Iubirea adev?rat? scoate la iveal? tot ce este mai bun ?n tine...Abby Abernathy s-a hot?r?t s? devin? altcineva. Acum e o fat? bun?, nu bea ?i nu vorbe?te ur?t, are haine cumin?i ?n ?ifonier. Crede c? s-a distan?at suficient de lucrurile ?ntunecate din trecutul ei, dar c?nd ajunge la colegiu ?mpreun? cu prietena sa cea mai bun?, dorin?a de un nou ?nceput este supus? provoc?rilor.Travis Maddox, ?iret, iste? ?i acoperit cu tatuaje, reprezint? tot ceea ce Abby vrea – ?i trebuie – s? evite. Travis ??i petrece nop?ile c??tig?nd bani din lupte, iar ziua e seduc?torul num?rul unu al campusului. Intrigat de rezisten?a lui Abby la farmecele sale, Travis o face s? intre ?n via?a lui printr-un pariu.?Povestea rela?iei dintre Abby Abernathy ?i Travis Maddox constituie o excelent? radiografie a adolescen?ei, cu toate fr?m?nt?rile, visurile ?i frumuse?ea ei.“ – Reading, Eating & Dreaming?V? garantez c? ve?i fi at?t de captiva?i de aceast? carte, ?nc?t ve?i l?sa orice alt? activitate deoparte!“ – BookWhisperer Reviews?Am f?cut o adev?rat? pasiune pentru personajele acestui roman.“ – The Daily Quirk?…Noul meu romance preferat, cu o doz? subtil? de erotism rafinat.“ – Nightly Reading Review

“Todd e cel mai important fenomen literar al genera?iei sale.” – Cosmopolitan Al cincilea volum din seria AFTER 1,3 miliarde de lecturi pe Wattpad ?nainte s? o cunoasc? pe Tessa, Hardin era impulsiv ?i s?lbatic. ?n timpul acelor prime momente ?n care s au ?nt?lnit, ?i a dat seama c? trebuie s? o ?in? l?ng? el – via?a lui depindea de ea. Dup? ce au r?mas ?mpreun?, lumea n-a mai fost niciodat? la fel. Dramatica poveste de dragoste dintre Hardin ?i Tessa s-a transformat ?ntr un v?rtej ?n care au fost atra?i to?i cei din jur. Acum ace?tia cap?t? o voce proprie ?i povestesc ce s-a ?nt?mplat ?nainte, pe parcursul ?i dup? evenimentele din primele patru volume ale seriei AFTER. Afl?m ?i cum vede Hardin prima ?nt?lnire cu Tessa – iar confesiunea lui va schimba complet ceea ce credeai c? ?tii despre b?iatul deprimat ?i ?ngerul care ?l iubea.? Domnul Darcy ?i Lizzy Bennett din vremurile noastre…? AFTER a adunat peste 1 miliard de fani online ?i a fascinat cititorii din ?ntreaga lume. Cite?te ?i tu cea mai viral? poveste de pe internet!“O lectur? foarte relaxant?, dar care are ?i mult dramatism… Te va captiva de la prima pagin?.” – A Bookish Escape“Am luat o peste tot cu mine ca s? pot citi despre Hessa ?n fiecare clip? liber? pe care am avut o. M-a vr?jit de la prima pagin?!” – Grown Up Fan girl“Anna Todd reu?e?te s? te fac? s? ?ipi, s? pl?ngi, s? r?zi, s? te ?ndr?goste?ti ?i s? te cuib?re?ti ?n pat… preg?te?te-te s? sim?i emo?ii pe care nu credeai c? ?i le poate aduce vreo carte.” - Fangirlish?

