Biografier

The first instalment of the highly anticipated biography of Henry VIII, written by one of the UK's most popular, established and exciting historians. Published to coincide with the 500th anniversary of Henry's accession to the throne, 'Henry: Virtuous Prince' is a radical re-evaluation of the monarchy's most enduring icon.

A fascinating slice of social history - Jennifer Worth's tales of being a midwife in 1950s London, now a major BBC TV series.

An autobiography that gives an insight into the workings of a great fashion house, while revealing the private man behind the high-profile establishment. It is also a portrait of the classic Paris haute couture of the 1950s and offers a glimpse behind the scenes.

The autobiography of the world's greatest drummer.

A brilliant account of the life of one of the most influential thinkers of the twentieth century. Popper also explains some of the central ideas in his work, making this ideal reading for anyone coming to his life and work for the first time.

A collection of inspirational wisdom.

`Locked-in syndrome: paralysed from head to toe, the patient, his mind intact, is imprisoned inside his own body, unable to speak or move. In my case, blinking my left eyelid is my only means of communication.'

What sort of man spends his Saturday afternoons with people named Bonehead, Paraffin Pete and Steamin' Sammy? Bill Buford's acclaimed Among the Thugs is a book about the experience, and the attractions, of crowd violence.

NOMINATED FOR SIX OSCARS, INCLUDING BEST PICTURE, SUPPORTING ACTOR AND SUPPORTING ACTRESS . . . Aged just five, Saroo Brierley lost all contact with his family in India, after waiting at a train station for his brother who never returned. Discover the inspiring, true story behind the film, Lion. This is the heart breaking and original tale of the lost little boy who found his way home twenty-five years later. ----------------------------------- As a five-year old in India, I got lost on a train. Twenty-five years later, I crossed the world to find my way back home. Five-year-old Saroo lived in a poor village in India, in a one-room hut with his mother and three siblings... until the day he boarded a train alone and got lost. For twenty-five years. This is the story of what happened to Saroo in those twenty-five years. How he ended up on the streets of Calcutta. And survived. How he then ended up in Tasmania, living the life of an upper-middle-class Aussie. And how, at thirty years old, with some dogged determination, a heap of good luck and the power of Google Earth, he found his way back home. Lion is a triumphant true story of survival against all odds and a shining example of the extraordinary feats we can achieve when hope endures.----------------------------------- 'Amazing stuff' The New York Post 'So incredible that sometimes it reads like a work of fiction' Winnipeg Free Press (Canada) 'A remarkable story' Sydney Morning Herald Review 'I literally could not put this book down. Saroo's return journey will leave you weeping with joy and the strength of the human spirit' Manly Daily (Australia) 'We urge you to step behind the headlines and have a read of this absorbing account...With clear recollections and good old-fashioned storytelling, Saroo...recalls the fear of being lost and the anguish of separation' Weekly Review (Australia)

Former Metallica guitarist and founding member of Megadeth Dave Mustaine talks for the first time about his life in rock 'n' roll, finally telling the inside story of two of the most influential heavy metal bands in the world.Here, for the first time ever, Dave Mustaine tells the tale of two of the biggest metal bands in history; a story yet to be told from the inside. A pioneer of the thrash metal movement, Metallica rose to international fame in the 1980s, selling over 90 million records worldwide, making them the most successful thrash metal band ever. And Megadeth - the second most successful thrash metal band ever - have sold more than 20 million albums worldwide, including six consecutive platinum albums.But despite their enormous success together, Dave and Metallica have had some bad blood. In April of 1983, partly due to alcoholism and partly due to personality clashes with founding members Hetfield and Ulrich, he was fired from the band and unceremoniously dropped off at a Greyhound station in Rochester, NY with a ticket back to LA. Now he will finally tell his side of the story.From the early, crazy days of Metallica, to his split with the band to ruling over Megadeth, Dave has seen and experienced it all. And now he's telling it all in his startlingly candid, in-your-face memoir.

