is how it begins. The victims are all men. Dr Maclean raises the alarm, but the sickness spreads to every corner of the globe.
Threatening families. Governments. Countries.
Can they find a cure before it's too late? Will this be the story of the end of the world - or its salvation? Compelling, confronting and devastating.
Linda - I enjoyed this way more than I expected to, it's very readable and ultimately positive about the resilience of humankind. Would be a great bookclub read to discuss.
'
The End of The World is A Cul De Sac, Louise Kennedy ( paperback May 2022)
£9.99
A SUNDAY TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR
The secrets people kept, the lies they told. In these visceral, stunningly crafted stories, people are effortlessly cruel to one another, and the natural world is a primitive salve.
Here, women are domestically trapped by predatorial men, Ireland's folklore and politics loom large, and poverty - material, emotional, sexual - seeps through every crack. A wife is abandoned by her new husband in a ghost estate, with blood on her hands; a young woman is tormented by visions of the man murdered by her brother during the Troubles; a pregnant mother fears the worst as her husband grows illegal cannabis with the help of a vulnerable teenage girl; a woman struggles to forgive herself after an abortion threatens to destroy her marriage. Announcing a major new voice in literary fiction for the twenty-first century, these sharp shocks of stories offer flashes of beauty, and even humour, amidst the harshest of truths.
The End of Us, Olivia Kiernan ( paperback Feb 2024)
£8.99
It all started to go wrong the day the Wrights moved in next doo. Myles and Lana Butler live on a gorgeous new development in Wimbledon, leaning on a mortgage that is just within reach. When one of Myles' investments fails they are bound to lose everything. Gabriel and Holly Wright have just moved in next door.The Wrights are sophisticated, ambitious and apparently very wealthy. At an after-dinner drink with their new neighbours, Myles and Lana share their worries and a solution is suggested between the couples. Life Insurance fraud.
For a cut of the pay out, the Wrights would help them. No one thought they were being serious. No one agreed they'd actually go through with it.
And no one mentioned it would involve murder. Then, one night, Lana doesn't come home. Praise for The End of Us'Witty, dark, unpredictable.
A book to be devoured in one sitting' Karen Hamilton'It reminded me of Hitchcock at his best. Tense, twisty, dark and so unpredictable' Claire Douglas
The Enigma of Room 622, Joel Dicker ( paperback June 2023)
£9.99
It all starts with an innocuous curiosity: at the Hotel de Verbier, a luxury hotel in the Swiss Alps, there is no Room 622. This anomaly piques the interest of Joel Dicker, Switzerland's most famous literary star, who flees to the Verbier to recover from a bad breakup, mourn the death of his publisher, and begin his next novel.
Before he knows it, he's coaxed out of his slump by a fellow guest, who quickly uncovers the reason behind Room 622's erasure: an unsolved murder. The attendant circumstances: a love triangle and a power struggle at the heart of Switzerland's largest private bank, a mysterious counter-intelligence unit known only as P-30, and a shadowy emigre with more money than God. A Russian doll of a mystery crafted with the precision of a Swiss watch, The Enigma of Room 622 is Joel Dicker's most diabolically addictive thriller yet.
Translated from French.
The Epic Trilogy of the Squirrels, David Mitchell ( paperback June 2023)
£7.99
This is a really funny and cute set of 3 stories about squirrels who normally live in the park but find themselves in all sorts of scrapes including turning up at the airport.
Lovingly written by local dad ( and eminent QUB professor), illustrated by his daughter, and raising library book funds for local primary school Strandtown.
What a brilliant thing :)
The Ever-Changing Earth, Grahame Baker-Smith (paperback Oct 23)
£7.99
Greenaway award-winner Grahame Baker-Smith guides readers on an unforgettable journey through our Earth's incredible evolution, discovering the planet's forgotten creatures, buried oceans and frozen layers. A small boy imagines life on Earth when dinosaurs ruled, and the sky boomed with the wild beat of pterosaur wings. Then an asteroid fell, changing the world forever.If Kun could go back further in time, he would witness an even bigger collision, when the young Earth was struck by another planet creating our companion moon... Following on from The Rhythm of the Rain and Wild is the Wind, Kate Greenaway award-winner Grahame Baker-Smith explores our ever-changing planet in this beautifully illustrated paperback edition.
