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A A Gill

Andrew Swanston read law at Cambridge, but was inspired to write by his lifelong interest in early modern history. His Thomas Hill novels – The King’s Spy, The King’s Exile and The King’s Return – are set against the backdrops of the English Civil War, Cromwell’s Commonwealth and the early Restoration respectively. He is also the author of Waterloo: The Bravest Man and Beautiful Star and Other Stories. His first historical thriller set during the reign of Elizabeth I – Incendium (published in paperback as The Incendium Plot) – introduced readers to the academic, lawyer and intelligencer Dr Christopher Radcliff, whose adventures continue in Chaos. Andrew Swanston lives in Surrey.

A D Swanston

A E Langsford

A G Hopkins

A. J. BAIME is the New York Times best-selling author of The Arsenal of Democracy: FDR, Detroit, and an Epic Quest to Arm an America at War and Go Like Hell: Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans. Both books are in development for major motion pictures. Baime is a longtime regular contributor to the Wall Street Journal, and his articles have also appeared in the New York Times, Popular Science, and Men’s Journal. He lives in Granite Bay, California. Visit him at facebook.com/ajbaime and trumanbook.com.

A J Baime

A J Jacobs

A J P Taylor

Anthony James Pollard is a British medieval historian, specialising in the fifteenth century and in particular the Wars of the Roses. A leading authority in the field, he is profesor emeritus of Teesside University. His books include North-Eastern England during the Wars of the Roses, Richard III and the Princes in theTower, Imagining Robin Hood: the Late Medieval Stories in Historical Context and Warwick the kingmaker: Politics, Power and Fame.

A J Pollard

A J Rochester

A K Benjamin is a clinical neuropsychologist and the author of Let Me Not Be Mad: A Story of Unravelling Minds.

A K Benjamin

A. L. Berridge read English at Oxford, and taught for ten years before moving into television, where her production credits range from period drama and thrillers to long-running soaps. She has written two previous novels, Top Ten besteller Honour and the Sword and In the Name of the King. Into the Valley of Death is her third novel.

A L Berridge

Alison Gaylin's first job was as a reporter for a celebrity tabloid, which sparked a lifelong interest in writing about people committing despicable acts. More than a decade later, she wrote and published her Edgar-nominated first novel, HIDE YOUR EYES. 
 
She's since published nine more books, including the USA Today and international bestselling Brenna Spector suspense series, which has been nominated for the Edgar, Anthony and Thriller awards and won the Shamus award. 
 
She lives in upstate New York with her husband, daughter, cat and dog.

A L Gaylin

A Maxwell-Hyslop

A McArthur

A P Wavell

A.S. Webb is the Sunday Times bestselling author of Daughter of Chaos, the first instalment of The Dark Pantheon Trilogy. She is inspired by stories rooted in history and mythology, that push the boundaries of imagination and urge us to reflect on what it means to be human.

A S Webb

A. A. Dhand is the author of six previous novels, and has been shortlisted for the CWA Steel Dagger Award. His DI Harry Virdee novels are currently being adapted for TV by the BBC. He was raised in Bradford and spent his youth observing the city from behind the counter of a small convenience store. After qualifying as a pharmacist, he worked in London and travelled extensively before returning to Bradford to start his own business and begin writing. The history, diversity and darkness of the city have inspired all his novels. For more information about A. A. Dhand and his books, follow him on X @aadhand, and on Instagram @aa_dhand.

A. A. Dhand

A. A. Gill

A. A. Milne

A. Anatoli

A. B. Poranek grew up sharing her time between Ontario, Canada and rural Poland, and eventually completed a veterinary degree at the Warsaw University of Life Sciences. A lover of mythology and history, she enjoys exploring both in her writing. Her debut novel, Where the Dark Stands Still, an instant New York Times bestseller, is an ode to Poland's folktales, while A Treachery of Swans transports readers to a world inspired by 17th century France.

