Profile Books Ltd

Olivia Swarthout, creator of the viral sensation Weird Medieval Guys, turns her idiosyncratic and humorous eye to the fascinating roots of the English language. Here, she introduces readers to wordspotting, a hobby for those who love words and their peculiarities, origins and histories. From the seemingly modern 'unfriend' - which dates back to the seventeenth century - to the revelation that the leotard was named after its inventor Jules Léotard, The Wordspotter's Guide brims with fascinating linguistic tidbits alongside advice and techniques for detecting the bizarre and unlikely commonalities between words and their meanings. An invitation to pay better attention to words and their stories, this etymological romp will bring out the wordspotter in everyone.

A magisterial history of bookshops and booksellers by the author of The Library and The Book at war

From warrior queens and the 300 to the Peloponnesian war, a major new history of an ancient superpower

Adapted from the international bestseller The Hundred Years War on Palestine for a new generation of readers

How humans harnessed the geographical landscape and wrote ourselves onto our surroundings

* FROM THE AWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF YOU''D LOOK BETTER AS A GHOST *''The gold standard of twisted crime fiction'' - JANICE HALLETT''Dark humour at its absolute finest'' - J.M. HEWITT''Literature''s most relatable serial killer'' - JO FURNISSMURDER IS HER MASTERPIECE.What use is a part-time serial killer who doesn''t want to kill people? Once the terror of rude and irritating people everywhere, now Claire has lost her murderous mojo. Not even the overly chatty woman in the supermarket or the man who stole her neighbour''s dog can motivate her to get out the zip ties.Then a lucky break and a new job in the local pub gives Claire the perfect target: someone is spiking drinks and causing mayhem. But as Claire closes in on the culprit, punters start dropping like flies - and for once she''s not the one doing the killing. Is someone else murdering on her patch? Claire has questions. And she''s not afraid to use her hammer to get answers...

From the author of the multimillion-copy bestsellers The 48 Laws of Power and The Laws of Human Nature comes a life-changing guide to transcending our own limits to master the power of the Sublime.We struggle today to find more meaning in our lives and for experience that goes beyond the virtual. The Sublime connects us to immense forces in the universe, the inner worlds of others, lifting us out of ourselves and giving us the dimensions and depth we yearn for.Robert Greene is a trusted guide, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, social strategies and mastery. Now he offers a roadmap to the Sublime, to liberation from the constraints of contemporary life. Greene draws from science, mythology, history, the arts, nature and more to teach us how to:- Open our eyes to the strangeness of being alive on this planet - Free our minds from conventional ways of thinking and perceiving - Harness the practices of ancient civilizations to transcend modern life - Reconnect with our childhood selves to perceive the world anew - Draw on the power found at the fringes of human consciousness - Access our deepest core self to unleash our natural creative powers The Sublime opens us to a fuller, more intense life. Alongside awe-inspiring stories, death-defying encounters, astounding discoveries and radical transformations, Greene offers us exercises and meditations. This is an essential text for anyone in search of life's deeper meaning.

From the author of the multimillion-copy bestsellers The 48 Laws of Power and The Laws of Human Nature comes a life-changing guide to transcending our own limits to master the power of the Sublime. We struggle today to find more meaning in our lives and for experience that goes beyond the virtual. The Sublime connects us to immense forces in the universe, the inner worlds of others, lifting us out of ourselves and giving us the dimensions and depth we yearn for.Robert Greene is a trusted guide, distilling ancient wisdom and philosophy into essential texts for seekers of power, social strategies and mastery. Now he offers a roadmap to the Sublime, to liberation from the constraints of contemporary life. Greene draws from science, mythology, history, the arts, nature and more to teach us how to:- Open our eyes to the strangeness of being alive on this planet - Free our minds from conventional ways of thinking and perceiving - Harness the practices of ancient civilizations to transcend modern life - Reconnect with our childhood selves to perceive the world anew - Draw on the power found at the fringes of human consciousness - Access our deepest core self to unleash our natural creative powers The Sublime opens us to a fuller, more intense life.Alongside awe-inspiring stories, death-defying encounters, astounding discoveries and radical transformations, Greene offers us exercises and meditations. This is an essential text for anyone in search of life's deeper meaning.