The Exhibitionist, Charlotte Mendelson ( paperback March 2023)
£9.99
Meet the Hanrahan family. Ray, the father.Acclaimed artist and notorious narcissist, who is obsessed with his own reputation. Lucia, his long-suffering wife. A lauded sculptor yet terrified of what recognition could bring.
And she has a secret of her own which could tear the family apart. Leah, the eldest daughter, devoted to her father and convinced of his genius. Patrick, Lucia's sensitive son, who has finally decided to strike out by himself.
Jess, the youngest daughter, insecure and facing a daunting decision. As they gather for a momentous weekend - the first exhibition of Ray's artwork in many decades - each member of the family must finally make a choice. And when they do, once tensions have boiled over and the guests have departed, what will be left of the Hanrahans?Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2022, The Exhibitionist is the extraordinary fifth novel from Charlotte Mendelson, a dazzling exploration of art, sacrifice, toxic family politics, queer desire and personal freedom.
'A devastating treat of a novel: funny, furious, dark and delicious' - Sarah Waters, bestselling author of Fingersmith
The Faber Book of Bedtime Stories ( hardback)
£20.00
A comforting story tonight for a happy day tomorrow . . .A gorgeous gift to treasure for years to come, this collection of bedtime stories is brimming with hope and positivity as an antidote to the at times challenging world we live in. Fabulously illustrated by Sarah McIntyre, the stories promote modern-day messages of inclusivity, acceptance and bravery in the face of adversity. With brand new stories from: Aisha Bushby, Ann Jungman, Ayesha Braganza, Claire Barker, Emma Carroll, Hannah Lee, Ingrid Persaud, Kate Saunders, Kieran Larwood, Lou Kuenzler, Lucy Farfort, Martyn Ford, Michael Mann, Natasha Farrant, Pip Jones, Rashmi Sirdeshpande and Reba Khatun.
The Farmer’s Wife, Helen Rebanks ( paperback Feb 24)
£10.99
This 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'
Lovely, warm and real, it made me cry and cook and think. ' ELLA RISBRIDGER
The Fire Starters, Jan Carson (Paperback, March 2020)
£9.99
**WINNER of the EU Prize for Literature**'One of the most exciting and original Northern Irish writers of her generation' SUNDAY TIMES'
At once grittily real, wildly magical and insanely alluring - a siren-song of a novel (Donal Ryan)
Dr Jonathan Murray fears his new-born daughter is not as harmless as she seems. Sammy Agnew is wrestling with his dark past, and fears the violence in his blood lurks in his son, too.
The city is in flames and the authorities are losing control. As matters fall into frenzy, and as the lines between fantasy and truth, right and wrong, begin to blur, who will these two fathers choose to protect?Dark, propulsive and thrillingly original, this tale of fierce familial love and sacrifice fizzes with magic and wonder.
Jan Carson's distinctive voice brings Belfast alive in this original novel, I thoroughly enjoyed it. - Linda
The Fire, Daniela Krien ( paperback June 2024)
£9.99
PaperTHE FIRE
How can two lovers find a way back to each other, when the pain of the past stands between them?With plans adrift after a fire burns down their rented holiday cabin, Rahel and Peter find themselves unexpectedly on an isolated farm where Rahel spent many a happy childhood summer. Suddenly, after years of navigating careers, demanding children and the monotony of the daily routine, they find themselves unable to escape each other's company.
With three weeks stretching ahead, they must come to an understanding on whether they have a future together. "A stylish, subtle read" Woman & Home BOOK OF THE MONTHWhat happens when love grows older and passion has faded? When what divides us is greater than what brought us together? And how easy is it to ask the fundamental questions about our relationships?
Both Translated from German.
LOVE IN FIVE ACTS
Daniela's previous novel has been very popular in our shop - Praise for LOVE IN FIVE ACTS:"Highly recommended" The Times - also available now as paperback
Bookseller Paula has lost a child, and a husband. Where will she find her happiness? Fiercely independent Judith thinks more of horses than men, but that doesn't stop her looking for love online. Brida is a writer with no time to write, until she faces a choice between her work and her family.
Abandoned by the "perfect" man, Malika struggles for recognition from her parents. Her sister Jorinde, an actor, is pregnant for a third time, but how can she provide for her family alone? Love in Five Acts explores what is left to five women when they have fulfilled their roles as wives, mothers, friends, lovers, sisters and daughters. As teenagers they experienced the fall of the Berlin Wall, but freedom brings with it another form of pressure: the pressure of choice.
