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A passionate and illuminating memoir by the celebrated Chief Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra. 'Mesmerising.' DANIEL BARENBOIM Sir Antonio Pappano is one of the best known and most celebrated conductors alive today. His deeply held belief in the power of music to inspire and enlighten is the motivation behind this long anticipated memoir. In 1969, decades before he was chosen to conduct the music at the Coronation of King Charles, Sir Antonio Pappano was a ten-year-old boy accompanying his father's singing lessons. My Life in Music tells the moving tale of a legendary conductor who, nurtured in childhood by his parents and their dedicated work ethic, goes on to conduct at many of the most influential opera houses of Europe and North America. Pappano skilfully evokes an extensive selection from his wide-ranging repertoire - operas and orchestral works spanning from Mozart to Birtwistle and Mark Anthony Turnage, as well as art song and chamber music works in which he has performed as a pianist - and makes a compelling case for the potential classical music has to captivate new and wider audiences.

A PRESTO BOOK OF THE YEAR 2024'Gripping.' FINANCIAL TIMES'Breathtaking.' SIMON CALLOW'Vivid.' BBC MUSIC MAGAZINEA colourful and concise telling of the fascinating story behind Richard Wagner's extraordinary masterpiece, Ring of the Nibelung. The Ring is one of the most epic and compelling stories of the nineteenth century, created by a composer who was, alongside Dickens, Tolstoy and Victor-Hugo, also one of the century's master storytellers. But the story of how Wagner created the work is one full of intrigue and triumphs against unlikely odds - as well as controversy, due to the composer's anti-semitic views and popularity with the Nazi party. In Story of the Century, Michael Downes combines cultural history and biography to offer this accessible and insightful introduction to The Ring and its mythology. He tells the story of how and why this extraordinary masterpiece came into being, why it takes the form it does, why it fascinates and obsesses so many and horrifies others, and why it matters.

'Essential reading, as far as I'm concerned . . . Will become a classic' NIGELLA LAWSON'The millennial answer to Mary Berry and Jamie Oliver' MAIL ON SUNDAYThis is a book for people who spend most of their time thinking about what to have for dinner. For people who communicate big feelings through food. And for people who know that a bowl of pasta is never really just a bowl of pasta. From crispy gnocchi with hot and sour tomatoes and grated halloumi to chubby ricotta basil dumplings, from spatchcocked chicken with pepper sauce to salty coconut granola, this is a book bursting with over sixty mouthwatering recipes for every occasion. Because in our real lives, we need all kinds of dinners. Food to keep our hands (and brain) busy, lap dinners for tired souls, batch cooks for busy days ahead and emergency treats, because sometimes we just need emergency treats. Weaving together recipes, memories, essays and Strong Feelings about supermarket cheddar, female friendship and food we eat when we're alone, But First, Dinner is Eleanor Steafel's hilarious and heartfelt manifesto on how to answer the dinner question - no matter what sort of day we are having. 'Ellie Steafel has a Laurie Colwin-like ability to put into words the endless internal dialogue so many of us have about what we do (and don't) want to eat, with recipe suggestions so perfect I felt she was reading my mind: simply wonderful' RACHEL RODDY 'Brilliant. Once-in-a-generation warm, accessible food writing of the sort that makes you want to lick the page. You'll want a copy for the kitchen and another one to keep by your bed' INDIA KNIGHT

'Compelling, heartfelt and inspiring. I found this book so real. so honest. It has taught me about drive, ambition, persistence and love. And what it means to be really Irish! A triumphant story of achievement in a world made for men!' - Katriona O'Sullivan, author of PoorJackie McCarthy O'Brien has led a truly remarkable life, from being born in 1961 to an Irish mother and Jamaican father (whom she never met) in Birmingham to growing up in Limerick. She was put in an industrial school as a baby by a priest for being an "illegitimate" black child and not recovered by her mother until she was five. As a teen she excelled at sport and played for Ireland in soccer, but when she was sexually harassed by a coach she changed to Irish rugby team. She got married at 21 before accepting her sexual feelings for women, and leaving the marriage with her three young children. Always a hilarious raconteur, this memoir tells her extraordinary story up until becoming a TikTok star and LGBTQ+ icon in her sixties.

