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Simple Pleasures: Little Things That Make Life Worth Living
by VariousWhat are the little things that make life worth living? A walk in the countryside, perhaps; a log fire; a letter from a friend. In Simple Pleasures, some of the UK's best-loved writers and public figures ponder this conundrum and come up with their own answers, sharing their thoughts on, among other things, the joys of picking up litter, whittling sticks, reading aloud, and devouring a good cheese sandwich. With contributions from A. C. Grayling, Robert McCrum, Prue Leith, Sebastian Faulks and Ann Widdecombe, to name just a few, Simple Pleasures is perfect reading for anyone who appreciates - or aspires to - the finer, simpler things in life.
Valley Of Decision
by Stanley MiddletonA novel from the Booker-Prize winning author Stanley Middleton. Rejacked and reissued in Windmill.Mary and David Blackwell are content in their marriage but when Mary, a talented opera singer, is offered the chance to sing in America, everything changes. David, a music teacher and amateur cellist, is left behind in England and, when he suddenly stops hearing from her, he must decide how to carry on and what to do.'It is a very, very long time since any book made me physically cry. But Stanley Middleton's Valley of Decision did just that, twice... The story is simple... Anyone, well almost anyone, could write that story... But only Mr Middleton could turn it into something approaching a small masterpiece.' Martyn Goff, Daily Telegraph'Increasingly, Middleton's command of the ordinary has become extraordinary... In this new novel the rigours and solaces of making music are cleverly (but uninsistently) counter-pointed with the human relationships that accompany them.' Anthony Thwaite, Observer
Married Past Redemption
by Stanley MiddletonFrom the Booker-Prize-winning author of Holiday. Rejacketed and reissued by Windmill to mark the 40th anniversary of Middleton's Booker Prize win.David and Alison are a successful young couple planning their wedding, but they are surrounded by family and friends whose marriages have ended in failure. As each member of this close community struggles to make or re-make a life, Stanley Middleton tests the reality of present and past marriage, its possibilities and dangers, its hopes and fears.'His reputation, built book by book, as an astute observer of middle-England bourgeois life and as a writer whose reach extends far beyond his immediate milieu, is probably now invulnerable.' Nicholas Wroe.' Times Literary Supplement'Every page is taut with inner strength and truth.' Mail on Sunday
Nightingales at War: (Nightingales 6) (Nightingales #6)
by Donna DouglasAs the war takes its toll, the Nightingale nurses must do their bit for king and country…Dora is the devoted mother of twin babies but, determined to help the war effort, she goes back to work at the Nightingale Hospital.More used to nights out in the West End, Jennifer and Cissy volunteer in the hope of tending to handsome soldiers. They soon find out that nursing isn’t quite what they were expecting.For shy and troubled Eve, the hospital provides an escape from the pressures of home, but the life of a nurse is never easy, especially at wartime.Can the nurses rally together while war rages all around them? And will the Nightingale Hospital survive the Blitz?
Nightingales Under the Mistletoe: (Nightingales 7) (Nightingales #7)
by Donna DouglasChristmas 1941 and the nurses at the Nightingale are facing their toughest winter yet.With shortages everywhere, and every news bulletin announcing more defeats and losses, the British people are weary and demoralised and The Nightingale Hospital is suffering too. Millie is recently widowed and dealing with the demands of her family’s estate. It’s not long before her old world of The Nightingale begins to beckon, along with a long-lost love…Jess is struggling with her move from East London to the quiet of the countryside.Effie finds herself exiled to a quiet village, but the quiet doesn’t last for long as she soon finds excitement in the shape of a smooth-talking GI. As Christmas approaches, even the shelter of the countryside can’t protect the girls from heartache.