The First Move, Jenny Ireland ( paperback April 2023)
£8.99
For 13+ and adults like me who enjoy a good YA read!
Juliet believes girls like her - girls with arthritis - don't get their own love stories. She exists at the edges of her friends' social lives, skipping parties to play online chess under a pseudonym with strangers around the world. There, she isn't just 'the girl with crutches'.
Ronan is the new kid: good looking, smart, a bad boy plagued by guilt over what happened to his brother Ciaran. Chesslife is his escape. Juliet thinks Ronan thinks someone like Ronan could never be interested in someone like her - and she wouldn't want him to be anyway - he always acts like he's cooler than everyone else. Little do they know they've already discovered each other online, and have more in common than they think . . .
From Spring 2024, Jenny has another new teen book out, The Boy Next Door, also available below!
The Flavor Equation, Nik Sharma (October 2020)
£26.00
Named one of the Best Fall Cookbooks 2020 by Eater, Epicurious, and Chowhound.
Aroma, texture, sound, emotion―these are just a few of the elements that play into our perceptions of flavor.
Flavor Equation demonstrates how to convert approachable spices, herbs, and commonplace pantry items into tasty, simple dishes.
In this groundbreaking book, Nik Sharma, scientist, food blogger, and author of the buzz-generating cookbook Season, guides home cooks on an exploration of flavour in more than 100 recipes.
• Provides inspiration and knowledge to both home cooks and seasoned chefs
• An in-depth exploration into the science of taste
• Features Nik Sharma's evocative, trademark photography style
The Flavor Equation is an accessible guide to elevating elemental ingredients to make delicious dishes that hit all the right notes, every time.
Recipes include Brightness: Lemon-Lime Mintade, Saltiness: Roasted Tomato and Tamarind Soup, Sweetness: Honey Turmeric Chicken Kebabs with Pineapple, Savoriness: Blistered Shishito Peppers with Bonito Flakes, and Richness: Coconut Milk Cake.
The Flexible Pescatarian, Jo Pratt ( hardback )
£22.00
Whether you're looking to eat less meat, a lover of seafood, or even a dedicated pescatarian, you'll find something for you in this book filled with delicious and practical recipes for every lifestyle from celebrated chef Jo Pratt.
Choose between cooking each recipe as a fish dish, or get creative with some veggie substitutes. From a curried Buddha bowl to Cornish crab pasties, aromatic cured salmon with pea blinis to a wholesome and hearty smoky mac `n' cheese, the range of international recipes spans the globe and are all simple, well-balanced and packed with flavour.
As well as easy approaches on how to cook your fish and hacks for vegetarian options, this original cookbook shows you how to prepare the perfect fish fillet and handle whole fish and seafood. With a wide variety of health benefits, there has never been a better time to join the growing pescatarian movement and expand your culinary skills.
The Floofs Reach for the Stars, by Penelope O'Neill (paperback April 2025)
£9.99
Meet The Floofs. A Floof is a Floof. Not a rabbit, not a rat, not even a mouse.
Join them as they go on three adventures full of fun, new friends and just a little bit of magic. Brought to life in vivid graphic novel form, The Floofs are there to help each other solve problems of the cosmic kind. From figuring out why the stars in the night sky are disappearing and helping someone who finds themselves far from home, to joining a friend on their quest to find a quiet place to read their book.
Whether the adventure is out of this world or a little bit closer to home, they are always fun when you have your friends to help you along the way. With three short stories inside, children will enjoy dipping in and out of this world without having to commit to a longer read. As a bonus, there are three shorter one-page comic strips between each story that contain little life lessons or ‘floofisms’.
Perfect for your newly independent or reluctant reader, they will love escaping into this immersive world, embarking on surreal adventures with the sweet, funny Floofs, all while learning a few life lessons along the way.
The Flow : Rivers, Water and Wildness - by Amy-Jane Beer (Author)
£10.99
WINNER OF THE 2023 WAINWRIGHT PRIZE FOR NATURE WRITING
A visit to the rapid where she lost a cherished friend unexpectedly reignites Amy-Jane Beer's love of rivers setting her on a journey of natural, cultural and emotional discovery. On New Year's Day 2012, Amy-Jane Beer's beloved friend Kate set out with a group of others to kayak the River Rawthey in Cumbria.
