Joseph Delaney used to be an English teacher, before becoming the best-selling author of the Spook's series, which has been published in 30 countries and sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide. The first book, The Spook's Apprentice, was adapted into a major motion picture starring Jeff Bridges and Julianne Moore.

Joseph Delaney

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Jeremy Hardy

When Jeremy Hardy decided to explore his ancestry it was, in part, to get to the bottom of his grandmother Rebecca's dubious claims that the family descended from a certain 17th-century architect and that, more recently, Jeremy's great-grandfather was a Royal bodyguard. Other legends ranged from the great aunt who ran illegal hooch during Prohibition to the wronged Victorian servant girl who bore an illegitimate Hardy, not forgetting the family's rightful claim to a large country estate. 
 
Wild stories aside, Jeremy sets out to such diverse locations as the Croydon one-way system and the hostile waters around Malta in order to find traces of recognisable family traits and a sense of how he came to be. With wry humour and a keen eye for the absurd and the frustrating, Jeremy takes us on a by turns funny and moving journey into the world of family ancestry. 
 
My Family and Other Strangers will be enjoyed by anyone who has tried to decipher the 1901 census records, or simply wishes they too had asked their grandparents more about their lives.

My Family and Other Strangers

Adventures in Family History

Josh Axelrad

'I was thrown out of my first casino in spring of 2000. In the years since then I've kept playing and kept winning, in wigs, under aliases, from behind fake glasses. I've been chased across casino floors; followed outdoors by crazed goons with drawn weapons; pursued in a car at high speeds; and placed wrongfully under arrest. Casinos continue to provide my entire income, along with free rooms, Champagne, and, most important, a mission in life. The heat, this business of getting thrown out, hasn't kept me away from the action at all; it's the very force that keeps me coming back.' 
 
Repeat Until Rich is the hotly awaited true adventure of how an average Joe in a dead-end spreadsheet job took to the road as a member of a blackjack card-counting gang taking millions of dollars from casinos across the US. 
 
Josh was an Ivy League graduate who grudgingly started a regular life before a chance meeting at a party changed his life forever. This is a brilliantly written memoir first and gambling book second - a universal tale of an everyday guy's unexpected exit into a mysterious and dangerous underworld from which there's no going back. It is a story about finding meaning in a crazed ongoing battle far from the dull and comfortable confines of the 9 to 5 world.

Repeat Until Rich

Shane Spall

Shane and Tim Spall are on the second leg of a very big adventure, taking their Dutch barge The Princess Matilda around the coast of Britain. 
 
From Matilda’s winter berth in Cardiff, Shane and Tim follow the Welsh coast, before ambitiously deciding to visit the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland. Along the way they cross Cardigan Bay in the company of a pod of dolphins, meet the king and queen of Piel Island, get lost in shipping lanes near Liverpool, successfully cross the notorious Irish Sea (twice!), accidentally sail through an army firing range, and experience the matchless beauty of Scotland’s Caledonian canal. Emerging into the North Sea at Inverness, they set a course down the east coast for London, back where their journey began. 
 
Tim and Shane aren’t the amateur sailors they once were, but things still don’t always go to plan. It’s not easy navigating our dangerous coastal waters, and crashing waves and strong tides can be terrifying. But it’s exhilarating too, and the realisation of a dream they have had for a very long time. 
 
It’s a slow journey, but a satisfying one, visiting fishing villages and ports, and exploring Britain’s windswept coast. Along the way they meet brave lifeboat crews, lockkeepers, fishermen and a whole host of people who make their living or their leisure on the water. The Princess Matilda Comes Home is a funny and warm hearted story about sharing a great adventure with someone you love.

The Princess Matilda Comes Home

Nick Barratt

The market for family history has never been stronger. The phenomenally successful television series Who Do You Think You Are? made many people consider the subject for the first time. Nick Barratt, the man behind the interactive strand of the series, now brings his expertise to this practical, lively and well-researched book, which will open the door to the fascinating world of genealogy. Accessible and clearly presented, and underpinned by a wealth of knowledge and experience, this book gives you everything you need to know to get cracking. From how to get started (talking to relatives, gathering clues, assembling a family tree), through to accessing and understanding and understanding the main sources (certificates, censes, probate and family registers), to how to flesh out your family tree, including tracing immigrant and emigrant relatives, tracking down military ancestors and how to cope if you uncover family secrets. Throughout the book there are case histories and real-life examples to help and inspire every reader.