'Undercover, you're never just acting; you're only ever a different version of yourself.'Neil Woods spent fourteen years (1993-2007) infiltrating drug gangs as an undercover policeman, befriending and gaining the trust of some of the most violent, unpredictable criminals in Britain. But Neil was never your stereotypical gung-ho, tough-guy copper. This is the story of how a thoughtful, idealistic character learned to use his empathetic nature to master some of the roughest, most dangerous work in law enforcement. There was no training, no manual and no plan for when things went wrong; he was just dropped at a corner and told to make connections. But, inevitably, having swords thrust against his jugular, witnessing beatings, stabbings, and gangsters burning suspected rats with acid took its toll.Drawing on Neil s experiences, with the insight that can only come from having fought on the front lines, GOOD COP, BAD WAR is at once a narrative-driven true crime read and a fascinating story of a character under pressure.

Slavomir Rawicz was a young Polish cavalry officer. On 19th November 1939 he was arrested by the Russians and after brutal interrogation he was sentenced to 25 years in the Gulags. After a three month journey to Siberia in the depths of winter he escaped with six companions, realising that to stay in the camp meant almost certain death. In June 1941 they crossed the trans-Siberian railway and headed south, climbing into Tibet and freedom nine months later in March 1942 after travelling on foot through some of the harshest regions in the world, including the Gobi Desert. First published in 1956, this is one of the world's greatest true stories of adventure, survival and escape, has been the inspiration for the film The Way Back, directed by Peter Weir and starring Colin Farrell and Ed Harris.

The incredible story of a Wall Street banker who went to China with $400,000,000 and learned the hard way how (not) to do business there . . . In the early nineties, China finally opened for business and Wall Street wanted in on the act. When the investment bankers arrived from New York with their Harvard MBAs, pinstripes and tasselled loafers, ready to negotiate with the Old Cadres, the stage was set for collision. This is the true story of a tough Wall Street banker who came to China looking for glory. He teamed up with an ex-Red Guard and a Mandarin-speaking Englishman. Together, they raised over $400,000,000 and bought up factories all over China. Only as they watched those millions slide towards the abyss did they start to understand that China really doesn't play by anyone else's rules. Tim Clissold was there at the beginning of China's transformation and he's still there, doing business. In this new edition of his hugely successful book he describes just how much - and how little - has changed in China since his story began.

This dream-laden and spooked (Marina Warner, London Review of Books) story is to many one of the best-loved books of the twentieth century. Munthe spent many years working as a doctor in Southern Italy, labouring unstintingly during typhus, cholera and earthquake disasters. It was during this period that he came across the ruined Tiberian villa of San Michele, perched high above the glittering Bay of Naples on Capri. With the help of Mastro Nicola and his three sons, and with only a charcoal sketch roughly drawn on a garden wall to guide them, Munthe devoted himself to rebuilding the house and chapel. Over five long summers they toiled under a sapphire-blue sky, their mad-cap project leading them to buried skeletons and ancient coins, and to hilarious encounters with a rich cast of vividly-drawn villagers. The Story of San Michele reverberates with the mesmerising hum of a long, hot Italian summer. Peopled with unforgettable characters, it is as brilliantly enjoyable and readable today as it was upon first publication. The book quickly became an international bestseller and has now been translated into more than 30 languages; it is today an established classic, and sales number in the millions.

On 17th November, 2012, Salvador Alvarenga left the coast of Mexico for a two-day fishing trip. A vicious storm killed his engine and the current dragged his boat out to sea. The storm picked up and carried him West, deeper into the heart of the Pacific Ocean. Alvarenga would not touch solid ground again for 14 months. When he was washed ashore on January 30th, 2014, he had drifted over 9,000 miles. Three dozen cruise ships and container vessels passed nearby. Not one stopped for the stranded fisherman. He considered suicide on multiple occasions - including offering himself up to a pack of circling sharks. But Alvarenga developed a method of survival that kept his body and mind intact long enough for the Pacific Ocean to spit him up onto a remote palm-studded island. Crawling ashore, he was saved by a local couple living in their own private castaway paradise.Based on dozens of hours of interviews with Alvarenga and his colleagues, search and rescue officials, the medical team that saved his life and the remote islanders who nursed him back to normality, 438 Days by Jonathan Franklin is an epic tale of survival and one man's incredible story of beating the ultimate odds.