Kate never came home, and her death left her devoted family and friends bereft and unmoored. Returning to visit the Rawthey years later, Amy realises how much she misses the connection to the natural world she always felt when on or close to rivers, and so begins a new phase of exploration. The Flow is a book about water, and, like water, it meanders, cascades and percolates through many lives, landscapes and stories.
From West Country torrents to Levels and Fens, rocky Welsh canyons, the salmon highways of Scotland and the chalk rivers of the Yorkshire Wolds, Amy-Jane follows springs, streams and rivers to explore tributary themes of wildness and wonder, loss and healing, mythology and history, cyclicity and transformation.
The Forest Yet To Come, Sam Thompson (paperback October 2024)
£9.99
Book 3 in Sam’s Wolfstongue Saga
( Wolfstongue and The Fox’s Tower )
Faolan and Sally have no memory of their lives before they arrived at the Land ten years ago. In this self-sufficient community, good fortune comes from mysterious beings known as the shapes, and no one is to venture into the Forest; a dangerous place full of fearsome wolves. When a strange gentleman named Reynard emerges from the Forest, he quickly befriends Faolan and Sally.
But the community are both suspicious and enthralled by his storytelling. In the wake of a terrible attack, the shapes seem to abandon their people. Faolan flees into the Forest seeking the wolves that have always fascinated him, and Reynard and Sally are banished.
Their pursuit of Faolan leads them to uncover many mysteries. As they are drawn further in, the community they once knew begins to fracture. There is no keeping the Forest out any longer, and nothing will ever be the same again.
The Forty Rules of Love, Elif Shafak ( paperback May 2023)
£8.99
The Forty Rules of Love is part of our Penguin Essentials series which spotlights the very best of our modern classics*One of the BBC's '100 Novels That Shaped the World'*"Every true love and friendship is a story of unexpected transformation. If we are the same person before and after we loved, that means we haven't loved enough..."Ella Rubinstein has a husband, three teenage children, and a pleasant home. Everything that should make her confident and fulfilled.Yet there is an emptiness at the heart of Ella's life - an emptiness once filled by love. So when Ella reads a manuscript about the thirteenth-century Sufi poet Rumi and Shams of Tabriz, and his forty rules of life and love, her world is turned upside down. She embarks on a journey to meet the mysterious author of this work.
It is a quest infused with Sufi mysticism and verse, taking Ella and us into an exotic world where faith and love are heartbreakingly explored. . .
'The past and present fit together beautifully in a passionate defence of passion itself' The Times'
The Fraud, Zadie Smith ( paperback June 2024)
£9.99
Zadie Smith returns with her first historical novel.Kilburn, 1873. The 'Tichborne Trial' has captivated the widowed Scottish housekeeper Mrs Eliza Touchet and all of England. Readers are at odds over whether the defendant is who he claims to be - or an imposter.
Mrs Touchet is a woman of many interests: literature, justice, abolitionism, class, her novelist cousin and his wives, this life and the next. But she is also sceptical. She suspects England of being a land of facades, in which nothing is quite what it seems.
Andrew Bogle meanwhile finds himself the star witness, his future depending on telling the right story. Growing up enslaved on the Hope Plantation, Jamaica, he knows every lump of sugar comes at a human cost. That the rich deceive the poor.
And that people are more easily manipulated than they realise. Based on real historical events, The Fraud is a dazzling novel about how in a world of hypocrisy and self-deception, deciding what's true can prove a complicated task. 'As always it is a pleasure to be in Zadie Smith's mind, which, as time goes on, is becoming contiguous with London itself.
The French Art of Not Trying Too Hard, Ollivier Pourriol ( paperback Jan 2022)
£9.99
Sick of striving? Giving up on grit? Had enough of hustle culture? Daunted by the 10,000-hour rule? Relax: As the French know, it's the best way to be better at everything. In the realm of love, what could be less seductive than someone who's trying to seduce you? Seduction is the art of succeeding without trying, and that's a lesson the French have mastered. We can see it in their laissez-faire parenting, chic style, haute cuisine, and enviable home cooking: they barely seem to be trying, yet the results are world-famous, thanks to a certain je ne sais quoi that is the key to a more creative, fulfilling, and productive life.For fans of both Mark Manson's The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck and Alain de Botton's How Proust Can Change Your Life, philosopher Ollivier Pourriol's book draws on the examples of such French legends as Descartes, Stendhal, Rodin, Cyrano de Bergerac and Francoise Sagan to show how to be efficient a la francaise, and how to effortlessly reap the rewards.
