"A
quirky, surreal, often very funny story by a talented new writer, Red Dwarf meets
Trainspotting, narrated in a new original voice." So
said Joanne Harris of Lloyd Markham’s novel Bad Ideas\Chemicals (pb, 978 1912109685, £8.99) which is one of six debut
novels by young writers which has just been shortlisted for the 2018 Betty
Trask Prize. The prize will be presented by Stephen Fry, on Thursday
19 July; past winners include Zadie Smith and Sarah Waters, so this is
definitely an award to win! Bad Ideas\Chemicals has
also been shortlisted for the Rhys Davies Fiction Award and the Wales Book of the Year; there’s definitely a
bit of a buzz going on about this one. Everyone who has read this in the office
has loved it – and if you’d like a taste of Lloyd Markham’s uniquely odd,
poignant and poetic style, you can download a chapter to read on the Parthian website here.
This dark and witty take on small town life, is, as reviewers have
said “bleak, weird, grim, cool... it will
probably become a cult classic.” You can read an interview with Lloyd in
the Cardiff Review here
and in the Western Mail here.
We live in an age where radical technological and
scientific progress has helped us to be more independent and expand our ideas.
But a new book suggests that religion is holding us back and is denying us the
chance to enjoy society’s progress because it represses pleasure and makes us
suffer. Dangerous
Illusions: How Religion Deprives Us Of Happiness (hb, £25, 978 1911350286) is by Russian philanthropist
and businessman Vitaly
Malkin. He claims that religion has a devastating effect on the
morals of both individuals and society, but by reading his book, we can free
ourselves of centuries of restrictive ways of thinking. The marketing for this
book which was published last week has been immense – there has been extensive
advertising with the Independent and Evening Standard plus articles which you
can read here
and here
and the book was the subject of Jeremy Clarke’s Low Life column in the Spectator.
Advertising with social media channels and Amazon has also gone live and much
more publicity is to come, including advertising in all of the major national
papers. This battle cry for the human race to throw off religion in favour of
logic and reason is based on 10 years of dedicated research and is illustrated
with a rich selection of colour images. It is a highly topical work echoing
contemporary debates on religion from authors such as Christopher Hitchens and
Richard Dawkins and is published by Arcadia.
The Oberon Book of Queer Monologues (£12.99,
pb, 978 1786823472) is published on 28th June to coincide with Pride Month
and is the first collection of its kind chronicling over one hundred years of
queer and trans performance. Combining stage plays with spoken word and
performance art, this anthology features over forty extracts from some of the
most exciting stage works in the English-speaking world. It will be an
essential tool for artists seeking monologues for auditions or training and is a
comprehensive guide through the hidden histories of queer theatre. Scottee,
the book’s curator, was interviewed by the Evening
Standard, where he talked about the importance of the book – you can read
that article here. As he comments, “it’s quite astonishing to think we haven't
seen an anthology of queer performance throughout history before” – this book
is a true celebration of the LGBTQIA+ community, and as Peter
Tatchell writes, is “awesome, diverse and
historic”.
When was the last time you stopped to tune in to your
body? Do you feel energized and full of life, or exhausted and constantly
struggling? Most of us have shockingly little awareness of how badly our body
is functioning, let alone how to take charge of our own health. In Reboot Your Health
(978 1788170550, £12.99, pb) Sara Davenport reveals
her holistic blueprint for wellbeing – a
DIY manual to help you assess the function of each of your body's systems and
build a clear and detailed map of your health. It’s just been published by Hay House and has been featured in Woman & Home, Natural Health
magazine and on the FemaleFirst.co.uk
under the heading 12 easy ways to reboot
your health. And you can find out lots more plus plenty of Sara’s
invigorating re-boot tips on her own website www.reboothealth.co.uk
A terrific publicity boost for On Her Majesty’s Nuclear Service (£19.99, hb, 978 1612005713) by Eric Thompson which will be appearing as a feature and extract in the Mail on Sunday at some point in the next
three weeks – possibly this weekend. This book has been a stand-out success for
Casemate and is the riveting inside
story of Britain’s nuclear deterrent, revealing the secretive life of
submarines. The author leads the reader through top-secret submarine patrols,
hush-hush scientific trials, underwater weapon developments, public relations
battles with nuclear protesters, arm-wrestling with politicians and the
changing roles of women and homosexuals in the Navy. It is essentially a human
story, rich in both drama and comedy, like the Russian spy trawler that played
dance music at passing submarines. It has already had five-star reviews and
lots of great coverage, and this latest feature is certain to provide another
sales surge.
