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A Length of Road: Finding Myself in the Footsteps of John Clare: A John Murray Original
by Robert HambergerA memoir about love and loss, fatherhood and masculinity, class and belonging.In 1841 the 'peasant poet' John Clare escapes from an asylum in Epping Forest, where he had been kept for four years, and walks over eighty miles home to Northamptonshire. Suffering from poor mental health, Clare was attempting to return to his idealized first love, Mary, unaware that she had died three years earlier.In 1995, with his life in crisis and his own mental health fragile, Robert decides to retrace Clare's route along the Great North Road over a punishing four-day walk. As he walks he reflects on the changing landscape and on the evolving shape of his own family, on fatherhood and masculinity, and on the meaning of home.Part memoir, part travel-writing, part literary criticism, A Length of Road is a deeply profound and poetic exploration of class, gender, grief and sexuality through the author's own experiences and through the autobiographical writing of poet John Clare.(P) 2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
The Barbizon: The New York Hotel That Set Women Free
by Paulina BrenA glamorous social history of the women-only New York hotel that changed the world.WELCOME TO THE BARBIZON, NEW YORK'S PREMIER WOMEN-ONLY HOTEL Built in 1927, New York's Barbizon Hotel was first intended as a home for the 'Modern Woman' seeking a career in the arts. It became the place to stay for ambitious, independent women, who were lured by the promise of fame and good fortune. Sylvia Plath fictionalized her time there in The Bell Jar, and over the years, its 688 tiny pink 'highly feminine boudoirs' also housed Joan Crawford, Grace Kelly (notorious for sneaking in men), Joan Didion, Candice Bergen, Charlie's Angel Jaclyn Smith, Ali McGraw, Cybil Shepherd, Elaine Stritch, Liza Minnelli, Eudora Welty, The Cosby Show's Phylicia Rashad, and writers Mona Simpson and Ann Beattie, among many others. Mademoiselle boarded its summer interns there - perfectly turned-out young women, who would never be spotted hatless - as did Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School its students - in their white-gloves and kitten heels - and the Ford Modelling Agency its young models. Not everyone who passed through the Barbizon's doors was destined for greatness - for some it was a story of dashed hopes and expectations - but from the Jazz Age New Women of the 1920s, to the Liberated Women of the 1960s, until 1981 when the first men checked in, The Barbizon was a place where women could stand up and be counted. THE BARBIZON is a colourful, glamorous portrait of the lives of these young women, who came to New York looking for something more. It's a story of pushing the boundaries, of women's emancipation and of the generations of brilliant women who passed through its halls.(P) 2021 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Aftershocks: Dispatches from the Frontlines of Identity
by Nadia OwusuI have lived in disaster and disaster has lived in me. Our shared languages are thunder and reverberation.When Nadia Owusu was two years old her mother abandoned her and her baby sister and fled from Tanzania back to the US. When she was thirteen her beloved Ghanaian father died of cancer. She and her sister were left alone, with a stepmother they didn't like, adrift. Nadia Owusu is a woman of many languages, homelands and identities. She grew up in Rome, Dar-es-Salaam, Addis Ababa, Kumasi, Kampala and London. And for every new place there was a new language, a new identity and a new home. At times she has felt stateless, motherless and identity-less. At others, she has had multiple identities at war within her. It's no wonder she started to feel fault lines in her sense of self. It's no wonder that those fault lines eventually ruptured. Aftershocks is the account of how she hauled herself out of the wreckage. It is the intimate story behind the news of immigration and division dominating contemporary politics. Nadia Owusu's astonishingly moving and incredibly timely memoir is a nuanced portrait of globalisation from the inside in a fractured world in crisis.
The Central Park Five: A story revisited in light of the acclaimed new Netflix series When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay
by Sarah BurnsThe case of the Central Park Five is being revisited with a new acclaimed Netflix limited series on the subject, When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay.This is the only book that is going to tell you all you need to know about one of the most infamous criminal cases in American history. A trial that, thirty years on, still bears a striking, and unsettling, resemblance to our current political climate in the era of President Donald Trump.In April 1989, a white woman who came to be known as the 'Central Park jogger' was brutally raped and severely beaten, her body left crumpled in a ravine. Amid the staggering torrent of media coverage and public outcry that ensued, exposing the deep-seated race and class divisions in New York City at the time, five teenagers were quickly apprehended - four black and one Hispanic. All five confessed, were tried and convicted as adults despite no evidence linking them to the victim.Over a decade later, when DNA tests connected serial rapist Matias Reyes to the crime, the government, law enforcement, social institutions and media of New York were exposed as having undermined the individuals they were designed to protect. In The Central Park Five, Sarah Burns, who has worked closely with the young men to uncover and document the truth, recounts the ins and outs of this historic case for the first time since their convictions were overturned, telling, at last, the full story of one of America's most legendary miscarriages of justice.
