Mike Pannett used to work the beat in Central London
- tackling drugs & knife crime
- so when he moved back to Yorkshire he

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The young Jon Bull is sent by Westminster to Waless last remaining Welsh-speaking town to see why all attempts to bring it into the twenty-first century have failed. Waiting for him is the beautiful but embittered Gwalia... Not Quite White explores the complex tensions that spit & seethe when English colonialism & Welsh nationalism go head to head. It is a passionate defence of cultural & political identity & a considered plea for tolerance. It is also a sustained attack on the forces of small-town bigotry & corruption. But above all it is an acknowledgement of the subtleties & ambiguities that exist in even the most entrenched attitudes. ...

In Not Quite Worlds End" Simpson offers a lively & upbeat look at the challenges & the changes the world has gone through in his life & long career. In it he looks at the world & takes the perhaps surprising view that its actually not nor will be the end of the world. His vivid prose his clear-sightedness & the wonderful anecdotes about the many strange people & places he has come across
- from emperors to movie stars from Chelsea to China
- all add up to a richly satisfying read. & with his long experience & his remarkable ability to explain whats really going on out there he offers us all a crumb of comfort in desperate times. He is a very fine journalist
- Nelson Mandela. Inspirational anecdotal humorous & chilling. Simpsons unbiased accounts are riveting
- Bob Geldof."



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Middle-aged single mother & entertainment publicist Suzanne Portnoy leads a double life. Monday to Friday shes a professional executive devoted to her two adolescent boys. But at weekends she spends her kid-free hours having sex with a different man each time. Or multiple men. Picking up where her first book The Butcher the Baker the Candlestick Maker: An Erotic Memoir" left off this memoir finds Suzanne both confronting the consequences & enjoying the fruits of her notoriety as the bestselling author of an erotic memoir. From a coked-up rock star to an uptight millionaire to a hunky stripper Suzanne attracts plenty of men wherever she goes particularly once they learn her identity. But just when Suzanne grows reconciled to the possibility of never settling down she meets a man who wants to be more than one of her friends. While debating whether to unload her portfolio of men for the potential one true lover this most unconventional woman ponders the most conventional question: has she found the fabled Mr. Right or will he prove to be just another in a long string of Mr. Wrongs?" ...

Last year Stephen Pile attempted to deliver a daring blow to the success ethic that so pervades Western culture. To his dismay The Ultimate Book of Heroic Failures" became the " Sunday Times" Humour Book of the Year. Nothing daunted Stephen returns with a new selection which brings together the very best of his original classic titles
- " The Book of Heroic Failures" & " The Return of Heroic Failures". The heartwarming news that stays news is that there really is no limit to what humanity can achieve as we move onwards & downwards to ever more immortal & breathtaking feats of incompetence. " The Not Terribly Good Book of Heroic Failures" lovingly chronicles the all-time heroes who have been so bad at things that they shine as beacons for future generations. It is hard not to feel boundless admiration for example for the fifty Mexican convicts who dug an escape tunnel out of their jail & came up in the courtroom where many of them had been sentenced. Or for the worlds worst tourist who spent three days in New York believing he was in Rome."
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Lisa Maxwell the newest addition to the quick-witted Loose Women team is a bundle of fun & laughter & a natural storyteller. Here for the first time she tells her astonishing story
- a tale of remarkable spirit incredible experiences & family secrets. A much-loved presenter & respected actress Lisa got her first onscreen role at the age of just 11. In the eighties she became a TV presenter on series like Splash & No Limits interviewing the icons of the time & partying with the likes of George Michael Robert Downey Junior & Michael Hutchence before moving more firmly into comedy appearing on sketch shows like The Les Dennis Laughter Show The Russ Abbott Show & her very own self-titled The Lisa Maxwell Show. She narrowly missed out on the part of Daphne in a little show called Frazier. & then for seven years played the part of The Bills DI Sam Nixon before joining Loose Women in 2009 where she quickly became an audience favourite. But behind the fun glamour & onscreen success is a south London girl hiding the secret shes been taught never to talk about. An illegitimate child brought up in Elephant & Castle Lisas life very nearly took a different path. Lucky for her her dear old Nan had a kind heart & in a last minute change of plan she was brought home to her grandparents flat on the Rockingham Estate. With warmth honesty & humour Lisa takes us to the heart of the Elephant revealing a home filled with love laughter & drama. From having the drawer of an old chest for her bed to hiding from the Tally Man waiting for her Nan outside the betting shop to dabbling in petty crime discovering her dad was still alive & always looking for a way to be in the lime light Lisa has written a colourful memoir of life as a daughter a granddaughter a mother & an actress.
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As everyone knows football is a funny old game though few have gone out of their to make it as amusing as Ian Holloway. His footballing ethos since taking over as manager at Blackpool has been constantly to entertain
- making them everyones second favourite team in the Barclays Premiership this season. Off the pitch he is at least as entertaining
- offering a brand of off-the-wall philosophical musings on the game of football that has made his post match press conferences the most anticipated part of the week for many fans. Not the Best Looking Bird presents Ian Holloway at his career-spanning funniest.

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Harvey Pekars mother was a Zionist by way of politics. His father was a Zionist by way of faith. Whether handing out communist pamphlets attending Zionist picnics or going to daily Hebrew classes Pekar grew up a staunch supporter of the Jewish state. But he was also an autodidact from the moment he could read & as he grew up he confronted more & more questions his parents couldnt answer. Not the Israel My Parents Promised Me" interweaves Pekars gradual disaffection with the modern state of Israel with a comprehensive history of the Jews from biblical times to the present. Told over the course of a single day in Cleveland Ohio the graphic novel follows Pekar & the books illustrator JT Waldman as they wrestle with the mythologies & realities surrounding the Jewish homel&. Not the Israel My Parents Promised Me is a graphic memoir from the man who defined the genre." ...

This is a story about life death healing & cancer. It is a story about a doctor diagnosed with a brain tumour in his early 30s who started a crusade to inform people about the disease & inspire them to take responsibility for their health. It is a story about a man who bravely overcame cancer against the odds. It is a story about the cancer returning & being told you only have 18 months to live. It is a story about saying goodbye. But most of all it is a story about living. In this unsentimental & humbling memoir celebrated neuroscientist & psychiatrist David Servan-Schreiber discusses his diagnosis his emotions his fears his hopes & his legacy. He recounts stories from his life & takes us with him on this extraordinary journey as he shows us not only how to live how to take care of ourselves & how to fight for survival but ultimately how to die gracefully. This inspiring & heartbreaking book will change the way you look at yourself your life & the world around you. ...

The West Highland Way is one of the finest of Britains long-distance paths. It passes through six separate mountain ranges from the tall elegant cone of Ben Lomond & the crag towers of grim Glen Coe to the seductive Mamores. But does it go onto those enticing Stobs & Bens? It does not. It runs along Glens Falloch & Finnan close to the Highlands second busiest main road & the West Highland Railway. It may be Scotlands best long-distance path: but this book intends to do better. So here they are: the mountains alongside the way. When the sun shines & the twitter of the skylarks is more appealing than the endless road noise here are Ben Lomond & Beinn Dorain the charming Campsie Fells & the mighty Mamores & the best pub-to-pub in these islands the crossing of the Black Mount from Inveroran to Glen Coe. It features mountain alternatives to all but one of the WH Way stages. It contains 5 one-day hill circuits & 2 two-day routes for warm-up trips with the tent. It offers tips for first-time backpackers. ...