A. B. Poranek

A. Bradley

Professor A. C. Grayling is Principal of the New College of the Humanities at Northeastern University, London, and a Supernumerary Fellow of St Anne's College, Oxford. He has written and edited over thirty books on philosophy, history, science and current affairs. For several years he wrote columns for the Guardian newspaper and The Times and was the chairman of the 2014 Man Booker Prize.

A. C. Grayling

A.D. Miller is the author of Snowdrops, The Earl of Petticoat Lane and The Faithful Couple. Snowdrops was a bestseller and was shortlisted for many prizes including the Man Booker and the CWA Gold Dagger. It was translated into 25 languages. As Moscow Correspondent of The Economist A.D. Miller has travelled across the former Soviet Union and covered the Orange Revolution in Ukraine; he is now the magazine’s Culture Editor based in London. 
 
admillerbooks.com

A. D. Miller

A. E. Ellis

A. E. W. Mason

A. Humphreys

A. Igoni Barrett was born in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, in 1979 and lives in Lagos. He is a winner of the 2005 BBC World Service short story competition, the recipient of a Chinua Achebe Center Fellowship, a Norman Mailer Center Fellowship, and a Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Residency. His short story collection, Love is Power, or Something Like That, was published in 2013. In 2014 he was named on the Africa39 list of sub-Saharan African writers under 40. Blackass is his first novel.

A. Igoni Barrett

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Dolly Parton

A stunning celebration of Dolly Parton’s iconic career as a performer, featuring entertaining personal stories alongside 350 full-color photographs, including exclusive images and ephemera from her archive, and an eight-page gatefold listing her lifetime of performances. 
 
In Star of the Show, the culminating book in Dolly Parton’s photographic trilogy—following Songteller (lyrics) and Behind the Seams (fashion)—the global superstar finally shares a definitive look at her career as one of the world’s most dazzling and beloved performers. 
 
Featuring engaging stories and memories from Parton’s dynamic life behind the microphone, this book spotlights her signature performances and star-making moments, from singing in front of her family to premiering on the Grand Ole Opry stage and beyond. Her formative years performing with country legend Porter Wagoner are chronicled as she learns hard lessons from life on the road. Breaking out on her own at state fairs and critically acclaimed venues, she toured the world performing for millions of fans in arenas, stadiums, and at festivals. From making her onscreen debut in the blockbuster feature film 9 to 5 to playing the Dallas Cowboys’ 2023 Thanksgiving halftime show to 42 million viewers, this global superstar knows no limits. Along the way, Dolly shares the stage with Kenny Rogers, Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, and others, while offering insight on touring big, singing strong, and staying on top for seven decades. 
 
Brimming with Parton’s trademark wit and heartfelt sincerity, Star of the Show: My Life on Stage is not only an homage to one of history’s most cherished artists, but also a must-have collector’s item for—and love letter to—any fan of the one and only Dolly Parton.

Star of the Show

My Life on Stage

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

Richard Schoch

'The song is you.' 
 
For fans of musical theatre, Stephen Sondheim is one of the true titans – the genius who brought us Sweeney Todd and West Side Story, Into the Woods, and Company. With acclaimed revivals of his landmark shows regularly performed in London and New York, and new generations being introduced to the man who forever transformed musical theatre, Sondheim’s legacy has only grown. What is it about such classic songs as ‘Being Alive’ from Company, ‘No One Is Alone’ from Into the Woods, or ‘Send in the Clowns’ from A Little Night Music (to name but a few) that still resonates for so many? 
 
In How Sondheim Can Change Your Life, Richard Schoch shows how Sondheim’s greatness (beyond the clever lyrics and adventurous music) lies in his ability to tell stories that speak to all of us. From Louise’s desire for freedom as Gypsy Rose Lee to Sweeney Todd’s thirst for revenge, the struggles we see in Sondheim’s characters are ones we all have – and we can learn valuable lessons from how those struggles are resolved. 
 
