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The Smart Branding Book: How to build a profitable and resilient brand (Concise Advice)
Most businesses today can readily access the required technology and talent to match competitors’ innovations and ideas quickly, making products and services similar to one another. In the modern business environment, companies instead need to build brands that consumers recognize and trust if they’re looking for sustainable, profitable growth.
This book presents in a concise fashion the latest thinking and methods for successful branding. Clear and accessible, it contains real-life examples from business, practical frameworks, and inspiring illustrations. It explains what branding really is, why a brand is so critical to success in business, and how to maximize the growth of your current and future products/services through branding.
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£6.60£9.50 -
The Social Organism: A Radical Understanding of Social Media to Transform Your Business and Life
“A must-read for business leaders and anyone who wants to understand all the implications of a social world.” — Bob Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt Disney CompanyFrom tech visionaries Oliver Luckett and Michael J. Casey, a groundbreaking, must-read theory of social media — how it works, how it’s changing human life, and how we can master it for good and for profit.
In barely a decade, social media has positioned itself at the center of twenty-first century life. The combined power of platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, and Vine have helped topple dictators and turned anonymous teenagers into celebrities overnight. In the social media age, ideas spread and morph through shared hashtags, photos, and videos, and the most compelling and emotive ones can transform public opinion in mere days and weeks, even attitudes and priorities that had persisted for decades.
How did this happen? The scope and pace of these changes have left traditional businesses — and their old-guard marketing gatekeepers — bewildered. We simply do not comprehend social media’s form, function, and possibilities. It’s time we did.
In The Social Organism, Luckett and Casey offer a revolutionary theory: social networks — to an astonishing degree–mimic the rules and functions of biological life. In sharing and replicating packets of information known as memes, the world’s social media users are facilitating an evolutionary process just like the transfer of genetic information in living things. Memes are the basic building blocks of our culture, our social DNA. To master social media — and to make online content that impacts the world — you must start with the Social Organism.
With the scope and ambition of The Second Machine Age and James Gleick’s The Information, The Social Organism is an indispensable guide for business leaders, marketing professionals, and anyone serious about understanding our digital world — a guide not just to social media, but to human life today and where it is headed next.
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£3.40£21.00 -
The Sociolinguistics of Sign Languages
This is an accessible introduction to the major areas of sociolinguistics as they relate to sign languages and deaf communities. Clearly organised, it brings together a team of leading experts in sign linguistics to survey the field, and covers a wide range of topics including variation, multilingualism, bilingualism, language attitudes, discourse analysis, language policy and planning. The book examines how sign languages are distributed around the world; what occurs when they come in contact with spoken and written languages; and how signers use them in a variety of situations. Each chapter introduces the key issues in each area of inquiry and provides a comprehensive review of the literature. The book also includes suggestions for further reading and helpful exercises. The Sociolinguistics of Sign Languages will be welcomed by students in deaf studies, linguistics and interpreter training, as well as spoken language researchers, and researchers and teachers of sign language.Read more
£30.20£63.60The Sociolinguistics of Sign Languages
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The Star Wars Archives. 1999–2005. 40th Ed.
From the moment Star Wars burst onto the screen in 1977, audiences have been in equal parts fascinated and appalled by the half-man/half-machine hybrid Darth Vader. In 1999, creator George Lucas began the story of how Anakin Skywalker grew up to train as a Jedi under Obi-Wan Kenobi, found love with the Queen of Naboo, Padmé Amidala, before turning to the dark side of his nature and becoming more machine than man.
After driving the development of nascent digital technology, George Lucas perceived how he could create new creatures and new worlds on a grander scale than ever before. He created the first digital blockbuster, and met fierce resistance when he pushed for widespread digital cameras, sets, characters, and projection – all of which are now used throughout the industry. He essentially popularized the modern way of making movies.
Made with the full cooperation of George Lucas and Lucasfilm, this second volume covers the making of the prequel trilogy ― Episode I The Phantom Menace, Episode II Attack of the Clones, and Episode III Revenge of the Sith ― and features exclusive interviews with Lucas and his collaborators. The book is profusely illustrated with script pages, production documents, concept art, storyboards, on-set photography, stills, and posters.
About the series
TASCHEN is 40! Since we started our work as cultural archaeologists in 1980, TASCHEN has become synonymous with accessible publishing, helping bookworms around the world curate their own library of art, anthropology, and aphrodisia at an unbeatable price. Today we celebrate 40 years of incredible books by staying true to our company credo. The 40 series presents new editions of some of the stars of our program―now more compact, friendly in price, and still realized with the same commitment to impeccable production.
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£18.30£23.80The Star Wars Archives. 1999–2005. 40th Ed.
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The Teacher’s Guide to Grammar
The Teacher’s Guide to Grammar is unique in focusing directly on the aspects of grammar that teachers need to know. Assuming little or no formal linguistic education, this concise and accessible book provides the necessary background knowledge required in the classroom context. There are detailed chapters on the nuts and bolts of language: words, morphology, sentences, phrases, verbs, and clauses. Other important educational issues concerned in the teaching of English are discussed: the grammatical variation that differentiates standard and non-standard English; how grammar varies in relation to the purpose and audience of a text; and the different grammatical characteristics of different languages. Throughout, illustrations are given using examples from the real spoken and written language produced by learners.Here are the essentials every English and literacy teacher needs to know about grammar in one practical and relevant guide.
