Neil MacGregor was Director of the National Gallery, London from 1987 to 2002 and of the British Museum from 2002 to 2015, and Chair of the Steering Committee of the Humboldt Forum in Berlin from 2015 to 2018. His previous books include A History of the World in 100 Objects, Shakespeare's Restless World and Germany: Memories of a Nation, all available in Penguin and now between them translated into more than a dozen languages. In 2010, he was made a member of the Order of Merit, the UK's highest civil honour. In 2015 he was awarded the Goethe Medal and the German National Prize. In 2018 the radio series Living with the Gods received the Sandford Saint Martin Award for Religious Broadcasting.

Neil MacGregor

PublicationStatus

Brand

Format

AgeRange

Series

Imprint

CategoryLabel

Anna Clark

Tony Solomon

'Best Mac 'n' Cheese this side of the Atlantic' Elle 
 
'Worth getting messy for' Metro 
 
Over 50 recipes from the legendary Mac 'n' Cheese truck. 
 
This book is full of pimped up mac 'n' cheese recipes, things to do with leftovers (mac 'n' cheese fries anyone?) plus tips on how to make the best béchamel sauce, the perfect cheeses to use, as well as recipes for sides, sauces, drinks and desserts to serve alongside. 
 
Featuring recipes for some of their well-known classics such as the Don Macaroni with bacon and pesto to the chipotle-laced Spicy Juan; to experimental ideas for the serious Macologist, including Machos, alpine-inspired Maclette, Mac-Packed Peppers, Mac 'n' Cheese Fries, the ultimate grilled cheese sandwich and more. 
 
Not forgetting the perfect wingmen to accompany your mac - they’ve got pickles, guac', kwik kimchi, salads and sauces as well as festival cocktails and hangover cures covering all the bases.

Anna Mae’s Mac N Cheese

Recipes from London’s legendary street food truck

Alexandra Brosh

Hilarious stories about life's mishaps from the creator of the immensely popular blog 'Hyperbole and a Half'. Fully illustrated with over 50% new material. 
 
 Hyperbole and A Half is a blog and webcomic written by a 20-something American girl called Allie Brosh. She tells fantastically funny, wise stories about the mishaps of her everyday life, with titles like 'Why Dogs Don't Understand Basic Concepts Like Moving' and 'The God of Cake'.. 
 
 Brosh's website receives millions of visitors a month and hundreds of thousands per day. Now her full-colour debut book chronicles the many 'learning experiences' Brosh has endured as a result of her own character flaws. It includes stories about her rambunctious childhood; the highs and mostly lows of owning a mentally challenged dog; and a moving and darkly comic account of her struggles with depression. 
 
'Quirky and captivating' Observer 
 
'It's impossible not to warm to cartoonist and blogger Allie. If she doesn't get to you with her funny childhood anecdotes (eating an entire birthday cake) then her honest reflections on depression will' Grazia

Hyperbole and a Half

Unfortunate Situations, Flawed Coping Mechanisms, Mayhem, and Other Things That Happened

Andrew Gimson

Martin Rowson

A SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 
 
A concise, sharp-witted and illuminating account of the lives of Britain’s prime ministers from Walpole to May, illustrated by Martin Rowson. 
 
For the reader who has heard of such giants as Gladstone and Disraeli, and has drunk in a pub called the Palmerston, but has only the haziest idea of who these people were, Gimson’s Prime Ministers offers a short account of them all which can be read for pleasure, and not just for edification. With Gimson’s wonderful prose once again complemented by Martin Rowson’s inimitable illustrations, this lively and entertaining aide-memoire and work of satirical genius brings our parliamentary history to life as never before. 
 
PRAISE FOR GIMSON'S PRIME MINISTERS: 
 
'The most engaging and insightful account of PMs to have been published' Arthur Seldon, Standpoint 
'Learned witty and wise, and splendidly illustrated' Tibor Fischer 
'Hugely enjoyable' Tom Holland 
 
Gimson's Kings and Queens is also available.

Gimson's Prime Ministers

Brief Lives from Walpole to Johnson

Kelly Bishop

Finally sharing the long-awaited story of her fascinating career, Tony-Award winning actress Kelly Bishop takes us on her journey from starring on the stage to the silver screen to our most-streamed TV shows, sharing the wisdom she's learned along the way. 
 