Al treilea volum din Tetralogia Napolitan? ?n lini?tea cea mai deplin? sau ?n mijlocul evenimentelor tumultuoase, atunci c?nd ne sim?im ?n siguran?? sau ?n pericol, c?nd suntem nevinova?i sau imorali, suntem o mul?ime format? din ceilal?i. Iar aceast? mul?ime e cu siguran?? o binecuv?ntare pentru literatur?.?Elena Ferrante ?n al treilea roman al Tetralogiei Napolitane, Elena ?i Lila, cele dou? fete cu care cititorii au f?cut cuno?tin?? ?n Prietena mea genial?, au devenit femei.Lila ?i-a p?r?sit so?ul ?i confortul material, iar acum munce?te ?n condi?ii foarte dure. Elena a studiat la ?coala Normal? din Pisa ?i a publicat un roman de succes, care i-a deschis u?ile saloanelor selecte. Am?ndou? au refuzat s? se complac? ?ntr-o via?? plin? de nefericire, ignoran?? ?i supunere, ?mbr??i??nd ?n schimb numeroasele oportunit??i ale anilor ’70. ?n continuare le leag? o prietenie profund?, de nezdruncinat.?nc? de la apari?ia romanului?Prietena mea genial?, care deschide?Tetralogia Napolitan?, faima Elenei Ferrante a crescut enorm. Este considerat? una dintre autoarele contemporane cele mai conving?toare, o stilist? des?v?r?it?, cu o intui?ie artistic? ie?it? din comun, care a c??tigat admira?ia mai multor scriitori celebri – Jhumpa Lahiri, Elizabeth Strout, Claire Messud – ?i a unor critici importan?i: James Wood, John Freeman, Eugenia Williamson etc. Dar f?r? ?ndoial?, primirea cea mai c?lduroas? a avut-o din partea cititorilor, care au descoperit o autoare care vorbe?te ?ntr-un stil plin de frumuse?e ?i for?? despre sentimentul de apartenen?? la un loc, despre rela?iile umane, dragoste, familie ?i prietenie.

Do you want to sell more books and reach more readers? Do you want to discover how to build an author career for the long-term as well as spike your book sales right now? If you don’t know much about marketing, don’t worry. We all start with nothing. I’m Joanna Penn and back in 2008, I had no book sales, no audience, no website, no social media, no podcast, no email list. No nothing. Now I’m a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of thrillers and non-fiction. My books have sold over 500,000 copies in 83 countries, and I’m an award-winning creative entrepreneur and international speaker, making a multi-six-figure income with my writing. Learning how to market my books and my personal brand changed my life. Yes, you need to write an awesome book, but you also need to know how to get it in front of the right readers. How to Market a Book is for authors who want to sell more books, but it's also for those writers who want to think like an entrepreneur and build a long-term income. It's for traditionally published authors who want to take control of their future, and for self-published authors who want to jump-start a career. There are short-term tactics for those who want to boost immediate sales, but the focus of the book is more about instilling values and marketing principles that will help your long-term career as a writer. It's also about going beyond just the book, because these methods can take you from being an author into making money from other products, professional speaking, and creating opportunities that you can't even imagine yet. In this completely updated Third Edition, you’ll discover: Part 1: Marketing Principles Book marketing myths, how discoverability works, and the polarities of marketing that will determine what you choose to implement Part 2: Your Book Fundamentals Prerequisites for success, how to optimise your book for online sales, categories and keywords, exclusivity, pricing and use of free, box-sets and bundling, and writing series Part 3: No Platform Needed. Short-term Marketing How to get customer reviews and find book bloggers, paid advertising with email blasts, paid advertising with Facebook, Amazon Ads and ad stacking, algorithm hacking, big data, and production speed Part 4: Your Author Platform. Long-term Marketing Building an author brand, author website, list-building and email marketing, content marketing, blogging, audio and podcasting, video and book trailers, social networking, professional speaking, marketing audiobooks, PR and publicity, TV, radio and traditional media Part 5: Launching Your Book Why launching is different for indie authors, soft launch, launch spikes, post-launch, how to relaunch backlist books. Includes an example book marketing strategy and launch plan checklist. Other books for authors by Joanna Penn. Available in ebook, print and audiobook. How to Make a Living with your Writing How to Write Non-Fiction: Turn your Knowledge into Words Business for Authors: How to be an Author Entrepreneur The Successful Author Mindset: A Handbook for Surviving the Writer's Journey The Healthy Writer Public Speaking for Authors, Creatives and Other Introverts Co-writing a Book: Collaboration and Co-Creation for Writers Successful Self-Publishing Career Change: Stop hating your job, discover what you really want to do with your life, and start doing it! Joanna’s website for authors, The Creative Penn, has been voted one of the Top 100 websites for writers by Writers Digest several years running, and The Creative Penn podcast is one of the top podcasts for writers and indie authors.