The breathtaking, unputdownable insider account of Britain's most hidden profession What happens after the police tape comes down? Ben Giles has spent thirty years cleaning what most people can't bear to imagine. Dead bodies decomposing for weeks. Kitchen floors painted with blood. Hoarders' homes where the filth tells stories of unimaginable loneliness. A whale carcass lodged on a cargo ship. This is the Britain you never see – until someone needs to make it disappear. Starting with nothing but a bucket of Dettol and a can-do attitude, Giles built the UK's leading biohazard cleaning network. From industrial spillages to animal remains, he's faced horrors that would break most people – and taught hundreds of people to do the same, in full hazmat gear. Yet threaded through the gore and dark humour is something unexpected: profound compassion for the lives interrupted, the families destroyed, and the deaths that society prefers to forget. The Specialist takes you behind the scenes of suicides, murders, and tragic accidents — revealing not just which chemicals remove bloodstains, and how, but what violence, neglect, and loss actually look like when the rest of us can only look away. It's unflinching, occasionally hilarious, and utterly unforgettable.

A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK 'Powerful . . . a coming-of-age story with a twist' Guardian'Heart-wrenching . . . We need accounts like this haunting, compelling book' Telegraph'A profound and moving tribute . . . It is Lana's inside perspective on what it was like to grow up within this society that makes this such a unique and powerful book' Sunday Times'Wonderfully brave, beautifully written and utterly authentic' TLS'Haunting' Radio Times'Please live' were the last words fifteen-year-old Lana said to her mother. Shortly afterwards Natalia Estemirova was kidnapped outside their apartment block in Grozny, Chechnya. On 15th July 2009, she was murdered for telling the truth. A mountainous sliver of land which creates a natural boundary between Europe and Asia, for centuries Chechnya had been a sharp bone in Russia's throat. Three years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, frustrated by the continued presence of the independence movement within Chechnya, Russia invaded. It was a war of extraordinary brutality. It turned Lana's mother, Natalia Estemirova, from a teacher into a human rights investigator. She became a dedicated member of Memorial, intent on exposing the kidnappings, bombings, torture and murders committed by Russian forces and Ramzan Kadyrov, the Kremlin-backed Chechen President. Natalia Estemirova's life, assassination, and the impunity that followed it, tell the story of Putin's Russia. This is Lana's story of growing up in a war. Of the intense bond between a mother and daughter, desperate to be together even though it was so much safer for Lana to live elsewhere, often for months at a time. It is a book both about being brave and about being ordinary in extraordinary times. It's the fulfilment of a promise Lana made at her mother's grave.

'Captivating and deeply moving.' Richard Coles'Evocative, beautifully written . . . conjures locations and feelings almost magically.' Jeremy Vine'My brain has made the decision . . . I am going to love this book.' Richard Hawley There was a time when he felt like the undisputed King of Selston. Then again, there were several years when he was convinced that he could talk to animals and had even mastered the power of flight - sailing nightly over the headstocks, slag heaps and doggedly beautiful countryside of an isolated East Midlands mining village. But, deep down, Danny Scott knew that the real King of Selston was and always would be coal. Over the last seven hundred years, coal dust had settled on every inch of Selston. It was in the food he ate, the air he breathed and the words he spoke. It fashioned resilient men like his dad and The Texan; feisty women like his mother, whose right-hook was feared even more than her fondness for house fires. Danny was a clever bugger - dangerously clever, some said - and fiercely proud of Selston, his dad and his mining heritage. Five generations of his family had spent their working lives underground, providing fuel for the Industrial Revolution, the electrical, rail and motoring revolutions. Without it, the modern age wouldn't have been so . . . modern. But as this young boy prepared to follow in his dad's footsteps, things began to change. The Devil became captain of the local darts team. Fortune tellers held seances in the front room of his council house. And that once unassailable King's reign seemed to be coming to an end. For dangerously clever buggers, there was only one option... somewhere else, someone new. Funny, poignant and alive to the unheralded beauty, purpose and camaraderie of a village which finds itself on the wrong side of history, THE UNDISPUTED KING OF SELSTON shines a light onto a forgotten industry and the dark shadows that wormed their way into the families who got left behind. 'Proper working class stories don't get much of a look-in these days. A shame, really. Especially when they're as beautifully written as this one.' Noddy Holder