Perhaps most famous for playing Emily Gilmore, the sassy matriarch of Gilmore Girls, Kelly Bishop's impressive career began as a classically-trained ballet dancer. From there, she went on to win a Tony award for her role in the original cast of A Chorus Line - and that's just the beginning. Through each pivotal moment of her life, from her professional triumphs to the hardships of marrying young to a compulsive gambler and enduring her second husband's battle with cancer and death to marching for women's rights, Kelly Bishop reflects on the highs and lows she's faced as she reinvented herself throughout her life, moving across America to tour with plays, star in beloved films like Dirty Dancing, and become a household name on popular TV shows such as Law & Order, The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel, and of course, Gilmore Girls. 
 
Sharing never-before-told stories from throughout her career and lessons from a rich and full life, this generous memoir is a warm unapologetic account of how Kelly Bishop's smart, fearless and versatile performances earned her enduring place in pop culture history.

The Third Gilmore Girl

Joshua Bennett

The powerful story of an art form that has transformed the cultural landscape, by one of its most influential practitioners: an award-winning poet, professor and slam champion. 
 
In 2009, at only twenty years old, Joshua Bennett was invited to recite a poem for President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama at the White House's Evening of Poetry, Music, and the Spoken Word. Spike Lee and Saul Williams were in the audience, and it turned out to be the very same event where Lin-Manuel Miranda first performed a work-in-progress that revolutionised musical theatre - Hamilton. 
 
With passion, wit and erudition, in Spoken Word Bennett takes us on his own electrifying coming-of-age journey as a writer, alongside the rise of spoken-word poetry and its origins in America. Blending memories of his personal encounters with influential figures, his path to becoming an award-winning poet and his academic insight into the history that shaped the scene, he tells the story of how a handful of visionaries created spaces for underrepresented artists to experiment with new forms of art. 
 
Taking us back to the early days of spoken-word poetry through to Amanda Gorman, Common, Jill Scott, Dave Chappelle, DMX and Kanye West reciting their original poems on television, Bennett shows how a few passionate artists sparked a movement that forever changed the world.

Spoken Word

The Story of How Performance Poetry Changed the World

THE NEWLY REVISED EDITION 
 
Gimson&rsquo;s Kings and Queens is the most entertaining and instructive book on the English monarchy you will ever read. 
 
For lovers of history, the experienced and the novice, the serious and the silly. 
 
Gimson&rsquo;s Kings and Queens whirls us through the lives of our monarchs &ndash; from 1066 and William the Conqueror right up to Queen Elizabeth II and the present-day &ndash; to tell a tale of bastardy, courage, conquest, brutality, vanity, vulgarity, corruption, anarchy, absenteeism, piety, nobility, divorce, execution, civil war, madness, magnificence, profligacy, frugality, philately, abdication, dutifulness, family breakdown and family recovery. 
 
Written in Andrew Gimson&rsquo;s inimitable style, and illustrated by Martin Rowson, Gimson&rsquo;s Kings and Queens is both a primer and a refresher for anyone who can't quite remember which were the good and bad Edwards or Henrys, or why so-and-so succeeded to the throne rather than his second cousin.

Gimson’s Kings and Queens

Brief Lives of the Forty Monarchs since 1066

Rachel Thompson

**AS HEARD ON BBC RADIO 4'S WOMEN'S HOUR** 
 
Rough is a revolutionary non-fiction work exploring the narratives of sexual violence that we don't talk about. 
 
A bad sexual experience. 
 
A grey area. 
 
Not rape but... A violation . 
 
These are the terms we use to describe the experiences we don't have words for. The way we talk about topics such as sex, consent, assault aren't fit for purpose. 
 
Through powerful testimony from 50 women and non-binary people, this book shines a light on the sexual violence that takes place in our bedrooms and beyond, sometimes at the hands of people we know, trust, or even love. Rough investigates violations such as 'stealthing,' non-consensual choking, and non-consensual rough sex acts that our culture is only starting to recognise as sexual violence. 
 
The book explores the ways in which systems of oppression manifest in our sexual culture - from racist microaggressions, to fatphobic acts of aggression, and ableist dehumanising behaviour. An intersectional, sex-positive, kink-positive work, the book also examines how white supremacy, transphobia, biphobia, homophobia, and misogyny are driving forces behind sexual violence. 
 