The Family Detective

Discover your family history and bring the past to life

Caroline Taggart

Take a journey down winding lanes and Roman roads in this witty and informative guide to the meanings behind the names of England's towns and villages. From Celtic farmers to Norman conquerors, right up to the Industrial Revolution, deciphering our place names reveals how generations of our ancestors lived, worked, travelled and worshipped, and how their influence has shaped our landscape. 
 
From the most ancient sacred sites to towns that take their names from stories of giants and knights, learn how Roman garrisons became our great cities, and discover how a meeting of the roads could become a thriving market town. Region by region, Caroline Taggart uncovers hidden meanings to reveal a patchwork of tall tales and ancient legends that collectively tells the story of how we made England.

The Book of English Place Names

How Our Towns and Villages Got Their Names

Stuart Maconie

Everyone talks about 'Middle England'. Sometimes they mean something bad, like a lynch mob of Daily Mail readers, and sometimes they mean something good, like a pint of ale in a sleepy Cotswold village in summer twilight. But just where and what is Middle England? Stuart Maconie didn't know either, so he packed his Thermos and sandwiches and set off to find out... 
 
Is Middle England about tradition and decency or closed minds and bigotry? Is it maypoles and evensong, or flooded market towns and binge drinkers in the park? And is Slough really as bad as Ricky Gervais and John Betjeman make out? From Shakespeare to JK Rowling, Vaughan Williams to Craig David, William Morris to B&amp;Q, Stuart Maconie leads the expedition, with plenty of stop-offs for tea and scones, to discover the truth.

Adventures on the High Teas

In Search of Middle England

Marian Hughes

No Cake, No Jam is the heart-warming true story of a little girl’s London childhood during the Blitz, and of how she rose above adversity through sheer guts and strength of character. 
 
Marian Hughes was born in the same year as her father committed suicide. She spent most of her early childhood with her elder sisters and brother in Spurgeon’s Orphanage in South London. There she learned to love extravagant hymns and to receive regular beatings. 
 
Suddenly, when Marian was ten, her mother appeared. All four children were swept up by their mother to live in a damp and filthy flat off Baker Street. There began a life of moonlight flits, camping and squats. Marian’s mother forgot to feed her children, and paid no attention to school or the bombing. Marian soon turned to begging and stealing to help the family get by. 
 
Marian’s brother and elder sisters left home as soon as they could, but Marian remained to support her deranged and frequently violent mother, evading Care and Protection Orders and often running away. Then the day finally came when Marian had to sign the papers to have her mother committed. From that moment, 14-year-old Marian had to find out if she was strong enough to live for herself ... 
 
Throughout all the twists and turns of her childhood, Marian never lost her spirit and never faltered in her loyalty. Full of vigour, truth, humour and curiosity, No Cake, No Jam is a passionate celebration of a life and love.

No Cake, No Jam

Hardship and happiness in wartime London

Mary Contini

Written by leading cookery author Mary Contini, this delightful narrative is in the bestselling tradition of Anthony Bourdain and Annie Hawes. It tells the tale of the Di Ciacca family, tracing their journey from the barren Abruzzi mountains to the chilly streets of post-war Edinburgh. Addressing her daughter Francesca as she embarks on independent life, this is a compelling, often moving, family history in which Contini describes her ancestors' loves and lives in their adopted homeland where traditions were kept alive around the dinner table. With characters as colourful as in any novel, this is a book that will appeal to anyone who loves Italian food and wishes to share in a sense of family. It adds up to one of the most original books for food lovers in recent years, blending great narrative with heartwarming recipes and recollections.

Dear Francesca

An Italian Journey of Recipes Recounted with Love

Sid Waddell

Bellies and Bullseyes is simply the greatest account there will ever be about the sport of darts - as told by one of its most legendary characters - Sid Waddell. It mixes Sid's own personal journey from the coalfields of the North East with the entire history of the sport. What is revealed is a hilarious yet epic Darts Babylon, covering every significant event and every character to walk the oche from Eric 'The Crafty Cockney' Bristow to Phil 'The Power' Taylor. 
 