Twenty years of marriage. One life-altering question. Natalie Davis's brave and candid memoir chronicles the transformation of her traditional monogamous marriage into a vibrant polyamorous lifestyle.   When her husband suggests they have sex with strangers, Natalie is incredulous. Yet, in the aftermath of his infidelity and while battling the voice in her head urging her to leave him, she agrees to try non-monogamy. What follows surprises no one more than Natalie—a soccer mom and lawyer—as she embarks on a daring journey down the rabbit hole of polyamory. Fearing for her livelihood and community standing, Natalie must keep her new lifestyle secret. She navigates complex relationships, including increasing clashes with her boyfriend's wife (her "metamour"), confronting a therapist who claims polyamory is abusive, and debating what to tell her family and friends. Along the way, she discovers her own bold sexuality, experiences the thrill of young lovers, finds empathy from her husband's experienced poly girlfriend, and learns to weather heartbreak and find bliss.Saying Yes offers an unvarnished look into Natalie's world, as she explores excitement, intimacy, and connection in unexpected places, including a few stairwells. With humor, heart, and raw honesty, this memoir is for anyone who has ever wondered what might happen if we say yes to what lies beyond conventional relationships.

The #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER and OPRAH''S BOOK CLUB PICK''A must-read memoir that you''ll want to share with all the women in your life'' MICHELLE OBAMA''A work of art'' OPRAHTo understand the icons Beyoncé, Solange and Kelly, you have to understand where they came from... A deeply personal and revelatory memoir by Ms Tina Knowles - as you''ve never seen her before.Tina Knowles, the mother of icons Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, Solange Knowles and bonus daughter Kelly Rowland, is known the world over as a Matriarch with a capital M: the woman who raised and inspired some of the great artists of our time. But this story is about so much more than that.For the first time ever, Tina Knowles shares her remarkable story in Matriarch. A life of grief and tragedy, love and heartbreak, the nurturing of her superstar daughters - and the perseverance and audacity it takes for a girl from Galveston, Texas to change the world.This intimate and revealing memoir is a multigenerational family saga and a celebration of the wisdom that women, mothers and daughters pass on to each other across generations.A glorious chronicle of a life like none other and a testament to the world-changing power of Black motherhood.

This is the simplest tale in the world. Two people meet and fall in love. But the route which brought Larissa Salmina and Francis Haskell to a backstreet Venetian restaurant in 1962 was anything but straightforward. Larissa was born in northern Russia, the daughter of a Soviet army officer from a noble family who survived the siege of Leningrad by eating cats’ tails and being evacuated over the ice. Francis was the grandson of an Iraqi Jew, forever feeling out of place in his adopted country of England. How they could meet and instantly understand each other so profoundly that both were prepared to risk heartbreak, and in her case, retribution, to be together is the story of this book. Escaping Leningrad, teenage Larissa lived in the Urals surrounded by Spanish revolutionaries, went feral and after the war rose to become the youngest Commissar in the Soviet Union and Keeper of Italian Drawings at the Hermitage. She took the Russian contribution to the Venice Biennale in 1962 and lost it on the journey. She briefly absconded with her supervisor’s corpse, developed a useful sideline in forgery, and stole (“I didn’t steal it. I liberated it”) a Matisse from the Italian government. She was a trained connoisseur and could spot a Tiepolo at 100 yards. Francis was a distinguished art historian, comfortably at home in King’s College Cambridge. But he was lonely, self-doubting and had all but abandoned hope of falling in love, or finding anyone who could love him. Larissa swept away all the years of anguish in one meal. Bestselling novelist and art historian Iain Pears’ fabulous book brings into sharp focus the strange world of the Soviet Union, and the even stranger world of a certain variety of the English elite. It seeks to show how leaving the Soviet Union was a sacrifice for her and how it was the English man, not the Russian woman, who was set free because of their meeting. Iain Pears knew both his principal characters well. His book is a story of Europe; not the Europe of geographical and ideological divisions but of a certain mentality which was common to a few on both sides of the Iron Curtain. Whatever their differences in nationality, language, and politics, both Larissa and Francis were members of a unified, pan-European culture which paid little heed to the divisions which so pre-occupied most people of the age. It also operated by very different rules and values to the societies in which they existed. It was a world of dancers, exiles, and the occasional spy, of artists, aristocrats, and academics. It consisted of people who only felt safe when they were away from home, were comfortable only in the company of foreigners. It is a tale of a world we seem to have lost.