Ya?l tr?ie?te doar pentru munca ei. Interpret? de excep?ie la o agen?ie renumit?, ??i ?mparte timpul ?ntre ?nt?lniri ?i cine de afaceri. Nu ?tie ce ?nseamn? o vacan??, e dependent? de adrenalin?.?Nu renun?? niciodat? la ?inuta ei office ?i la pantofii cu tocuri ?nalte.???i vede rar familia ?i prietenii, care ??i fac griji pentru ea.?Nu ?ine cont de sfaturi, pentru c? simte c? a f?cut alegerea potrivit?, animat? de dorin?a neclintit? de a reu?i.?P?n? c?nd ?l ?nt?lne?te pe Marc, cel mai bun prieten al s?u din studen?ie, ?i via?a ei, at?t de bine organizat?, sare ?n aer.?Trecutul o ajunge din urm? ?i Ya?l descoper? c? fericirea ?i succesul personal par a fi incompatibile…?Un roman emo?ionant despre alegerile pe care le facem ?n via??."?mi pare r?u, sunt a?teptat?… e scris cu aceea?i naturale?e care a devenit o marc? a scrisului lui?Agnès Martin-Lugand." -?Le Parisien"Cred c? nu ne oprim niciodat? din a ne construi propria fericire. E un proces ne?ntrerupt. Ya?l poate s? se schimbe, are dreptul ca, la un moment dat, s? aleag? alt? cale. P?n? la urm?, putem avea mai multe vie?i." -?Agnès Martin-Lugand

Cu doar c?teva zile ?nainte de nunt?, Julia prime?te un telefon de la secretarul tat?lui s?u. A?a cum intuia, Anthony Walsh — om de afaceri str?lucit, dar tat? distant — nu va putea veni la ceremonie. Nu e prima oar? c?nd Anthony Walsh dispare brusc din via?a ei, bulvers?nd?o cu totul. De data aceasta ?ns?, Julia trebuie s? admit? c? scuza este imbatabil?: tat?l s?u a murit! A doua zi dup? ?nmorm?ntare, Julia descoper? ?ns? c? tat?l s?u ?i rezervase o alt? surpriz?. Cea mai neobi?nuit? c?l?torie din via?a ei... ?i ocazia de a??i spune, ?n sf?r?it, lucruri pe care nu ?i le?au spus niciodat?. Reg?sim ?n aceast? poveste atmosfera ?nc?rcat? de romantism ?i fantastic din ?i dac? e adev?rat, romanul care l-a f?cut celebru pe Marc Levy. Pentru cititorii francezi, Marc Levy ?ntruchipeaz? un destin de basm: ajuns t?rziu la literatur?, acest autor, pe c?t de discret, pe at?t de melancolic, s?a impus ?nc? din momentul ?n care primul s?u manuscris a ?nc?put pe m?na editorului, scenariul corespunz?tor fiind imediat cump?rat de compania de film a lui Steven Spielberg. Ast?zi, el a devenit la noi scriitorul cel mai popular. Secretul s?u? Un adev?rat sim? al povestirii, o extraordinar? capacitate de a capta mitologia timpurilor noastre, un romantism inalterabil care pune mai presus de orice o scriitur? eficace, foarte american?, ce merge direct la scop. Miracolele nu se explic?, se constat?. – Pascal Bruckner ?... un amestec de m?iestrie ?i suspans, ce te poart? cu precizie infailibil? ?ntr-o lume ?n care visele tale devin realitate.“ Le Parisien

We are happy to introduce you to the new collection of ?Favorite Fairy Tales?, which consists of ?The Three Little Pigs?, ?The Three Bears?, ?The Wolf and the Seven Kids?. The tales are told by Joseph Jacobs, Robert Southey, Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm and illustrated by Viktoriya Dunayeva. Published by Animedia Company.