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The Throne: 1,000 Years of British Coronations
From the crowning of Charles III, thirty-nine coronations have been held in Westminster Abbey since the Norman Conquest. Only two monarchs – Edward V and Edward VIII – were uncrowned, and a further twenty or so Scottish monarchs were crowned elsewhere, usually at either Scone Abbey or Holyrood Abbey.In The Throne, Ian Lloyd turns his inimitable, quick-witted style to these key events in British royal history, providing fascinating anecdotes and interesting facts: William the Conqueror’s Christmas Day crowning, during which jubilant shouts were mistaken by his guards as an assassination attempt; the dual coronation of William and Mary in 1689; the pared-back ‘Half Crown-ation’ of William IV; and the televised spectacle of Elizabeth II’s 1953 ceremony.
Detailing everything from the famous Coronation Chair made for Edward I and the Crown Jewels to the infamously uncomfortable Gold State Coach – this is a truly spectacular celebration of British culture and the ultimate pomp of royalty.
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£11.70£16.10The Throne: 1,000 Years of British Coronations
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The Times Lives Less Ordinary: Obituaries of the eccentric, unique and undefinable
Discover the lives of some of the most fascinating and unconventional characters of recent times, with 85 obituaries carefully curated from The Times archive. Be they dons, pop stars, vicars, MPs, rugby players or aristocrats, each has marched to the beat of their own drum and led a life far from ordinary.
The Times obituaries have given readers throughout the world an instant picture of a life for more than 150 years. Meet the mavericks, rogues and eccentrics from recent history, including:
- Baroness Trumpington, the codebreaking, chainsmoking, two-finger-flicking grande dame of British politics
- ‘Magic Alex’ Mardas, inventor who was the Beatles’ ‘scientific guru’
- Zsa Zsa Gábor, Hungarian socialite and actress who made a success out of celebrity and was best known for having married nine times
- John Lucas, influential philosopher who argued against determinism and had a reputation for being the most eccentric don in Oxford
- Brigadier Jack Thomas, military police commander who survived a landmine, bullet, rhino and faulty parachute and liked to watch TV with an owl on his head
- April Ashley, model, socialite and transgender rights campaigner whose reassignment surgery was part of a rollercoaster life of lovers and high drama
- Jordan Mooney, punk muse known as ‘the original Sex Pistol’ who appeared on stage with them, guided their ‘look’ and then became a veterinary nurse
Authoritative, insightful and endlessly engaging, this book is a must for anyone with an interest in the eccentrics and unique characters of recent times.
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£8.70£9.50 -
The Times Sir: The year in letters (1st edition)
The perfect Christmas gift for anyone with a shrewd sense of humour.
Decidedly absurd, and always entertaining, revel in the very best letters to The Times.
From umbrella protocol at the Coronation to growing cress in lunar soil, this collection lets you in on more than a few inside jokes from one of Britain’s longest-running correspondences.
While the other pages of the newspaper chronicle the pressing issues of the day, the Letters page often muses on the things that really matter.Sir: The year in letters is a selection of the best of these letters, an elegant and erudite display of Times readers at their most whimsical and droll.
The perfect gift for anyone with a shrewd sense of humour, this book features:
• An absurdly entertaining round up of the year’s happenings
• More than 400 letters featured in The Times, curated by Letters editor Andrew Riley
• Original cartoons by Royston RobertsonRead more
£8.50£9.50 -
The Traitors: The Interactive Game Book
It’s time to start your adventure. Get them before they get you.
Put your sleuthing skills to the test in a world of deception, betrayal, and strategy. Placed in a castle in the Scottish Highlands, you must figure out if your fellow players are Faithful or a Traitor. Can you trust Jorge, the dentist with an encyclopaedic memory and tendency to smile at everyone? Or Nina, the retiree who acts like the group’s matriarch but has a knowing glint in her eyes..? Beware, for in this treacherous game, trust is a luxury you cannot afford.
In the official book of the BAFTA-winning phenomenon, The Traitors: The Interactive Game Book, the decisions you make will decide what happens next. Take this thrilling journey on your own or with others, pooling your wisdom to make the right choices. With over 20 standalone games to play as a pair or in a group – all with cunning Traitors twists – this is the perfect gift, guaranteed to unleash hours of mischief and fun.
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£10.00£20.00The Traitors: The Interactive Game Book
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The Trauma and Attachment-Aware Classroom: A Practical Guide to Supporting Children Who Have Encountered Trauma and Adverse Childhood Experiences
Trauma can have a significant impact on the stability of a child’s development and can put additional pressures on the education staff working with them.
Showing you how you can best support children who have experienced adverse childhood experiences, this guide is full of practical guidance on how you can adapt your teaching with this group.
