The much-loved author Montague Rhodes James is best known today for his ghost stories. Their popularity has kept them in print since the first collection was issued in 1931, and they've earned a cult following. But for all this literary success, his lifetime's correspondence has remained inaccessible in a Cambridge University archive ¿ until now.This first ever collection of his personal letters has been meticulously curated, transcribed and annotated by Jamesian scholar Jane Mainley-Piddock to offer an unprecedented and overdue insight into a great and singular mind. Through notoriously illegible handwriting, we learn of James's fear of spiders and his love of cats; his musings on the work of other contemporary authors; and a whole life's thoughts on a host of subjects ¿ which shed light on the man himself: his family, his work, his relationships and preoccupations.Essential reading for any fan, *Casting the Runes *brings at last to the fore a writer adored for his fiction who himself has long remained in the shadows.
A highly acclaimed history of the popular music business, as told by its ultimate insider
Have you forgotten how to relax and enjoy yourself? Do you run around in circles mistaking dizziness for happiness? Your troubles are over, for you hold in your hands the means to take control of your destiny, to turn your back on obligation and conformity, or at least hide from them in the toilets for a bit.Shirk, Rest and Play is a comprehensive illustrated handbook for wannabe drop-outs, dreamers, drifters and gadabouts. Authors Andrew Grumbridge and Vincent Raison - along with their panoply of wastrel acquaintances - offer ruminations about finding beauty in the ordinary, lessons in tactical slacking and detailed advice on how to get more out of life by doing less.They cover all aspects of modern existence, moving smartly through Childhood, Work, Leisure, Home, Money, Health & Beauty and, of course, Death, where even amid the tears and sadness, you can still find plates of mini-burgers.This book is the call to arms you've been waiting for, giving you all the tips, shortcuts and (de)motivation you need to duck out of the system and live life on your own terms.
Jim Moir loves birds. His popularity as a painter has soared in recent years and the simplicity and sincerity of his bird paintings have given them cult status among his fans. Now, for the first time, one hundred of these beautiful paintings are gathered together in this exquisite book. It is a book to remind us why we love birds: because of the shapes, movement, colours and sounds they bring into our lives.
Thomas, son of Henry Robekyn, died 1286 after cutting off his left foot and then his left hand in a frenzy. Henry Debordesle, died 1343. Long sick with diseases, smote himself in the belly with a knife worth one penny. On 11 August 1267, Henry Constentin is driving a horse-drawn cart of wheat through the field of Tweedscroft. His feet slip and he falls upon 'a certain pole' of his cart 'so that it penetrates into his fundament'. From the creator of Twitter's Medieval Death Bot comes Unfortunate Ends, an illuminating collection of in-depth looks at some of the most interesting cases from medieval coroners' rolls. From the bizarre to the mundane, each death tells a tale from a dangerous time to be alive, and even to die. Coroners' rolls list every inquest held for a death by misadventure - or accident - as well as grisly murders, some witnessed by others, some only coming to light when the hidden body was found. A handful of these deaths rise to the top, their tales too ridiculous or heartbreaking to not be spun again for the modern ear. Through death, Unfortunate Ends gives us a rare, first-hand look into everyday life for the common people of medieval England.
Celebrating twenty years of the spoof local newspaper from the writers behind the Ladybird Books for Grown-Ups and Charlie Brooker''s Wipe shows
In the summer of 1992, Jason Salkey was cast in a role that would change his life forever. Sharpe's Rifles, a Napoleonic war drama, was to be shot in the Crimean Peninsula. Little did the producers know that they would be sending Jason and the crew to film in a rapidly disintegrating Soviet Union. There they faced near-starvation and danger round every corner as they set about creating one of Britain's most successful and critically acclaimed television programmes.From Crimea with Love documents the mishaps, blunders, incompetence and downright corruption that made Sharpe's Rifles go down in British television folklore for its unique tales of hardship. Follow the cast through intense depravation and constant catastrophe until they become every bit the jaded, battle-hardened soldiers we saw on screen. Tapping into his diaries, photo journals and video log, Jason brings you an eye-opening, jaw-dropping insider's account of one of the best-loved shows ever made.
This ''modernist masterpiece'' (Max Porter) from award-winning musician Matthew Herbert is a description of an imagined album that challenges how we hear the world around us
a mother of five whose partner kidnapped her children and is now a meth addict, living in the tunnels within sight of the glittering lights of the city; There are horror stories in every city, but these things aren't just happening in Las Vegas... they're happening because of it.
'After you've read this book you'll never look at Degas' sculpture in the same way again' David ShrigleyParis, 1878. Ballet dancer Marie van Goethem is chosen by the unknown artist Edgar Degas to model for his new sculpture: Little Dancer, aged fourteen years.But Marie is much more than she seems. By day she's a 'little rat' of the opera, contorting her starving body to entertain the bourgeoisie. By night she's plotting to overthrow the government and reinstate the Paris Commune, to keep a promise she made to her father, a leading Communard who died in the street massacres of 1871.As Marie watches the troubling sculpture of herself come to life in Degas' hands, she falls further into the intoxicating world of bohemian, Impressionist Paris, a world at odds with the socialist principles she has vowed to uphold.With the fifth Impressionist Exhibition looming, a devastating family secret is uncovered which changes everything for both Marie and Degas. As Degas struggles to finish his sculpture and the police close in on Marie, she must decide where her loyalties lie and act to save herself, her family and the Little Dancer.