In words as ripe as his commentaries, Sid brings an authentic whiff of fags, hard drink, hot tungsten and moist polyester to the whole cabaret. Sid has been friend and confidante to most of darts' stars over the years as well as being instrumental in the game's progress himself. Nobody is equipped to tell the story quite like he is. 
 
From the early days of hustling in bars and the 1960s money-race pub competitions that spawned the likes of John Lowe and Leighton Rees, to ITV's brilliantly daft The Indoor League and the glory days of BBC's coverage; from the bling of Bobby George and the belly of Jocky Wilson to the awesome professionalism of Phil Taylor; from smoky Northern working men's clubs to the Houses of Parliament; this is the complete, incredible story of darts.

Bellies and Bullseyes

The Outrageous True Story of Darts

Nick Offerman

"Want to have some fun? Little Woodchucks is for every kid and 50-year-old woman who wants to make something cool with their hands." - Amy Poehler 
 
Many know Nick Offerman from his role as Ron Swanson in Parks and Recreation. But in addition to acting and comedy, woodworking is one of the great passions of Nick’s life. (The others are his wife, family, and friends, his dogs, music, cheese curds, the great outdoors, bacon and eggs, his bride, the Chicago Cubs, puzzles, Beef Wellington, the theatre, his canoe, his wife, Wilco, and single-malt Scotch whisky.) In Little Woodchucks, Nick and his team at the Offerman Woodshop open their doors to woodworkers of all ages, sharing their passion for their craft and showing you how to make a range of their most popular and accessible projects. From carved twig animals and box kites to tool boxes and simple hayloft benches, these twelve family-friendly projects are the perfect way to discover the joys of woodworking, and share the love of crafting with others. 
 
Written with Nick’s signature wry humour an charm, and with clear illustrated step-by-step instructions, Little Woodchucks is a quality piece of bookery from an American original.

Little Woodchucks

Offerman Workshop’s Guide to Tools and Tomfoolery

Helen Tse

Spanning almost a hundred years, this rich and evocative true story recounts the lives of three generations of remarkable Chinese women. Their extraordinary journey takes us from the brutal poverty of village life in mainland China, to newly prosperous 1930s Hong Kong and finally to the UK. Their lives were as dramatic as the times they lived through. 
 
A love of food and a talent for cooking pulled each generation through the most devastating of upheavals. Helen Tse's grandmother, Lily Kwok, was forced to work as an amah after the violent murder of her father. Crossing the ocean from Hong Kong in the 1950s, Lily honed her famous chicken curry recipe. Eventually she opened one of Manchester's earliest Chinese restaurants where her daughter, Mabel, worked from the tender age of nine. But gambling and the Triads were pervasive in the Chinese immigrant community, and they tragically lost the restaurant. It was up to Helen and her sisters, the third generation of these exceptional women, to re-establish their grandmother's dream. 
 
Sweet Mandarin shows how the most important inheritance is wisdom, and how recipes - passed down the female line - can be the most valuable heirloom.

Sweet Mandarin

The Courageous True Story of Three Generations of Chinese Women and their Journey from East to West

Helen Batten

‘Oh my goodness – another girl Mrs Swain!’ 
 Clara’s normal iron composure broke and she screamed, ‘No! That’s not the bloody deal!’ 
And that is how my nanna, Bertha Swain, entered the world. 
 
When Helen Batten’s marriage breaks down, she starts on a journey of discovery into her family’s past and the mysteries surrounding her enigmatic nanna’s early life. 
 
 What she unearths is a tale of five feisty red heads struggling to climb out of poverty and find love through two world wars. It’s a story full of surprises and scandal – a death in a workhouse, a son kept in a box, a shameful war record, a clandestine marriage and children taken far too soon. It’s as if there is a family curse. 
 
 But Helen also finds love, resilience and hope – crazy wagers, late night Charlestons and stolen kisses. As she unravels the story of Nanna and her scarlet sisters, Helen starts to break the spell of the past, and sees a way she might herself find love again.

The Scarlet Sisters

My nanna’s story of secrets and heartache on the banks of the River Thames

Ben Mackworth-Praed

The Book of Kells is the richest and most copiously illustrated book of in the Celto-Saxon style that still survives. However, despite its rarity and fame, there is little that is known about it. Reproducing over sixty of the wonderful images from the book itself, this guide describes the hidden meanings behind the illustrations and opens our eyes to the history behind them. Picking out the most interesting, beautiful and unique images from the 339 vellum leaves that comprise the book as a whole, it gives an illuminating insight into the manuscript and its creation. 
 