The Frost Goblin, Abi Elphinstone ( hardback October 2022)
£14.99
The deepest frost has the power to rekindle hope in anyone who's lost it..." In Bertie Crash-Wallop's noisy family, it can sometimes feel like there is no room for a quiet boy like him. But when Bertie meets a family of goblins on the night of the deepest frost, is it possible he might make some magic and discover his own place in the world?Join Bertie and the Frost Goblins on an exciting adventure in this beautifully moving story by the bestselling author of Sky Song and The Unmapped Chronicles, Abi Elphinstone, and renowned illustrator Fiona Woodcock. The perfect book for frosty winter's nights and cosy Christmas mornings.Also by Abi Elphinstone & Fiona Woodcock:The Snow Dragon Praise for The Snow Dragon: 'stunning, dreamlike illustrations, whisking the reader into a sparkling, icy landscape where you'll believe almost anything is possible'
The Furies, John Connolly (paperback March 2023)
£8.99
The Furies: mythological snake-haired goddesses of vengeance, pursuers of those who have committed unavenged crimes. Now, private investigator Charlie Parker is drawn into a world of modern furies in two linked stories.
In The Sisters Strange, the return of the criminal Raum Buker to Portland, Maine brings with it chaos and murder, as an act of theft threatens not only to tear apart his own existence but also that of Raum's former lovers, the enigmatic sisters Dolors and Ambar Strange.
And in The Furies Parker finds himself fighting to protect two more women as the city of Portland shuts down in the face of a global pandemic, but it may be that his clients are more capable of taking care of themselves than anyone could have imagined . .
From the number one Sunday Times and multi-million-copy bestselling author John Connolly comes the most compelling and unsettling Charlie Parker novel yet. 'Masterly genre-splicing thrillers .
The Future of Geography, Tim Marshall ( available PB or HB)
£20.00
The Future of Geography : How Power and Politics in Space Will Change Our World
This isn't science fiction. It's astropolitics. We're entering a new space race - and it could revolutionise life on Earth.
Space: the new frontier, a wild and lawless place. It is already central to communication, economics, military strategy and international relations on Earth. Now, it is the latest arena for human exploration, exploitation - and, possibly, conquest.
We're heading up and out, and we're taking our power struggles with us. China, the USA and Russia are leading the way. From physical territory and resources to satellites, weaponry and strategic choke points, geopolitics is as important in the skies above us as it is down below.
If you've ever wondered if humans are going back to the Moon, who will benefit from exploration or what space wars might look like, the answers are here. With all the insight and wit that have made Tim Marshall the UK's most popular writer on geopolitics, this gripping book shows how we got here and where we're going, covering great-power rivalry; technology; commerce; combat in space; and what it means for all of us down here on Earth. This is essential reading on power, politics and the future of humanity.
Praise for The Power of Geography:'Fascinating . . .
I can't imagine reading a better book this year.'Daily Mirror'Another outstanding guide to the modern world. Marshall is a master at explaining what you need to know and why.' Peter Frankopan
The Future, Naomi Alderman ( paperback August 2024)
£20.00
A page-turner of a book.
'A little Atwood, a little Gibson, all Alderman, it's brilliant and I loved it' LAUREN BEUKES
The new novel from the Women's Prize-winning, bestselling author of The Power, The Future is a white-knuckle tour de force and dazzling exploration of the world we have made and where we are going. The Future is where the money is.
The Future is a few billionaires leading the world to destruction. The Future is a handful of friends hatching a daring plan. The Future is the greatest heist ever? Or the cataclysmic end of civilisation...
The Future is here. 'A rollicking, fun-packed thriller with juicy stakes, constantly escalating twists, and a cast of characters who feel like they already exist somewhere out there in our fragile, free-wheeling present' Alastair Reynolds, author of Eversion
The Garden Against Time, Olivia Laing (April 2025)
£20.00
.’In 2020, Olivia Laing began to restore a walled garden in Suffolk, an overgrown Eden of unusual plants. The work drew her into an exhilarating investigation of paradise and its long association with gardens.
Moving between real and imagined gardens, from Milton’s Paradise Lost to John Clare’s enclosure elegies, from a wartime sanctuary in Italy to a grotesque aristocratic pleasure ground funded by slavery, Laing interrogates the sometimes shocking cost of making paradise on earth. But the story of the garden doesn’t always enact larger patterns of privilege and exclusion. It’s also a place of rebel outposts and communal dreams.