Following the arc of Sondheim’s extraordinary career, How Sondheim Can Change Your Life is rich with stories and insights into the master’s creative process, and reveals the many ways that Sondheim’s works can enrich the lives of all of us.

How Sondheim Can Change Your Life

Mackenzie Crook

What if you had the chance to tell your hero just how much they meant to you? 
 
If Nick Drake came to my house 
and knocked upon the door 
I’m sure I’d be more happy 
than I’ve ever been before… 
 
In If Nick Drake Came to My House, Mackenzie Crook – the creator of Detectorists and Worzel Gummidge – explores the power of art to impact our lives, expressed through verse and image depicting an imaginary visit from the late, great singer-songwriter. A tender homage to a classic book by Joan Gale Thomas, Crook’s first book for adults is infused with his characteristic warm humour, both in the short yet powerful story and his own beautiful illustrations. It’s a book for anyone who has ever wished they had the chance to tell their hero how much they meant to them.

If Nick Drake Came to My House

Neil Kulkarni

Welcome to The Periodic Table of Hip Hop. Instead of hydrogen to helium, here you'll find James Brown to Kendrick Lamar - 94 artists that have defined Hip Hop arranged following the logic of The Periodic Table of Elements. 
 
MCs, DJs, rappers and producers are the elements here, and this expert guide orders them to reveal their contrasts and connections, along with key movements and moments in the history of this music genre. 
 
Includes: James Brown, P-Funk, Kool Herc, Melle Mel, Sugarhill Records, Fab Five Freddy, Whodini, Run DMC, Rick Rubin, LL Cool J, Kendrick Lamar and Jay Z and many, many more...

The Periodic Table of HIP HOP

Yungblud

* THE INSTANT NO.1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER * 
 
'To be different is to be the best f*cking thing here and you'll be celebrated for that!' 
 
Written and illustrated by global phenomenon YUNGBLUD, this interactive journal is packed with never-before-seen art, exclusive lyrics, poems, creative prompts, and incisive questions that will push you to dig deep and celebrate what makes you different. 
 
Who are you? 
 
For most of us that is the hardest question in the world. 
 
This book is designed to help guide you on a journey to find out. To confess what you love about yourself, destroy your deepest insecurities and face your darkest fears. 
 
This is a book to rip, draw, burn, bury and create. A book that will end up in tatters if you do it right. This is a book of you. 
 
So, I’ll ask you again… Who are you? 
 
It’s time to find out. 
 
Dom xoxo 
 
 
No.1 in non fiction August 2024 
 
Published by Happy Place Books

You Need To Exist

A book to love and destroy!

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

Fenton Bailey

'Like a superheated kernel of corn, the world has gone Pop... Drag has become mainstream. Being gay became cool. From being the criminal outsider, being queer has even become representative of the way the outsider voice is common to us all.' 
 
When he moved to New York in 1982, Fenton Bailey saw the world go Pop. Together with filmmaking partner Randy Barbato, their production company World of Wonder would pioneer the genre of Reality TV and chronicle the emerging Screen Age through their extraordinary programs and outrageous subjects - from Bible Belt televangelists and conspiracy theories to pioneering drag queens. 
 
Working with icons such as Britney Spears, Tammy Faye Bakker and RuPaul, the production company's shows tell a wider story of how television has fundamentally shifted our reality. 
 
Packed with glorious insider gossip and amazing celebrity stories, these are the riotous tales behind the shows that would make ScreenAgers of us all.

ScreenAge

How TV shaped our reality, from Tammy Faye to RuPaul’s Drag Race

Mo Gilligan

Come on my journey. Look at where man's come from. I was working in retail in 2017. 
 
You might know Mo as the critically acclaimed stand-up comedian, BAFTA-winning presenter, Masked Singer judge and social media mega star. But do you know the moments that really made him? Opening up on the turning points, the good times, the challenges and the lessons learned, this is Mo as you've never seen him before. 
 