The Central Park Five: A story revisited in light of the acclaimed new Netflix series When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay
by Sarah BurnsThe case of the Central Park Five is being revisited with a new acclaimed Netflix limited series on the subject, When They See Us, directed by Ava DuVernay.This is the only book that is going to tell you all you need to know about one of the most infamous criminal cases in American history. A trial that, thirty years on, still bears a striking, and unsettling, resemblance to our current political climate in the era of President Donald Trump.In April 1989, a white woman who came to be known as the 'Central Park jogger' was brutally raped and severely beaten, her body left crumpled in a ravine. Amid the staggering torrent of media coverage and public outcry that ensued, exposing the deep-seated race and class divisions in New York City at the time, five teenagers were quickly apprehended - four black and one Hispanic. All five confessed, were tried and convicted as adults despite no evidence linking them to the victim.Over a decade later, when DNA tests connected serial rapist Matias Reyes to the crime, the government, law enforcement, social institutions and media of New York were exposed as having undermined the individuals they were designed to protect. In The Central Park Five, Sarah Burns, who has worked closely with the young men to uncover and document the truth, recounts the ins and outs of this historic case for the first time since their convictions were overturned, telling, at last, the full story of one of America's most legendary miscarriages of justice.(P) 2020 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown
by Anne Glenconner**SPECTATOR BOOKS OF THE YEAR 2020****SUNDAY TIMES FAVOURITE PAPERBACKS OF 2020**'The best royal book by miles . . . funny, gossipy and riveting'JANE RIDLEY, SPECTATOR'If your jaw doesn't drop at least three times every chapter, you've not been paying proper attention'SUNDAY TIMES'A captivating account of a life lived with resilience and grace'DAILY MAIL'The stoical Lady G writes with infectious joy and optimism'DAILY EXPRESS'The gossip is stupendous but it's also tremendously touching. It's one of those books that makes you long for bed so you can read more!'JILLY COOPER'I can't recommend it highly enough'LORRAINE KELLY'Gentle, wise, unpretentious, but above all inspiring'THE TIMES'A candid, witty and stylish memoir'MIRANDA SEYMOUR, FINANCIAL TIMES'Stalwart and disarmingly honest . . . emotion resonates through this delightful memoir'THE WALL STREET JOURNAL'Discretion and honour emerge as the hallmarks of Glenconner's career as a royal servant, culminating in this book which manages to be both candid and kind'GUARDIAN'I couldn't put it down. Funny and touching - like looking through a keyhole at a lost world.'RUPERT EVERETT~The remarkable life of Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret who was also a Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation. Anne Glenconner reveals the real events behind The Crown as well as her own life of drama, tragedy and courage, with the wonderful wit and extraordinary resilience which define her.Anne Glenconner has been close to the Royal Family since childhood. Eldest child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, she was, as a daughter, described as 'the greatest disappointment' by her family as she was unable to inherit. Her childhood home Holkham Hall is one of the grandest estates in England. Bordering Sandringham the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret were frequent playmates. From Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation to Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, Lady Glenconner is a unique witness to royal history, as well as an extraordinary survivor of a generation of aristocratic women trapped without inheritance and burdened with social expectations. She married the charismatic but highly volatile Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who became the owner of Mustique. Together they turned the island into a paradise for the rich and famous, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, and it became a favourite retreat for Princess Margaret. But beneath the glitz and glamour there has also lurked tragedy. On Lord Glenconner's death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident. Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life.