From the fastest marathoner in the world over fifty—and maybe the planet’s most determined underdog—an inspiring tale of resilience, redemption, and personal transformation. _________________________________________________‘A lesson in staying alive… Ken Rideout’s life story is extraordinary not just for what he’s achieved, but for how deeply it reflects the struggles we all face.’ – Andrew Huberman“I came across one of your posts and you were saying ‘you gotta exercise like your life depends on it because it does.’ I’m right there with you, brother. I appreciate you, man, I appreciate all your hard work... I’m gonna hit the gym and do my best to run through a wall now.” – Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson‘Unputdownable…one of the most compelling, improbable, and motivating tales of metamorphosis I’ve ever read.’ – Rich Roll, host of the Rich Roll podcast and author of Finding Ultra“Ken Rideout is the rare motivator whose message is backed by a life of extraordinary experience. Social media is a grossly oversaturated space, filled with hucksters and pseudo-inspiration. Ken Rideout is the thunderclap that drowns out that noise with essential lessons from his truly unbelievable life of hardship and achievement.” – Casey Neistat‘Raw, riveting, and deeply human…will leave you inspired to face and outlast your life battles.’ Sahil Bloom, New York Times bestselling author of The 5 Types of Wealth________________________________________________Born into a broken family just outside of Boston, Ken Rideout grew up in a household persistently scarred by drugs and crime. At just eighteen, he found himself working as a guard in a prison where his stepfather had been incarcerated, and his brother would later serve time. Despite the bleak expectations set by his family, Ken harboured dreams far beyond the confines of his upbringing. Ken eventually broke free from the gritty streets of his youth to the high-stakes world of Wall Street, where he carved out a successful career. Yet, beneath the veneer of success, he battled a decade-long addiction to opioids, spending his hard-earned wealth on pills. The turning point came with the adoption of a daughter from overseas—a wake-up call to become the father and man he always dreamed of being. Running became Ken’s salvation. With unwavering determination, he willed himself to run vast distances. In three years, Ken transformed from a ‘running nobody’ to the world’s fastest marathoner over fifty. His mantra: Win—or die trying. In the book, Ken shares his awe-inspiring achievements, including, at age fifty-two, winning the Masters (50+) Marathon World Championships in Chicago and conquering the Gobi March ultra-marathon, one of the world’s toughest races. Through sheer resilience and grit, Ken rewrote his story. By publishing this book, he will now help readers to re-write their story too. Learn what actually matters and why the timing is never perfect to make a change. This book is for anyone standing at the edge of a decision – sobriety, career shift, health reset – wondering if it’s possible. The answer?: Everything you want is on the other side of hard. You'll be glad you started here.