Primul volum din seria Fra?ii Maddox De la autoarea bestsellerurilor Fericirea mea e?ti tu ?i Fericirea ?ncepe azi Cami are un iubit obsedat de munc? ?i care o cam neglijeaz?. De?i Cami ?ncearc? s? fac? s? func?ioneze aceast? rela?ie la distan??, se pare c? nu e at?t de u?or...Brusc, ?n via?a ei apare Trent Maddox, un fost coleg de liceu. Trent, cel cu bra?ele tatuate. Trent, dup? care toate fetele sunt topite.Cami ?i-a jurat c? nu va fi niciodat? pe lista lui. Crede c? n-o poate p?c?li cu tertipurile sale.Dar b?iatul care fur? inimi e hot?r?t s-o fac? s? se ?ndr?gosteasc? nebune?te de el…?O lectur? apetisant? de var?, perfect? pentru jocul de-a seduc?ia.“ - USA Today? Jamie McGuire scrie cu pl?cere ?i lejeritate, iar fanii genului romance vor adora pur ?i simplu rev?rsarea de emo?ii pure. Povestea lui Cami ?i Trent e irezistibil?.“ - Romantic Times?Dar sunt sigur? c? dac? ai ?ti toat? povestea, Trenton, ai fugi de l?ng? mine ?i nu te-ai mai uita ?napoi.Nu vreau toat? povestea. Te vreau doar pe tine.“

Primul volum din seria Familia Royal #1 New York Times Bestseller USA Today Bestseller Bani. Excese. Secrete. Intr? ?n lumea familiei Royal.? Ella Harper e o supravie?uitoare – o optimist? pragmatic?.? Via?a ei n-a fost u?oar?. S-a tot mutat din ora? ?n ora? ?mpreun? cu mama sa, chinuindu-se s? fac? rost de bani ?i sper?nd ca ?ntr-o zi s? scape de s?r?cie. Dar mama ei a murit, iar Ella a r?mas singur? pe lume.? Acum ?l cunoa?te pe Callum Royal, un om de afaceri multimilionar, ?i via?a ei se schimb?. Are parte de lux ?i de bog??ie. Totu?i, ceva ciudat se ?nt?mpl? ?n casa familiei Royal.? Cei cinci b?ie?i ai lui Callum, to?i irezistibili, ascund un secret.? Niciunul n-o vrea pe Ella ?n casa lor, mai ales Reed. Dar Ella se simte atras? de el ?i va trebui s? lupte din toate puterile s? nu-i cad? ?n plas?… Dac? vrea s? r?m?n? la familia Royal, trebuie s? ?nve?e regulile jocului.? Un roman incitant despre o Cenu??reas? a zilelor noastre ?i despre complicata lume a adolescen?ilor americani boga?i. "Un roman de care nu te po?i dezlipi! O poveste de iubire pentru adolescen?ii care caut? ceva ?n spiritul seriei Gossip Girl." - Kirkus Reviews "Replici savuroase, personaje provocatoare ?i un final surprinz?tor!" - Rockstars of Romance "Dac? vrei o carte care s? te acapareze cu totul ?i s? te vampirizeze (?n cel mai bun sens, desigur), atunci trebuie s? cite?ti Prin?esa de h?rtie !" - New Chicks on the Blog?