Journeying through childhood memories in South London, Mo reminisces about school days and old-school raving, and takes us behind the scenes of his first comedy gigs, the creation of the original Geezer, selling out national tours and becoming one of TV's most in-demand stars. Share the moment that Mo decided he wanted to be a comedian, the moment he went viral, the moment he realised he was famous (and how to deal with it), the moment his Netflix special dropped, the moment he won his BAFTA and the moments he still has to come. 
 
In among the laugh-out-loud observations, life lessons and candid storytelling, there lies the bigger influences in Mo's life - the unsung heroes of the Black British comedy scene, the power of community and the feel-good legacy he wants to create. 
 
'The Funniest Man in Britain' The Times

That Moment When

Life Stories from Way Back Then

Paddy McGuinness

Get the kettle on, the biscuits out and settle in for a belting read. 
 
Let Paddy McGuinness take you back, far, far away from celebrity land, to a two-up, two-down terrace in 1970s Bolton, where he grew up. They were happy times, but money was tight. Paddy slept on a mattress he dragged in from the street, and at 17 he struggled severely with the stress of juggling a college course and two jobs to support his beloved mum. 
 
But while cash may have been short, grit and wit were in over-supply, and this is the improbable true story of the lad who went from kipping in abandoned cars in Bolton to racing supercars on Top Gear, via laying concrete floors in prisons, a lively career in a leisure centre, a showbiz intervention by school pal Peter Kay and eye-popping adventures in the world of teledom. 
 
There has been mischief and misadventure, joy and sorry, huge success and unexpected challenges. It's a lifey well lived, and an unforgettable personal memoir written from the heart.

My Lifey

Sarah Harding

Sunday Times Bestseller 
 
'I can't rewrite history; all I can do is be honest and wear my heart on my sleeve. It's really the only way I know. I want to show people the real me. Or perhaps remind them. Because, somewhere - amongst the nightclubs, the frocks and hairdos, the big chart hits, and the glamour of being a popstar - the other Sarah Harding got utterly lost. She's the one who's been forgotten. And all I want is for you to hear her out.' 
 
Sarah Harding is best known as the wild member of Girls Aloud, whose reputation for partying, drinking and dating made her a tabloid favourite. But where does the celebrity Sarah Harding end and the real Sarah begin? 
 
Faced with a devastating cancer diagnosis that turned her life upside down, Sarah has decided that now is the time to write her story. Her truth. 
 
This is Sarah Harding in her own words.

Hear Me Out

Big Narstie

Mans here to help you help yourself. 
 
Real talk. One thing you've got to know about advice: there are two types. Sometimes the people who give the most advice to others are the last people you should be listening to. They just love the sound of their own voice. No matter what the problem is, they'll just say: 'Believe in yourself, you can do anything.' And then ... well, then there's the kind of advice that's just the truth. That's the sort of advice you might get from this book, and I'll warn you sometimes the truth ain't pretty. 
 
In these pages I'm gonna tell you some of my story and show you how you can change yours: how to survive school, how to get a job, how to deal with family, friends, love and PAIN. How to live your own life, not someone else's.

How to Be Narstie

Real talk on humble starts, big dreams and beating the odds

Royal Albert Hall

The most iconic concert hall in the world celebrates 150 years with a stunning review of history's finest performances and performers. 
 
Opening with a personal letter from Queen Elizabeth II, this beautiful book celebrates 150 moments that have shaped The Royal Albert Hall over the last century and a half. From The Beatles to the Suffragettes, Albert Einstein to Winston Churchill, Mohammed Ali to B.B. King, few other buildings have housed such a stunning variety of era-defining people and events. 
 
This gorgeous, illustrated guide takes you behind the scenes of one of the most well-loved concert halls in the world, offering insights into the building’s iconic architecture, as well as its lesser-known quirks such as the reinforced toilets designed for Sumo wrestlers. This book features events ranging from the world's first sci-fi convention in 1891 to the annual Cirque du Soleil, which requires the auditorium to be transformed into a gymnasium. Autographs and candid comments from incredible performers who have appeared on its stage, like Russell Howard, Eric Clapton and Katie Derham, give a unique insider’s perspective on an esteemed and beloved British institution. 
 