What a wonderful book this is. I loved the enchanting and beautifully written story but also the fascinating and thoughtful excursions along the way.' – Nigel Slater‘
Cover art Image of paperback is similar to this featured hardback
The Ghost Limb, Claire Mitchell ( November 2022, paperback)
£15.00
Where did the spirit of 1798 go?
Did northern Protestants forget their history?
Who are the keepers of the flame?
In The Ghost Limb a group of northern Protestants retrace the steps of the United Irishmen, who worked for the unity of Protestant, Catholic and Dissenter over two hundred years ago. In a quest to reconnect with this lost heritage, they walk and talk their way through the landscapes of County Down and Antrim. They go to political meetings, take Irish language classes, visit graveyards, pubs, churches and protests. They commune with radical ghosts and personal ancestors. And they chalk messages on walls.
As they search for the spirit of 1798, they bring a new politics alive in the present. They begin to imagine a different future.
The book pulls together history, politics and personal stories, with a little magical thinking, to bring alternative Protestant identities back into the light.
The Ghosts of Rome, Joseph O’Connor ( hardback Jan 2025)
£20.00
February 1944. Six months since Nazi forces occupied Rome. Inside the beleaguered city, the Contessa Giovanna Landini is a member of the band of Escape Line activists known as ‘The Choir’.
Their mission is to smuggle refugees to safety and help Allied soldiers, all under the nose of Gestapo boss Paul Hauptmann. During a ferocious morning air raid a mysterious parachutist lands in Rome and disappears into the backstreets. Is he an ally or an imposter? His fate will come to put the whole Escape Line at risk.
Meanwhile, Hauptmann’s attention has landed on the Contessa. As his fascination grows, she is pulled into a dangerous game with him – one where the consequences could be lethal. 'As thrilling, beautiful and sensational a novel as you'll read this year or any year' Donal Ryan,, Sunday Times
The Gift of A Radio, Justin Webb ( paperback April 2023)
£10.99
Moving and frank ... A story of a childhood defined by loneliness, the absence of a father and the grim experience of a Quaker boarding school.
It is also one of the most perceptive accounts of Britain in the 1970s.' Misha Glenny
Justin Webb's childhood was far from ordinary. Between his mother's un-diagnosed psychological problems, and his step-father's untreated ones, life at home was dysfunctional at best.
But with gun-wielding school masters and sub-standard living conditions, Quaker boarding school wasn't much better. And the backdrop to this coming of age story? Britain in the 1970s. Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin and Free.
Strikes, inflation and IRA bombings. A time in which attitudes towards mental illness, parenting and masculinity were worlds apart from the attitudes we have today. A society that believed itself to be close to the edge of breakdown.
Candid, unsparing and darkly funny, Justin Webb's memoir is a portrait of personal and national dysfunction. So was it the brutal experiences of his upbringing, or an innate ambition and drive that somehow survived them, that shaped the urbane and successful radio presenter we know and love now?
The Gifts of Reading, edited by Robert Macfarlane ( paperback)
£9.99
With contributions by: William Boyd, Candice Carty-Williams, Imtiaz Dharker, Roddy Doyle, Pico Iyer, Robert Macfarlane, Andy Miller, Jackie Morris, Jan Morris, Sisonke Msimang, Dina Nayeri, Chigozie Obioma, Michael Ondaatje, David Pilling, Max Porter, Philip Pullman, Alice Pung, Jancis Robinson, S.F.Said, Madeleine Thien, Salley Vickers, John Wood and Markus Zusak
'You will see books taking flight in flocks, migrating around the world, landing in people's hearts and changing them for a day or a year or a lifetime. 'You will see books sparking wonder or anger; throwing open windows into other languages, other cultures, other minds; causing people to fall in love or to fight for what is right. 'And more than anything, over and over again, you will see books and words being given, received and read - and in turn prompting further generosity.'
Published to coincide with the 20th anniversary of global literacy non-profit, Room to Read, The Gifts of Reading forms inspiring, unforgettable, irresistible proof of the power and necessity of books and reading.