Lady in Waiting: My Extraordinary Life in the Shadow of the Crown
by Anne GlenconnerThe remarkable life of Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret who was also a Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation - and is a character in The Crown this autumn. Anne Glenconner reveals the real events behind The Crown as well as her own life of drama, tragedy and courage, with the wonderful wit and extraordinary resilience which define her.Anne Glenconner has been close to the Royal Family since childhood. Eldest child of the 5th Earl of Leicester, she was, as a daughter, described as 'the greatest disappointment' by her family as she was unable to inherit. Her childhood home Holkham Hall is one of the grandest estates in England. Bordering Sandringham the Princesses Elizabeth and Margaret were frequent playmates. From Maid of Honour at the Queen's Coronation to Lady in Waiting to Princess Margaret, Lady Glenconner is a unique witness to royal history, as well as an extraordinary survivor of a generation of aristocratic women trapped without inheritance and burdened with social expectations. She married the charismatic but highly volatile Colin Tennant, Lord Glenconner, who became the owner of Mustique. Together they turned the island into a paradise for the rich and famous, including Mick Jagger and David Bowie, and it became a favourite retreat for Princess Margaret. But beneath the glitz and glamour there has also lurked tragedy. On Lord Glenconner's death in 2010 he left his fortune to a former employee. And of their five children, two grown-up sons died, while a third son had to be nursed back from a coma by Anne, after having suffered a near fatal accident. Anne Glenconner writes with extraordinary wit, generosity and courage and she exposes what life was like in her gilded cage, revealing the role of her great friendship with Princess Margaret, and the freedom she can now finally enjoy in later life. She will appear as a character in the new series of The Crown this autumn.(P) 2019 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Saltwater: Winner of the Portico Prize
by Jessica AndrewsSHORTLISTED FOR THE PORTICO PRIZE 'This book is sublime. It dares to be different, to look in a different way. Andrews is not filling anyone's shoes, she is destroying the shoes and building them from scratch.' Daisy JohnsonWhen Lucy wins a place at university, she thinks London will unlock her future. It is a city alive with pop up bars, cool girls and neon lights illuminating the Thames at night. At least this is what Lucy expects, having grown up seemingly a world away in working-class Sunderland, amid legendary family stories of Irish immigrants and boarding houses, now-defunct ice rinks and an engagement ring at a fish market. Yet Lucy's transition to a new life is more overwhelming than she ever expected. As she works long shifts to make ends meet and navigates chaotic parties from East London warehouses to South Kensington mansions, she still feels like an outsider among her fellow students. When things come to a head at her graduation, Lucy takes off for Ireland, seeking solace in her late grandfather's cottage and the wild landscape that surrounds it, wondering if she can piece together who she really is. Lyrical and boundary-breaking, Saltwater explores the complexities of mother-daughter relationships, the challenges of shifting class identity and the way that the strongest feelings of love can be the hardest to define.(p) 2019 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Miles To Go Before I Sleep: Letters on Hope, Death and Learning to Live
by Claire Gilbert'Claire's honest, raw, authentic diaries will be a source of comfort to many'- Miranda Hart At the age of 54 Claire Gilbert was diagnosed with myeloma, an incurable cancer of the blood. The prognoses ranged from surviving only a few months to living for several decades, with no guarantee of which outcome was to be hers. It was a shocking diagnosis into uncertainty, or rather, into only one certainty: death. But Claire discovered that facing her own mortality was liberating. She discovered this through writing letters. Claire asked her siblings and a small group of friends if they would let her write to them with total honesty about what she was going through, as she was going through it. These letters turned out to be a great solace, and gradually her group of 'dear readers' has grown; what she had to say wasn't just of value to herself, but to others, too. The letters chart Claire's journey through diagnosis, chemotherapy and a brutal round of stem cell treatment, and end with the rest of the UK joining her in her immuno-compromised isolation in March 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic hit. Unflinchingly honest and wide-ranging, Claire writes about the restorative role of nature, politics, poetry, humour - and a restless exploration of the spiritual dimension of death and dying. This is an honest, luminous account of what Claire has gone through and what keeps her going, a deeply spiritual meditation on life and suffering, and an exploration of how faith is no simple solace but provides a whole new plane of meaning during these liminal moments.'Claire Gilbert's account of the progress of her fatal illness, from diagnosis through various traumatic treatments, is in turn candid, painful, funny, tender, fierce and philosophical. But most of all it is a marvellously enjoyable read depicting the human spirit at its finest: defiant, exuberant, joyous. An example to us all that we can triumph over the cruellest adversity'- Salley Vickers
Miles To Go Before I Sleep: Letters on Hope, Death and Learning to Live