''Timely and much-needed'' Carole Cadwalladr''A wise and purpose-driven book to steer us out of AI doom'' Sandi ToksvigWe''re confused about AI: what it is, and where it''s leading us - whether into a utopia or an apocalypse. Yet these obsessions thwart efforts to make meaningful change in an industry with very real problems.Here, Dr Eleanor Drage, one of the world''s leading AI ethicists, unpicks the culture and ideas that drive the AI arms race, from billionaires trying to cheat death to biased police algorithms and state capture by big tech.We need new language and new ideas to re-determine what AI is for and how we should use it. Only by bringing feminism, reparative justice and climate politics into the debate can we create a better future with machines.

''An impassioned cry against indifference'' - New York Times''Stunning and forensic, witnessing everyday life in the midst of siege'' Tareq Baconi, author of Fire in Every DirectionWith an introduction by susan abulhawa''Beirut was a city like any other. What happened here could, I think, happen anywhere''Jean Said Makdisi arrived in Beirut as an outsider: a Palestinian refugee who had escaped Jerusalem in 1948 and had grown up across Egypt and America. But in 1975, as Lebanon''s capital became the locus of a ferocious civil war, Jean decided to stay. As sectarian violence mounted and the city collapsed around her, she documented it all: the cars that exploded in the street; the high-rise buildings that turned to dust; the museums that became military checkpoints; the bifurcation of the city; and the brutality of the Israeli siege in 1982.Taking in the fourteen years of civil war, Makdisi lays bare the violent face of conflict, meticulously documenting its impact on every aspect of civilian life - from the fearsome whistle of shellfire, to the mundanity of queuing for food, to the constant, wandering search for lost loved ones.Intimate and profound, Beirut Fragments is a heartbreaking memoir of a city under siege and an impassioned defence of collective humanity. With vivid insight and urgency, Makdisi records civilian life brought to its limits and reconstructs the image of a place - and its people - that emerged from the ashes.

FROM THE INTERNATIONAL BOOKER NOMINATED AUTHOR OF EUROTRASH''A master of the well-formed sentence'' DANIEL KEHLMANN''Christian Kracht is the great German-language writer of his generation'' JOSHUA COHEN''Read him for the experience of reading him. Read him and wonder'' NELL ZINKTwo men venture through strange landscapes towards unknowable destinations. Paul, a feted designer, wanders the echoing corridors of a server farm in Norway - before, in a sudden blackout, he seems to vanish. In another time and space, a wounded stranger wakes in a forest, watched over by a young girl who helps him flee to an icebound settlement where perhaps he will find safety.Inventive, enigmatic and chromatically resonant, Air is the seductively disorienting new novel from one of the most significant European writers working today. Heir to the ingenious fictions of Ursula K. Le Guin or Jorge Luis Borges, resistant to single interpretation, it unfolds as a haunting journey through a layered universe that may be a dream, the afterlife or reality''s inverted twin.''Air is as enigmatic as its title'' TLS''A splendidly wrong-footing blend of sci-fi and historical fiction ... delivering a thunderbolt twist'' DAILY MAILTranslated from German by Daniel Bowles

''Wonderful, highly readable and impassioned'' Daron Acemoglu, author of WHY NATIONS FAIL''Required reading for anyone who cares about how democracy works - both as a warning and a call to action'' Bill BrowderCash from anonymous donors. Cronyism in government contracts. Politicians who sell their influence to the highest bidder. Corruption is rife in British politics.Britain is complacent about corruption. We are used to thinking of ourselves as firm defenders of fairness and the rule of law. But our institutions have never been more corrupt, from scandals in parliament and local government to crises in housing and the NHS. The evidence is impossible to ignore. Political leaders face a clear choice: tackle corruption or continue on the road to decline.Robert Barrington is one of the world''s leading researchers on corruption. Corrupted Kingdom is his comprehensive examination of how corruption manifests in Britain, from politicians to prisons, the Monarchy and the Met. He assesses the origins of corruption, from Londongrad to the end of Empire, and shows how we can best reverse the decline and restore trust in politics and the democratic process.Vital and authoritative, Corrupted Kingdom provides an essential insight into why the abuse of power harms us all - and how we can banish corruption for good.