The Nurses of Steeple Street (Steeple Street Series #1)
by Donna DouglasFROM THE SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE NIGHTINGALE SERIES COMES THE FIRST BOOK IN DONNA DOUGLAS' NEW NURSES OF STEEPLE STREET SERIES.Welcome to the district nurses’ home on Steeple Street, where everyone has a secret…Ambitious young nurse Agnes Sheridan had a promising future ahead of her until a tragic mistake brought all her dreams crashing down and cost her the love and respect of everyone around her. Now she has come to Leeds for a fresh start as a trainee district nurse. But Agnes finds herself facing unexpected challenges as she is assigned to Quarry Hill, one of the city’s most notorious slums. Before she can redeem herself in the eyes of her family, she must first win the trust and respect of her patients and fellow nurses.Does Agnes have what it takes to stay the distance? Or will the tragedy of her past catch up with her?Praise for The Nurses of Steeple Street Series:'Full of well drawn characters and intriguing relationships. Donna Douglas skilfully charts her heroine's attempts to be accepted . . . uncovering secrets, heartbreak and lost loves along the way!'Mary Gibson, author of Custard Tarts and Broken Hearts'Another fantastic Donna Douglas book - how does she do it? Full of colourful characters, wit, sadness, hope and wisdom.'
A Nightingale Christmas Carol: (Nightingales 8) (Nightingales #8)
by Donna DouglasAll that Dora Riley wants is her husband home safe for Christmas… The Nightingale Hospital, London, 1944: With her husband Nick away fighting, Dora struggles to keep the home fires burning and is put in charge of a ward full of German prisoners of war. Can she find it in her heart to care for her enemies? Fellow nurse Kitty thinks she might be falling for a German soldier, whilst Dora’s old friend Helen returns from Europe with a dark secret. Can the women overcome their prejudices and the troubles of their past to do their duty for their country?
The Only Quiz Book You Will Ever Need
by National Quiz TeamThe championship winning England team presents for the very first time, 3,000 questions in a quiz book for all the family.Fresh from winning the European Championships, the England quiz team have put their heads together and compiled 200 quizzes to challenge every member of the family. From questions for kids, to History, TV and Sport, and of course general knowledge, there’s a quiz to suit everyone. And for those quiz fanatics among you, there are even a few fiendishly difficult ones that our very own champions struggled to answer. So pit yourself against the best, or just join in for a bit of fun; and whether you’re playing in groups or simply testing your own skill, one thing is for sure – a quiz book put together by the best team in Europe is guaranteed to be the only quiz book you’ll ever need.
Harris’s Requiem
by Stanley MiddletonFrom Booker-Prize winning novelist Stanley Middleton. Thomas Harris is on the cusp of success as a classical composer with a growing reputation.When his father, a coal miner, dies Thomas decides to write a requiem for him which is also a thinly veiled attack on the powerful elite. In spite of opposition he finally succeeds in getting his work performed but how will the critics react?
An After-Dinner’s Sleep
by Stanley MiddletonFrom the Booker-Prize-winning author of Holiday. Rejacketed and reissued by Windmill to mark the 40th anniversary of Middleton's Booker Prize win.One winter evening Alistair Murray opens his door to Eleanor Franks, a woman he has not seen for decades. A man apparently content with his life, even his retirement and bereavement have come as part of the natural order of things. But just when he thinks he must get used to the slow, lonely decline into old age, Eleanor arrives to make him call into question everything he has taken for granted.'Middleton wrote books you remember decades on... He wrote a calm, whispering prose, full of unspoken suggestion between ordinary acts of daily living.' Jenny Diski'He shows us the way we age and die now, with real and graceful disstinction.' Sunday Times
Daft Wee Stories
by LimmyDAFT WEE STORIES is Limmy’s first book.It is a collection of stories.There are short stories. There are longer stories. There are stupid stories. There are thoughtful stories. There are upside-down stories.There are normal-way-up stories.There are weird stories.There are less weird stories.There are really weird stories.There is nothing else like it.Have a read.