With never-before-seen images, insights and more, this is the ultimate celebration of a British architectural icon which continues to inspire artists and audiences from around the world.

A celebration in 150 unforgettable moments

Ruby Wax

Sunday Times Bestseller 
 
With a brand new introduction for 2020. 
 
How Do You Want Me? is critically acclaimed as brutally honest, vivid and gripping. 
 
Ruby Wax's unflinching revelation of a childhood poisoned, and a youth spoiled, culminates in a moving account of her breakdown and recovery. But How Do You Want Me? is also funny, rude and irreverent. It's unusually honest about fame and celebrity and happy to burst ego-balloons and golden myths. 
 
A brilliantly fast, furious and surprising read from the inimitable Ruby Wax.

How Do You Want Me?

Jill Soloway

‘A funny and brutally honest book about what it means to be a woman and what it takes to be a creator, She Wants It is deeply personal but always universal in its unapologetic recounting of a life lived and raw talent shared. Good. Detailed. Honest. Needed’ - Amy Poehler 
 
One morning, half-awake in a shame spiral about what a shitty mother you are because you’re letting your kid watch so much TV, the phone rings. 
 
‘Jilly? Are you sitting down?’ 
 
Are you sitting down? means something fucked up is coming… 
 
When Jill Soloway’s father, whom they had always understood to be male, came out as transgender, everything shifted. For one, the moment became the inspiration to push through the male-dominated landscape of Hollywood and create the award-winning TV series Transparent. Exploring identity, love, sexuality, and the blurring of boundaries, the show gave birth to a new cultural consciousness. But also, by eventually coming out as queer and non-binary, the lines on Jill’s own gender map began to be erased. 
 
This is the story of that journey. 
 
She Wants It charts Jill's intense and revelatory experience, growing from straight, divorced, mother of two – to non-binary genderqueer director, show creator, and activist. Written with wild candour and razor-edged humour, it examines who we are, how we make art – and ultimately, who we can become.

She Wants It

Desire, Power, and Toppling the Patriarchy

Hunter Davies

Hunter Davies, the only ever authorised biographer of the group, has produced the essential Beatles guide. Divided into four sections – People, Songs, Places and Broadcast and Cinema – it covers all elements of the band’s history and vividly brings to live every influence that shaped them. 
 
Illustrated with material from Hunter's remarkable private collection of artefacts and memorabilia, this is the definitive Beatles treasure.

The Beatles Book

Charlie Brooker

Annabel Jones

Jason Arnopp

‘Black Mirror is hands down the most relevant program of our time, if for no other reason than how often it can make you wonder if we’re all living in an episode of it.’ – New York Times 
 
What becomes of humanity when it’s fed into the jaws of a hungry new digital machine? Discover the world of Black Mirror in this immersive, illustrated, oral history. 
 
This first official book logs the entire Black Mirror journey, from its origins in creator Charlie Brooker’s mind to its current status as one of the biggest cult TV shows to emerge from the UK. Alongside a collection of astonishing behind-the-scenes imagery and ephemera, Brooker and producer Annabel Jones will detail the creative genesis, inspiration and thought process behind each film for the first time, while key actors, directors and other creative talents relive their own involvement. 
 
‘Brooker continues to solidify himself as one of the most creative writers in the medium. Even when the unfair creep of expectations rears up, Black Mirror and Brooker deliver.’ – The Hollywood Reporter 
 
‘Black Mirror: the future is already here, and it's terrifying’ - Telegraph

Inside Black Mirror

The Illustrated Oral History

Earl Of Harwood

The New Pocket Kobbe's Complete Opera Book is the world's leading reference work on opera, and (in the words of Bernard Levin) 'no single-volume operatic guide can possibly compare with it'. 
 