In 2004, bad boy Billy Fingers Cohen, a homeless small-time drug dealer and addict in a state of drug induced euphoria ran into a busy intersection and was killed instantly by a speeding automobile. He left behind a grieving sister. For weeks she struggled with grief and tried to make sense of Billy's seemingly wasted life and tragic death.A few weeks after his death, William Cohen, aka Billy Fingers, woke his sister Annie at dawn. 'I'm drifting weightlessly through these glorious stars and galaxies and I feel a Divine Presence, a kind, loving beneficent presence, twinkling all around me.'Billy's ongoing after-death communications take his sister on an unprecedented journey into the bliss and wonder of life beyond death. Billy's profound, detailed description of the mystical realms he traverses, the Beings of Light that await him, and the wisdom he receives take the reader beyond the near-death experience. Billy is, indeed, as Dr. Raymond Moody points out in his foreword, explaining the phenomena we've known about since ancient times, an afterworld walker. A fascinating page-turner filled with wisdom, humour and hope, The Afterlife of Billy Fingers, will forever change your views about life, death and the hereafter.If I could give you a gift it would be to find the glory inside yourself, beyond the roles and the drama, so you can dance the dance of the game of life with a little more rhythm, a little more abandon, a little more shaking-those-hips.

Push until it hurts, then push some moreEven by the standards of a sport that requires enormous stamina and capacity for suffering, Jens Voigt is in a class on his own. Beloved by cycling fans for his madcap one-man breakaways as much as his sense of humour and quotable catchphrases, Jens is one of the most popular personalities in cycling.Jens was born near Hamburg, and came up through the East German system before the Wall came down. He got into the national team through the German army, before signing for his first big team. In many ways he is cycling s anti-star; despite arguably spending more time at the front of the Tour de France than any other rider he has only worn the yellow jersey twice as his efforts have always been in the service of others.Jens embodies the best of cycling s qualities loyalty to his team, sacrifice, and devotion to the sport. He says, I m not a head person, I m more of a heart and guts guy. That s how I race. Shut Up Legs is a funny, insightful and entertaining look at the tough realities of professional cycling, told in Jens s trademark irreverent and inimitable style.

'The truest measure of the man we have thus far' - Mojo'Affectionate, impeccably researched biography' - Mail on Sunday'Head and shoulders above the usual rock hagiography' - Sunday TelegraphThe first biography to be written with the cooperation of the Lynott Estate, Cowboy Song is the definitive authorised account of the extraordinary life and career of Thin Lizzy guiding spirit, Philip Lynott.Leading music writer Graeme Thomson explores the fascinating contradictions between Lynott's unbridled rock star excesses and the shy, sensitive 'orphan' raised in working class Dublin. The mixed-race child of a Catholic teenager and a Guyanese stowaway, Lynott rose above daunting obstacles and wounding abandonments to become Ireland's first rock star. Cowboy Song examines his key musical alliances as well as the unique blend of cultural influences which informed Lynott's writing, connecting Ireland's rich reserves of music, myth and poetry to hard rock, progressive folk, punk, soul and New Wave.Published on the thirtieth anniversary of Lynott's death in January 1986, Thomson draws on scores of exclusive interviews with family, friends, band mates and collaborators. Cowboy Song is both the ultimate depiction of a multi-faceted rock icon, and an intimate portrait of a much-loved father, son and husband.

Where have you been all our lives, Mindy? GlamourMindy Kaling has lived many lives: comedienne, actress, obedient child of immigrant professionals and, now, writer. With a blend of witty confessions and unscientific observations, Mindy writes about everything from being a timid young chubster afraid of her own bike to living the Hollywood life, dating, friendships and planning her own funeral all executed with several conveniently placed stopping points for you to run errands and make phone calls. Hilarious Elle

'The whole point of a race is to find a winner... I chose to race, so I chose to win.' For 14 years between 1965 and 1978, cyclist Edouard Louis Joseph Merckx simply devoured his rivals, their hopes and their careers. His legacy resides as much in the careers he ruined as the 445 victories - including five Tour de France wins and all the monument races - he amassed in his own right. So dominant had Merckx become by 1973 that he was ordered to stay away from the Tour for the good of the event.Stage 17 of the 1969 Tour de France perfectly illustrates his untouchable brilliance. Already wearing the yellow jersey on the col du Tourmalet, the Tour's most famous peak, Merckx powered clear and rode the last 140 kilometres to the finish-line in jaw-dropping solitude, eight minutes ahead of his nearest competitor.Merckx's era has been called cycling's Golden Age.It was full of memorable characters who, at any other time, would all have gone on to become legends. Yet Merckx's phenomenal career overshadowed them all. How did he achieve such incredible success? And how did his rivals really feel about him? Merckx failed drug tests three times in his career - were they really stitch ups as he claimed? And what of the crash at a track meet in Blois, France that killed Merckx's pacer Fernand Wambst, which Merckx claimed deeply affected him psychologically and physically? Or the attack by a spectator in 1975?Despite his unique achievements, we know little about the Cannibal beyond his victories. This will be the first comprehensive biography of Merckx in English, and will finally expose the truth behind this legendary man.