#1 New York Times BestsellerBestseller absolut icircn Marea BritanieTu nu o cuno?ti.Dar ea te cunoa?te.Peste 1,8 milioane de exemplare vacircndute icircn doar patru luni, icircn Statele Unite. Rachel merge icircn fiecare diminea?? cu acela?i tren. ?tie c? va a?tepta la acela?i semnal defect, timp icircn care va urm?ri ritualul de diminea?? al unui cuplu ce locuie?te icircntr-o cas? de lacircng? calea ferat?. I-a botezat bdquo Jess ?i Jason; ?i via?a lor i se pare perfect?. Pacircn? cacircnd icircntr-o zi vede ceva ce o ?ocheaz?. Totul se schimb? ?i Rachel are ?ansa de a lua parte la vie?ile pe care le-a observat doar de pe margine. Misterios ?i pasionant Fata din tren este un thriller de prim? macircn?, care te face dependent de viciul cititului. S.J. Watson, autorul bestsellerului Icircnainte s? adorm. Fata din tren este un roman de suspans remarcabil. M-a ?inut treaz o noapte icircntreag?. Stephen King Cu siguran?? va atrage nenum?ra?i fani ndash; The New York Times Precum trenul care o poart? pe Rachel icirc;n fiecare zi, povestea ?erpuie?te printre vie?ile anoste din suburbiile Londrei, iar cititorii o vor urm?ri cu sufletul la gur?. The Boston Globe Dac? ?i-a pl?cut Fata disp?rut?, vei devora acest thriller psihologic: icirc?i va schimba pentru totdeauna felul icircn care prive?ti vie?ile celorlal?i. People Dac? nu e niciun tren care s? mearg? icircn sensul opus ?i dac? mergem suficient de icircncet, cacircteodat? pot s?-i z?resc, pentru o clip?, pe terasa casei lor. Dac? nu, a?a cum se icircnt acircmpl? azi, mi-i icircnchipui. Jess ?ade cu picioarele ridicate pe masa de pe teras?, cu un pahar de vin icircn macircn?, Jason e icircn spatele s?u, cu macircinile pe umerii ei. Icircmi imaginez atingerea macirc inilor lui, greutatea lor, senza?ia de siguran?? ?i confort. Uneori m? surprind icircncerc acircnd s?-mi amintesc cacircnd am avut parte ultima dat? de atingerea real? a unei persoane, de o icircmbr??i?are din tot sufletul sau de o stracircngere de macircn?, ?i simt cum mi se fracircnge inima.

In these Talks, given in India and Saanen, Krishnamurti speaks to the necessity for a new way of looking, thinking and being in the world. "What is the effect or value of an individual changing? How will that transform the whole current of human existence? What can an individual do?...... there is no such thing as an individual consciousness; there is only consciousness of which we are a part. You might segregate yourself and build a wall of a particular space called the `me'. But that `me' is related to the whole, that `me' is not separate. And in transforming that particular section, that particular part, we will affect the whole of consciousness. And I think this is very important to realize: that we are not talking about individual salvation or individual reformation, but about being aware of the particular in relation to, the total. Then out of that realization comes action which will affect the whole."

Is it possible to live without conflict? Perhaps this is a theoretical question, but it challenges the mind that is trained to accept conflict as a natural part of living. Ultimately, as Krishnamurti explains, the critical importance of that challenge is not to answer yes or no to the possibility of a life without conflict:? When you approach a problem, you start with the fact that there is conflict, and you begin to inquire whether it is possible to end it, neither accepting that it can be ended nor asserting that it cannot be ended. Your mind is then in a position to look at the fact; and that is what we must establish between us. An extensive compendium of Krishnamurti's talks and discussions in the USA, Europe, India, New Zealand, and South Africa from 1933 to 1967—the Collected Works have been carefully authenticated against existing transcripts and tapes. Each volume includes a frontispiece photograph of Krishnamurti , with question and subject indexes at the end. The content of each volume is not limited to the subject of the title, but rather offers a unique view of Krishnamurti's extraordinary teachings in selected years. The Collected Works offers the reader the opportunity to explore the early writings and dialogues in their most complete and authentic form.