The Best of Benn
by Tony BennTony Benn was one of the twentieth century's most charismatic politicians. The Best of Benn showcases his powers of original thinking and communication over seven decades.From 'the baby of the house' to a retired widower, he was a consistently radical campaigning voice on issues such as the death penalty, the case against the European Union, opposition to war and support of workers' rights.This volume brings together Tony Benn's electrifying speeches, thoughtful journalism and passionate advocacy of often unconventional causes.'Tony Benn belongs in the great tradition of English revolutionaries - a passionate radical destined to be loved in popular memory for his defence of democracy and freedom.' Guardian'He had the facility to reach across generations and re-energise the debate about what should and should not constitute the common good.' Observer
Confessions of a Tinderella
by Rosy EdwardsThe laugh-out-loud true story of one girl's experience of life on Tinder.Rosy Edwards is the epitome of a contradictory twenty-something year old. She’s frugal when it comes to food shopping, but is willing to splash out on shampoo. She’s career minded, she just doesn’t know which career to have in mind right now. And although she’s happy being single, a part of her kind of wants a boyfriend. So after a few unsuccessful dates with friends of friends (read: being forced to date their shortest/dullest/oddest acquaintance), she put herself on Tinder, the app that has transformed the world of online dating. And she soon learns the unspoken rules the hard way: always reject a guy with black and white profile pics (he is ginger and/or ugly); is wearing a hat (bald); has a shot of his torso (moron) or is not standing beside anything scaleable (5”8 and under). And then there are the dates themselves. From a sky-high dinner date to a borderline drug bust in Chelsea, Rosy has experienced it all, swinging through her love life on the trapeze of Tinder. She falls for the wrong guys, ditches the nice ones, but can she finally find her happy ending. Brilliantly honest and hilariously funny, Rosy’s story shows us all that the key to a successful love life could just be a swipe away.
The C-Word
by Lisa LynchUpdated with new material, The C Word is the incredibly moving, darkly humorous account of one woman's fight against breast cancer. Now a BBC Drama starring Sheridan Smith. The last thing Lisa Lynch had expected to put on her 'things to do before you're 30' list was beating breast cancer, but them's the breaks. So with her life on hold, and her mind stuffed with unspoken fears, questions and emotions, she turned to her computer and started blogging about the frustrating, life-altering, sheer pain-in-the-arse inconvenience of getting breast cancer at the age of 28.The C-Word is an unflinchingly honest and darkly humorous account of Lisa's battle with The Bullshit, as she came to call it. From the good days when she could almost pretend it wasn't happening, to the bad days, when she couldn't bear to wake up, Lisa's story is emotional, heartbreaking and often hilarious. The C-Word will make you laugh and cry, and ultimately reaffirm your faith in life.
The Golden Evening
by Stanley MiddletonFrom the Booker-Prize-winning author of Holiday. Rejacketed and reissued by Windmill to mark the 40th anniversary of Stanley Middleton's Booker Prize win. A brother and sister – Bernard is at college, Mary is still at school - are struggling with their own young lives and loves, near the end of one beautiful summer. At the same time, their mother Ivy is dying from cancer whilst their father, a simple and dignified man, is barely coping. A family faces fundamental changes, together and apart.'This humane book digs patiently beneath the surface of ordinary lives to the rock of universal truths.' Sunday Times'Stanley Middleton, once dubbed 'The Chekhov of suburbia', is to the Midlands suburb what Anne Tyler is to the Midwest picket fence. His careful writing creates an always precise and often unnerving picture of reality.' The Times
Britain's Greatest Generation
by Sue Elliott Steve HumphriesIn association with the flagship BBC2 series.This is the story of the men and women of a truly remarkable generation. Born into a world still reeling from the earth-shattering events of the Great War, they grew up during the appalling economic depression of the 1930s, witnessed the globe tear itself apart again during the Second World War, and emerged from post-war austerity determined to create a new society for their children.It is the story of people who raised their families during the immense social upheaval of the Fifties and Sixties, as the world in which they had grown up changed inexorably. It is the story of the people who shaped the way we live now. Britain's Greatest Generation tells this multi-faceted story through the eye-witness accounts of those who were there, from Japanese prisoner of war Fergus Anckorn to Dame Vera Lynn, from Bletchley Park veteran Jean Valentine to Dad's Army creator Jimmy Perry, and from fighter pilot Tom Neil to the Queen's cousin Margaret Rhodes. Together their testimony creates a vivid, often deeply moving picture of an extraordinary epoch – and the extraordinary people who lived through it.