by Claire Gilbert'Claire's honest, raw, authentic diaries will be a source of comfort to many'- Miranda Hart At the age of 54 Claire Gilbert was diagnosed with myeloma, an incurable cancer of the blood. The prognoses ranged from surviving only a few months to living for several decades, with no guarantee of which outcome was to be hers. It was a shocking diagnosis into uncertainty, or rather, into only one certainty: death. But Claire discovered that facing her own mortality was liberating. She discovered this through writing letters. Claire asked her siblings and a small group of friends if they would let her write to them with total honesty about what she was going through, as she was going through it. These letters turned out to be a great solace, and gradually her group of 'dear readers' has grown; what she had to say wasn't just of value to herself, but to others, too. The letters chart Claire's journey through diagnosis, chemotherapy and a brutal round of stem cell treatment, and end with the rest of the UK joining her in her immuno-compromised isolation in March 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic hit. Unflinchingly honest and wide-ranging, Claire writes about the restorative role of nature, politics, poetry, humour - and a restless exploration of the spiritual dimension of death and dying. This is an honest, luminous account of what Claire has gone through and what keeps her going, a deeply spiritual meditation on life and suffering, and an exploration of how faith is no simple solace but provides a whole new plane of meaning during these liminal moments.'Claire Gilbert's account of the progress of her fatal illness, from diagnosis through various traumatic treatments, is in turn candid, painful, funny, tender, fierce and philosophical. But most of all it is a marvellously enjoyable read depicting the human spirit at its finest: defiant, exuberant, joyous. An example to us all that we can triumph over the cruellest adversity'- Salley Vickers
Tall Tales and Wee Stories: The Best of Billy Connolly
by Billy ConnollyTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Connolly's raucous run through his life is as furious, funny and foul-mouthed as you'd expect' Sunday TimesIn December 2018, after fifty years of belly-laughs, energy and outrage, Billy Connolly announced his retirement from live stand-up comedy. It had been an extraordinary career.When he first started out in the late sixties, Billy played the banjo in the folk clubs of Scotland. Between songs, he would improvise a bit, telling anecdotes from the Clyde shipyard where he'd worked. In the process, he made all kinds of discoveries about what audiences found funny, from his own brilliant mimes to the power of speaking irreverently about politics or explicitly about sex. He began to understand the craft of great storytelling. Soon the songs became shorter and the monologues longer, and Billy quickly became recognised as one of the most exciting comedians of his generation.Billy's routines always felt spontaneous. He never wrote scripts, always creating his comedy freshly on stage in the presence of a live audience. A brilliant comic story might be subsequently discarded, adapted or embellished. A quick observation or short anecdote one night, could become a twenty-minute segment by the next night of a tour.Billy always brought a beautiful sense of the absurd to his shows as he riffed on his family, hecklers, swimming in the North Sea or naked bungee jumping. But his comedy can be laced with anger too. He hates pretentiousness and calls out hypocrisy wherever he sees it. His insights about the human condition have shocked many people, while his unique talent and startling appearance on stage gave him license to say anything he damn well pleased about sex, politics or religion. Billy got away with it because he has always had the popular touch. His comedy spans generations and different social tribes in a way that few others have ever managed.Tall Tales and Wee Stories brings together the very best of Billy's storytelling for the first time and includes his most famous routines including, The Last Supper, Jojoba Shampoo, Incontinence Pants and Shouting at Wildebeest. With an introduction and original illustrations by Billy throughout, it is an inspirational, energetic and riotously funny read, and a fitting celebration of our greatest ever comedian.
Tall Tales and Wee Stories: The Best of Billy Connolly
by Billy ConnollyTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Connolly's raucous run through his life is as furious, funny and foul-mouthed as you'd expect' Sunday TimesIn December 2018, after fifty years of belly-laughs, energy and outrage, Billy Connolly announced his retirement from live stand-up comedy. It had been an extraordinary career.When he first started out in the late sixties, Billy played the banjo in the folk clubs of Scotland. Between songs, he would improvise a bit, telling anecdotes from the Clyde shipyard where he'd worked. In the process, he made all kinds of discoveries about what audiences found funny, from his own brilliant mimes to the power of speaking irreverently about politics or explicitly about sex. He began to understand the craft of great storytelling. Soon the songs became shorter and the monologues longer, and Billy quickly became recognised as one of the most exciting comedians of his generation.Billy's routines always felt spontaneous. He never wrote scripts, always creating his comedy freshly on stage in the presence of a live audience. A brilliant comic story might be subsequently discarded, adapted or embellished. A quick observation or short anecdote one night, could become a twenty-minute segment by the next night of a tour.Billy always brought a beautiful sense of the absurd to his shows as he riffed on his family, hecklers, swimming in the North Sea or naked bungee jumping. But his comedy can be laced with anger too. He hates pretentiousness and calls out hypocrisy wherever he sees it. His insights about the human condition have shocked many people, while his unique talent and startling appearance on stage gave him license to say anything he damn well pleased about sex, politics or religion. Billy got away with it because he has always had the popular touch. His comedy spans generations and different social tribes in a way that few others have ever managed.Tall Tales and Wee Stories brings together the very best of Billy's storytelling for the first time and includes his most famous routines including, The Last Supper, Jojoba Shampoo, Incontinence Pants and Shouting at Wildebeest. With an introduction and original illustrations by Billy throughout, it is an inspirational, energetic and riotously funny read, and a fitting celebration of our greatest ever comedian.