Antarctica is a land of extremes: the coldest, windiest and most remote place on Earth – and now one of the most vulnerable to climate change. On isolated Ross Island – from where legendary explorers Scott and Shackleton once set out for the South Pole – conservation scientist Louise K. Blight travels south to live and work at the edge of the world. There, alongside one of the world’s great Antarctic scientists, she documents how the planet’s largest iceberg is transforming the lives of Antarctica’s penguins. Amid blizzards, endless daylight and the stark, hypnotic beauty of the ice, Louise observes the rhythms of penguin life and the small and eccentric human community that shares this inhospitable place. As days are shaped by weather, waiting and survival, Antarctica becomes both a physical and emotional testing ground, its vast silences offering space for reflection. Interwoven with stories of early explorers and modern-day Antarcticans, and enlivened by humorous and touching portraits of the penguins she studies, Where the Earth Meets the Sky is a powerful meditation on solitude, resilience and renewal – and a vivid testament to how the harshest landscape on Earth profoundly alters those who enter it.

THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERFrom generational icon Brooke Shields comes an intimate and empowering exploration of ageing that flips the script on the idea of what it means for a woman to grow older Brooke Shields has spent a lifetime in the public eye. Growing up as a child actor and model, her every feature was scrutinised, her every decision judged. Today Brooke faces a different kind of scrutiny: that of being a 'woman of a certain age'. And yet, for Brooke, the passage of time has brought freedom. At fifty-nine, she feels more comfortable in her skin, more empowered and confident than she did decades ago in those famous Calvin Kleins. Now, in Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed to Get Old, she's changing the narrative about women and ageing. This is an era, insists Brooke, when women are reclaiming agency and power, not receding into the shadows. These are the years when we get to decide how we want to live - when we get to write our own stories. With remarkable candour, Brooke bares all, painting a vibrant and optimistic picture of being a woman in the prime of her life, while dismantling the myths that have, for too long, dimmed that perception. Sharing her own life experiences with humour and humility, and weaving together research and reporting, Brooke takes aim at the systemic factors that contribute to age-related bias. By turns inspiring, moving, and galvanising, Brooke's honesty and vulnerability will resonate with women everywhere, and spark a new conversation about the power and promise of midlife.

A NATIONAL BESTSELLERThis keepsake collection, featuring tributes from Margaret Atwood and Neil Young, captures the essence of a revolutionary life as it celebrates the legacy of environmental icon David Suzuki. Across his 90 years on planet Earth, David Suzuki has inspired generations of his followers to fight for environmental and social causes with courage and conviction. In Lessons From a Lifetime, Suzuki shares pearls of wisdom and hard-earned lessons for the next generation of activists, alongside personal stories and heartfelt contributions from his friends and family, his admirers, and even his opponents, including:Margaret AtwoodNeil YoungJane FondaElizabeth MayJustin Trudeau… and many more. In words and photographs, Lessons From a Lifetime shares David Suzuki's journey from surviving internment camps as a Japanese-Canadian child to becoming North America's most trusted voice in science communication. The book charts his years as a geneticist and superstar professor at the University of British Columbia; his dedication to demystifying complex science through his public broadcasting work, especially his beloved CBC Television program, The Nature of Things; his founding of The David Suzuki Foundation; and his unparalleled dedication to standing up for Indigenous and environmental rights, a dedication that continues today. A stunning tribute to a fearless truth-teller who transformed how we understand our relationship with the natural world, Lessons From a Lifetime belongs on every bookshelf. Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute

An extraordinary first-hand account of Russia’s descent into totalitarianism, paranoia and madness.Marc Bennetts, foreign correspondent for The Times and The Sunday Times, moved to Russia in the chaotic yet free final years of President Yeltsin''s rule. Twenty-five years later, The Times pulled him out of Russia over concerns for his security following his arrest in Moscow at a protest against the war in Ukraine. From the “wild” 1990s in Moscow to narrowly escaping death under fire in Ukraine, The Descent is a unique and personal diary of how Russia spiraled into violent insanity. Bennetts witnessed the often-terrifying events in Russia up close, observing how the Kremlin''s ubiquitous propaganda warped minds and fomented hatred of Putin''s foes, both real and imagined, even among people close to him. After leaving Russia, he travelled in war-torn Ukraine, where he came face-to-face with the appalling consequences of this madness. Bennetts meets a vast array of characters, from Russian politicians, influential Russian Orthodox Church officials and aggressive Kremlin activists to opposition figures and a Siberian shaman who tried to “exorcise” Putin, as well as Russians who took up arms to fight Moscow''s invading forces. In this extraordinary panorama, Marc Bennetts shows in frightening detail how a society can lose its mind, and how easily a power-hungry leader can reshape an entire country in his own malevolent image.