Kobbe is the only book which summaries the libretti of the world's opera, describes their music and gives a history of their performance within a single volume. But it is a large and relatively expensive book. The new pocket edition, at a price accessible to the huge new audience for opera, has been redesigned and extended, existing entries have been rewritten, and new operas included. The total number of works covered is now over 200, including important new works like John Adams Nixon in China, Harrison Birtwistle's Gawain and Thomas Ades's Powder Her Face, and a number of half-forgotten works that are now undergoing revival. Unlike the previous edition, it is now simply arranged, alphabetically by composer. 
 
Lord Harewood's strongly individual commentaries, together with his unparalleled knowledge of and enthusiasm for opera, make the New Pocket Kobbe a book no opera-goer can afford to be without.

The New Pocket Kobbé's Opera Book

‘If it’s me and your granny on bongos, it’s The Fall.’ 
 
As legendary frontman of post-punk outfit The Fall, Mark E. Smith was known as much for his mercurial temperament as his exceptional musical talent. Famous for his singular way with words both onstage and off, his road to the music hall of fame was paved with brilliant one-liners, eccentric behaviour, and the dozens of members of The Fall he ejected along the way. 
 
Collecting his wit and wisdom for the first time and featuring an introduction from Stuart Maconie, Messing Up the Paintwork is a tribute to a musical icon described as ‘untouchably cool’ (Lauren Laverne), an ‘uncompromising musical maverick’ (Tim Burgess) and ‘a man shouting from a prison window’ (Frank Skinner). And it’s a book for the fans who will miss him terribly.

Messing Up the Paintwork

The Wit and Wisdom of Mark E. Smith

Simon Goddard

They had just a few hundred pounds, one band missing a drummer, a sock drawer for an office, more dreams than sense and not a clue between them how to run a record company. But when Alan Horne and Edwyn Collins decided to start their own label from a shabby Glasgow flat in 1979, nobody was going to stand in their way. 
 
Postcard Records was the mad, makeshift and quite preposterous result. Launching the careers of Orange Juice, Aztec Camera and cult heroes Josef K, the self-styled ‘Sound of Young Scotland’ stuck it to the London music biz and, quite by accident, kickstarted the 1980s indie music revolution. 
 
Simon Goddard has interviewed everyone involved in the making of the Postcard legend to tell this thrilling rock’n’roll story of punk audacity, knickerbocker glories, broken windscreens, raccoon-fur hats, comedy, violence and creating something beautiful from nothing, against all the odds.

Simply Thrilled

The Preposterous Story of Postcard Records

David Ovason

The secrets of the world’s greatest illusions revealed! 
 
Learn clever tricks and daring deceptions! 
 
An indispensible guide for the home Magician! 
 
Beginning with instruction in simple sleights-of-hand, which may be mastered and performed by any amateur magician for the delight of their friends, The Book of Magic includes directions in the performance of more sophisticated illusions, and exposes the methods behind such famous feats as levitation, sawing a woman in half, or disappearing an elephant. 
 
A fascinating look into the Art of Conjuring, The Book of Magic provides practical hints, tips and inspiration for any aspiring illusionist, and is an essential addition to the library of all Magicians.

The Book of Magic

dodie

Be inspired this New Year by a young woman's journey through life, love and lyrics 
 
When I feel like I'm going mad, I write. 
 
A lot of my worst fears have come true; fears that felt so big I could barely hold them in my head. I was convinced that when they happened, the world would end. 
 
But the world didn't end. In fact, it pushed on and demanded to keep spinning through all sorts of mayhem, and I got through it. And because I persisted, I learned lessons about how to be a stronger, kinder, better human – lessons you can only learn by going through these sorts of things. 
 
This is for the people with minds that just don't stop; for those who feel everything a thousand times more than others around them. 
 
Here are some words I wrote.

Secrets for the Mad

Obsessions, Confessions and Life Lessons

Guy Adams

With season 2 now released, don't miss out on getting the perfect gift for any Stranger Things fan in your life. 
 