The Beatles have been at the top for fifty years, their music remains exciting, their influence is still huge, their acclaim and achievements cannot be surpassed. But who really were the Beatles, and how did they and everything else in the 1960s fuse so explosively?Mark Lewisohn's three-part biography is the first true and accurate account of the Beatles, a contextual history built upon impeccable research and written with energy, style, objectivity and insight. This first volume covers the crucial and less-known early period - the Liverpool and Hamburg years of a hungry rock and roll band, when all the sharp characters and situations take shape.This is the Beatles like you've never read them before. It isn't just 'another book', it's the book, from the world-acknowledged authority. Forget what you know and discover The Complete Story.

Once in a generation a woman comes along who changes everything. Tina Fey is not that woman, but she met that woman once and acted weird around her.Before 30 Rock, Mean Girls and 'Sarah Palin', Tina Fey was just a young girl with a dream: a recurring stress dream that she was being chased through a local airport by her middle-school gym teacher. She also had a dream that one day she would be a comedian on TV. She has seen both these dreams come true.At last, Tina Fey's story can be told. From her youthful days as a vicious nerd to her tour of duty on Saturday Night Live; from her passionately halfhearted pursuit of physical beauty to her life as a mother eating things off the floor; from her one-sided college romance to her nearly fatal honeymoon - from the beginning of this paragraph to this final sentence.Tina Fey reveals all, and proves what we've all suspected: you're no one until someone calls you bossy.

Compelled to seek something more than what modern society has to offer, Robert Sibley turned to an ancient setting for help in recovering what has been lost. The Henro Michi is one of the oldest and most famous pilgrimage routes in Japan. It consists of a circuit of eighty-eight temples around the perimeter of Shikoku, the smallest of Japan's four main islands. Every henro, or pilgrim, is said to follow in the footsteps of KA bA Daishi, the ninth-century ascetic who founded the Shingon sect of Buddhism. Over the course of two months, the author walked this 1,400-kilometer route (roughly 870 miles), visiting the sacred sites and performing their prescribed rituals.Although himself a gaijin, or foreigner, Sibley saw no other pilgrim on the trail who was not Japanese. Some of the people he met became not only close companions but also ardent teachers of the language and culture. These fellow pilgrims' own stories add to the author's narrative in unexpected and powerful ways. Sibley's descriptions of the natural surroundings, the customs and etiquette, the temples and guesthouses will inspire any reader who has longed to escape the confines of everyday life and to embrace the emotional, psychological, and spiritual dimensions of a pilgrimage.

Will you do my eulogy?With those words, Mitch Albom begins his long-awaited return to non-fiction. His journey to honour the last request of a beloved clergyman ultimately leads him to rekindle his own long-ignored faith. Albom spends years exploring churches and synagogues, the suburbs and the city, the "e;us"e; versus "e;them"e; of religion. Slowly, he gravitates to an inner-city pastor of a crumbling church that houses the homeless, and is stunned at how similar belief can be. As his own beloved cleric slowly lets go, Albom writes his final farewell, having learned that a faithful heart comes in many forms and places.

In September 2012, a YOUGOV poll conducted in Britain found that the person British workers would most like as their manager was Sir Richard Branson.With over 40 years in business, Richard Branson is an inspiring pioneer of humanitarian projects and an iconic business leader. In The Virgin Way: How to Listen, Learn, Laugh and Lead, Richard shares and distils his secrets of leadership and success. Featuring anecdotes from his own business dealings, as well as his observations of many others who have inspired him from politicians, business leaders, explorers, scientists and philanthropists Richard reflects on the qualities he feels are essential for success in today s world.This is not a conventional book on leadership. There are no rules but rather the secrets of leadership that he has learned along the way from his days at Virgin Records, to his recent work with The Elders. Whether you re at the beginning of your career, or head of a Fortune 500 company this is your guide to being your own CEO (Chief Enabling Officer) and becoming a true leader not just a boss.