Covering a range of issues a child may have, such as foetal alcohol spectrum disorder, pathological demand avoidance, attachment difficulties and many more, this book provides the trauma-informed tools you need to care for these children and to give the best possible opportunities from their education.
It also addresses the difference children may experience in learning, how they behave, how teachers can ensure home–school cooperation, and how teachers can act in a trauma-informed manner.
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The UK Film Finance Handbook: How to Fund Your Film
The reader – from beginner making their first short film, through to experienced producer packagin an international multi-million pound co-production – is guided through the entire process of raising finance, in a book packed with interviews, case studies, expert tips and details of more than 200 funds.The UK Film Funding Guide 2003/04 was originally published by Shooting People and went on to sell almost 4,000 copies amongst the UKÂ’s guerilla filmmaking scene. This second edition – the UK Film Finance Handbook 2005/06 – from the same authors, is published by Netribution and has been fully revised, updated and expanded.
• All forms of production finance fully explained – including the new UK 20% tax credit
• International and co-production incentives for over 20 countries
• 101 tips and tricks from low-budget filmmakers for more affordable films
• Directory comprising over 400 film contacts across all sectors
• Top level interviews including UK Film Council execs, the head of BBC Films and Nik Powell, co-founder of Virgin and one of the UK’s most seasoned producers.Read more
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The Ultimate Politics and History Quiz
In the dark days of Covid time, confined to quarters in lockdown, the authors, William Scally and Tim Bourke retained their sanity by engaging in what proved to be an all-engrossing contest: devising a complex and broad-reaching series of questions that would brighten the pandemic days. The result was a slim volume that made a fine debut title.
Later, during 2022, Bourke and Scally reviewed and fully revised the first edition, eliminating certain material and introducing some 230 brand new questions and solutions. This culminated in the book you hold in your hand – a second edition boasting a generous make-over, with a broad range of updated puzzles for the discerning reader.
The Ultimate Politics and History Quiz contains five hundred thought-provoking queries, together with their exceptionally diverse solutions. The questions traverse the world of Irish and international politics and history, and while some of them are relatively straightforward, many pose quite the conundrum. The brain that likes a challenge will relish this book.
Tim Bourke and William Scally have both worked in various areas of industry, education and politics.
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The Undeclared War: Struggle for Control of the World’s Film Industry
An account of the way in which Hollywood has achieved almost total sovereignty over the world’s movies. It tells of a battle which has seen Hollywood establish itself as a global cultural and economic force, and in the process, devastate the national industries of many other countries.Read more
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The Underground Sea
The Underground Sea is a succinct, urgent collection of writing from John Berger’s archive. It brings together for the first time his work on mineworkers and the miners’ strikes and has been edited as a set of actions for today. Publication of The Underground Sea marks the 40th Anniversary of the 1984-5 Strike, at a time when people are rediscovering the necessity, power and possibilities of collective action.
Including transcripts and image-essay of his rarely-seen BBC programme, Germinal; interviews and his essay ‘Miners’, it places itself in the heart of a Derbyshire mining village, with reflections on the everyday life of a typical pit community. Berger grapples with the politics of witness as he studies the miners’ labour and the wider community shaped in service to this work. Reflecting on their precarity, he goes back to Zola’s novel for hope that ‘a new world is germinating underneath the ground. And when it arrives, it will crack open the earth.’
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£16.10The Underground Sea
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The Unfinished Politics of Race: Histories of Political Participation, Migration, and Multiculturalism
The Unfinished Politics of Race argues that the past few decades have seen important transformations in the politics of race. Contending that existing accounts have focused narrowly on the mainstream political sphere, this study argues that there is a need to explore the role of race more widely. By exploring the mainstream as well as transitional and alternative spheres of political mobilisation the authors stress the need to link the analysis of both local and national processes in order to make sense of the changing contours of racialised politics. The underlying concern of this study is to outline both a theoretical frame for an analysis of racial politics, and detailed empirical accounts of different arenas of political mobilisation. By exploring the unfinished politics of race, this study provides a timely reminder that the position of racial and ethnic minorities in political institutions remains deeply contested.Read more
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The Victorian House: Domestic Life from Childbirth to Deathbed
The bestselling social history of Victorian domestic life, told through the letters, diaries, journals and novels of 19th-century men and women.
The Victorian age is both recent and unimaginably distant. In the most prosperous and technologically advanced nation in the world, people carried slops up and down stairs; buried meat in fresh earth to prevent mould forming; wrung sheets out in boiling water with their bare hands. This drudgery was routinely performed by the parents of people still living, but the knowledge of it has passed as if it had never been. Running water, stoves, flush lavatories – even lavatory paper – arrived slowly throughout the century, and most were luxuries available only to the prosperous.
Judith Flanders, author of the widely acclaimed ‘A Circle of Sisters’, has written an incisive and irresistible portrait of Victorian domestic life. The book itself is laid out like a house, following the story of daily life from room to room: from childbirth in the master bedroom, through the scullery, kitchen and dining room – cleaning, dining, entertaining – on upwards, ending in the sickroom and death.
Through a collage of diaries, letters, advice books, magazines and paintings, Flanders shows how social history is built up out of tiny domestic details. Through these we can understand the desires, motivations and thoughts of the age.
