With an introduction by Colm Toibin Ten years ago, I began to explore the country on which I was supposed to be an authority.. . France is a country famous for its intellectuals, its philosophers & writers, its fashion, food & wine. & yet the notion of `the French` as one nation is relatively recent &
- historically speaking
- quite misleading. In order to discover the `real` past of France, Graham Robb realised it was not only necessary to go back in time, but also to go at a slower pace than modern life generally allows. The Discovery of France, illuminating, engrossing & full of surprises, is the result of Robb`s 14, 000 mile journey across France on a bicycle. Winner of both the Duff Cooper & the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje prizes, The Discovery of France is a modern non-fiction classic, a literary exploration of a remarkable nation. From maps & migration to magic, language & landscape, it reveals a France few will recognize. ` An extraordinary journey of discovery` Daily Telegraph ` Robb`s concise & fast-paced writing pedals along with never a dull paragraph.. .dazzling` Sunday Times

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Mario Vargas-Llosa, the Nobel Prize for Literature winner & author of The War of the End of the World, The Feast of the Goat, Aunt Julia & the Scriptwriter & Conversation in the Cathedral brings us a story set in the Peruvian town of Piura. This tale is about love & betrayal, a younger generation that can no longer tell the difference between reality & desire, & the destructive effects of media fantasies. Felicito Yanaque has raised himself from poverty to ownership of a trucking business. He receives a threatening letter demanding protection money. The police don`t take him seriously, Felicito refuses to pay up & gets sucked into a nightmare. He becomes a reluctant public hero. Then his mistress is kidnapped, & matters become seriously complicated. & he finds that his troubles have begun very close to home. His fate is interwoven with the story of Rigoberto, a wealthy Lima insurance executive. His boss & old friend, Ismael, suddenly announces that he is marrying his housekeeper, a chola from Piura, to the consternation of his twin sons, a pair of brutal wasters. Ismael escapes to Europe with his new bride, leaving Rigoberto to face the twins` threats, & their claims that he connived with a scheming woman to rob an old man of his fortune. Rigoberto is hounded by the press & TV. Meanwhile, his only son is having visions of a mysterious stranger who may or may not be the devil. ...

Felicito Yanaque has raised himself from poverty to ownership of a trucking business. His two sons work for him. He receives a threatening letter demanding protection money. The police don`t take him seriously, Felicito refuses to pay up & gets sucked into a nightmare. He becomes a reluctant public hero. Then his mistress is kidnapped, & matters become seriously complicated. & he finds that his troubles have begun very close to home. His fate is interwoven with the story of Rigoberto, a wealthy Lima insurance executive. His boss & old friend, Ismael, suddenly announces that he is marrying his housekeeper, a chola from Piura, to the consternation of his twin sons, a pair of brutal wasters. Ismael escapes to Europe with his new bride, leaving Rigoberto to face the twins` threats, & their claims that he connived with a scheming woman to rob an old man of his fortune. Rigoberto is hounded by the press & TV. Meanwhile, his only son is having visions of a mysterious stranger who may or may not be the devil... ...

They said it couldn`t be done. Well, it has been done, proving them wrong once again. After years of research, cunningly contrived in as many minutes, the Discworld has its map. It takes full account of the historic & much documented expeditions of the Discworld`s feted (or at least fated) explorers: General Sir Roderick Purdeigh, Lars Larsnephew, Llamedos Jones, Lady Alice Venturi, Ponce da Quirm &, of course, Venter Borass. Now travellers on this circular world can see it all: from Klatch to the Ramtops, from Cori Celesti to the Circle Sea, from Genua to Bhangbhangduc. The great cities of Hunghung, Pseudopolis, Al Khali &, of course, Ankh-Morpork are placed with loving care upon this world which is carried through space by Great A` Tuin. ...

Spain has had a long history of exiles. Since the destruction of the last Muslim territories in Granada in 1492, wave after wave of its people have been driven from the country. ” The Disinherited” paints a vivid picture of Spain`s diverse exiles, from Muslims, Jews & Protestants to Liberals, Socialists & Communists, artists, writers & musicians. Kamen describes the ways in which many of these expelled citizens have shaped Spanish culture
- or impoverished it by leaving
- & enriched their adopted homes through their creative responses to exile & to encounters with new worlds, Picasso, Miro, Dali & Bunuel among them. Henry Kamen`s compelling & sympathetic account tells the story of their incalculable impact on the world.

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In January 2017, Donald Trump signed an executive order stopping entry to the United States from seven predominantly Muslim countries & dramatically cutting the number of refugees allowed to resettle in the United States each year. The American people spoke up, with protests, marches, donations, & lawsuits that quickly overturned the order. But the refugee caps remained. In The Displaced, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Viet Thanh Nguyen, himself a refugee, brings together a host of prominent refugee writers to explore & illuminate the refugee experience. Featuring original essays by a collection of writers from around the world, The Displaced is an indictment of closing our doors, & a powerful look at what it means to be forced to leave home & find a place of refuge. ...

Growing up in a strict religious family between the wars, Annie Lang wasn t convinced that Jesus was such a great friend to little children. Or why would he have snatched away her lovely mother when she was only six? Witness to disturbing events that no one can explain, Annie is confused & sister Bea can t help. Six years on & student Annie returns from France to find her brother in the local mental hospital, her father rarely home & her friend & Sunday School teacher missing. With the help of her childhood diary Annie turns detective to try & understand the past. Her journey leads to a discovery that she believes will ruin all their lives, unless they can somehow atone for what has happened. Impulsive, brave & lovable, Annie Lang is formidable when she takes matters into her own hands. ...

The award-winning Number One bestseller & Queen of crime fiction Val Mc Dermid carves out a stunning psychological thriller. ...

For 150 years, district nurses have been taking care of the sick in their own homes, providing health care, moral support, & wise advice to people of all ages & classes, in rural areas, towns & cities the length & breadth of the country. Begun in 1860s Liverpool by philanthropist William Rathbone, the District Nursing Movement was founded to care for the poor who had no access to medical care. This illuminating book shows how the role of the district nurse has moved on greatly since Queen Victoria`s Jubilee, expanding & developing to provide a broad range of invaluable health care services in the community. ...

” In Vendela Vida`s taut & mesmerizing novel of ideas, a woman travels to Casablanca, Morocco, on mysterious business. While checking into her hotel, the woman is robbed of her wallet & passport-all of her money & identification. Though the police investigate, the woman senses an undercurrent of complicity between the hotel staff & the authorities-she knows she`ll never recover her possessions. Stripped of her identity, she feels burdened by the crime yet strangely liberated by her sudden freedom to be anyone she chooses. A chance encounter with a movie producer leads to a job posing as a st&-in for a well-known film star. The star reels her in deeper, though, & soon she`s inhabiting the actress`s skin off set, too-going deeper into the Casablancan night & further from herself. & so continues a strange & breathtaking journey full of unexpected turns, an adventure in which the woman finds herself moving further & further away from the person she once was. Told with vibrant, lush detail & a wicked sense of humor, The Diver`s Clothes Lie Empty is part literary mystery, part psychological thriller-an unforgettable novel that explores free will, power, & a woman`s right to choose not her past, perhaps not her present, but certainly her future. This is Vendela Vida`s most assured & ambitious novel yet.” ...