‘Authentic, heartbreakingly wonderful and refreshingly grounded – this book captures the internal neurodivergent experience with rare grace and warmth’ – Camilla Pang, award-winning author of Explaining Humans‘Tingles with the joy of being different. This book made me so happy’ – Chris Packham, naturalist and award-winning author of Fingers in the Sparkle JarA powerful, personal exploration of anxiety, ADHD and neurodiversity, Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal reminds us all – no matter how weird we feel – that it’s okay to be a little different. We all are. What if being a bit weird is actually entirely normal? What if sharing our internal struggles wasn’t a sign of weakness, but of strengt? or over thirty years, award-winning broadcaster and comedian Robin Ince has entertained thousands in person and on air. But underneath the surface, a whirlwind was at play – a struggle with sadness, concentration, self-doubt and near-constant anxiety. But then he discovered he had all the hallmarks of ADHD, and his stumbling blocks became stepping stones. In Normally Weird and Weirdly Normal, Robin uses his own life to explore the neurodivergent experience and to ask what the point of ‘being normal’ really is. Packed with personal insights, intimate anecdotes and interviews with psychologists, neuroscientists and many neurodivergent people he has met along the way, this is a quirky and witty dive into the world of human behaviour. ‘This is a comforting hug of a book. Insightful, warm, funny and compassionate, it will make readers, whether neurotypical or neurodivergent, feel less alone’ – Laura Bates, bestselling author of Everyday Sexism‘Weirdness is inescapable, and no one does it better than Robin Ince. A superb book, celebrating the needed weirdness in us all’ – Chris Hadfield, astronaut and five-time bestselling author

'Saving Five is an extraordinarily moving account of Amanda Nguyen's pursuit of justice and healing for herself and for millions of survivors around the world' Melinda French GatesAstronaut and civil rights activist Amanda Nguyen's life was changed forever when she was sexually assaulted as a student at Harvard. Determined not to let her assault derail her goal of joining NASA, Nguyen opted for her rape kit to be filed under 'Jane Doe'. But she was shocked to learn her choice to stay anonymous gave her only six months before the state destroyed her kit. Nguyen knew then that she had two options: surrender to a law that effectively denied her justice, or fight for a change - not only for herself but for survivors everywhere. A heart-wrenching memoir of survival, Saving Five weaves the story of Nguyen's activism with a second, beautifully imagined adventure of Nguyen's younger selves as they navigate through her path toward healing. This is a ground-breaking work that traces Nguyen's moving journey of acceptance and hope. From one of the most influential activists and astronauts of her time, Saving Five is a tribute to resilience, a celebration of healing through action and a resounding cry to change the world.