Over the years, millions of school children must have written out their address in the same way – their house number and street, their town, their country, their continent, planet Earth, the universe… Following this simplest of patterns, taking each line of the address as a starting point, Tim Radford explores our place in the scheme of things – why we are attached to a particular geographical place and what significance do we have when faced with the realms of astronomy and astrophysics. Fascinating, entertaining and completely original, The Address Book tackles some of the most fundamental questions facing us, and allows us see ourselves completely afresh.

Is happiness catching? Are your friends making you fat? Can your sibling make you smart? Is wealth contagious? Where is true love found? Does free will exist? Based on exciting discoveries in mathematics, genetics, psychology and sociology, ‘Connected’ is an innovative and fascinating exploration of how social networks operate. Think it's all about who you know? It is. But not the way you think. Turns out your colleague's husband's sister can make you fat, even if you don't know her. And a happy friend is more relevant to your happiness than a bigger income. Our connections – our friends, their friends, and even their friends' friends – have an astonishing power to influence everything from what we eat to who we sleep with. And we, in turn, influence others. Our actions can change the behaviours, the beliefs, and even the basic health of people we've never met. In this brilliantly original and effortlessly engaging exploration of how much we truly influence one another. Pre-eminent social scientists Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler explain why obesity is contagious, why the rich get richer, even how we find and choose our partners. Intriguing and entertaining, with revelatory implications for everything from our notion of the individual to ideas about public health initiatives, ‘Connected’ will change the way you think about every aspect of your life, and how you live it.

‘Of all the books marking the bicentenary Waterloo, this has to be the best’ Spectator ‘A book to die for’ Evening Standard From Samuel Johnson Prize shortlisted author David Crane, this is a breathtaking portrait of the Britain that fought the battle of Waterloo. As Wellington’s rain-sodden army retreated towards an obscure valley called Waterloo, the men and women of Britain were still going to the theatre and science lectures, working in the fields and the factories, reading and writing books and sermons, painting their pictures and sitting in front of Lord Elgin’s marbles. David Crane’s stunning freeze-frame of Britain on this day of momentous change shifts hour by hour between Britain and Belgium. The Britain that fought Waterloo – its radicals and patriots, artisans and aristocrats, prisoners and poets – appears through the smoke of battle and the mythology of Waterloo in this magnificent and original tracing of the endless, overlapping connections between people’s lives.

A compelling portrait of 1960s America that takes as its starting point the brutal events of 11 March 1963, the day on which the lives of three complete strangers – a black handyman, an Italian-American carpenter and a second-generation Jewish housewife – collided in the leafy Boston suburb of Belmont. These three people did not know one another, but, by the end of the day, the housewife had been raped and strangled, the handyman had been arrested on suspicion of being the notorious Boston Strangler, and the real Boston Strangler – carpenter Al DeSalvo – had returned home to his wife and children. It was not until two years later that DeSalvo admitted to the gruesomely violent murders of thirteen women. Also unwittingly drawn into the drama were one-year-old Sebastian Junger's own family, who posed for a photograph with DeSalvo the day after the Belmont strangling, at the completion of his work on their studio. Taking the chilling family snap as his inspiration, Junger explores the worlds of the three protagonists and, in so doing, creates a portrait of America in the 1960s that touches on the historic themes of the era: the assassination of JFK, the rise of the immigrants and the troubling race relations that prefigured the death of Martin Luther King. This new work by Sebastian Junger, the acclaimed author of ‘Perfect Storm’ and ‘Fire’, is as enlightening as it is haunting. Taking as its foundation the events that shocked a quiet community in 1963, ‘A Death in Belmont’ expands to encompass an entire nation at a time of extraordinary social turmoil.

Fans of Outlander must read this Saltire Society Literary Awards Scottish First Book of the Year – a great non-fiction adventure about Scotland’s most notorious clan chief. Simon Fraser, Lord Lovat, was the last of the great Scottish chiefs – and the last nobleman executed for treason. Determined to seek his fortune with the exiled Jacobite king in France, Fraser acted as a spy for both the Stuarts and the Hanoverians; claimed to be both Protestant and Roman Catholic. In July 1745, Bonnie Prince Charlie launched his last attempt to seize back the throne, supported by Fraser and his clans. They were defeated at Culloden. Fraser was found hiding in a tree. This swashbuckling spy story recreates an extraordinary period of history in its retelling of Fraser’s life. He is surely one of Scotland’s most notorious and romantic figures, a cunning and ambitious soldier who died a martyr for his country and an independent Scotland.