The Ginger Pig Christmas Cookbook ( Oct 23)
£25.00
From the award-winning Ginger Pig butchers, here are all the recipes you need for the most important meal of the year, plus all the other get-togethers of the festive season. In addition to delicious dishes there's a wealth of helpful advice, from how to stuff a bird to the art of building a festive cheese board. 'Much though we love it, Christmas day is not just about poultry, so although this book has recipes for turkey and goose, we've included plenty of alternatives, like stuffed porchetta, rib of beef or celeriac steaks.
Because families and friends get together before and after the big day, we have included ideas for breakfasts, lunches, dinners, canapes and puddings for the days between Christmas and the New Year, together with advice on alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. For New Year's Eve itself, choose between our recipes for a formal dinner or a more relaxed get-together.' Tim Wilson, Founder of Ginger Pig
Packed with recipes for every possible Christmas, whether you're feeding a crowd or cooking for just a few, this is the ultimate culinary guide for a stress-free, luxurious Christmas.
The Giraffe And Pelly and Me, Roald Dahl ( Colour Edition large PB)
£10.99
This is a great transition book from picture book to chapter books, able to be read aloud but still with enough imagery to make it fun for both reader and listener. The text in this edition of The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me was updated in 2022 for young independent readers.
The Pelican spread his huge white wings and flew down on to the road beside me. 'Hop in,' he said, opening his enormous beak . .
."MEET BILLY. A kid with a dream. He wants to turn an old wooden house into an incredible sweetshop full of treats!AND MEET THE LADDERLESS WINDOW-CLEANING COMPANY: Monkey, Pelican (Pelly) and Giraffe (who needs ladders when you've got a giraffe?!).
They have just landed a big break cleaning all six hundred and seventy-seven windows of the mansion owned by the richest man in all of England! All they need now is a little help from Billy. Can these unlikely new friends make Billy's wildest dreams come true and take him on an adventure he'll never forget.
The Girl and the Dinosaur, Hollie Hughes ( picture book, August 2020)
£7.99
A lovely gentle story, with evocative illustrations, destined to be read for years to come. The wishing stars burn bright tonight, the air is thick with dreams, and a deeply sleeping dinosaur is waking up, it seems . .In a town by the seaside, Marianne is often seen foraging on the beach. But she isn't playing with children her own age.
Instead Marianne is alone, and digging for dinosaur bones to build a special sort of companion. Then, one night, she goes to sleep wishing with all her heart that her dinosaur might come to life . .
The Girl Who Died, Ragnar Jonasson (paperback, Sept 2021)
£9.99
'Is this the best crime writer in the world today?' The Times'
'TEACHER WANTED AT THE EDGE OF THE WORLD . . .'After the loss of her father, Una sees a chance to escape Reykjavik to tutor two girls in the tiny village of Skalar - population just ten - on Iceland's storm-battered north coast.
But city life hasn't prepared her for the unforgiving weather nor inhospitable village life. Worse, the creaky old house where she lives is playing on her already fragile mind when she's convinced she hears the ghostly sound of singing. Then, at midwinter, a young girl is found dead.
And one of the villagers must have blood on their hands . . .
The Girl Who Loves Bugs, Lily Murray ( paperback August 2023)
£7.99
The Girl Who Loves Bugs is a hilarious and heart-warming story empowering young girls to always be curious. Evie loves bugs. And she's fed up of having to keep up with her mums and brother on walks when she'd rather be peering under logs and examining snails.So, one day, she decides to bring the bugs inside, so she can be with them all the time. The problem is, the family is coming to stay, even fearsome Great Gran, who doesn't stand for any nonsense. And on the day of their arrival, Evie wakes up to find her bugs have escaped .
. . all over the house! What is Great Gran going to say?A beautiful, bug-filled story about following your dreams, and the unconditional love of family.
With ideas and tips at the back for looking after some of your own bugs (outside!).
The Girl with All the Gifts, M.R. Carey ( paperback)
£9.99
Every morning, Melanie waits in her cell to be collected for class. When they come for her, Sergeant Parks keeps his gun pointing at her while two of his people strap her into the wheelchair. She thinks they don't like her.
She jokes that she won't bite. But they don't laugh. Melanie is a very special girl.