Grab your Eggos and prepare to enter Hawkins, Indiana – just don't forget your fairy lights 
 
If you devoured Stranger Things and you're looking to fill the demogorgon-sized hole in your life, then look no further than Notes From the Upside Down. This fan handbook is here to tell you more about the origins of the show, including the mysterious Montauk Project conspiracy theory, get you clued up on the inspirations behind the characters, and assess the show's DNA. 
 
If you've ever wondered why Spielberg is such a huge influence, which Stephen King books you need to read (HINT: pretty much all of them) and how State Trooper David O’Bannon earned his name, then this book is for you. 
 
Guy Adams is a superfan and this is his amusing and informative guide to everything you're going to need to know to understand Stranger Things.

Notes From the Upside Down – Inside the World of Stranger Things

An Unofficial Handbook to the Hit TV Series

Mindy Kaling

Mindy Kaling has found herself at a turning point. So in Why Not Me?, she shares her ongoing journey to find fulfilment and adventure in her adult life, be it falling in love at work, seeking new friendships in unlikely places, or attempting to be the first person in history to lose weight without any behaviour modification whatsoever. 
 
In “How to Look Spectacular”, she reveals her tongue-in-cheek solutions for guaranteed on-camera beauty. “Player” tells the story of Mindy being seduced, then dumped, by a female friend in LA. And in “Soup Snakes,” she spills some secrets on her relationship with ex-boyfriend and close friend B. J. Novak. 
 
Mindy has put the anxieties, the glamour and the celebrations of her second coming-of-age into this book, to which anyone can relate. (And, if they can’t, they can skip to the parts where she talks about meeting Bradley Cooper.)

Why Not Me?

Andrew Matheson

**MOJO MAGAZINE'S BOOK OF THE YEAR** 
 
The Hollywood Brats are the greatest band you’ve never heard of. 
 
Recording one near-perfect punk album in 1974, they were tragically ahead of their time. 
 
With only a guitar, a tatty copy of the Melody Maker and his template for the perfect band, Andrew Matheson set out, in 1971, to make musical history. His band, The Hollywood Brats, were pre-punk prophets – uncompromising, ultra-thin, wild, untameable and outrageous. But thrown into the crazy world of the 1970s London music scene, the Brats ultimately fell foul of the crooks and heavies that ran it and an industry that just wasn’t ready for them. 
 
Directly inspiring the London SS, the Clash, Malcolm McLaren and the Sex Pistols, The Hollywood Brats imploded too soon to share the glory. Punk’s answer to Withnail and I, Sick On You is a startling, funny and brilliantly entertaining period memoir about never quite achieving success, despite flying so close to greatness.

Sick On You

The Disastrous Story of The Hollywood Brats

The Disastrous Story of Britain’s Great Lost Punk Band

Chrissie Hynde

By the time she was 14, Chrissie Hynde knew she had to get out of Akron, Ohio. Her perfect ’50s American childhood upturned by a newly acquired taste for rock ’n’ roll, motorbikes and the ‘get down boys’ seen at gigs in and around Cleveland – Mitch Ryder, the Jeff Beck Group, the Velvet Underground and David Bowie among the many. 
 
Wrapped up in the Kent State University riots and getting dangerously involved in the local biker and drug scenes, she escaped - to Mexico, Canada, Paris and finally London where she caught the embryonic punk scene just in time not only to witness it first-hand, but more importantly to seize the opportunity to form her own band, the Pretenders. 
 
Iggy Pop, the Sex Pistols, the Clash, Vivienne &amp; Malcolm, Ray Davies … on every page household names mingle with small town heroes as we shift from bedroom to biker HQ; from squat to practice room; from pub gig to Top Of The Pops – the long and crooked path to stardom, and for the Pretenders, ultimately, tragedy. 
 
That Chrissie Hynde is alive to tell the tale is, by her own admission, something of a miracle. Throughout she is brutally honest, wryly humorous and always highly entertaining. She has written one of the most evocative and colourful music memoirs to be published in recent years.