Stephen Fry invites readers to take a glimpse at his life story in the unputdownable More Fool Me.'Oh dear I am an arse. I expect there'll be what I believe is called an "e;intervention"e; soon. I keep picturing it. All my friends bearing down on me and me denying everything until my pockets are emptied. Oh the shame'In his early thirties, Stephen Fry - writer, comedian, star of stage and screen - had, as they say, 'made it'. Much loved in A Bit of Fry and Laurie, Blackadder and Jeeves and Wooster, author of a critically acclaimed and bestselling first novel, The Liar, with a glamorous and glittering cast of friends, he had more work than was perhaps good for him. What could possibly go wrong?Then, as the 80s drew to a close, he discovered a most enjoyable way to burn the candle at both ends, and took to excess like a duck to breadcrumbs. Writing and recording by day, and haunting a never ending series of celebrity parties, drinking dens, and poker games by night, in a ludicrous and impressive act of bravado, he fooled all those except the very closest to him, some of whom were most enjoyably engaged in the same dance.He was - to all intents and purposes - a high functioning addict. Blazing brightly and partying wildly as the 80s turned to the 90s, AIDS became an epidemic and politics turned really nasty, he was so busy, so distracted by the high life, that he could hardly see the inevitable, headlong tumble that must surely follow . . .Containing raw, electric extracts from his diaries of the time, More Fool Me is a brilliant, eloquent account by a man driven to create and to entertain - revealing a side to him he has long kept hidden.Stephen Fry is an award-winning comedian, actor, presenter and director. He rose to fame alongside Hugh Laurie in A Bit of Fry and Laurie (which he co-wrote with Laurie) and Jeeves and Wooster, and was unforgettable as Captain Melchett in Blackadder. He also presented Stephen Fry: The Secret Life of the Manic Depressive, his groundbreaking documentary on bipolar disorder, to huge critical acclaim. His legions of fans tune in to watch him host the popular quiz show QI each week.

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERBy the star of Channel 5's Our Yorkshire Farm.Amanda Owen has been seen by millions on ITV's The Dales and Channel 5's Our Yorkshire Farm, living a life that has almost gone in today's modern world, a life ruled by the seasons and her animals. She is a farmer's wife and shepherdess, living alongside her husband Clive and seven children at Ravenseat, a 2000 acre sheep hill farm at the head of Swaledale in North Yorkshire. It's a challenging life but one she loves. In The Yorkshire Shepherdess she describes how the rebellious girl from Huddersfield, who always wanted to be a shepherdess, achieved her dreams. Full of amusing anecdotes and unforgettable characters, the book takes us from fitting in with the locals to fitting in motherhood, from the demands of the livestock to the demands of raising a large family in such a rural backwater. Amanda also evokes the peace of winter, when they can be cut off by snow without electricity or running water, the happiness of spring and the lambing season, and the backbreaking tasks of summertime - haymaking and sheepshearing - inspiring us all to look at the countryside and those who work there with new appreciation.

The Mountains of My Life collects Walter Bonatti's classic writings detailing his exploits on numerous expeditions to different mountains of the world, as well as the real story behind the controversy over the events on K2 that changed his life. Bonatti is one of the greatest mountaineers of all time, and these awe-inspiring writings capture the adventure, audacity and magnitude of his craft.

Building on the powerful story and arguments he shared in Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi and co-author Kevin Harney take viewers deeper into apologetics and evangelism among Muslims with this complete study course. In eight lessons coordinated to be used alongside the Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus Video Study, Qureshi and Harney explore Muslim culture, the most common Muslim objections to Christianity, and the core doctrines upon which Islam stands or falls. Compassionate and clear, the Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus Study Guide will be a useful training tool for pastors, outreach leaders, and any believers wanting to winsomely engage Muslims in spiritual conversations.The Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus Study Guide develops in further detail the objections to Islam and case for Christianity that Qureshi introduced in Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus. When studied with the accompanying Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus Video Study, this complete course is perfect for adult classes, small groups, segments in college or seminary courses, and motivated independent learners alike.