Rough is an urgent, timely call for change to the systems that oppress us all. 
 
'An incredible investigation into a frighteningly common part of our sexual experience,' Dr Fern Riddell 
 
'Rough speaks to how many women often feel after sexual encounters ...This book is excellent and demonstrates just how valid those feelings are,' Adele Walton, founder of Humanitarian Hotgirl

Rough

How violence has found its way into the bedroom and what we can do about it

Alexina Anatole

‘Packed with everything I love! Such a clever and beautiful book’ Benjamina Ebuehi 
'An impressive baking resource for every occasion' Belfast Telegraph 
'A really, really gorgeous book' Georgie Hayden, Sunday Brunch 
‘Masterfully captures the art of baking’ @foodbyremi 
'Absolutely beautiful' Edd Kimber 
‘Such a joy’ Mark Diacono 
 
Ever wondered how to make a dessert extra delicious? Look no further.In this book, Alexina Anatole, MasterChef finalist and author of Bitter, guides you through unlocking the secrets of sweetness. 
 
Journeying through 10 shades of sweetness – including brown sugar, strawberries, peaches, honey, vanilla and bananas – Alexina reveals the tempting results that can be achieved by balancing flavour, texture and temperature. 
 
With twists on the classics and exciting new creations, these 80 recipes offer comfort while also delivering bold, exciting flavours. Whether you love desserts or believe that you’re ‘not a dessert person’, this inspiring cookbook is guaranteed to delight all. 
Discover recipes for all occasions and palates, such as:Banoffee Coffee Sundae • Milky Bar Basque Cheesecake • Mango, Coconut + Lime Celebration Cake • Matcha Tiramisu • Sticky Figgy Pudding • Pear Sorbet with Frozen Roquefort • The Neo Neapolitan • Peach Melba Galette • Terrazzo Cookies

Sweet

the secret to the best desserts

Winston Rowntree

You found Wally - hallelujah! Now to find Jesus... 
 
God may move in a mysterious way, but his son is a real devil to track down. Seek and ye shall find Jesus in a multitude of unexpected places - crowded rock concerts, bustling supermarkets and packed weddings, to name but a few. 
 
It might take a miracle, but the clear-sighted can spot him if they keep the faith. Readers of all ages will be in raptures with this eternally enjoyable gift book that your neighbour is sure to covet!

Finding Jesus

Olivia Swarthout

Live, laugh love and die in the Middle Ages with Weird Medieval Guys! 
 
Explore what your medieval life would have been through a choose-your-own-adventure full of quizzes, how-to guides, diagrams and flow charts that takes you from your birth to your gruesome end, revealing your patron saint, the fate of your love life and the trials and tribulations you faced along the way. 
 
Then, discover everything you need to know to survive the natural world, from stripping naked to survive a wolf attack, decoding the signficance of birds visiting your sickbed and brewing love potions all while learning about warring rabbits, deadly dragons and saintly hounds - all illustrated with the very best ancient drawings of beasts, birds, fishes and serpents from all four corners of God's creation, drawn by people who definitely saw these creatures with their very own eyes and lived to tell the tale. 
 
Chock full of hilarious, mad and bad advice for surviving and thriving on the mortal plane, this complete guide to life in the dark ages is guaranteed to make you laugh.

Weird Medieval Guys

How to Live, Laugh, Love (and Die) in Dark Times

Gordon Gordon

'A fine, if sometimes rude, collection of haikus inspired by modern life' Daily Telegraph 
 
‘I’m in here!’ yelled Mum. 
Hide and seek was spoilt again. 
We never found Dad. 
 
The word ‘Haiku’ invokes images of misty mountains, running streams and falling leaves. But where are the haiku that reflect the modern world we live in? The real world of overflowing baths, train delays and Pierce Brosnan? 
 
In this collection, you will find a haiku for every moment of modern life, all rendered in no more or less than 17 syllables.

Is That all You People Think About?

a collection of modern haikus

Stephen Moss

From the renowned naturalist Stephen Moss comes the must-have gift for bird lovers this Christmas. 
 