My A-Z of Cricket: A personal celebration of our glorious game
by Henry BlofeldLegendary cricket broadcaster Henry Blofeld takes the reader on a journey from A-Z through the world of cricket. In his trademark charming style, Blowers goes through the alphabet, explaining some of the puzzling cricket terminology and regaling his favourite anecdotes from his fifty years in the sport, covering the most important moments in the sport's history as well as the most entertaining and amusing. The book will also contain a glossary for those who want to make sure they know their googlys from their bouncers. This gift book is perfect for fans of cricket who want to understand the sport from Henry's unique point of view, it is a humorous and entertaining jaunt through the cricket landscape.(P) 2019 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
The Centre of the Bed: An Autobiography
by Joan Bakewell'Honest and intriguing ... beautifully written.' Observer'Joan Bakewell was everywhere at every stage: reporting on the Cuban missile crisis, interviewing Allen Ginsberg and Vaclav Havel, taking chunks out of the Berlin Wall when it fell...draped in the kaftan of Sixties sophistication.' Independent on SundayJoan Bakewell's life and times spans the Blitz in Manchester, Cambridge during the glittering era of Michael Frayn, Peter Hall, Jonathan Miller et al, London at its most exciting in the swinging sixties and the world of the media and the arts from the 60s to the present. As she reflects on the choices she has made and the influences that shaped her, she confronts painful childhood memories of her mother's behaviour and describes both her affair with Harold Pinter and her two marriages with remarkable honesty. Throughout she uses her own experience to explore the extraordinary change in women's roles during her lifetime. This is no ordinary celebrity autobiography but a memoir that is beautifully written, frank and absorbing, which draws a thought-provoking portrait of Britain in the last 70 years.Dame Joan Bakewell was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship in 2019.
The Centre of the Bed: An Autobiography
by Joan Bakewell'Honest and intriguing ... beautifully written.'Observer'Joan Bakewell was everywhere at every stage: reporting on the Cuban missile crisis, interviewing Allen Ginsberg and Vaclav Havel, taking chunks out of the Berlin Wall when it fell...draped in the kaftan of Sixties sophistication.' Independent on SundayJoan Bakewell's life and times spans the Blitz in Manchester, Cambridge during the glittering era of Michael Frayn, Peter Hall, Jonathan Miller et al, London at its most exciting in the swinging sixties and the world of the media and the arts from the 60s to the present. As she reflects on the choices she has made and the influences that shaped her, she confronts painful childhood memories of her mother's behaviour and describes both her affair with Harold Pinter and her two marriages with remarkable honesty. Throughout she uses her own experience to explore the extraordinary change in women's roles during her lifetime. This is no ordinary celebrity autobiography but a memoir that is beautifully written, frank and absorbing, which draws a thought-provoking portrait of Britain in the last 70 years.Dame Joan Bakewell was awarded the BAFTA Fellowship in 2019.
