Cots & car seats, nappies & nurseries, babygros & booties... as any new parent will tell you, having a baby can be a costly business. In fact, according to a recent survey, the cost of raising a child is a staggering £186, 000, pricier than buying a house.

But, having a baby need not mean financial ruin. Elen Lewis's timely & indispensable The Resourceful Mum

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Wales were written off as no-hopers at the start of the 2008 Six Nations. They had failed to reach the World Cup quarter-finals the previous October & had reacted by appointing their 13th coach in 19 years, New Zealander Warren Gatl&.

On the opening weekend, success appeared unlikely when they trailed World Cup finalists England at Twickenham by ten points at half-time. Their second-half comeback, to earn their first victory at the ground for 20 years, set them on their way, & there was no looking back. In a blistering campaign, they set a new Six Nations record by conceding just two tries in their five matches.

The Resurrection Men looks back over the glorious 2008 tournament but also examines the reasons why the foundations laid by Gatland look more secure than those established by Mike Ruddock before his controversial departure from the role less than a year after the side



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Herbert Molin, a retired police officer, is living alone in a remote cottage in the vast forests of northern Sweden. He has two obsessions: one is the tango & the other is a conviction that he is being hunted, constantly pursued by 'demons'. He has no close friends, no close neighbours, & by the time his body is eventually found, Molin is almost unrecognisable. Lindman, a police officer on extended sick leave, hears of the death of his former colleague &, to take his mind off his own problems, decides to involve himself in the case. What he discovers, to his horror & disbelief, is a network of evil almost unimaginable in this remote district, & one which seems impossible to link to Molin's death. ...

Herbert Molin, a retired police officer, is living alone in a remote cottage in the vast forests of northern Sweden. He has two obsessions: one is the tango & the other is a conviction that he is being hunted, constantly pursued by 'demons'. He has no close friends, no close neighbours, & by the time his body is eventually found, Molin is almost unrecognisable. Lindman, a police officer on extended sick leave, hears of the death of his former colleague &, to take his mind off his own problems, decides to involve himself in the case. What he discovers, to his horror & disbelief, is a network of evil almost unimaginable in this remote district, & one which seems impossible to link to Molin's death. ...

Herbert Molin, a retired police officer, lives alone in a remote cottage in northern Sweden. Two things seem to consume him; his passion for the tango, & an obsession with the 'demons' he believes to be pursuing him. Early one morning shots shatter Molin's window- by the time his body is found it is almost unrecognisable. Stefan Lindman is another off-the-job police officer. On extended sick leave due to having cancer of the tongue Lindman hears about the murder of his former colleague &, in a bid to take his mind off his own problems, decides to investigate. As his investigation becomes increasingly complex it is with both horror & disbelief that Lindman uncovers links to a global web of neo-Nazi activity. Written with all the usual flair so highly commended by Mankell fans this intricate crime novel, with its cast of new characters, heralds the end of the Kurt Wallander Mysteries & yet, ultimately, it leads the story back to Wallander's Ystad where a new outstanding series of thrillers can begin. ...

The Economic Naturalist is back with a whole batch of intriguing new questions & answers, drawn from his New York Times ...

The Economic Naturalist is back with a whole batch of intriguing new questions & answers, drawn from his New York Times ...