 'Wherever there is a stretch of water for them to find food and make their nest, you will come across swans' 
 
 With beautiful illustrations throughout, this eye-opening biography reveals the hidden secrets of one of Britain's best-known birds. 
 
 The Mute Swan is not so much a bird, as a national treasure: the avian equivalent of Sir David Attenborough or the Queen. These huge and stately creatures are part of our urban and rural landscapes, a constant presence on lakes, rivers and ponds throughout Britain. Yet despite their familiarity, they are often misunderstood; and while many people love swans, others fear them. 
 
 Swans also feature in myths and legends, art and literature, dance and music, not just in Britain but all around the world. Stephen Moss delves into the facts and fiction about these charismatic birds, describes their seasonal life cycle and examines their central role in our history and culture. He also includes stories about 'wild swans' - Whooper and Bewicks - that visit us in winter; and the Black Swan of Australia. 
 
 'A superb naturalist and writer' Chris Packham 
 
 'Moss has carved out an enviable niche as a chronicler of the natural world' Daily Mail

The Swan

A Biography

From the bestselling author of The Robin: A Biography 
 
The wren is a paradox of a bird. On the one hand wrens are ubiquitous. They are Britain's most common bird, with 8.5 million breeding pairs and have by far the loudest song in proportion to their size. They also thrive up and down Britain and Ireland: from the smallest city garden to remote offshore islands, blustery moors to chilly mountains. 
 
Yet many people, particularly a younger generation, are not sure if they have ever seen a wren. Perhaps because the wren is so tiny, weighing just as much as two A4 sheets of paper, and so busy, always on the move, more mouse than bird. 
 
However if we cast our eyes back to recent history wrens were a mainstay of literary, cultural and popular history. The wren was on postage stamps and the farthing, it featured in nursery rhymes and greetings cards, poems and rural 'wren hunts', still a recent memory in Ireland particularly. 
 
With beautiful illustrations throughout, this captivating year-in-the-life biography reveals the hidden secrets of this fascinating bird that lives right on our doorstep. 
 
PRAISE FOR STEPHEN MOSS: 
 
'A superb naturalist and writer' Chris Packham 
 
'Inspired, friendly and blessed with apparently limitless knowledge' Peter Marren 
 
'Moss has carved out an enviable niche as a chronicler of the natural world' Daily Mail

The Wren

Guy Browning

1. Everyone loves a list 
2. And this is a novel, told entirely in lists. 
3. Have you ever wondered what your life might look like in little lists? 
4. It might look something like this 
 
This funny, surprisingly moving novel follows the everyday life of our list-making hero, from the very first bullet points at 10, through school days, first crushes, teenage kisses and first dates, clumsy sexual encounters and university, early career, serious falling-in-love and marriage, kids, divorce, professional meltdown and resurrection, frightening online dating, and miraculous new love again, aged 50. 
 
If you read more lists than books, then this might just be the novel for you. 
 
For fans of Adrian Mole and Nick Hornby and readers of all ages, MY LIFE IN LISTS is a novel for the listicle generation, a book to tickle funny bones and move hearts in equal measure.

My Life in Lists

Sam Leith

Edith Pritchett

A parliament of fools, or a confederacy of dunces? Blethering celebrities and blundering politicians, royal babies and right royal cock-ups, milkshake madness and vegan sausage rolls - and, of course, the long and winding road to Brexit. 
 
If ever the times were ripe for a return to the high days of Augustan satire, it’s now – and the Spectator’s literary editor Sam Leith provides it. 
 
Our Times in Rhymes is a waspish, affectionate and very funny look at the state of our nation as it – let's be even-handed - teeters on the cliff-edge of a marvellous opportunity. Here is all the insanity and inanity of 2019, month by cherishable month, rendered in galloping comic verse and paired with satirical drawings by the brilliant cartoonist Edith Pritchett. 
 
It makes the perfect Christmas stocking filler for anyone who needs a good laugh at the damnable times we live in.

Our Times in Rhymes

Being a Prosodical Chronicle of Our Damnable Age

Tom Gilbey

‘I like to talk about wine the way normal humans talk about things they love – it’s not about showing off how many fancy wine terms I know. The point is to share something I love with someone else in a way that makes them want to love it too.’ 
 
