Every land needs its own witch. There’s a monster in the river, a headless horsemen in the drive. & now Granny Aching has gone, there’s only young Tiffany Aching left to guard the boundaries. It’s her l&. Her duty. But it’s amazing how useful a horde of unruly pictsies can be... ...

A delightful little book for `week-enders young or old, guest or host, married or single, discreet or adventurous`. THE WEEK-END BOOK is an invaluable book for week-enders of all ages. Containing a wealth of advice from what to eat on country jaunts (` Use tinned goods, but disguise them. No-one should ever suspect that they are tinned`; `N.B.
- mice cooked in honey should be imported from China, not prepared at home`), to tips on bird-spotting & types of bird (` The blackbird possesses a quite different emotional quality from the robin, being full of fears, suspicions & nervous reactions`). From suggestions for games to play (e.g. Human Polo where ` The biggest men are the ponies, & the girls or lighter weights mount them pick-a-back`), to essential first aid (` Before party drinking swallow a half to one ounce of Olive Oil or drink a glass of milk`). Other sections include: how to forecast the weather (useful when embarking on camping weekends), notes on the stars at night, types of architecture encountered in the country, information on farming techniques & the breeds of farm animals, a calendar of wild flowers, & varieties of trees & how to spot them. Entertaining, informative & completely invaluable, no one should embark on a weekend without it.
...

Last year, Duckworth resurrected the legendary ” Week-End Book”, much to the delight of modern readers. This year we have invited some of the wittiest & most entertaining contemporary writers at work in English to contribute to the ” Week-End Book” tradition, & combined new work with essential material from the original. Clarissa Dickson Wright, chef & countryside campaigner tells us how to make the most of the ever versatile pig. Legendary adventurer & writer Rory Stewart, tells us how to prepare for a long walk. Oscar-winning screenwriter & novelist, Julian Fellowes, explains how to be the perfect guest. All this, plus the rules for human polo, recipes for an ambrosial Sunday brunch, & a complete illustrated guide to that most daunting or sartorial peaks
- the bow tie.
...

In this light-hearted coming-of-age tale Craig Weldon, confused & direction less except for his love of the hills, wanders Scotl&, Wales & England having fun outdoors. This is a lively account of hill-walking in all weathers & up & down every possible terrain, braving Welsh farmers, Knoydart rain, the terrors of the Cuillin, & the real ales of Yorkshire. From Sutherland in the Far North to the rolling downs of Gloucestershire, Craig & his friends search out their Weekend Fix. For hill walkers this is an easy guide to the hills, informative & amusing. If you`ve never been on a hill in your life this book will make you think again about the landscape around you, & the challenges to courage, determination & the human spirit to be found only a few miles from home, wherever you live in Britain. ...

Photography is a popular pastime that can be rewarding when done correctly & you don't need a degree to get the most out of your camera. Whether it be an issue of lighting, focus, white balance or photographer positioning, many amateurs make simple mistakes that are easily identified. The Weekend Photographer is a comprehensive guidebook for beginner photographers to easily diagnose their problems & improve their overall technique, all within the time constraints of their weekend! ...

Photographer Toby Mitchell is back with the latest instalment in ` The Weekender` series. & this time we are headed to our second Scandinavian destination, Malmoe, Sweden. Sitting just over `the bridge` from Copenhagen, Toby explore Sweden`s 3rd largest city showing us the best a weekend trip here has to offer. The book will be an eclectic mix of interesting streets, delicious food joints, eye-catching landmarks & fantastic destination spots Malmoe has to offer. Whilst the flow of the book will incorporate the Friday to Sunday trajectory, the mixture of content will mean that a reader is both influenced by Toby`s imagery of the city without explicitly having to follow a specific route but allow them to adventure at will. ...

Photographer Toby Mitchell is back with the latest instalment in ` The Weekender` Series. & this time we are headed to Scandinavia & to the picturesque & enchanting city of Copenhagen. The book will be a mixture of iconic landmarks, interesting streets, trendy as well as less wellknown places to demonstrate the spirit of this city through Toby`s enigmatic photography. Whilst the flow of the book will incorporate the Friday to Sunday trajectory, the mixture of content will mean that a reader is both influenced by Toby`s imagery of the city without explicitly having to follow a specific route but allow them to adventure at will. Food spots, stores, parks & cultural highlights to showcase the city in a new light. ...

What would happen if you took some of Britain`s best writing talent, put them on a plane & flew them to one of the most extraordinary & inaccessible places on the planet? What would happen if you took Irvine Welsh from the streets of Edinburgh & showed him a remote, dangerous village in Africa? What would happen if you flew Alex Garland into one of the world`s most hazardous war zones? & how would Tony Hawks react if you dragged him away from his tennis & asked him to write a song with a Sudanese tribesman? With Victoria Glendinning, Andrew O` Hagan, Giles Foden & WF Deedes, these writers have experienced for themselves one of the most beautiful & yet troubled lands in the world
- The Sudan. This remarkable collection of short stories & evocative travel writing is their response
- as diverse & unpredictable as the country itself.

...

” The Weeping Goldsmith: Discoveries in the Secret Land of Myanmar” relates how W. John Kress came to appreciate the people & culture of Myanmar through an understanding of their plants, natural habitats, & human-dominated environments. Intertwined with descriptions of the author`s personal experiences & observations are notes on the history, culture, & modern society in Burma. Included are excerpts from his journals written while in the field, which serve as counterpoints to the accounts of earlier plant explorers who visited these places a century ago. ” The Weeping Goldsmith” is a delicate white & yellow-gold flower that defied replication even by an experienced goldsmith, according to legend. By the end of his journey the author grew to understand how politics could interfere with scientific research, leading the author to empathize with the sorrowful goldsmith. ...

If you are unable to protect yourself from a tyrant, how can you protect your family? & how does a proud man live with that knowledge? Reminiscent in part of ” Stasiland” & ” The Bookseller of Kabul”, this is the story of one family`s struggle to survive the iniquities of Saddam Hussein`s savage dictatorship. It is a career-defining book for Wendell Steavenson. In ” The Weight of a Mustard Seed”, Wendell Steavenson tells the story of General Kamel Sachet, a decorated hero of the long Iran-Iraq war & a favourite of Saddam Hussein`s. As Steavenson reveals the emotional & psychological scars the Sachet family suffer as a result of decades spent living with war & repression, she reaches towards the heart of a previously unspoken story of Iraq: a once prosperous nation, reduced by Hussein`s megalomania & paranoia to bankruptcy, corruption & impotence. The result is an intimate, startling & gripping account of the slow destruction of Sachet, his family & his country. ...