Love of My Life: The Life and Loves of Freddie Mercury
by Lesley-Ann JonesWHO - OR WHAT - WAS THE REAL LOVE OF FREDDIE MERCURY'S LIFE?Millions of Queen and screen fans who watched the Oscar-winning film Bohemian Rhapsody believe that Mary Austin, the woman he could never quite let go of, was the love of Freddie Mercury's life. But the truth is infinitely more complicated.Best-selling biographer and music writer Lesley-Ann Jones explores the charismatic frontman's romantic encounters, from his boarding school years in Panchgani, India to his tragic, final, bed-ridden days in his magnificent London mansion. She reveals why none of his love interests ever perfected the art of being Freddie's life partner.In Love of My Life, the author follows him through his obsessions with former shop girl Mary, German actress Barbara Valentin and Irish-born barber boyfriend Jim Hutton. She explores his adoration of globally fêted Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé. She delves into his intimate friendship with Elton John, and probes his imperishable bonds with his fellow band members. She deconstructs his complicated relationship with the 'food of love' - his music - and examines closely his voracious appetite for - what some would call his fatal addiction to - sex. Which of these was the real love of Freddie Mercury's life? Was any of them? Drawing on personal interviews and first-hand encounters, this moving book brings to the fore a host of Freddie's lesser-known loves, weaving them in and out of the passions that consumed him. The result, a mesmerising portrait of a legendary rock star, is unputdownable. Love of My Life, published during the year of the 30th anniversary of his death and that would have seen his 75th birthday, is Lesley-Ann's personal and compassionate tribute to an artist she has revered for as long as she has written about music and musicians.
Love of My Life: The Life and Loves of Freddie Mercury - THE PERFECT CHRISTMAS GIFT
by Lesley-Ann Jones'EYEWITNESS GOLD' SUNDAY TIMESWHO - OR WHAT - WAS THE REAL LOVE OF FREDDIE MERCURY'S LIFE? THE SENSATIONAL NEW BIOGRPHAY OF QUEEN'S FRONTMAN Millions of Queen and screen fans who watched the Oscar-winning film Bohemian Rhapsody believe that Mary Austin, the woman he could never quite let go of, was the love of Freddie Mercury's life. But the truth is infinitely more complicated.Best-selling biographer and music writer Lesley-Ann Jones explores the charismatic frontman's romantic encounters, from his boarding school years in Panchgani, India to his tragic, final, bed-ridden days in his magnificent London mansion. She reveals why none of his love interests ever perfected the art of being Freddie's life partner.In Love of My Life, the author follows him through his obsessions with former shop girl Mary, German actress Barbara Valentin and Irish-born barber boyfriend Jim Hutton. She explores his adoration of globally fêted Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé. She delves into his intimate friendship with Elton John, and probes his imperishable bonds with his fellow band members. She deconstructs his complicated relationship with the 'food of love' - his music - and examines closely his voracious appetite for - what some would call his fatal addiction to - sex. Which of these was the real love of Freddie Mercury's life? Was any of them? Drawing on personal interviews and first-hand encounters, this moving book brings to the fore a host of Freddie's lesser-known loves, weaving them in and out of the passions that consumed him. The result, a mesmerising portrait of a legendary rock star, is unputdownable. Love of My Life, published during the year of the 30th anniversary of his death and that would have seen his 75th birthday, is Lesley-Ann's personal and compassionate tribute to an artist she has revered for as long as she has written about music and musicians.
Love of My Life: The Life and Loves of Freddie Mercury
by Lesley-Ann JonesThe truth behind Freddie Mercury's complex romantic relationships.WHO - OR WHAT - WAS THE REAL LOVE OF FREDDIE MERCURY'S LIFE?Millions of Queen and screen fans who watched the Oscar-winning film Bohemian Rhapsody believe that Mary Austin, the woman he could never quite let go of, was the love of Freddie Mercury's life. But the truth is infinitely more complicated.Best-selling biographer and music writer Lesley-Ann Jones explores the charismatic frontman's romantic encounters, from his boarding school years in Panchgani, India to his tragic, final, bed-ridden days in his magnificent London mansion. She reveals why none of his love interests ever perfected the art of being Freddie's life partner.In Love of My Life, the author follows him through his obsessions with former shop girl Mary, German actress Barbara Valentin and Irish-born barber boyfriend Jim Hutton. She explores his adoration of globally feted Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballé. She delves into his intimate friendship with Elton John, and probes his imperishable bonds with his fellow band members. She deconstructs his complicated relationship with the 'food of love' - his music - and examines closely his voracious appetite for - what some would call his fatal addiction to - sex. Which of these was the real love of Freddie Mercury's life? Was any of them? Drawing on personal interviews and first-hand encounters, this moving audiobook brings to the fore a host of Freddie's lesser-known loves, weaving them in and out of the passions that consumed him. The result is a mesmerising portrait of a legendary rock star. Love of My Life, published during the year of the 30th anniversary of his death and that would have seen his 75th birthday, is Lesley-Ann's personal and compassionate tribute to an artist she has revered for as long as she has written about music and musicians.(P) 2021 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