Thirsty is the story of Tom Gilbey (The Wine Guy) and his life in wine, a celebration of the bleedin’ beautiful people who make it, and a history of his family’s love affair with winemaking – and let’s be honest, drinking – since the 1800s. 
 
Learn how to: 
- read a label (even if you can’t speak the language) 
- talk wine without sounding naff 
- choose wine in a restaurant 
- explain why some wine smells like your granny’s cardigan 
 
You’ll travel with Tom to chateaux in France’s Beaujolais, vineyards in England’s Thames Valley, wineries in Australia’s Hunter Valley, and the unsung aisles of Sainsbury’s, Waitrose, Majestic and – rest in peace – Oddbins. 
 
Along the way you’ll discover 100 Wine Wanker approved bottles: wines for friendships and long lunches, for spring afternoons and autumn evenings. Whether yours is a Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Kylie Minogue’s rosé or – God forbid – orange wine, Tom will help you find the good shit, always. 
 
Let Tom show you how this gloriously gluggable elixir is, at its heart, made to bring pleasure, and that there is no right or wrong to enjoy wine: just go for it.

Thirsty

100 Great Wines and Stories by the Wine Guy

Rao Pingru

A graphic memoir like no other: the true story of a marriage in China that spanned the twentieth century, told in vibrant, original paintings and prose. 
 
WINNER OF AN ENGLISH PEN AWARD 
 
Rao Pingru was a twenty-six-year-old soldier when he first saw the beautiful Mao Meitang. One glimpse of her through a window as she put on lipstick was enough to capture Pingru’s heart. It was a moment that sparked a union that would last almost sixty years. 
 
But when Meitang passed away in 2008, Pingru realised that their marriage and all the small moments and memories of a life together, would be lost to history. And so at the age of eighty-eight, in an outpouring of love and grief, Pingru began to paint. 
 
Our Story is a memorial to Pingru and Meitang’s epic romance, told through Pingru’s exquisitely detailed paintings and handwritten notes. We see Pingru and Meitang through the decades, through both poverty and good fortune, and as they grow so too does China: the nation undergoing political turmoil and seismic cultural change. 
 
A tale both tragic and inspiring, of enduring love and simple values, Our Story is an old-fashioned romance that unfolds within the rush of a rapidly changing nation. A love letter, a work of folk art and a historical testament, Our Story is a truly unique graphic memoir. 
 
'A beautifully warm, personal, human story of life, love and family' Forbidden Planet

Our Story

A Memoir of Love and Life in China

Joycelyn Longdon

A lyrical, deeply researched and original work of narrative non-fiction that examines 6 key pillars: RAGE, IMAGINATION, INNOVATION, THEORY, HEALING and CARE to showcase the wonder of the natural world and inspire us to view climate action as a shared goal rather than individual burden. 
 
University of Cambridge AI, environmental justice and bioacoustics researcher and educator Joycelyn Longdon reveals how extraordinary acts from ordinary people of colour - from the US to the UK, Brazil to Iran, Ghana to Ethiopia - paved the way for today's technological advances. Merging ancient wisdom with modern tools, she invites readers to embrace new roles in the fight for sustainability beyond activist and observer, guiding us back to our roots.

Natural Connection

What indigenous wisdom & marginalised people teach us about environmental action

Lucy Mangan

A love letter to all those who come alive when they pull a new treasure off the shelf, stay up late reading just one more page and pack their suitcases with clothes wedged between books instead of the other way around. 
 
From exploring the stacks as a student, to finding her feet as a bookseller-turned-journalist, falling for a fellow bookworm in an independent bookshop, escaping the doldrums of new motherhood and finally building a (book) room of her own, Bookish is the story of a life spent falling in love with reading. Bookworm author Lucy Mangan chronicles her years of buying, borrowing and hoarding everything from well-worn literary classics to steamy bonkbusters, gripping thrillers, young adult novels and other not-so-guilty pleasures. 
 
Brimming with literary insights, wry observations and stellar recommendations, this book is an ode to the bookish places – from local libraries to bookstores big and small – and the stories that make us who we are.

Bookish

How Reading Shapes Our Lives

A Love Letter to Reading

Gareth May

In his brilliant first book, 150 Things Every Man Should Know, Gareth May instructed the young man about town in vital life lessons such as how to undo a girl's bra with one hand, and how to down a pint without being sick. 
 