Many people today live in Victorian terraces, and so the houses themselves are familiar, but the lives are not. ‘The Victorian House’ will change all that.
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£13.70£14.20 -
The View from the Train: Cities and Other Landscapes
In his classic sequence of films, Patrick Keiller retraces the hidden story of the places where we live, the cities and landscapes of our everyday lives. This collection explores the surrealist perception of the city; the relationship of architecture to film; how cities change over time, as well as an urgent portrait of post-crash Britain. The View from the Train establishes Keiller as one of the most perceptive writers and thinkers about the city, landscape and politics.Read more
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The Walls of Santiago: Social Revolution and Political Aesthetics in Contemporary Chile: 30 (Protest, Culture & Society, 30)
A photo-illustrated record of Chilean protest art, along with reflections on artistic antecedents, global protest movements, and the long shadow cast by Chile’s authoritarian past.
From October 2019 until the COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020, Chile was convulsed by protests and political upheaval, as what began as civil disobedience transformed into a vast resistance movement. Throughout, the most striking aspects of the protests were the murals, graffiti, and other political graphics that became ubiquitous in Chilean cities.
Authors Terri Gordon-Zolov and Eric Zolov were in Santiago to witness and document the protests from their very beginning. The book is beautifully illustrated with over 150 photographs taken throughout the protests. Additional photos will be available on the publisher’s website.
From the introduction:
In the conclusion, we take stock of the crisis of the nation-state in the contemporary era. This chapter brings events into the present moment, noting the ways President Piñera took advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to reclaim the streets of Santiago, a phenomenon echoed in countries across the globe. While most of the global protest movements were forced to go underground (or into the ether), the Black Lives Matter movement surged in the United States and drew massive amounts of support both domestically and abroad, suggesting a continued wave of grassroots protests. We close with reflections on the continued relevance of walls in a virtual world, the testimonial role that protest graphics play, and the future outlook for revolutionary movements in Chile and worldwide.Read more
£34.20£38.00 -
The Wheel is Spinning but the Hamster is Dead: A Journey Around the World in Idioms, Proverbs and General Nonsense
Know your tater trap from your sniffle herring in Sharp’s journey around the world in idioms, proverbs and general nonsense – the perfect gift for Christmas
‘Brilliant, hilarious fun from a master wordsmith – you will LOVE this book’ Kit de Waal
‘Extremely entertaining and very useful for new insults’ Russell Kane
‘Utter genius’ Marian Keyes
‘Brilliant’ Brian BilstonJoin wordsmith Adam Sharp as he journeys around the world in idioms, proverbs and general nonsense. Learn unusual insults from France (You are a potato with the face of a guinea pig), how to hurry someone up in the US (You’re going as slow as molasses in January) and what they call a shark in Vietnam (fat fish).
Full of fascinating, ridiculous and hilarious translations from around the world, Adam has rounded up the very best of what every corner of the globe has to offer.
Let’s get this show on the road! Or:
Let’s saddle the chickens! (German)
On with the butter! (Icelandic)
Forward with the goat! (Dutch)Read more
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The Wisdom of Asia 365 Days: Buddhism . Confucianism . Taoism
This yearbook from husband-and-wife duo Danielle and Olivier Föllmi reveals the spiritual wisdom of the Far East. Each of Olivier’s photographs is accompanied by the thoughts of a great master, including Confucius, Lao-tzu, Dogen Zenji, Chuang-tzu, Hong Zicheng and the Buddha. Their words have guided generation after generation for thousands of years, and they continue in this volume to enrich our views and lives with thoughts on nature, self-awareness, family and society.The photographs take us to captivating temples in Thailand, the lavishly mystic nature of Cambodia, mist-enshrouded landscapes in Myanmar, bamboo forests in Vietnam, rice paddies in China and Zen gardens in Japan. The book as a whole teaches us, one day at a time, the wisdom of the East.
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£19.20£23.70 -
The Worlds of Dune: The Places and Cultures that Inspired Frank Herbert
Some writers build worlds. Others birth entire universes.In the decades since its publication, Frank Herbert’s Dune has become arguably the best-selling and certainly the best-known science fiction novel ever written. So how did an ex-Navy newspaperman from Washington State come to write such a world-conquering novel? And how was he able to pack it with so many layers of myth and meaning?
Herbert’s boundless imagination was sparked by a dizzying array of ideas, from classical history to cutting-edge science, from environmentalism to Zen philosophy, and from Arabic texts to Shakespeare’s tragedies.
Beginning on Arrakis and going planet by planet, The Worlds of Dune offers a supremely deep dive into Herbert’s universe – detailing along the way the many diverse strands that he wove into his epic creation to offer a visually rich accompaniment to this sci-fi legend.
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£19.40£23.80 -
Therapeutic Parenting Essentials: Moving from Trauma to Trust (Therapeutic Parenting Books)
All families of children affected by trauma are on a journey, and this book will help to guide you and your family on your journey from trauma to trust.
