First Light

Erica Wagner

For more than 50 years, Alan Garner has enraptured generations of readers with works like The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, The Owl Service, Red Shift, and The Stone Book Quartet. Described by Philip Pullman as 'the most important British writer of fantasy since Tolkien', Alan Garner has inspired readers and writers alike. Now, in celebration of his 80th birthday, comes First Light. A collaborati... read more

Left Field

David Wilson

David Wilson has been a gaucho, a teacher, an artist's agent, a documentary filmmaker and playwright, but above all, he has been a lifelong political activist. In the 60s he marched to Aldermaston. In the 70s he protested against the Vietnam War and apartheid. In the 80s, with the Lesbian and Gay Liberation Front, he delivered food to striking miners. More recently, he has been active in the a... read more

98% Pure Potato

John Griffiths, Tracey Follows

The Andrex Puppy. The Smash Martians. The Oxo Family and The Honey Monster.From the late 1960s, advertising agency account planners helped to develop long-running advertising campaigns that went on to build well-known household brands that we still use today. It was a golden era of advertising, partly because the campaigns seemed to connect with consumers so well. But who were the account plan... read more

Why Did the Policeman Cross the Road?

Stevyn Colgan

Can lollipops reduce anti-social behaviour? Or wizards halt street gambling? Do fake bus stops protect pensioners? Will organising a dog show stop young people killing each other? Stevyn Colgan believes that the answer to all of those questions is 'Yes'. Packed with fascinating anecdotes and important questions, this astonishing book reveals the innovative and imaginative ways Colgan tried to ... read more

Ladders to Heaven

Mike Shanahan

They are trees of life and trees of knowledge. They are wish-fulfillers ... rainforest royalty ... more precious than gold. They are the fig trees, and they have affected humanity in profound but little-known ways. Ladders to Heaven tells their amazing story.Fig trees fed our pre-human ancestors, influenced diverse cultures and played key roles in the dawn of civilisation. They feature in ever... read more

The Good Immigrant

Nikesh Shukla

How does it feel to be constantly regarded as a potential threat, strip-searched at every airport? Or be told that, as an actress, the part you’re most fitted to play is ‘wife of a terrorist’? How does it feel to have words from your native language misused, misappropriated and used aggressively towards you? How does it feel to hear a child of colour say in a classroom that stories can only be... read more

On the Menu

Nicholas Lander

Featuring interviews with world-renowned chefs Heston Blumenthal (The Fat Duck), Massimo Bottura (Osteria Francescana), René Redzepi (Noma), Michel Roux Jr (Le Gavroche), April Bloomfield (The Spotted Pig), Daniel Boulud (Bar Boulud), Ruth Rogers (The River Café) and many more. In this book they reveal how they decide what food to serve and what inspires them to write their menus.In this much-... read more

Cleverlands

Lucy Crehan

Secondary school teacher and education consultant Lucy Crehan was frustrated with ever-changing government policies on education; dissatisfied with a system that prioritised test scores over the promotion of creative thinking; and disheartened that the interests of children had become irrelevant. And yet, politicians and administrators consistently told her that this was how the world’s ‘top p... read more

Seas of Snow

Kerensa Jennings

In 1950s England, six-year-old Gracie Scott lives with her Mam and next door to her best friend Billy; she has never known her Da. When her Uncle Joe moves in, his physical abuse of Gracie’s mother starts almost immediately. But when his attentions wander to Gracie, an even more sinister pattern of behaviour begins. As Gracie grows older she finds solace and liberation in books, poetry and her... read more

Different Class

Dermot Kavanagh

The Secret History of Mac Gaming

Richard Moss

Tales from the Walled Garden

Jean Burgess

Welcome to the Walled Garden This story is about a group of friends, a Walled Garden, and sharing the ups and downs and ins and outs of growing fruit, veg and flowers. It goes without saying (but here I am, saying it anyway), that we are all different – and thank goodness for that. Our story is based on fact, but there are one or two extra characters who aren’t actually with us, and there are ... read more

Escape Everything!: Escape from work. Escape from consumerism. Escape from despair.

Robert Wringham

We are all trapped by modern life. Trapped! Trapped by work, consumerism, stress, debt, isolationism and general unhappiness.We will each spend an average of 87,000 hours at work before we die. We will spend another 5,000 hours getting to and from work and countless more preparing for work. Worrying about work. Recovering from work.The majority of us hate our jobs. But without work, we can't b... read more

Dead Writers in Rehab

Paul Bassett Davies

When literary reprobate Foster James wakes up in a strange country house, he assumes he's been consigned to rehab (yet again) by his dwindling band of friends and growing collection of ex-wives. But he soon realises there's something a bit different about this place after he gets punched in the face by Ernest Hemingway.Is Foster dead? Has his less-than-saintly existence finally caught up with ... read more

7 Years of Camera Shake

David Plummer

As humans, we are drawn to predators like no other group of animals. They are the epitome of form and function, and have a level of perfection that we revere.In 2009, wildlife expert, conservationist and photographer David Plummer was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Rather than let it defeat him, he was galvanised to grab life by the horns and achieve the perfect wildlife shot. Over the ne... read more

Dazzling the Gods

Tom Vowler

Why Do Birds Suddenly Disappear? 200 birds, 12 months, 1 lapsed birdwatcher

Lev Parikian

At twelve years old, Lev Parikian was an avid birdwatcher. He was also a fraud, a liar and a cheat. Those lists of birds seen and ticked off? Lies. One hundred and thirty species? More like sixty.Then, when he turned fifty, he decided to right his childhood wrongs. He would go birdwatching again. He would not lie. He would aim to see two hundred species of British bird in a year.Why Do Birds S... read more

Soupy Twists! The Full Official Story of the Sophisticated Silliness of Fry and Laurie

Jem Roberts