''Fascinating'' DAILY MAIL''Well-written and makes the reader think'' RUSSELL FOSTER, TLS''A real eye-opener'' INTELLIGENCE SQUAREDA DAILY MAIL BEST HEALTH BOOK OF THE YEAR''Unlock the mysteries of your sleeping mind with this journey into dreams'' DAVID EAGLEMANEverybody sleeps - but are we unlocking the full potential of our dreaming mind? leep is essential. It allows our brains and bodies to repair, rejuvenate and perform critical functions. It also allows us to dream - and dreaming, it turns out, is just as essential. Shining a light onto the deepest corners of our minds, sleep scientist Michelle Carr uncovers the hidden links between dreaming and wellbeing. She reveals how to problem solve in your sleep, why micro-dreaming is essential for creativity and what nightmares are really telling us - along with how to master them. Drawing back the covers on how the nocturnal brain works, this is the essential guide to revolutionise both your sleeping and waking health.''An accessible and persuasive primer on the incredible and long-overlooked power of nightmares and dreams'' ALICE ROBB***PUBLISHED UNDER THE TITLE NIGHTMARE OBSCURA IN THE UNITED STATES***

''Highly readable and elegant'' Spectator''Wonderfully done'' GuardianLawrence Durrell was unquestionably one of the most distinctive, original and compelling literary figures of his age. From his childhood in India and Burma to his bohemian youth in London and Paris, from his madcap scheme to move his family to Corfu to the formative war years spent in Alexandria - this masterful and richly detailed biography is essential reading to understand the man and the writer.In Larry, Michael Haag, the world''s foremost expert on the Durrells, brought together his unrivalled knowledge and first-hand meetings with the Durrell family and associates to offer the definitive account of the young Lawrence and the real-life settings and stories that inspired his acknowledged masterpiece, The Alexandria Quartet.

'Brilliant' DAILY MAIL 'Warm, joyful, smart and nuanced' CURTIS SITTENFELD, author of Romantic Comedy'This novel is a gift' J. COURTNEY SULLIVAN, author of The CliffsWhat if everything you wanted is no longer enoug? eeting for an autumnal swim in an idyllic pond, Caroline's friend Ruth tells her about a family secret that has recently been exposed. Caroline was looking forward to a celebration they'd been planning together with her sister-in-law, Tobi, but suddenly everything seems complicated. Tensions that have long been buried are bubbling to the surface. These three couples, who have so much to enjoy in their lives - growing children, affectionate marriages, work they love - must confront the truths they've never shared. More than that, they will have to reconcile the lives they've built with the ones they desire: the old dreams both fulfilled and denied, and the new ones that appeared right when they thought they had all they'd ever hoped for. Weaving an exquisite portrait of parenthood, partnership, love and loyalty, Erin White captures what it really means for friends to become Like Family.

''Profoundly moving'' ANDREW MARR ''Deeply personal'' SUNDAY TIMES ''A shout from history that we cannot ignore'' THE IRISH TIMES Sorting through papers and photographs after his mother''s death, Michael Moritz uncovers the history of close family members murdered by the Nazis. Exploring their journey takes him into a past of tragedy, grief and the dark shadows cast on Jewish life by the Holocaust.Leaving Germany as child refugees, Moritz''s parents escape to London before settling in Cardiff, Wales, after the war. But the idea of being a stranger or outsider - Ausländer - haunts the family; running through Moritz''s childhood and resurfacing in his adopted home of California, where he has become one of Silicon Valley''smost celebrated investors.''As the shadows of Trump lengthened, the refrain I had heard from my parents rang ever more loudly ... "If it did happen somewhere, it can happen here".''Disturbingly relevant to contemporary America, Ausländer shows what can happen to families whenordinary people hand licence to despots.