Sarah Naish shares her own experiences of adopting five siblings. She describes how to use therapeutic parenting – a deeply nurturing parenting style – to overcome common challenges when raising children who have experienced trauma. The book describes a series of difficult episodes for her family, exploring both parent’s and child’s experiences of the same events – with the child’s experience written by a former fostered child – and in doing so reveals the very good reasons why traumatized children behave as they do. The book explores the misunderstandings that grow between parents and their children, and provides comfort to the reader – you are not the only family going through this!
Full of insights from a family and others who have really been there, this book gives you advice and strategies to help you and your family thrive.
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Therapeutic Parenting Jumbo Cards (Therapeutic Parenting Books)
This colourful pack of jumbo cards is the ideal resource for anyone who wants a fresh and creative way to explore what therapeutic parenting involves.
Designed to help parents of children who have experienced trauma, as well as the range of professionals who support them, this pack offers simple summaries of the key principles of therapeutic parenting. Each card features a cartoon and quote taken from the author’s bestselling book The Quick Guide to Therapeutic Parenting. Each explains a different element of therapeutic parenting, accompanied by a concise explanation on the back. Over 40 different issues are covered, from dysregulation and fear, to setting boundaries and parenting in the midst of trauma, and the cards are accompanied by a booklet which explains more about therapeutic parenting and how the pack can be used.
The resource has been designed to be used flexibly, so get creative! You may want to use as a playful conversation starter for talking about parenting, a learning tool for those wanting to develop their skills, or simply a source of inspiration – pinned to the wall for when things get tough!
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£22.70£23.70 -
They Killed Freddie Gray: The Anatomy of a Police Brutality Cover-Up
Based on new evidence and deep reporting, the riveting truth about a case that has become a touchstone in the struggle for racial justice and Black lives.They Killed Freddie Gray exposes a conspiracy among Baltimore leaders to cover up what actually happened to Freddie Gray, who was fatally injured in police custody in April 2015. After Gray’s death, Baltimore became ground zero for Black Lives Matter and racial justice protests that exploded across the country. State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby became a hero when she charged six officers in Gray’s death, and the trials of the officers generated national headlines for two years.
Yet the cause of Gray’s death has remained a mystery. A viral video showed an officer leaning on Gray’s back while he cried out in pain. But the autopsy concluded he was fatally injured later that morning while the van was in motion—during a multi-stop “rough ride”—from sudden impact to his head. None of the officers were convicted of any crimes based on this theory.
They Killed Freddie Gray solves the mystery of Gray’s death by uncovering new evidence of how he was killed by police and how his cause of death was covered up. In coordination with a documentary film now being produced, this book revisits a pivotal moment in US criminal justice history, providing new insight into what happened, the historical structures of power that allowed it to happen, and the personalities and dynamics involved—a story never told by the mainstream media. It includes a detailed map with annotations by the author, photographs, and a foreword by Rabia Chaudry.
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This is Europe: The Way We Live Now
‘Thrilling’ – The Financial Times
‘Vivid, urgent and unsettling’ – Tom Holland
_____What does it now mean to call yourself European? Who makes up this population of some 750 million, sprawled from Ireland to Ukraine, from Sweden to Turkey? Who has always called it home, and who has newly arrived from elsewhere? Who are the people who drive our long-distance lorries, steward our criss-crossing planes, lovingly craft our legacy wines, fish our depleted waters, and risk life itself in search of safety and a new start?
In a series of vivid, ambitious, darkly visceral but always empathetic portraits of other people’s lives, journalist Ben Judah invites us to meet them. Drawn from hours of painstaking interviews, these vital stories reveal a frenetic and vibrant continent which has been transformed by diversity, migration, the internet, climate change, Covid, war and the quest for freedom.
Laid dramatically bare, it may not always be a Europe we recognize – but this is Europe.
_____‘An astonishing achievement’ – Evening Standard
‘Brilliantly told . . . highly readable’ – The Times
‘Unflinching’ – The GuardianRead more
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Thunderclap: From the Sunday Times bestselling author of On Chapel Sands
‘One of the most captivating books I have ever read … A wonderful read (or a great present) for anyone who loves stories and art’ Nina Stibbe, author of Love, Nina
A beautifully illustrated new memoir of a life in art, a father and daughter, and what a shared love of a painting can come to mean.
‘We see with everything that we are’
On the morning of 12 October 1654, a gunpowder explosion devastated the Dutch city of Delft. The thunderclap was heard over seventy miles away. Among the fatalities was the painter Carel Fabritius, dead at thirty-two, leaving only his haunting masterpiece The Goldfinch and barely a dozen known paintings. The explosion that killed him also buried his reputation, along with answers to the mysteries of his life and career.
What happened to Fabritius before and after this disaster is just one of the discoveries in a book that explores the relationship between art and life, interweaving the lives of Laura Cumming, her Scottish painter father, who also died too young, and the great artists of the Dutch Golden Age.
This is a book about what a picture may come to mean: how it can enter your life and change your thinking in a thunderclap. Beautifully illustrated in full colour, this is the perfect Christmas gift for art lovers.
