Jesse & Lee share a house owned by a very nice Chinese dentist, where it rains in the hall. They move to cabins on the cliffs at Big Sur where the deafening croaks of frogs can be temporarily silenced by the cry, ` Campbell`s Soup`. Ultimately, we learn how the frogs are permanently silenced.. .and dreams disperse around a fire into 186, 000 endings per second. In anticipating flower power & the ideals of the Sixties, Brautigan`s debut novel was at least a decade before its time & remains a weird & brilliant classic. ...

London, 1902. The old queen is dead & her son Edward rules: twinkly, genial, outgoing
- a time of great confidence & optimism
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Following on from the huge success of the 44 Scotland Street series, Alexander Mc Call Smith has 'moved house' to a crumbling four-storey mansion in Pimlico
- Corduroy Mansions. It is inhabited by a glorious assortment of characters: among them, Oedipus Snark, the first ever nasty Lib Dem MP, who is so detestable his own mother, Berthea, is writing an unauthorised biography about him; & one small vegetarian dog, Freddie de la Hay, who has the ability to fasten his own seatbelt. (Although Corduroy Mansions is a fictional name, the address is now registered by the Post Office.)
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Corduroy Mansions, Pimlico is an oasis of old-fashioned civilisation, its inhabitants considerate & peace-loving. But beneath the polite exterior seismic change is stirring. Barbara Ragg makes an eye-popping discovery about her stolid Scottish suitor`s past, while Oedipus Snark
- newly appointed & tirelessly self-interested Government Minister
- has a close encounter in Switzerland that leaves him a new man all together. Then plucky canine Freddie de la Hay goes missing, & his owner, widower William French, is so shaken by an unexpected declaration of love that he seriously considers making a disappearance himself. Goodhearted, well-intentioned but often to be found barking up the wrong tree, the residents of Corduroy Mansions remain a thoroughly entertaining example to us all.

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`A murder of crows`, `a charm of goldfinches`, `an ostentation of peacocks`: collective nouns for British birds have existed since at least the mid fifteenth century. They are thought to originate in texts about hunting, but have since evolved into evocative, witty & literary expressions, each striving to capture the very essence of the animal they describe. Some are portentous
- `a conspiracy of ravens` perfectly evokes this sinister bird
- others convey sound, such as `a murmuration of starlings` or `a chattering of choughs`. Yet more reflect with a flourish the beauty of the bird itself: what could be more celebratory than `a crown of kingfishers`, or `an exaltation of larks`? The best of these imaginative expressions are collected here, illustrated with charming woodcuts by Thomas Bewick, the renowned naturalist engraver of the eighteenth century. Featuring songbirds, aquatic birds, birds of prey & garden favourites, this beautifully presented book will delight both bird-lovers & word-lovers in equal measure.

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A Continent Revealed presents the findings of the European Geotraverse (EGT),
- a unique study of the tectonic evolution of the
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In an old farmhouse on the slopes of a mountain lying between Tregaron & Aberystwyth, Elisabeth Luard brings the produce of the land into her kitchen & turns it into delicious food. This book is her response to the changes she sees in her garden & the surrounding countryside throughout the seasons, with distinctive recipes at the end of each month's chapter. It is the story of a year spent planting & picking in the garden, roaming the countryside with her grandchildren & introducing them to the pleasures of rural living. Elisabeth's cooking is rooted in the culture of the Mediterranean where she once lived, as well as being inspired by traditional Welsh recipes & by her own garden. In winter she stirs up warming dishes like Spanish biscocho or Welsh winter cawl; in the spring she waits until the first mayflower comes to bloom before planting lettuces, mangetouts & broad beans in her garden. She relies on locally sourced meat for dishes like Partridges with baby onions & cinnamon in red wine, Rabbit with tagliatelle, cream & mustard or Ceps with potatoes & bacon, & rakes the countryside for ingredients like fruit for Hedgerow jelly, nettles for soup, elderflowers for cordial, cake or even fritters. With full colour photography by Clare Richardson that perfectly captures the sense of life in the Welsh countryside, this is a unique & beautiful book. ...

Every year in spring, Gabriel Gate spends two months travelling in his beloved native l&, where he began as a chef more than 40 years ago. During these visits Gabriel delights in the top gourmet specialities of France`s renowned cities & regions including Nice, Marseille, Provence, the Loire Valley & Paris. On his travels, Gabriel discovers the outstanding fish & seafood, excellent wines & liqueurs, extraordinary cheeses, unique range of charcuteries, delicious bread, cakes & patisseries which are a constant delight for the French people. In A Cook`s Tour of France, he shares recipes for dishes from all the main regions of France, such as the popular Auge Valley chicken casserole from Normandy, the colourful ratatouille from Nice with lemon chantilly &, of course, stunning desserts as only the French can do, like the luscious strawberry tart from the Loire Valley. This beautifully illustrated book gathers the best classic recipes from the many regions of France, one of the world`s best destinations for food lovers ...

Every year in spring, Gabriel Gate spends two months travelling in his beloved native l&, where he trained as a chef more than 40 years ago. During these visits Gabriel delights in the top gourmet specialities of France`s renowned cities & regions including Nice, Marseille, Provence, the Loire Valley & Paris. On his travels, Gabriel discovers the outstanding fish & seafood, excellent wines & liqueurs, extraordinary cheeses, unique range of charcuteries, delicious bread, cakes & patisseries which are a constant delight for the French people. In A Cook`s Tour of France, he shares recipes for dishes from all the main regions of France, such as the popular Auge Valley chicken casserole from Normandy, the colourful ratatouille from Nice with lemon chantilly &, of course, stunning desserts as only the French can do, like the luscious strawberry tart from the Loire Valley. ...

A Corkscrew is Most Useful is a fascinating & richly detailed journey around the world as seen through Victorian eyes. At the height Queen Victoria’s British Empire, countless men & women set off to explore the known & unknown face of the globe, at the very same moment that the phenomenon of mass tourism was being launched by a Mr Thomas Cook. Their reasons for leaving Britain were as many & various as they themselves were. Some were searching for knowledge, adventure, fame, exotic animals to kill. Some hoped to be the first to stamp their mark upon a lake, a river source, a passage through the ice or an unknown inland sea; while others dreamed of bringing home archaeological specimens & ancient works of art of finding untold natural riches. Some travelled, as people have always done, for no reason at all except the sheer marvellous enjoyment of it
- & so it seems some parts of the Empire are alive & well after all. This is a fascinating book, ideal for anyone with a penchant for travelling, even those doing so from their armchair.
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