Inside Alcatraz: My Time on the Rock
by Jim QuillenEach day we saw the outside world in all its splendour, and each day that view served as a reminder that we had wasted and ruined our lives. Jim Quillen, AZ586 - a runaway, problem child and petty thief - was jailed several times before his twentieth birthday. In August 1942, after escaping from San Quentin, he was arrested on the run and sentenced to forty-five years in prison, and later transferred to Alcatraz. This is the true story of life inside America's most notorious prison - from terrifying times in solitary confinement to daily encounters with 'the Birdman', and what really happened during the desperate and deadly 1946 escape attempt.
The Real Deal: The Autobiography of Britain’s Most Controversial Media Mogul
by Richard DesmondFrom the age of five, when he helped his deaf father negotiate advertising contracts, Richard Desmond has always had an eye for business. In The Real Deal he offers a no-holds-barred account of an extraordinary career that has taken him from cloakroom attendant at a north London club to billionaire media owner. En route he tells of his early life as a rock and roll drummer, his first steps in the world of magazine publishing as a purveyor of leisure and top-shelf titles, and finally, after decades of paying his dues building smaller brands, his arrival in the big league with the launch of OK! magazine and the acquisition of Express Newspapers, his purchase and sale of Channel 5, and his £80 million investment in the Health Lottery, combining business innovation with help for good causes. Along the way, he imparts many of the secrets of his astounding success, as well as giving his forthright opinion (and he always has one) on such diverse subjects as politicians, religion, and the similarities between being a rock and roll drummer and running a business – as well as his views on a cast of characters ranging from Alan Sugar to Victoria Beckham and from Simon Cowell to Jennifer Aniston.Often controversial, frequently revelatory, always entertaining, The Real Deal is the brilliantly frank account of a life spent at the sharp end.
One of the Family: 40 Years with the Krays
by Maureen Flanagan40 YEARS WITH THE KRAYS is the untold, intimate history of the twins and the woman who raised them. Told with humour and insight, it looks back across the decades at the life of this close knit, notorious East End family. Maureen Flanagan, a then 20 year old hairdresser started visiting the Kray family home in Vallance Road each week to give the twins’ mother, Violet, her weekly shampoo and set. Over the cups of tea and the rollers and hairpins, Violet began to confide in ‘Flan’ about her life, her incredible pride in her twins, the celebrities who visited her at their humble East End home - and her troubled relationship with her husband.
Sons + Fathers
by Sons FathersSONS & FATHERS brings together a remarkable array of politicians and world leaders, writers and musicians, cultural icons and actors in this collection dedicated to fathers. A moving, fascinating and often funny collection of portraits, this anthology includes contributions from Bono, Paul Auster, Bob Geldof, George Clooney, Bill Clinton, Hanif Kureishi, Graydon Carter and Sting, to name a few.SONS & FATHERS tells the stories behind some of the great men of our age through their relationships with their fathers. From writing about memories and special moments, to open letters addressed to their fathers, these essays give readers an insight into otherwise private relationships. Including images and illustrations from the contributors, this exceptional anthology makes a wonderful gift and is highly collectable.