The Heavens Are All Blue: A memoir of two doctors, a marriage and a life of love before loss
by Dr Finbar Lennon Dr Kathleen McGarryWhen Dr Kate McGarry was diagnosed with an advanced cancer of unknown origin she resolved to write a book to chart her experience: as a woman coming to terms with such devastating news and what this meant to her as a wife and a mother but also, crucially, how she experienced cancer and its treatment as a doctor, who had become a patient. As Kate adjusted to living with cancer and underwent treatment, she enlisted the help of her husband, fellow doctor, Finbar to help her write the book but then she sadly passed away on the 5 January 2018. With no writing experience, and wrestling with his own heartache, Finbar set about finishing their story. The result is a touchingly beautiful memoir about love, grief and togetherness.'A loving memoir of time spent both together and apart ... [Kate's] personal legacy, as a mother, a wife and the life and soul of the party, is recorded beautifully in this moving memoir' Sunday Business Post
The Heavens Are All Blue: A memoir of two doctors, a marriage and a life of love before loss
by Dr Finbar Lennon Dr Kathleen McGarryWhen Dr Kate McGarry was diagnosed with an advanced cancer of unknown origin she resolved to write a book to chart her experience: as a woman coming to terms with such devastating news and what this meant to her as a wife and a mother but also, crucially, how she experienced cancer and its treatment as a doctor, who had become a patient. As Kate adjusted to living with cancer and underwent treatment, she enlisted the help of her husband, fellow doctor, Finbar to help her write the book but then she sadly passed away on the 5 January 2018. With no writing experience, and wrestling with his own heartache, Finbar set about finishing their story. The result is a touchingly beautiful memoir about love, grief and togetherness.'A loving memoir of time spent both together and apart ... [Kate's] personal legacy, as a mother, a wife and the life and soul of the party, is recorded beautifully in this moving memoir' Sunday Business Post
My Autobiography
by Rory Best'Extraordinary... great fun' Barry Egan, Irish Sunday Independent'A wonderful story . . . vivid and comprehensive.' Stephen Jones, Sunday Times''Throughout it all though there is a feeling of warmth for the sport and for others. Above all there is a sense of achievement... Best was never one of the glamour boys, but he deserves star billing.' Daily TelegraphRory Best is widely-regarded as one of Ireland's greatest ever captains. Entrusted by Joe Schmidt to lead the side that looked on the wane following the 2015 World Cup, Best's inspirational leadership skills and abrasive qualities proved to be the foundation stones for the most successful period in Ireland's history.His first year in charge saw Ireland complete a hat-trick of victories against the southern hemisphere 'Big Three', including leading his side to a first ever victory over world champions New Zealand in Chicago, a feat that etched Best's place in Irish sporting folklore and ended the All Blacks' record-winning streak of 18 Test victories.Ireland's annus mirabilis under Best's captaincy would come in 2018 however, when he led the side to only their third Grand Slam title, culminating with a famous victory over England at Twickenham, and a record-breaking run of 12 successive Test victories.When he stepped down as Ireland captain at the age of 37 following the World Cup in Japan, his fourth tournament, history will no doubt also judge Best to be one of their greatest forwards.A hugely-popular figure across the game, Best finished his career as Ireland's most capped forward, behind only Brian O'Driscoll and Ronan O'Gara in the all-time records, and also made over 200 appearances for his province Ulster.
My Autobiography
by Rory Best'Extraordinary . . . great fun' Barry Egan, Irish Sunday Independent'A wonderful story . . . vivid and comprehensive.' Stephen Jones, Sunday Times''Throughout it all though there is a feeling of warmth for the sport and for others. Above all there is a sense of achievement . . . Best was never one of the glamour boys, but he deserves star billing.' Daily TelegraphRory Best is widely-regarded as one of Ireland's greatest ever captains. Entrusted by Joe Schmidt to lead the side that looked on the wane following the 2015 World Cup, Best's inspirational leadership skills and abrasive qualities proved to be the foundation stones for the most successful period in Ireland's history.His first year in charge saw Ireland complete a hat-trick of victories against the southern hemisphere 'Big Three', including leading his side to a first ever victory over world champions New Zealand in Chicago, a feat that etched Best's place in Irish sporting folklore and ended the All Blacks' record-winning streak of 18 Test victories.Ireland's annus mirabilis under Best's captaincy would come in 2018 however, when he led the side to only their third Grand Slam title, culminating with a famous victory over England at Twickenham, and a record-breaking run of 12 successive Test victories.When he stepped down as Ireland captain at the age of 37 following the World Cup in Japan, his fourth tournament, history will no doubt also judge Best to be one of their greatest forwards.A hugely-popular figure across the game, Best finished his career as Ireland's most capped forward, behind only Brian O'Driscoll and Ronan O'Gara in the all-time records, and also made over 200 appearances for his province Ulster.