All well and good. But there comes a time in most young men's lives when, their education completed, they decide to spread their wings and travel to foreign climes. 
 
From international dining etiquette to the safe ascension of Kilimanjaro, and surviving a shark attack to cooling cans of beer in the Savanna sun, Gareth's simple and brilliantly executed new book is a must-have for the modern man setting off, passport in hand, for the first time. 
 
Covering every possible travel scenario - from must-visit nudist colonies, to tips on how to organise the ultimate stag weekend abroad; from where to experience the most exhilarating white water raft run in the world, to how to get married by an Elvis-lookalike in Vegas - never before has a book listed how to read global currency rates on one page, and how to drink snake blood in Cambodia on the next. 
 
With comprehensive cool city guides for the young dude and the most unexpected travel tips you're likely to read anywhere, armed with Man of the World in their backpack, blokes everywhere will be able not only to woo their woman in Paris but also tip the bellboy accordingly. This is the ultimate tailored for testosterone travel guide.

Man of the World

Hazel Mead

What is the most personal thing you've asked the Internet? Illustrator Hazel Mead takes turns to Big Data to uncover what we secretly ask search engines about our relationships, bodies and identities. With hundreds of demystifying and empowering illustrations, she offers a fun, shamefree and inclusive guide to life's big questions. This is the emotional curriculum you'll wish was taught in every classroom. 
 
What if there was a book that explored the big lessons of life? Sure, formal education will equip you with requisite knowledge on photosynthesis. But when it comes to spotting the green flags in a prospective partner, navigating yours or a loved one's grief, knowing how to prepare for a cervical screening, or to practicing self-defence, it can feel like total guesswork. 
 
Using the latest research, interviews with experts, and her signature visuals, Hazel interrogates the taboos that shame us into silence. Since the answers to life's big questions are rarely black and white, she answers over 100 of them in full colour, with accessible design and compassionate reflections. Why Aren't We Talking About This?! is an exploration of the things we're too afraid to ask but desperately need to know and talk about for greater acceptance of others and ourselves. It's a bold invitation to forget normal and embrace what makes you unique.

WHY AREN'T WE TALKING ABOUT THIS?!

An Inclusive Illustrated Guide to Life in 100+ Questions

Suleika Jaouad

Suleika Jaouad’s journal has been a lifelong companion: marking life’s great occasions and helping her ride its roughest waves, through illness, heartbreak, and the deepest oceans of uncertainty. Like Suleika, many consider it a transformative and often vulnerable journey of self-discovery. The Book of Alchemy explores this art and offers companionship and support to those seeking to navigate the in-between. It gives readers invaluable tools to engage with discomfort and peel back the layers shrouding their truest selves.

The Book of Alchemy

A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life

Erin Moore

In this brilliant transatlantic survival guide, Erin Moore examines the key differences between the British and the Americans through their language. 
 
You’ll discover why Americans give – and take – so many bloody compliments and never, ever say ‘shall’ (well hardly ever), as well as what the British really mean when they say ‘proper’, why they believe it is better to be bright than clever and how the word sorry has at least eight different meanings for them.

That's Not English

Britishisms, Americanisms and What Our English Says About Us

Mario Gmurr

Learn something new about yourself today. 
 
What does your workspace say about you? The most revealing clues aren’t on your desk or on your computer. Rather, they’re those paperclips in your bin – the ones you’ve fiddled with, probably without even realising it. 
 
When psychiatrist Mario Gmür started scrutinising paperclips bent by his patients, he found that they actually reveal multitudes about the creator’s character, quirks and hidden desires. Are you an optimist? A pushover? A Lothario? A bully? 
 
After studying the links between paperclip shapes and distinct character types, Gmür has created a delightful collection of quizzes and psychological profiles that allow readers to discover their innermost truths using these miniature metallic sculptures. 
 
Part Rorschach test and part humorous horoscope, The Paperclip Test offers an amusing yet astonishingly insightful personality gauge for anyone who has ever bent a paperclip without thinking about what secrets that tiny shape might hold.

Showing results for: ‘Neil MacGregor’

Filters

Category

Publication Date

Format

Series

Imprint

Follow penguin

Follow ladybird

Follow puffin

Sign up to the Penguin newsletter