It's All Going Wonderfully Well
by Rosa Hoskins'Will resonate with any bereaved reader' Daily Mail'A heart-warming memoir' OK‘Laugh. There’s humour to be found everywhere, even in your darkest days there’s something to joke about. Laugh long and loud and make other people laugh. It’s good for you. Whatever you do, always give it a good go. Don’t be afraid of failure and disappointment. If you fall flat on your face then get straight back up. You’ll always regret not trying. Disappointment is temporary; regret is forever. Love with all your heart. In the end, love is the only thing that matters.’These were just some of the lessons that Rosa’s dad, Bob Hoskins, taught her. In the years following his death, they are words that she keeps close to her heart.Remembering the times they shared together and featuring interviews with those who knew and worked with her dad – including Judi Dench, Ray Winstone and Robert Zemeckis – IT’S ALL GOING WONDERFULLY WELL is a revealing portrait of one of the country’s best-loved actors, and a moving story of a close bond between father and daughter.
Sealed With a Loving Kiss (The Cliffehaven Series #9)
by Ellie DeanTHE NINTH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEANAfter the death of her parents in a bombing raid, Mary Jones discovers a secret in the pages of father’s diaries. Her search for the truth brings her to Cliffehaven on the south coast. Here, she finds work at the Kodak factory, sifting through the Airgraphs which are being sent from all over the world by the men and women in the armed forces, and by their loved ones. All the while she longs for news of her own sweetheart, fighting in Europe. With the help of Peggy Reilly and her family at Beach View Boarding House Mary starts to build a new life for herself. But events that happened eighteen years before still echo, and should a promise Peggy made then be broken, it will have a devastating affect not only on Mary, but them all…A fabulous, heart-warming Second World War novel in Ellie Dean's bestselling Cliffehaven series (previously called the Beach View Boarding House series).
Sweet Memories of You (The Cliffehaven Series #10)
by Ellie DeanTHE TENTH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEAN‘I’m not working on a factory floor or digging for victory, but in my own small way I do what I can for those I love.’ It’s 1943 and Peggy Reilly is at her best when the troubles of war come knocking at the door of Beach View Boarding House – especially when it concerns her younger sister, Doreen.Doreen is divorced from Eddie, but his letters have taken on a more threatening tone of late. When Doreen barely survives a traumatic disaster whilst on leave in London, she returns home to Peggy and Cliffehaven in the hope that the love and comfort she will find there can help her recover.However, Eddie continues to be an unsettling reminder of her past - and Doreen’s life is about to change dramatically.A fabulous, heart-warming Second World War novel in Ellie Dean's bestselling Cliffehaven series (previously called the Beach View Boarding House series).
Shelter from the Storm (The Cliffehaven Series #11)
by Ellie DeanTHE ELEVENTH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEANIt is 1943 and April Wilton is devastated when she is forced to leave Portsmouth and the WRENs where she has found friendship, fulfilment and love.Rejected by her mother, and facing an uncertain future, she travels to Cliffehaven. However, she carries with her a secret, one that could change her life for ever. Can the warmth and support of Peggy Reilly and those at Beach View Boarding heal the wounds of April’s past, and bring her hope amid this time of turmoil?A fabulous, heart-warming Second World War novel in Ellie Dean's bestselling Cliffehaven series (previously called the Beach View Boarding House series).
Until You Come Home (The Cliffehaven Series #12)
by Ellie DeanTHE TWELFTH CLIFFEHAVEN NOVEL BY SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR ELLIE DEAN‘We’ll just have to carry on in the belief that the end of the war is finally in sight'It is 1944 and Anne Black is making the best of a new life in Somerset, but bringing up her daughters so far from their father, her mother Peggy and their real home of Cliffehaven isn’t easy. The safety of Somerset makes separation bearable, until danger strikes and rocks Anne’s world. Back in Cliffehaven Peggy Reilly is running the Beach View Boarding House with her usual love and warmth. The war is taking its toll however, and Peggy longs to have her scattered family home again. Until then she’ll continue being a mother to all, and maybe even find some time for herself. As the fighter planes leave RAF Cliffe every evening all anyone can hope is that the war, like the night, will soon be over.A fabulous, heart-warming Second World War novel in Ellie Dean's bestselling Cliffehaven series (previously called the Beach View Boarding House series).