The drawing-room was entirely English. The Office of Works had provided deep armchairs, a sofa you could have slept on, though of course nobody had ever done so, & a low glass-topped table. A young English woman arrives in the Polish People`s Republic to visit her older sister, who married a Polish soldier after the war, disappearing into a life behind the Iron Curtain. This award-winning novel of the harsh cruelties & deprivations of life in Communist Poland is told with truth, wit & understanding. ...

One of Sarah`s daughters died. But can she be sure which one? A terrifying psychological thriller perfect for fans of THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN. A year after one of their identical twin daughters, Lydia, dies in an accident, Angus & Sarah Moorcraft move to the tiny Scottish island Angus inherited from his grandmother, hoping to put together the pieces of their shattered lives. But when their surviving daughter, Kirstie, claims they have mistaken her identity
- that she, in fact, is Lydia
- their world comes crashing down once again. As winter encroaches, Angus is forced to travel away from the island for work, Sarah is feeling isolated, & Kirstie (or is it Lydia?) is growing more disturbed. When a violent storm leaves Sarah & her daughter stranded, Sarah finds herself tortured by the past
- what really happened on that fateful day one of her daughters died?


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Hans Christian Andersen was a master of other literary forms besides the fairy story
- in particular, the novella for an adult
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Helen Womack has lived in Russia under three Kremlin leaders. In all that time, what has really changed & what remains essentially the same? Better equipped than most Westerners to answer that question, Helen draws not only on her own experience but on the eyewitness accounts of ordinary Russians, who struggled to survive & make sense of the historic changes in their country from 1985 to 2012. Helen saw it all: Gorbachev`s perestroika, Yeltsin`s reforms & Putin`s return to order. She was in Russia long enough to grasp the recurring pattern of its politics. Like the weather, the political climate is cyclical. The thaw offers hope but comes with dangers; the freeze brings stability but also a shut-down. Winter is long & miserable but in the cold & dark lives the seed of spring. ...

” In 2008 the art critic Tom Lubbock was diagnosed with a brain tumour. The tumour was located in the area controlling speech & language, & would eventually rob him of the ability to speak. He died early in 2011. Marion Coutts was his wife. In short bursts of beautiful, textured prose, Coutts describes the eighteen months leading up to her partner`s death. This book is an account of a family unit, man, woman, young child, under assault, & how the three of them fought to keep it intact. Written with extraordinary narrative force & power, The Iceberg is almost shocking in its rawness. It charts the deterioration of Tom`s speech even as it records the developing language of his child. Fury, selfishness, grief, indignity & impotence are all examined & brought to light. Yet out of this comes a rare story about belonging, an `adventure of being & dying`. This book is a celebration of each other, friends, family, art, work, love & language.” ...

Welcome to the world of baking & decorating! Whether you`ve never picked up a cookie cutter or a piping nozzle before or you`re an experienced baker, this book will show you how easy it is to transform a humble cake, cupcake, biscuit, cake pop, macaron or other baked treat into a stunning creation. Juliet Stallwood runs a bakery specialising in decorated goodies & is renowned for her unique & imaginative designs. For the first time she is sharing her secrets in a book. In Chapter One of The Icing on the Cake, ` Decorate to Indulge`, you`ll find recipes for sweet comforts such as Chocolate Swirl Cupcakes & Raspberry Dust Macarons. Chapter Two, ` Decorate for Love`, revels in the art of romance, including wonderful wedding favours like Kissing Birds Biscuits & a Heart Chocolate Box Cake for your Valentine. Chapter Three, ` Decorate to Celebrate`, gives you recipes for birthday parties, baby showers & festive occasions, including teddy bear & rabbit cupcakes & a Gingerbread House. The book finishes with a flourish in Chapter Four, ` Decorate to Impress`, which is full of extravagant show-off pieces like the Ivory Corsage Wedding Cake & Magnificent Mini Cakes. There are over 50 gorgeous recipes that are completely do-able, all with practical information & clear instructions. Plus, in Chapter Five you`ll find all of Juliet`s ` Best-Kept Secrets`, from tools & equipment to techniques & downloadable templates, making this a must-have book. ...