Reckless

Ronnie Corbett

A true great of British comedy, Ronald ‘Ronnie’ Corbett, is hailed as one of the finest comedians of his generation. 
 
Son of an Edinburgh baker, Ronnie rose to fame as one half of the infamous Two Ronnies alongside Ronnie Barker. Known for his versatility, quick-wit, family-friendly dialogue, and meandering monologues, Corbett was a staple of British television for more than 50 years. In his autobiography, he tells the complete story, from his school technique of estimating the height of a girl before daring to ask her to dance, to his days as a night club barman in London, and finally, to his decades long career as a stand-up and sitcom star. Including tales of how he first met David Frost, John Cleese and Michael Palin, this book is written with all of Ronnie’s trademark warmth and wit. 
 
Celebrating his life and career, this is Ronnie’s own honest and definitive account of his truly dramatic journey.

High Hopes

My Autobiography

Jude Angelini

Jude Angelini’s tales of depravity are uncompromising, brutally honest and shocking. From growing up poor in a factory town outside Detroit to his adult life as a popular radio personality on Sirius XM, Hyena charts Angelini’s descent into ever more debauched sexual and drug-fuelled exploits, from one-armed strippers, women with abuse-fantasies and a night on dust that he thinks he’ll never wake up from. 
 
Yet underneath this series of deplorable autobiographical stories is an echo of heartbreak, loneliness, and the eternal poetry of a man struggling to be heard. Vividly told in his distinctive voice, Jude Angelini’s fi rst book is a blackly comic masterpiece.

Hyena

Ronnie Barker

With a fondness for spoonerisms and double entendres, Ronnie Barker is one of the nation’s greatest comics. Gathered together in this second ‘best of’ volume is a cocktail of his sketches and monologues from every strand of his long and brilliant career.

A Few Well-Frozen Worms

Paul Merton

Known for his intelligent and often surreal humour, Paul Merton’s weekly appearances on BBC1’s Have I Got News For You – as well as Radio 4’s Just A Minute and his travel documentaries – have seen him become an artfully rebellious fixture in our lives for over 25 years. 
 
He also has a real story to tell. In ONLY WHEN I LAUGH, his rich and beautifully-observed autobiography, Paul takes us on an evocative journey from his working-class Fulham childhood to the present day. 
 
Whether writing about school days, his run-ins with the nuns and other pupils; his disastrous first confession; his meatpacking job; taking acid; leaving home to live in bedsit; his early brushes with the opposite sex – and not forgetting his repeated attempts to break into the world of comedy – Paul’s writing is always funny, poignant and revealing. And when his star finally ascends in the atmospherically drawn 1980s alternative cabaret scene there is a sense of excitement, energy, camaraderie, momentum and dramatic impending success… 
 
…And then CRASH! In an unflinching and brilliantly written section that defines the book, we experience the disorienting and terrifying sustained manic episode that he suffered which landed him in a psychiatric hospital. These, and other tougher moments, are written about candidly and with sensitivity and honesty. 
 
Yet throughout ONLY WHEN I LAUGH, Paul Merton succeeds in telling his life story entertainingly, with warmth, humour and a big bucket load of wit. Ultimately uplifting, it is the story of a fascinating life, brilliantly told – and one of the best memoirs of the year.

Only When I Laugh: My Autobiography

The year is 1Q84. This is the real world, there is no doubt about that. But in this world, there are two moons in the sky. Discover the 1Q84 Trilogy by Haruki Murakami.

1Q84

365 Days of Art

A BBC Christmas

A Black Book Thriller

A Box Full of Murders

A Cal Leandros Novel

A Christmas Mystery

The intelligent and capable police commissioner Guido Brunetti confronts crime in and around his home town of Venice.

A Commissario Brunetti Mystery

A DC Smith / Kings Lake Investigation Series

A Daisy Story

Chronicling the lives of over three hundred characters, unrivalled for its scope and humour, this is a unique evocation of life in twentieth-century England.

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