Winner of the 2024 Warren-Brooks Award for Outstanding Literary CriticismWinner of the Northern California Book Award for General Nonfiction'The Island makes an outstanding contribution to our knowledge of both Auden's intentions and his achievement in the first part of his writing life.' Andrew Motion, New Statesman'Jenkins, miner-like, digs down into the verse and brings every influence up to the surface . . . a richly striated landscape, not only in complexity of mood, but also courtesy of its cast of strange, dazzling and sometimes highly dubious characters.' Rachel Cooke, ObserverNicholas Jenkins's The Island is daring in its ideas, written with loving tenderness and implacably true in its revisionism. Jenkins shows Auden's mentality to have been graven by the Great War, proves his youthful aspiration to become an English national poet and renews our sense of the numinous.' Richard Davenport-Hines, TLS, Books of the Year'[The Island is] a dense, detailed and hugely rewarding account of the making of this very English poet before he became an American one.' Peter Parker, TLS Books of the Year'In The Island (Faber, L25), an epic study of the young W.H. Auden, Nicholas Jenkins brilliantly scales up fine-grained literary criticism into wide-angled cultural history.' Boyd Tonkin, SpectatorA groundbreaking reassessment of W. H. Auden's early life and poetry, shedding new light on his artistic development as well as on his shifting beliefs about political belonging in interwar England. W. H. Auden is a towering figure in modern literary history with a complex private self. Hannah Arendt wrote that he had 'the necessary secretiveness of the great poet'. The Island lays bare for the first time some of the most telling 'secrets' of Auden's early poetry, his world, his emotional life, his values and the sources of his art. In a book that is an argument but also a story, Nicholas Jenkins gives compelling readings of iconic poems. He presents Auden in the inter-War years as both a visionary writer, creatively dependent on dreams and intuitions, and a traumatized poet, haunted by war and suffering, and shadowed by his outsider status as a privileged but queer man. The Island considers, as well, Auden's imaginative flirtations with a lyrical nationalism appealing to a poet who, for a while, felt his psyche was like a map of English culture. The narrative ends in Auden's disillusionment with these potent myths and beliefs and the time when he left 'the island'. Auden's preoccupations - with the vicissitudes of war and the problems of love, belonging and identity - are of their time but they still resonate profoundly today. 'A superb, deeply researched study of Auden's early work and identity. Jenkins's understanding of young Auden as a poet shaped and haunted by the First World War - assimilating the influence of Wilfred Owen, Edward Thomas, Robert Graves, and W. H. R. Rivers - is convincing, original, and poignant. Fusing biography, cultural history, and literary criticism in innovative and elegant ways, The Island is a landmark publication in modernist studies.'Heather Clark, author of Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath'Nicholas Jenkins is one of our most perceptive and resourceful critics. In this wonderful study of the early Auden, he brings to bear history, biography, and an acute sense of the artistic moment to fashion for us a young genius who is conservative, bucolic, gay, a patriotic adherent of post-imperial Little England. Most people work backwards from a writer's ultimate reputation, but Jenkins gives us a new, unexpected image of a poet developing in the aftermath of World War I and the collapse of modernism.'Edmund White, author of The Humble Lover'The Island is a Copernican Revolution in Auden studies, a revelatory and often exciting book that presents a new and convincing account of Auden's early years. It explores, for the first time, the deep connections between the inner workings of

What would it be like to sit down for an impassioned, entertaining conversation with Hillary Clinton? In Something Lost, Something Gained, Hillary offers her candid views on life and love, politics, liberty, democracy, the threats we face, and the future within our reach. She describes the strength she draws from her deepest friendships, her Methodist faith, and the nearly fifty years she’s been married to President Bill Clinton—all with the wisdom that comes from looking back on a full life with fresh eyes. She takes us along as she returns to the classroom as a college professor, enjoys the bonds inside the exclusive club of former First Ladies, moves past her dream of being president, and dives into new activism for women and democracy. From canoeing with an ex-Nazi trying to deprogram white supremacists to sweltering with salt farmers in the desert trying to adapt to the climate crisis in India, Hillary brings us to the front lines of our biggest challenges. For the first time, Hillary shares the story of her operation to evacuate Afghan women to safety in the harrowing final days of America’s longest war. But we also meet the brave women dissidents defying dictators around the world, gain new personal insights about her old adversary Vladimir Putin, and learn the best ways that worried parents can protect kids from toxic technology. We also hear her fervent and persuasive warning to all American voters. In the end, Something Lost, Something Gained is a testament to the idea that the personal is political, and the political is personal, providing a blueprint for what each of us can do to make our lives better. Hillary has “looked at life from both sides now.” In these pages, she shares the latest chapter of her inspiring life and shows us how to age with grace and keep moving forward, with grit, joy, purpose, and a sense of humour.