‘A book that often borders on the sublime’ Sunday Times
‘No one writes art like Laura Cumming’ Philip Hoare
‘I will never look at any painting in the same way again’ Polly Morland
‘Superb … this book taught me to see anew’ Daily Telegraph
‘Her pages stay with you long after you finish’ Simon Schama
‘Brilliant … rush out and buy it’ Edmund de Waal, author of The Hare with Amber EyesRead more
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To Build a Black Future: The Radical Politics of Joy, Pain, and Care
An incisive portrait of how the new Black politics can forge a future centered on collective action, community, and care
When #BlackLivesMatter emerged in 2013, it animated the most consequential Black-led mobilization since the civil rights and Black power era. Today, the hashtag turned rallying cry is but one expression of a radical reorientation toward Black politics, protest, and political thought. To Build a Black Future examines the spirit and significance of this insurgency, offering a revelatory account of a new political culture―responsive to pain, suffused with joy, and premised on care―emerging from the centuries-long arc of Black rebellion, a tradition that traces back to the Black slave.
Drawing on his own experiences as an activist and organizer, Christopher Paul Harris takes readers inside the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL) to chart the propulsive trajectory of Black politics and thought from the Middle Passage to the present historical moment. Carefully attending to the social forces that produce Black struggle and the contradictions that arise within it, Harris illustrates how M4BL gives voice to an abolitionist praxis that bridges the past, present, and future, outlining a political project at once directed inward to the Black community while issuing an outward challenge to the world.
Essential reading for the age of #BlackLivesMatter, this visionary and provocative book reveals how the radical politics of joy, pain, and care, in sharp contrast to liberal political thought, can build a Black future that transcends ideology and pushes the boundaries of our political imagination.
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Too Late To Stop Now: More Rock’n’Roll War Stories
More than 40 stories from the glory days of rock’n’roll, featuring Lou Reed, Elton John, Sting and The Clash.
Allan Jones brings stories – many previously unpublished – from the golden days of music reporting. Long nights of booze, drugs and unguarded conversations which include anecdotes, experiences and extravagant behaviour.
– A band’s aftershow party in San Francisco being gatecrashed by cocaine-hungry Hells Angels
– Chrissie Hynde on how rock’n’roll killed The Pretenders
– What happened when Nick Lowe and 20 of his mates flew off to Texas to join the Confederate Air Force
– John Cale on his dark alliance with Lou ReedAllan Jones remembers a world that once was – one of dark excess and excitement, outrageous deeds and extraordinary talent, featuring legends at both the beginnings and ends of their careers.
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£12.30£16.10Too Late To Stop Now: More Rock’n’Roll War Stories
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Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook
A fascinating, eclectic collection of writings–spanning four hundred years–on samurai ethos, training, and education, from premier translator Thomas ClearyThrough the ages, the samurai have been associated with honor, fearlessness, calm, decisive action, strategic thinking, and martial prowess. Their ethos is known as bushido, the Way of the Warrior-Knight.
Here, premier translator Thomas Cleary presents a rich collection of writings on bushido by warriors, scholars, political advisors, and educators from the fifteenth century through the nineteenth century that provide a comprehensive, historically rich view of samurai life and philosophy. Training the Samurai Mind gives an insider’s view of the samurai world: the moral and psychological development of the warrior, the ethical standards they were meant to uphold, their training in both martial arts and strategy, and the enormous role that the traditions of Shintoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism had in influencing samurai ideals.
The writings deal with a broad range of subjects–from military strategy and political science, to personal discipline and character development. Cleary introduces each piece, putting it into historical context, and presents biographical information about the authors. This is an essential read for anyone interested in military history and samurai history, and for martial artists who want to understand strategy.
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£16.70£18.00Training the Samurai Mind: A Bushido Sourcebook
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Transport Committee 7th Report. Self-driving vehicles Volume 1. Report (House of Commons Paper) HC 519
Official Publication produced by the UK GovernmentRead more
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Travelling Home: Essays on Islam in Europe
In our age of globalisation and pandemic, how should we react to the new Islamophobic movements now spreading in the West? Everywhere the far right is on the march, with nationalist and populist parties thriving on the back of popular anxieties about Islam and the Muslim presence. Hijab and minaret bans, mosque shootings, hostility to migrants and increasingly scornful media stereotypes seem to endanger the prospects for friendly coexistence and the calm uplifting of Muslim populations. In this series of essays Abdal Hakim Murad dissects the rise of Islamophobia on the basis of Muslim theological tradition. Although the proper response to the current impasse is clearly indicated in Qur’an and Hadith, some have lost the principle of trust in divine wisdom and are responding with hatred, fearfulness or despair. Murad shows that a compassion-based approach, rooted in an authentic theology of divine power, could transform the current quagmire into a bright landscape of great promise for Muslims and their neighbours.Read more
£14.70£17.10Travelling Home: Essays on Islam in Europe
£14.70£17.10 -
Treasury of Fantastic and Mythological Creatures: 1,087 Renderings from Historic Sources (Dover Pictorial Archive)
Drawing on fifty centuries of human history, this encyclopedic collection of images is filled with demons, monsters, animal-gods, totemic figures, and other supernatural beasts from the darker realms of man’s imagination. Works range from prehistoric rock paintings to the drawings of Max Ernst, from the masks of black Africa to the gargoyles of Notre Dame.Read more
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Treasury of Folklore – Seas and Rivers: Sirens, Selkies and Ghost Ships
Enthralling tales of the sea, rivers and lakes from around the globe.