A rich account of the impact of the Second World War on the lives of people living in the farms and villages of Britain. On the outbreak of war, the countryside was invaded by service personnel and evacuee children by the thousand; land was taken arbitrarily for airfields, training grounds and firing ranges, and whole communities were evicted. Prisoner-of-war camps brought captured enemy soldiers to close quarters, and as horses gave way to tractors and combines farmers were burdened with aggressive new restrictions on what they could and could not grow. Land Girls and Lumber Jills worked in fields and forests. Food – or the lack of it – was a major preoccupation and rationing strictly enforced. And although rabbits were poached, apples scrumped and mushrooms gathered, there was still not enough to eat. Drawing from diaries, letters, books, official records and interviews, Duff Hart Davis revisits rural Britain to describe how ordinary people survived the war years. He tells of houses turned over to military use such as Bletchley and RAF Medmenham as well as those that became schools, notably Chatsworth in Derbyshire. Combining both hardship and farce, the book examines the profound changes war brought to Britain’s countryside: from the Home Guard, struggling with the provision of ludicrous equipment, to the role of the XII Corps Observation Unit. whose task was to enlarge rabbit warrens and badger setts into bunkers for harassing the enemy in the event of a German invasion; to the unexpected tenderness shown by many to German and Italian prisoners-of-war at work on the land. Fascinating, sad and at times hilarious, this warm-hearted book tells great stories – and casts new light on Britain during the war.

‘Intriguing, gleefully contentious and – appropriately enough – fizzing with life, Victorians Undone is the most original history book I have read in a long while’ John Preston, Daily Mail A groundbreaking account of what it was like to live in a Victorian body from one of our best historians. Why did the great philosophical novelist George Eliot feel so self-conscious that her right hand was larger than her left? Exactly what made Darwin grow that iconic beard in 1862, a good five years after his contemporaries had all retired their razors? Who knew Queen Victoria had a personal hygiene problem as a young woman and the crisis that followed led to a hurried commitment to marry Albert? What did John Sell Cotman, a handsome drawing room operator who painted some of the most exquisite watercolours the world has ever seen, feel about marrying a woman whose big nose made smart people snigger? How did a working-class child called Fanny Adams disintegrate into pieces in 1867 before being reassembled into a popular joke, one we still reference today, but would stop, appalled, if we knew its origins? Kathryn Hughes follows a thickened index finger or deep baritone voice into the realms of social history, medical discourse, aesthetic practise and religious observance – its language is one of admiring glances, cruel sniggers, an implacably turned back. The result is an eye-opening, deeply intelligent, groundbreaking account that brings the Victorians back to life and helps us understand how they lived their lives.

From bestselling author Simon Winchester, the extraordinary story of how America was united into a single nation. For more than two centuries, E pluribus unum – out of many, one – has been featured on America’s official government seals and stamped on its currency. But how did America become ‘one nation, indivisible’? In this monumental history, Simon Winchester addresses this question, introducing the fearless trailblazers whose achievements forged and unified America. Winchester follows in the footsteps of America’s most essential explorers, thinkers, and innovators. He treks vast swaths of territory, introducing these fascinating pioneers – some, such as Washington and Jefferson, Lewis and Clark being familiar, some forgotten, some hardly known – who played a pivotal role in creating today’s United States. Throughout, he ponders whether the historic work of uniting the States has succeeded, and to what degree. ‘The Men Who United the States’ is a fresh, lively, and erudite look at the way in which the most powerful nation on earth came together, from one of our most entertaining, probing, and insightful observers.

Simon Cooper is one of the UK’s leading chalkstream conservationists. He lives and works on the English rivers, where otters are once again thriving.