This richly illustrated anthology gathers together classic short stories from masters of supernatural fiction including M. R. James, Sheridan Le Fanu and Arthur Machen, alongside lesser-known voices in the field including Eleanor Scott and Margery Lawrence, and popular writers less bound to the horror genre, such as Thomas Hardy and E. F. Benson.These are damnable tales, selected and beautifully illustrated by Richard Wells. They stalk the moors at night, the deep forests, cornered fields and dusky churchyards, the narrow lanes and old ways of these ancient places, drawing upon the haunted landscapes of folk-horror - a now widely used term first applied to a series of British films from the late 1960s and 1970s: Witchfinder General (1968), Blood on Satan's Claw (1971), and The Wicker Man (1973).But as this collection shows, writers of uncanny fiction were dabbling in the dark side of folklore long before. These twenty-two stories take the reader beyond the safety and familiarity of the town into the isolated and untamed wilderness. Unholy rites, witches' curses, sinister village traditions and ancient horrors that lurk within the landscape all combine to remind us that the shiny modern, urban world might not have all the answers...
Joe Bovshover had chosen the park. He knew that this full moon he'd become wolf. He knew the deer in the park would make easy prey. The deer lived simply and were soft, there was no wildness to these city animals, but there was in Joe. . .It's now 1980, and Joe, the skinhead werewolf, once again stalks London. Lights in the night, burning red and white; amidst aggro, proper shmatta, and mod witches.Tim Wells brings us another short, sharp instalment of his pulp skinhead-punk-horror series.
This landmark, first-of-its-kind anthology presents a groundbreaking perspective on women's writing about the natural world and our place within it
'A beautiful love letter to the diaspora, Haramacy is an essential collection of essays that push the conversation forward on issues to do with visibility, mental health, race and class' Nikesh Shukla'A superbly crafted collection of essays. Often elegant, often visceral, always essential' Musa OkwongaJournalism in the UK is 94 per cent white and 55 per cent male, while only 0.4 per cent of journalists are Muslim and 0.2 per cent are Black. The publishing industry's statistics are equally dire. Many publications will use British Black, Indigenous People of Colour when it's convenient; typically, when the region the writer represents is topical and newsworthy. Otherwise, their voices are left muted. Haramacy amplifies under-represented voices. Tackling topics previously left unspoken, this anthology offers a space for writers to explore ideas that mainstream organisations overlook. Focusing on the experiences of twelve Middle Eastern and South Asian writers, the essays explore visibility, invisibility, love, strength and race, painting a picture of what it means to feel fractured - both in the UK and back home. Appreciating both heritage and adopted home, the anthology highlights the various shades that make up our society. The title, Haramacy, is an amalgamation of the Arabic word 'haram', meaning indecent or forbidden, and the English word 'pharmacy', implying a safe, trustworthy space that prescribes the antidote to ailments caused by intersectional, social issues. The book features contributions by novelists, journalists, and artists including Aina J. Khan, Ammar Kalia, Cyrine Sinti, Joe Zadeh, Kieran Yates, Nasri Atallah, Nouf Alhimiary, Saleem Haddad and Sanjana Varghese, as well as essays by editors Dhruva Balram, Tara Joshi and Zahed Sultan.
KEY SELLING POINTS.Contains over 100 original full-colour artworks.The author is a regular contributor to Caught by the River, and has collaborated with writer Gary Budden (author of London Incognita)* *on two books about the Kentish landscape.He has a highly engaged following on Twitter. For fans of unconventional writing about the British landscape: Jonathan Meades, Iain Sinclair, Gareth E. Rees (Car Park Life, Unofficial Britain), The Unofficial Countryside by Richard Mabey, Edgelands by Paul Farley and Michael Symmons Roberts.
Michael Rosen is the former British Children's Laureate and the bestselling author of numerous classic books for children, including We're Going on a Bear Hunt, which has sold over 8 million copies worldwide.His YouTube channel, 'Kids' Poems and Stories with Michael Rosen', has over 600k subscribers and more than 100 million views and he has over 250k followers on Twitter.This is a graphic novel adaptation of one of his best-loved stories, originally published in 2005 with illustrations by Quentin Blake.