This book will appeal to everyone from the hundreds of thousands of people visiting the Book of Kells at Trinity College Dublin every year, to those interested in history, art, ancient artefacts or the gospels and anyone with a passion for beautiful objects.

The Book of Kells

Jennifer Craig

'What is your name?' she asks, staring at me. 
'Jennifer Ross.' 
'Jennifer Ross, Sister. Well, Nurse Ross, you are dressed in the uniform of a nurse from the Leeds General Infirmary. Such a uniform is not worn with a cardigan. Take it off at once.' 
'Yes Sister.' I can feel my face turn red. 
 
A trainee nurse in the 1950s had a lot to bear. In Jennifer Craig's enchanting memoir, we meet these warm-hearted yet naïve young girls as they get to grips with strict discipline, long hours and bodily fluids. But we also see the camaraderie that develops in evening study sessions, sneaked trips to the cinema and mischievous escapades with the young trainee doctors. 
 
The harsh conditions prove too much for some girls, but the opportunity to help her patients in their time of need is too much of a pull for Jenny. As she commits to her vocation and knuckles down to her exams, she is determined that when she reaches the heights of Ward Sister herself she will not become the frightening matron that struck fear into her student heart ... 
 
Rich in period detail, and told with a good dose of Yorkshire humour, Yes Sister, No Sister is a life-affirming true story of a life long past.

Yes Sister, No Sister

My Life as a Trainee Nurse in 1950s Yorkshire

Julian Stockwin

Lt Cdr Julian Stockwin shares his love and knowledge of the sea in this entertaining collection of maritime stories and little-known trivia. Featuring nautical facts and feats, including superstitions at sea, the history of animals on the waves - until 1975 when all animals were banned from Royal Navy ships - and how the inventor of the umbrella helped man the British Navy, it is packed with informative tales. Focusing on the glory days of tall ships he explores marine myths and unearths the truth behind commonly held beliefs about the sea, such as whether Lord Nelson's body was really pickled in rum to transport it back to England after his death at Trafalgar. Interspersed throughout are salty sayings showing the modern words and phrases that originate from the mariners of old - 'cut of his jib', 'high and dry', 'the coast is clear', 'first rate' and 'slush fund'. Accompanied by nostalgic black and white line drawings Stockwin's Maritime Miscellany is a charming giftbook guaranteed to appeal to the sailing enthusiast, but also amuse and inform even the staunchest landlubber.

Stockwin's Maritime Miscellany

A Ditty Bag of Wonders from the Golden Age of Sail

Mike Carter

A broken heart and a moment of drunken bravado inspires middle-aged, and typically rather cautious, journalist Mike Carter to take off on a life-changing six month motorcycle trip around Europe. Never mind that he hadn't been on two wheels since an inglorious three-month teenage chapter involving a Lambretta, four crashes and an 18-month ban for drink-driving, a plan had begun to loosely form... 
 
And so, having completed a six day residential motorcycle course and hastily re-mortgaged his flat, Mike sets off alone, resolving to go wherever the road takes him and enjoy the adventure of heading off into the unknown. He ends up travelling almost 20,000 miles and reaching the four extremes of Europe: the Arctic Circle in the north, the Mediterranean coast in the south, the Portuguese Atlantic to the west and the Iraqi border of Turkey in the east. 
 
But really it's a journey inwards, as, on the way, Mike finds his post-divorce scars starting to heal and attempts to discover what he, as a man in his forties who hasn't quite found his place in the world, should be doing. Self-deprecating, poetic and utterly engaging, his is a heroic journey taken for the rest of us too scared to leave our 9 to 5 office-bound existence.

Uneasy Rider

Travels Through a Mid-Life Crisis

The Fence

'The literary equivalent of a great session.' Felicity Cloake 
 
'A brilliant hymn to the holy sainted pub' Marina O'Loughlin 
 
Would Queen Victoria have been good value over a pint? Where can you find the most northerly pub in the UK? What is good pub etiquette and do you follow it? 
 