The Icknield Way Path – 110 miles along the ‘oldest road in Britain’ linking the Ridgeway Path to the Peddars Way, following footpaths close to the ancient route & including a link into Thetford. Written walk directions are accompanied by sketch map extracts from Landranger OS maps customised with additional information, useful for walkers. The booklet

Includes:: an introduction on Geology & Geomorphology, Archaeology, Flora & Birdlife of the area. The guide divides the route into eight day walks ranging from 10 to 18 miles (16 to 29km) a day, & provides a diversion ending the route at Thetford, convenient for public transport, accommodation, & other facilities. Each day walk features several map extracts depending on the length of the trek, easy to follow directions as well as suggestions on what to see visit (like museums, villages & interesting sites), worth diversions, highlights, view points, historical facts & curiosities.

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Take your passion & make it happen with The Idea In You by Martin Amor & Alex Pellew. Do you have an idea in you? A hobby, a project, a product.. .something that could change your life? The Idea in You is a bulletproof system for finding the right idea & shaping it in to a success
- on your own terms. With advice from the people behind the likes of Pizza Pilgrims, Parkrun & Decoded, The Idea in You will show you what to expect, how to think & what to do when launching your own venture. Making your idea happen is possible
- & it will be one of the most inspiring & energizing experiences of your life. What are you waiting for? ”A wonderfully inspirational book that will help unleash your ideas on the world”. (Michael Acton Smith, creator of Moshi Monsters). ” Every great business starts with an idea.. .this book will help you find yours”. (Richard Reed, co-founder Innocent Drinks). ” It seems to me that many could-be creators simply lack support in their lives, someone genuine who listens to their ideas & pushes boundaries to make it all seem possible. Alex & Martin must recognize this, too, because their book is a generous offer of encouragement & spirit, a drum beat that stirred my creative confidence”. (Zach Klein, co-founder of Vimeo).

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This is one of the key books on modern India, acclaimed as the definitive account, & now republished with a new introduction. ” The Idea of India” was originally published to mark the 50th anniversary of India`s independence & has since established itself as a uniquely valuable & authoritative book on a key subject. At the heart of India`s self-image since independence has been `the idea of India`
- modern, technocratic, egalitarian, secular
- but the tensions between the idea & the reality have become almost intolerable. This book shows how. Reviews: ”A splendid
- & timely
- book... Spirited, combative & insight-filled... Khilnani has woven a rich analysis of contemporary India & its evolution since indepence. I am inclined to agree with [him] on the robustness & staying power of the secular idea of India”. (Amartya Sen, ” Times Literary Supplement”). ”A masterful rebuttal to all cultural romantics & religious chauvinists...[A] splendid book about definitions of the Indian nation”. (Ian Buruma, ” New York Review of Books”). ” Especially brilliant is Khilnani`s attempt to understand the changing nature of India by studying its urban constructs”. (Chitra Divakaruni, ” Los Angeles Times”).



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As with the compass needle, so people have always been most powerfully attracted northwards; everyone carries within them their own concept of north. The Idea of North is a study, ranging widely in time & place, of some of the ways in which these ideas have found expression. Peter Davidson explores the topography of north as represented in images & literature, taking in Netherlandic winter paintings of the Renaissance, German Romantic landscapes, Scandinavian Biedermeyer & twentieth-century topographical painting & printmaking. He examines a bewildering diversity of mythologies & imaginings of north, including The Snow Queen; Scandinavian Sagas; ghost-stories; Moomintrolls, Arctic exploration; the fictitious snowy kingdoms of Zembla & Naboland; Nabokov's nostalgias; Baltic midsummer; rooms in winter light; compasses & star-stones; hoar-frost; &, ice & glass. The book also traces a northward journey, describing northern rural Engl&, industrial sites, & the long emptiness of the borders, Scotland & the Highlands. He looks at the region far north of Scotl&, then moves to the Northern Netherlands & Scandinavia to explore their identifiable northernness. The last visited place is Icel&, identified by W.H. Auden & Louis Mc Neice in 1936 as furthest, most remote, most distant, most northerly'. An engaging meditation on solitude, absence & stillness, The Idea of North shows north to be a goal rather than a destination, a place of revelation that is always somewhere ultimate & austere. ...