My Autobiography
by Rory BestRory Best is widely-regarded as one of Ireland's greatest ever captains. Entrusted by Joe Schmidt to lead the side that looked on the wane following the 2015 World Cup, Best's inspirational leadership skills and abrasive qualities proved to be the foundation stones for the most successful period in Ireland's history.His first year in charge saw Ireland complete a hat-trick of victories against the southern hemisphere 'Big Three', including leading his side to a first ever victory over world champions New Zealand in Chicago, a feat that etched Best's place in Irish sporting folklore and ended the All Blacks' record-winning streak of 18 Test victories.Ireland's annus mirabilis under Best's captaincy would come in 2018 however, when he led the side to only their third Grand Slam title, culminating with a famous victory over England at Twickenham, and a record-breaking run of 12 successive Test victories.When he steps down as Ireland captain at the age of 37 following the World Cup in Japan, his fourth tournament, history will no doubt also judge Best to be one of their greatest forwards.A hugely-popular figure across the game, Best will finish his career as Ireland's most capped forward, behind only Brian O'Driscoll and Ronan O'Gara in the all-time records, and also made over 200 appearances for his province Ulster.(P) 2020 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd
Like Father, Like Son: A family story
by Michael Parkinson'a quietly impressive book, which does something most celebrity autobiographies shy away from: it seeks the truth and, more often than not, finds it.' - THE MAILA look at the life and times of the man Sir Michael most looked up to.It started in the shadow of the pithead in a South Yorkshire mining village and ended up in tears before an audience of millions. Michael Parkinson's relationship with his late father John William was, and remains, a family love story overflowing with tenderness and tall tales of sporting valour, usually involving Yorkshire cricket or Barnsley FC. However, it was the overwhelming grief which poured out of Michael when Piers Morgan pressed him about John William in a television interview - four decades after the death of the father he encapsulated as 'Yorkshireman, miner, humorist and fast bowler' - that convinced one of the outstanding broadcasters and journalists of our time to delve deeper into the dynamics of their lives together. Co-written with his son Mike, this affectionate and revealing memoir explores the influences which shaped John William, Michael and succeeding generations of Parkinsons. The journey leads them from the depths of a Yorkshire coal mine, via the chapel, pub and picture-house, to a spot behind the bowler's arm at Lord's and the sands at Scarborough. While Like Father, Like Son conveys a powerful sense of time and place, it is wit, insight and, above all, enduring love which shine through its pages.
Like Father, Like Son: A family story
by Michael Parkinson'a quietly impressive book, which does something most celebrity autobiographies shy away from: it seeks the truth and, more often than not, finds it.' - THE MAILA look at the life and times of the man Sir Michael most looked up to.It started in the shadow of the pithead in a South Yorkshire mining village and ended up in tears before an audience of millions. Michael Parkinson's relationship with his late father John William was, and remains, a family love story overflowing with tenderness and tall tales of sporting valour, usually involving Yorkshire cricket or Barnsley FC. However, it was the overwhelming grief which poured out of Michael when Piers Morgan pressed him about John William in a television interview - four decades after the death of the father he encapsulated as 'Yorkshireman, miner, humorist and fast bowler' - that convinced one of the outstanding broadcasters and journalists of our time to delve deeper into the dynamics of their lives together. Co-written with his son Mike, this affectionate and revealing memoir explores the influences which shaped John William, Michael and succeeding generations of Parkinsons. The journey leads them from the depths of a Yorkshire coal mine, via the chapel, pub and picture-house, to a spot behind the bowler's arm at Lord's and the sands at Scarborough. While Like Father, Like Son conveys a powerful sense of time and place, it is wit, insight and, above all, enduring love which shine through its pages.