This isn’t just a book full of Britain’s best pubs, although rest assured, we have plenty of them. Rather, this is a book that is as much for the pub as about the pub – a collection of ale-sodden stories from every corner of the UK, from the country’s classiest pub urinals, to the Wetherspoons inside a service station just off the M40. 
 
With tales and trivia from Lanarkshire to the Lizard, this is a love letter to the great British pub, in all its faded and eccentric glory. 
 
Compiled by The Fence, contributors include Tom Parker Bowles, Charlotte Ivers, William Hanson, Jimmy Mcintosh, John Banville and Katy Hessel.

The Pub

Wit, wisdom & weirdness on Britain’s best-loved establishment

Whether you're on lockdown with your family, partner, or flatmates: Games for Bored Adults is packed full of gaming inspiration to liven up any dull situation. Why not play human Buckaroo with a sleeping stranger, take on the After Eight challenge, or laugh in the face of pulled muscles in the ultimate ‘Cereal Killer’ game? 
 
 Challenge your family, indulge your competitive streak and prove yourself the undisputed victor in a whole range of funny and imaginative games for every occasion.

Games for Bored Adults

Challenges. Competitions. Activities. Drinking.

Josie da Bank

Rob da Bank

Get wild. Get messy. 'Dad dance' like no one’s watching. Nourish your body and mind. Let go of the reins and the routines. Make memories and have some serious fun. 
 
From the co-founders of the award-winning family festival, Camp Bestival at Home is the perfect handbook for parents who want to bring the magical ethos of the festival home. 
 
Packed with activities, recipes and ideas to keep the whole family inspired all year round, why not get back to nature and stargaze. For kids with endless energy, you could organise a kitchen disco or put on a show. Go foraging, learn circus skills and face painting, or make festive decorations. And relax after all the activity with a family feast, plus some yoga for the grown-ups. 
 
Written and illustrated by Camp Bestival co-founders Josie and Rob da Bank, with contributions from celebrity friends and festival regulars Fatboy Slim, Sara Cox, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Fearne Cotton and Jo Whiley.

Camp Bestival at Home

Have a Family Festival Every Day

Paul Sinha

'That night, I'd survived my life flashing before me, with my dignity intact. 
Yes, this chaotic life has always been a gamble. 
... But what a gamble.' 
 
Paul Sinha is an award-winning comedian, a quizzing mastermind and a happily-married husband. But for much of his life none of these seemed remotely imaginable. 
 
As a boy, Paul struggled to find his place in a world where he didn't quite fit. Who was he? An over-achieving schoolkid with the world's knowledge at his fingertips? A traditional Bengali son, destined for a career in medicine that he never once craved? A young gay man yearning to breathe freely? Or was he yet another flawed human being on a self-destruct mission? 
 
Amid life's mayhem, it was frequently Paul's love of facts in which he found solace, whether funding his lifestyle through quiz machines or simply trying to show off to his mates. Stumbling serendipitously into both a career in stand-up and a clandestine network of competitive quizzers introduced him to a new sense of purpose, a new identity, and, eventually, new love... 
 
A hilarious and moving coming-of-age memoir of one man's search for fulfilment, One Sinha Lifetime is an unconventional odyssey through love, family, and the joy of general knowledge.

One Sinha Lifetime

Comedy, disaster and one man’s quest for happiness

Christopher Winn

Praise for the I Never Knew That Series 
 
'I never knew there was so much I never knew!' - GYLES BRANDRETH 
 
'Winn's touch is always light, and unfailingly interesting' - THE GUARDIAN 
 
Discover the incredible trivia and hidden stories of one of Britain's best loved destinations, Devon and Cornwall 
 
Did you know… 
 
… The world’s first lift was installed at the Tresavean Mine in Cornwall in 1842 
… The oldest working lighthouse in England can be found in Devon 
… The first transatlantic radio signals were sent from Cornwall 
 
With more than 700 miles of coastline, two national parks and a never-ending debate over the correct way to prepare a cream tea, Devon and Cornwall are two of the best loved counties in Britain. 
 
In the latest in his bestselling I Never Knew That trivia series, Christopher Winn goes beyond the famous landmarks to root out the hidden places, legends and human stories of Devon and Cornwall. 
 
Featuring amazing facts as well as illustrations by artist Mai Osawa, this entertaining guide is the perfect holiday accompaniment to Britain’s favourite destination.

I Never Knew That About Devon and Cornwall

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