Folklore of the seas and rivers has a resonance in cultures all over the world. Watery hopes, fears and dreams are shared by all peoples where rivers flow and waves crash. This fascinating book covers English sailor superstitions and shape-shifting pink dolphins of the Amazon, Scylla and Charybdis, the many guises of Mami Wata, the tale of the Yoruba River spirit, the water horses of the Scottish lochs, the infamous mystery of the Bermuda Triangle, and much more.
Accompanied by stunning woodcut illustrations, popular authors Dee Dee Chainey and Willow Winsham explore the deep history and enduring significance of water folklore the world over, from mermaids, selkies and sirens to ghostly ships and the fountains of youth.
With this book, Folklore Thursday aims to encourage a sense of belonging across all cultures by showing how much we all have in common.
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£11.30£12.30 -
Trivia for Seniors: 400 Multiple-Choice Memorable 50s-90s Events Questions and Answers. Large Print Activity Quiz Book to Challenge Your Memory and Keep Brain Young
400 Multiple-Choice 50s-90s Questions and Answers for Seniors
Do you remember when the world first marveled at the magic of color television? Or when we hummed to the tunes of Elvis Presley and later grooved to the beats of the Beatles? From the fascinating 50s to the innovative 90s, each decade brought joy, discovery, and sheer nostalgia.
This Trivia Book for Seniors is designed especially for those who have witnessed the spectacular evolution of our world from the mid-20th century to the turn of the millennium.
The book features:
✔️ Nostalgic Dive: Journey through the vibrant vignettes of the 50s to the 90s. Each decade shines through with 80 distinct multiple-choice questions, presenting options from “a” to “d”.
✔️ Brain Booster: Answering these multiple-choice trivia questions isn’t just fun and an excellent exercise for the brain.
✔️ Pure Positivity: Questions Crafted to Uplift and Inspire.
✔️ Large Print: With a font size of 16, we’ve ensured that the questions are easy on the eyes, making for a comfortable reading experience.
✔️Interactive Fun: You’re not just a passive reader. Engage with the book by circling your answers and later checking them against the solutions provided at the end.The benefits of engaging in such mental exercises are manifold:
✔️ Enhanced Memory: Regularly challenging your brain can help in sharpening memory.
✔️ Stress Reduction: Immersing yourself in a nostalgic activity can be a great way to relax and de-stress.
✔️ Social Engagement: Share this book with friends or family and indulge in friendly competitions or discussions.
✔️Knowledge Reinforcement: Revisit some iconic past events and learn something new!So, whether buying this for yourself or gifting it to a loved one, know that it’s more than just a book—it’s an experience, a journey back in time, and a celebration of the decades that defined us.
Click on “BUY NOW” above and start your trivia!
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Twilight of Democracy: The Failure of Politics and the Parting of Friends
A FINANCIAL TIMES, ECONOMIST AND NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR 2020
‘The most important non-fiction book of the year’ David Hare
In the years just before and after the fall of the Berlin Wall, people from across the political spectrum in Europe and America celebrated a great achievement, felt a common purpose and, very often, forged personal friendships. Yet over the following decades the euphoria evaporated, the common purpose and centre ground gradually disappeared, extremism rose once more and eventually – as this book compellingly relates – the relationships soured too.
Anne Applebaum traces this history in an unfamiliar way, looking at the trajectories of individuals caught up in the public events of the last three decades. When politics becomes polarized, which side do you back? If you are a journalist, an intellectual, a civic leader, how do you deal with the re-emergence of authoritarian or nationalist ideas in your country? When your leaders appropriate history, or pedal conspiracies, or eviscerate the media and the judiciary, do you go along with it?
Twilight of Democracy is an essay that combines the personal and the political in an original way and brings a fresh understanding to the dynamics of public life in Europe and America, both now and in the recent past.
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£8.50£10.40 -
UK Politics Annual Update 2022
This UK Politics Annual Update will help students:
– Review all the developments relevant to A-level specifications in UK politics from the last year, with examples linked closely to specification points, strong links between topics and focused suggestions for further reading
– Develop their confidence with expert analysis they can draw on throughout their course and in the exams
– Enhance their knowledge of the news to build a bank of up-to-date examples linked to the specifications, helping them to develop persuasive arguments for their essays
– Learn more about the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and other up-to-date political developments, and how to put them into context
– Use our updated exam skills feature to clarify how to use the information they have just learned in their examUK Politics Annual Update 2022 chapters:
1. Pressure groups: Lobbying in the 2020s – methods and controversies
2. Rights in context: Campaigns to protect liberties and to extend the franchise
3. Political Parties: Old, new or in between? What does Keir Starmer’s Labour Party stand for?
4. The constitution: The Johnsonian constitution ‘in flux’
5. Devolution (Part 1): See no EVEL: what is the future for English representation in Westminster?
6. Devolution (Part 2): What does the government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda mean for devolved government in England?