Emotionally charged and gripping from beginning to end, THE GIRL WITH ALL THE GIFTS is the most powerful and affecting thriller you will read this year. 'If you only read one novel this year, make sure it's this one' Martina Cole'As fresh as it is terrifying' Joss Whedon'A great read that takes hold of you and doesn´t let go' - John Ajvide Lindqvistv
The Glass House, Rachel Donohue ( large paperback Feb 2025)
£14.99
The window to the past can never be closed... 1963: At the stark and isolated modernist mansion of controversial political philosopher Richard Acklehurst, the glittering annual New Year's Eve party has not gone quite as planned. Considered a genius by some, and something far darker by others, by the end of the evening Acklehurst will be dead in mysterious circumstances, casting a long shadow over the lives of his teenage daughters, Aisling and Stella.
1999: Richard Acklehurst's remains are defiled in the country graveyard where they have lain undisturbed for over thirty years, forcing his daughters to return to their childhood home where they must finally confront the complex and dark dynamic at the heart of their family.
Moving from the West of Ireland to Dublin, London, Florence and back, The Glass House is a captivating and compelling tale of two sisters and their secrets, of love, regret and vengeance. 'Gorgeously atmospheric and darkly brooding' CAROLE HAILEY
The Glass Palace, Amitav Ghosh ( paperback, first written 2000 )
£10.99
Rajkumar is only another boy, helping on a market stall in the dusty square outside the royal palace, when the British force the Burmese King, Queen and all the Court into exile.
He is rescued by the far-seeing Chinese merchant, and with him builds up a logging business in upper Burma. But haunted by his vision of the Royal Family, he journeys to the obscure town in India where they have been exiled. The story follows the fortunes – rubber estates in Malaya, businesses in Singapore, estates in Burma – which Rajkumar, with his Chinese, British and Burmese relations, friends and associates, builds up – from 1870 through the Second World War to the scattering of the extended family to New York and Thailand, London and Hong Kong in the post-war years.
The Glassmaker, Tracy Chevalier ( hardback 12 September)
£20.00
Spellbinding…. Chevalier at her fabulous best.
A rich, vivid and gently enchanting novel' ELIF SHAFAK
Venice, 1486. Across the lagoon lies Murano. Time flows differently here – like the glass the island’s maestros spend their lives learning to handle. Women are not meant to work with glass, but Orsola Rosso flouts convention to save her family from ruin. She works in secret, knowing her creations must be perfect to be accepted by men. But perfection may take a lifetime.
Skipping like a stone through the centuries, we follow Orsola as she hones her craft through war and plague, tragedy and triumph, love and loss. The beads she creates will adorn the necks of empresses and courtesans from Paris to Vienna – but will she ever earn the respect of those closest to her? Tracy Chevalier is a master of her own craft, and The Glassmaker is vivid, inventive, spellbinding: a virtuoso portrait of a woman, a family and a city that are as everlasting as their glass.
The Glassmaker, Tracy Chevalier ( paperback May 2025)
£20.00
Venice, 1486. Across the lagoon lies Murano.
Time flows differently here – like the glass the island’s maestros spend their lives learning to handle. Women are not meant to work with glass, but Orsola Rosso flouts convention to save her family from ruin. She works in secret, knowing her creations must be perfect to be accepted by men.
But perfection may take a lifetime. Skipping like a stone through the centuries, we follow Orsola as she hones her craft through war and plague, tragedy and triumph, love and loss. The beads she creates will adorn the necks of empresses and courtesans from Paris to Vienna – but will she ever earn the respect of those closest to her? Tracy Chevalier is a master of her own craft, and The Glassmaker is vivid, inventive, spellbinding: a virtuoso portrait of a woman, a family and a city that are as everlasting as their glass.
The Glutton, AF Blakemore (paperback July 2024)
£9.99
One man with an insatiable hunger: a novel of desire and destruction in Revolutionary France, based on a true story, from the Desmond Elliott Prize-winning author of The Manningtree Witches. Sister Perpetue is not to move. She is not to fall asleep.She is to sit, keeping guard over the patient's room. She has heard the stories of his hunger, which defy belief: that he has eaten all manner of creatures and objects. A child even, if the rumours are to be believed.
But it is hard to believe that this slender, frail man is the one they once called The Great Tarare, The Glutton of Lyon. Before, he was just Tarare. Well-meaning and hopelessly curious, born into a world of brawling and sweet cider, to a bereaved mother and a life of slender means.
The 18th Century is drawing to a close, unrest grips the heart of France and life in the village is soon shaken. When a sudden act of violence sees Tarare cast out and left for dead, his ferocious appetite is ignited, and it's not long before his extraordinary abilities to eat make him a marvel throughout the land.
