”I was never really a big coffee drinker &, of course, tea is the thing in China. But I just can`t help myself. Also, the place I have now landed in, & my favourite, where most of my meetings & conversations seem to take place, is an eclectic mix of Chinese tea house & Western coffeeshop”. Thus, begins Notes from a Beijing Coffeeshop, in which the author provides a series of fascinating observations of today`s fast-changing China. Jon Geldart has spent the past five years in Beijing. His conversations with Chinese business leaders, opinion formers & ordinary Chinese provide deep insights into Chinese life, business & culture. Engaging & enlightening, the stories & profiles in this book are a gateway to seeing how people are really do business & living in the new China. ...

Bill Bryson has the rare knack of being out of his depth wherever he goes
- even (perhaps especially) in the land of his birth.
...

Sacco paved the way for Palestine with his powerful triptych on modern war & its innocent victims, originally published in his comic Yahoo & collected here: ` When Good Bombs Happen to Bad People` chronicles the effect of aerial warfare on civilians, from Germany & Japan in World War II to Libya in 1986; ` More Women, More Children, More Quickly` is written from a victim`s perspective, as Sacco illustrates his mother`s harrowing experiences during Italian & German WWII raids on Malta; & ` How I Loved the War`, Defeatist`s centrepiece, is Sacco`s impassioned but sardonic reflection on the Gulf War, & the surrounding propaganda & media circus. Published during the reign of Bush I, it has since acquired an even sharper relevance. Defeatist also features Sacco`s first (relatively) long-form piece, ` In the Company of Long Hair`, a hilarious roadie`s-eye view of an American punk band`s eventful European tour from Amsterdam to Madrid, as well as ` Cartoon Genius`, ` Voyage to the End of the Library`, `A Disgusting Experience`, & ` On My Day Off`, a cycle of funny & rueful autobiographic comics that display Sacco`s graphic verve to its fullest extent. Defeatist is rounded off with a large section of Sacco`s earliest, pointedly satirical strips (none of which has been collected in book form before) & new introductions & notes by the author. A combination of youthful indiscretions & mature masterworks, Notes from a Defeatist spotlights the work of a brilliant young artist as he defines the capabilities & potential of his chosen medium. ...

Having lived in the UK for nearly two decades & about to return to America, Bill Bryson finally does Britain in Notes From a Small Isl&, in a farewell tour. He takes an unstructured route around the country, travelling here & there as & when he wants, but by the end of the trip he has covered most of the country & made fun of many of the Britons ...

In 1995, before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire to move back to the States for a few years with his family, Bill Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain, a sort of valedictory tour of the green & kindly island that had so long been his home. His aim was to take stock of the nation`s public face & private parts (as it were), & to analyse what precisely it was he loved so much about a country that had produced Marmite; a military hero whose dying wish was to be kissed by a fellow named Hardy; place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey & Shellow Bowells; people who said ` Mustn`t grumble`, & ` Ooh lovely` at the sight of a cup of tea & a plate of biscuits; & Gardeners` Question Time. Notes from a Small Island was a huge number-one bestseller when it was first published, & has become the nation`s most loved book about Britain, going on to sell over two million copies. ...

Swedish cuisine is delicious, varied & often unexpected, & in this delightful book Margareta Schildt Landgren shares wonderful stories from her own Swedish kitchen along with over 100 fabulous recipes. Here Margareta

Includes:: both traditional & modern recipes, from Gravalax with Herbs & Swedish Meatballs to St Lucia Buns & Elderflower Cordial. The mouth-watering recipes are interspersed with captivating narrative on Sweden's food traditions, the development of regional cuisine, the importance of seasonal eating & celebration foods. Margareta's text is illustrated beautifully with stunning recipe & location photography from Tine Guth Linse, as well as photographs from her own archive. This is essential reading for anyone with a passion for food or a love of Swedish culture.

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Renowned Canadian artist Rachel Kelly
- now of Penzance
- has buried her past & married a gentle & loving Cornish man. Her life

...

Colonel Wyvern, stationed with the army in Madras during the height of British imperial rule, opened a cookery school upon his return to England & was a passionate enthusiast for both European & Indian cuisine. In these vivid, common-sense & entertaining writings, he gives advice on re-creating French classics in the steaming heat; describes tiffin parties & cooking while at camp; & laments the declining popularity of curry in the Raj, providing foolproof recipes for curry powder, tamarind chutney, korma & `mulligatunny` soup. With devotees including Elizabeth David, Wyvern`s unique brand of anglo-Indian cookery is still reflected in the way we eat today. ...

The 900-day siege of Leningrad (1941-44) was one of the turning points of the Second World War. It slowed down the German advance into Russia & became a national symbol of survival & resistance. An estimated one million civilians died, most of them from cold & starvation. Lydia Ginzburg, a respected literary scholar (who meanwhile wrote prose `for the desk drawer` through seven decades of Soviet rule), survived. Using her own using notes & sketches she wrote during the siege, along with conversations & impressions collected over the years, she distilled the collective experience of life under siege. Through painful depiction of the harrowing conditions of that period, Ginzburg created a paean to the dignity, vitality & resilience of the human spirit. This original translation by Alan Myers has been revised & annotated by Emily van Buskirk. This edition

Includes:: `A Story of Pity & Cruelty`, a recently discovered documentary narrative translated into English for the first time by Angela Livingstone.

...

Notes from the Jam Cupboard by Mary Tregellas is a delicious collection of over 90 easy-to-follow recipes for sweet & savoury preserves, sauces, liqueurs & breads including a few recipes for dishes that use them. After an introduction on useful equipment, key ingredients & general preserving tips the book is structured in chapters & according to fruits & vegetables. These, Luscious berries, Wholesome vegetables, Aromatic herbs & spices, Intoxicating alcoholic drinks & Breads, to name just a few, will show you how to make a wide range of products. Thus, in the Luscious berries section you will find Fruits of the forest jam, Strawberry & Redcurrant Cordial as well as Summer Fruit Trifle recipe & including a brief of its history for the curious minded. Accompanying the instructions are tantalising pictures & anecdotes that make this book more than just recipe collection, Notes from the Jam Cupboard is a friend in the kitchen you will relish. ...