Geoff Tiballs’ wonderful collection The Olympics` Strangest Moments: Extraordinary But True Stories from the History of the Olympic Games (Portico, 2012) is a selection of the most unusual, jawdropping, & just plain bizarre moments in over a century of modern Olympics history. Be in turn amused & astonished by the array of Olympic feats & fortunes described here in very readable, bite size anecdotes… From the unlikely Olympic hero of Dorando Pieri, who missed out on a gold medal in the 1908 marathon when over anxious London officials dragged him over the finish line, to the spectacular achievement of the US gymnast George Eyser, who won three gold medal in 1904 with a wooden leg, Geoff Tibbals provides a weird & wonderful collection of some of the most astonishing moments in the history of the Games, all perfectly timed to enhance our appreciation of this summer’s fun. Delve into this highly enjoyable collection & get yourself some Olympic spirit! ...

What shall we have for dinner? Such a simple question has grown to have a very complicated answer. We can eat almost anything nature has to offer, but deciding what we should eat stirs anxiety. Should we choose the organic apple or the conventional? If organic, local or imported? Wild fish or farmed? Low-carb or low-cal? As the American culture of fast food & unlimited choice invades the world, Pollan follows his next meal from land to table, tracing the origin of everything consumed & the implications for ourselves & our planet. His astonishing findings will shock all who care about what they put on their plate. ...

A one-in-a-million story for anyone who loves to laugh, cry, & think about how extraordinary ordinary life can be. Not to be missed by readers who loved THE UNLIKELY PILGRIMAGE OF HAROLD FRY, ELIZABETH IS MISSING or THE SHOCK OF THE FALL. Miss Ona Vitkus has
- aside from three months in the summer of 1914
- lived unobtrusively, her secrets fiercely protected. The boy, with his passion for world records, changes all that. He is eleven. She is one hundred & four years, one hundred & thirty three days old (they are counting). & he makes her feel like she might be really special after all. Better late than never... Only it`s been two weeks now since he last visited, & she`s starting to think he`s not so different from all the rest. Then the boy`s father comes, for some reason determined to finish his son`s good deed. & Ona must show this new stranger that not only are there odd jobs to be done, but a life`s ambition to complete.. .

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How to prepare fast, simple, fabulous meals afloat? Now you can turn even a one-burner galley into a gourmet kitchen & enjoy hot, wholesome, delicious meals wherever your boat takes you. Want apple pancakes for breakfast? Quesadillas for lunch? Saucy chicken with noodles & green peppers for dinner? All you need is one pan, the right ingredients, & a little help from ” The One Pan Galley Gourmet”. This practical guide for the seagoing epicure has it all
- one-pot simplicity, delicious recipes using fresh ingredients, & plenty of spice & personality. Special features include: 170 meat, fish, & vegetarian recipes; Delicious, nutritious, satisfying dishes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, & dessert; Menu plans for three-day & seven-day cruises; & provisioning advice emphasizing fresh ingredients with selective canned substitutions. Every recipe can be prepared in a single pot, pan, or small oven.
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Number one bestseller The One Plus One is the beautiful, poignant & utterly compelling new novel by the internationally bestselling author Jojo Moyes. One eternal optimist... Jess Thomas, with two jobs & two kids & never enough money, wears flip flops in the hope of spring. & when life knocks her down she does her best to bounce right back. But no one told her it`s okay to ask for help. Plus one lost stranger... Ed Nichols is the good guy gone bad. He had it all, then one stupid mistake cost him everything. Now he`ll do anything to make it right. Equals a chance encounter... Ed doesn`t want to save anyone & Jess doesn`t want saving, but could Jess & Ed add up to something better together? Praise for The One Plus One: ”A beautifully written love story I relished”. (Daily Mail). ”A heartbreaking, laugh-out-loud, roller coaster”. (Sunday Express). ” An uplifting, charming, life-affirming tale that you won`t want to put down”. (Heat). ” Raw, funny, real & sad, this is storytelling at its best”. (Marie Claire). ...

Deep in the dewy forest sits an only, lonely panda bear. “I wish I had a friend, ” Panda sighs, as playful sifakas & graceful flamingos dance around him. But who’s that peeking through the bamboo? & can Panda work out how to be her friend? With stunning illustrations from Jonny Lambert (Little Why, Tiger Tiger, The Great Aaa-Ooo), The Only Lonely Panda is a funny & uplifting celebration of friendship & individuality. Perfect for little ones who are learning to make friends at a new nursery or school. ...

Deep in the dewy forest sits an only, lonely panda bear. “I wish I had a friend, ” Panda sighs, as playful sifakas & graceful flamingos dance around him. But who’s that peeking through the bamboo? & can Panda work out how to be her friend? With stunning illustrations from Jonny Lambert (Little Why, Tiger Tiger, The Great Aaa-Ooo), The Only Lonely Panda is a funny & uplifting celebration of friendship & individuality. Perfect for little ones who are learning to make friends at a new nursery or school! ...

Would you rather love the more, & suffer the more; or love the less, & suffer the less? That is, I think, finally, the only real question. First love has lifelong consequences, but Paul doesn`t know anything about that at nineteen. At nineteen, he`s proud of the fact his relationship flies in the face of social convention. As he grows older, the demands placed on Paul by love become far greater than he could possibly have foreseen. Tender & wise, The Only Story is a deeply moving novel by one of fiction`s greatest mappers of the human heart. ...

Elaine Sciolino, the former Paris bureau chief of The New York Times, invites us on a tour of her favourite Parisian street. ”I can never be sad on the rue des Martyrs”, Sciolino explains as she celebrates the area`s rich history & vibrant lives. While many cities suffer from the levelling effects of globalisation, the rue des Martyrs maintains its distinct allure. Sciolino reveals the charms & idiosyncrasies of this street & its residents-the Tunisian greengrocer, the husb&-&-wife cheesemongers, the showman who`s been running a transvestite cabaret for more than half a century, the owner of a 100-year-old bookstore, the woman who repairs eighteenth-century mercury barometers-making Paris come alive in all its majesty. The Only Street in Paris will make readers hungry for Paris & for the kind of street life that is all too quickly disappearing. ...

Pico Iyer has been engaged in conversation with the Dalai Lama (a friend of his father`s) for the last three decades-a continuing exploration of his message & its effectiveness. Now, in this insightful, impassioned book, Iyer captures the paradoxes of the Dalai Lama`s position: though he has brought the ideas of Tibet to world attention, Tibet itself is being remade as a Chinese province; though he was born in one of the most remote, least developed places on earth, he has become a champion of globalism & technology. He is a religious leader who warns against being needlessly distracted by religion; a Tibetan head of state who suggests that exile from Tibet can be an opportunity; an incarnation of a Tibetan god who stresses his everyday humanity. Moving from Dharamsala, India-the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile-to Lhasa, Tibet, to venues in the West where the Dalai Lama`s pragmatism, rigour, & scholarship are sometimes lost on an audience yearning for mystical visions, The Open Road illuminates the hidden life, the transforming ideas, & the daily challenges of a global icon. ...