7. Parliament and the executive: The changing relationship between Parliament and the executive
8. The House of Lords: Peers in the 2020s: The composition and legislative influence of the House of Lords
9. The UK Supreme Court: Redefining judicial power in the 2020sRead more
£21.80 -
UK Politics Annual Update 2023
– Review all the developments relevant to A-level specifications in UK politics from the last year, with strong links between topics and focused suggestions for further reading
– Develop your confidence with expert analysis you can draw on both throughout your course and in the exams
– Enhance your knowledge of the news to build a bank of up-to-date examples linked to the specifications, helping you to develop persuasive arguments for your essays
– Use our updated exam skills feature to clarify how to use the information you have just learned in your examChapters:
– Think tanks: how do they operate and why are they controversial?
– Rights in context: do we need a British Bill of Rights?
– Political parties: are the Liberal Democrats re-emerging as a political force?
– Devolved and divided? The causes and consequences of Northern Ireland’s election
– The constitution: is the UK’s uncodified constitution working?
– Parliament and the prime minister: did parliament contribute to a prime minister’s demise?
– Prime minister and executive (1): Boris Johnson
– Prime minister and executive (2): Liz Truss
– Prime minister and executive (3): Rishi Sunak
– The Supreme Court: the impact of legislative reform and Lord Reed’s presidencyRead more
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Unequal Childhoods: Class, Race, and Family Life, Second Edition with an Update a Decade Later
Class does make a difference in the lives and futures of American children. Drawing on in-depth observations of black and white middle-class, working-class, and poor families, Unequal Childhoods explores this fact, offering a picture of childhood today. Here are the frenetic families managing their children’s hectic schedules of “leisure” activities; and here are families with plenty of time but little economic security. Lareau shows how middle-class parents, whether black or white, engage in a process of “concerted cultivation” designed to draw out children’s talents and skills, while working-class and poor families rely on “the accomplishment of natural growth,” in which a child’s development unfolds spontaneously-as long as basic comfort, food, and shelter are provided. Each of these approaches to childrearing brings its own benefits and its own drawbacks. In identifying and analyzing differences between the two, Lareau demonstrates the power, and limits, of social class in shaping the lives of America’s children.The first edition of Unequal Childhoods was an instant classic, portraying in riveting detail the unexpected ways in which social class influences parenting in white and African American families. A decade later, Annette Lareau has revisited the same families and interviewed the original subjects to examine the impact of social class in the transition to adulthood.
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£23.80 -
Unfinished Business – The Life & Times of Danny Gatton
(Book). Danny Gatton was a players’ guitar player, hailed by both Rolling Stone and Guitar Player as the greatest unknown guitarist anywhere. His legend has only grown since his untimely suicide in 1994, along with appreciation for his blinding speed, effortless genre-hopping, flawless technique, and never-ending appetite for tinkering and problem-solving. Drawing from first-hand interviews with dozens of friends, family members and fellow musicians, Unfinished Business places Gatton’s musical contributions into context, and documents his influence on those peers who admired him most, including Albert Lee, Vince Gill, Arlen Roth and Lou Reed.Read more
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Unfit and Improper Persons: An Idiot’s Guide to Owning a Football Club FROM THE PRICE OF FOOTBALL PODCAST
‘A very funny book that tackles some serious football issues.’ Gary Lineker
‘Witty and wise.’ Clare Balding
‘Brilliant. Blows the lid off football. Hilarious, detailed and insightful.’ Alan Davies
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Ever dreamed of setting up your own football club?
Join the team behind The Price of Football podcast as they start a (fictional) football club and discover what’s really going on behind the scenes of the beautiful game.
Buying a football club will set you back a few quid, but you’ve also got to pass the Premier League and EFL’s ‘fit and proper persons test’. That all seems like a bit of a faff to the team behind the award-winning podcast The Price of Football, so acclaimed comedy writer Kevin Day, football finance expert Kieran Maguire and producer Guy Kilty start an imaginary club instead.
In Unfit and Improper Persons they take West Park Rovers on a hilarious journey from the lowest level of the FA pyramid right up to the English Football League, the Premier League and, if fortune favours the fictional, into the heart of Europe.
At least that’s the plan, but inevitably they face a few challenges along the way. Where to find a shirt sponsor? What should the mascot be – is a dog called Rover too obvious? Can they pay the women’s team the same as the men’s team? (Spoiler alert: hardly anyone else does.) And how can they get Messi to the Kleanwell Stadium next season, like they promised the fans?
Roofing over the toilets, paying the electric on the floodlights, salary caps, parachute payments and avoiding bankruptcy, never mind relegation – owning a football club isn’t all about stuffing prawn sarnies and quaffing champagne in the directors’ box.
Unfit and Improper Persons is informed, funny and, thanks to exclusive interviews with those who’ve been there, done that, it lays bare the labyrinthine world of football finance.
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£13.30£16.10