Folk tales take us beyond our own boundaries into unknown lands. Yet within these adventures, riddles and enchantments we find our common ground and shared humanity. Lost & Found is Elizabeth Garner's own retelling of fifteen treasured folk tales that have nurtured, sustained, terrified and enthralled her in equal measure. Some of the stories are taken from the books of her childhood, some are remembered, and others she has discovered in her reading over the years.Garner's tapestry of words is adorned with engraver Phoebe Connolly's beautiful woodcut illustrations that bring the friends and foes of folklore to life. Included in the collection are stories such as 'The Riddle of the Crossroads', 'The Twisted Oak', 'The Wits of the Whetstone' and many more. With a varied and diverse cast of characters, Garner's retellings expertly traverse a myriad of mysterious worlds; always staying true to tradition, while simultaneously speaking to modern times.This illustrated collection is another link in the chain between storyteller, listener and our shared ancestors: tales from the past, told to enrich the present and to be carried forward into the future.
'Ian Beck sees things in these quiet roads and suburbs and captures them for us and for a future time when we shall all be gone. What mysterious stillness haunts these houses! I love them all' Philip Pullman
Dan Fogarty, an Irishman living in England, is looking after his sister Una, now seventy and suffering from dementia in a care home in Margate. From Dan's anarchic account, we gradually piece together the story of the Fogarty family. How the parents are exiled from a small Irish village and end up living the hard immigrant life in England. How Dots, the mother, becomes a call girl in 1950s Soho. How a young and overweight Una finds herself living in a hippie squat in Kilburn in the early 1970s. How the squat appears to be haunted by vindictive ghosts who eat away at the sanity of all who live there. And, finally, how all that survives now of those sex-and-drug-soaked times are Una's unspooling memories as she sits outside in the Margate sunshine, and Dan himself, whose role in the story becomes stranger and more sinister. Poguemahone is a wild, free-verse monologue, steeped in music and folklore, crammed with characters, both real and imagined, on a scale Patrick McCabe has never attempted before.
In the digital age, Sunday Times bestselling author Tom Cox remains a prolific and committed notebook keeper. This selection, culled from twelve years worth of writing, is filled with his unfiltered thoughts on nature, music, childhood, books and much more
Following the story wherever it goes can take you to some unexpected placesWokelore is a thought-provoking collection of more than fifty articles, essays and stories you won't find anywhere else. The first book from the independent and fearless newspaper Byline Times, it transports you from 1970s Europe to Putin's Russia, from the days of empire in Kenya to Brexit Britain, shedding light on America's political crisis and exposing the UK's disastrous handling of COVID-19. The work collected here - from an impressive range of writers including Anthony Barnett, Otto English, Misha Glenny, Bonnie Greer, Salena Godden, Peter Oborne and Musa Okwonga - explores race, identity, disinformation, populism, the state of journalism, threats to our democracy and more, each piece offering a fresh take and new ideas.
'Remarkably brought together, heartwarming and uplifting . . . showing that despite differences in age and background, geography and lifestyle, there is so much that binds up, so much we share' Kit de Waal'A stimulating collection of women's voices to help inspire us for the next 100 years' Elizabeth Day100 Voices is an anthology of writing by women across the country on what achievement means for them, and how they have come to find their own voice. Featuring poetry, fiction and memoir, the pieces range from notes on making lemon curd, to tales of marathon running and riding motorbikes, to accounts of a refugee eating English food for the first time, a newlywed learning her mother tongue and a woman rebuilding her life after an abusive relationship. The poignant, funny and inspiring stories collected here are as varied and diverse as their authors, who include established names such as Louise Jensen, Sabrina Mahfouz, Yvonne Battle-Felton and Miranda Keeling alongside a host of exciting new writers. Taken together, they build a picture of what it's really like to be a woman in the UK today.
'A career-changing book, packed with real, lived-in wisdom and advice not just about working but really living as a self-employed person. If you're thinking about going freelance, read this first' Oliver Franklin-Wallis'Invaluable ... A wonderful, warts and all book written in a friendly, approachable manner. I wish I'd had a book like this years ago' Simon BrewSelf-employment has never been a more popular career path, and for thousands of writers, freelancing is becoming an appealing - and sometimes necessary - option. But alongside the benefits of a freelance career come very real obstacles that are daunting for anyone going it alone. We all need some guidance. Sian Meades-Williams - freelance writer, editor and founder of the Freelance Writing Jobs newsletter - knows all too well that while freelancing doesn't come with hard and fast rules, sometimes there is a wrong way to go about things. Drawing on her extensive experience and dozens of industry interviews, she pulls back the curtain with tips on how to get out of your pyjamas and pitch effectively, find new ideas and hone your voice, build a network of contacts, deal with edits and editors, cope with rejection, know your worth and get more money for your work, manage your finances, deal with late payments and file your taxes, care for your physical and mental health and ultimately find a path to success that makes you happy. Inspiring, optimistic and - above all - real, The Pyjama Myth is an essential, practical survival guide for anyone embarking on their career, established freelance writers and everyone in between.
A comprehensive practical guide to recycling in your home, written by a leading sustainability expert
Engaging and enriching understanding of illness and disability, written by an author who lives with Multiple Sclerosis and has experienced living with disability herself.
1 year, 8,500 road miles, 26 weird and wonderful British subcultures: Lucy Leonelli leaves the corporate world behind on a quest to discover her most authentic self
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