Who knew that one of Gareth Southgate’s strategies has
been to bring in ex-Royal Marines, who had lost limbs in battle to talk with
the England squad? They told them that they too had once been young men sent
abroad to fight for their country and helped the players to park any fears of
what lay ahead and focus on the positives. Southgate said those marines had
given the players “huge perspective”
on what pressure really meant. One of one of those soldiers was Andy Grant.
When he woke from a ten-day coma in February 2009, he had a broken sternum, a
broken leg, a broken elbow and shrapnel lodged in both forearms. He had a
severed femoral artery, nerve damage to his hands and feet as well as deep
gaping wounds in both of his cheeks. He had been blown up during a routine foot
patrol in Afghanistan. Within days of coming to his senses, a doctor told Andy
that because of the blast he would no longer be able to have children. You'll Never Walk (£15.99, hb, 978 1909245709) is his story. Its title
comes from the fact he had a tattoo of Liverpool FC’s crest on his calf before
he was blown up, and when the surgeon cut through his leg he removed the word Alone, leaving You’ll Never Walk on show. There’s been lots of publicity already
for this inspirational book in the Daily
Express, the
Mirror, and we’ve just heard that Andy will be on BBC Breakfast talking about it on 18th
July. It’s published by deCoubertin
Last week we were talking about a couple of books on the Practical Inspiration list – from
publisher Alison
Jones. Now let’s talk about Alison’s own new title This Book Means
Business: Clever Ways to Plan and Write a Book that Works Harder for your Business (£15.99, pb, 978 1910056691) which is aimed at all
those who believe they have a book in them! In her Extraordinary Business Book Club podcast, Alison Jones goes under
the hood of successful business books to discover how they’re put together and
how they work for the businesses behind them. This book brings together all
those inspiring and effective ideas, giving you a unique insight into how some
of the world’s top business authors work and showing how you can make these
ideas work for you too. Scott Pack said of it “What Alison Jones doesn't know about writing, publishing and marketing
business books probably isn't worth knowing. Even if the cover price of this
book were £100, you'd still be getting a bargain: the sheer volume of advice it
contains will prove priceless to anyone thinking of writing a business book. It
contains everything you need to know, and then some.” This is a both practical
and entertaining handbook which as one entrepreneur said “is full of ideas that work: open it at any page and you’ll find
something you can use.”
Saira Hamilton is a chef, food writer
and cookery teacher, whose Bengali-inspired food took her to the finals of MasterChef 2013. During the competition,
Saira won high praise from John and Gregg for her delicious dishes and deftness
of touch, and I’m pleased to tell you that Lorenz
are publishing her first book in November; My Bangladesh Kitchen: Recipes and Food Memories From a Family
Table (£20, hb, 978 0754834502). Bangladesh is a land of contrasts,
from busy cities to the lush and fertile countryside, with lakes and rivers at
every turn. The cuisine reflects the abundance of vegetables and fish, and in
this book Saira has brought together everyday classics, regional specialities,
street snacks, and impressive celebration food too. It is packed with
background detail and anecdote, vibrant photographs of every dish, and an
informative introduction describing the ingredients and cooking techniques of
Bangladesh. I have seen spreads from this one – and it really is gorgeous!
Lianna Champ has nearly 40 years’
experience in funeral care and bereavement counselling. She has worked in all
areas of bereavement, including, most recently, with the relatives of those involved
in the traumatic Manchester terror attack. She is passionate about improving
our relationship with death and dying, teaching us that if we live well we can
die well. Her new book How to Grieve Like a Champ
(£9.99, pb, 978 1910453551) is both comforting and practical, and designed with the knowledge that most
grieving people have a short attention span; the book clearly presents
essential information together with inspirational words in easily digestible short
paragraphs. Plenty of publicity for this one, you can find an online summary of
all the magazine and press coverage so far here and Sarah has also
been on Ireland’s Newstalk talking
about life as a female funeral director, and there is likely to be a
forthcoming article in the Sun. It
was published last week by Red Door.
Three winners for Crown
in the Foreword
INDIES Book of the Year Awards. When The Adults Change, Everything Changes (978 1781352731)
by Paul Dix has been awarded the Silver Winner in the education category. Release Your Inner Drive (978 1785831997) by Bradley Busch and Edward Watson has been awarded the Honourable Mention in the young adult nonfiction category. And The Lazy Teacher's
Handbook (978 1781352687) by Jim Smith has been awarded the Honourable
Mention in the education category. Well done all!
There’s a forthcoming Irish market focus edition of the Bookseller coming in the last week in
June which will feature an interview with Sue Rainsford, author of the stunning debut Follow Me to Ground (hb, £9.99, 978 1848406889) an unnerving, beautifully
controlled and sinister tale that questions our preconceptions of predator and
prey and the consequences of unchecked desire. A number of other New Island titles will also be featured
in the round up of new titles and there will be an ad featuring the new reissue
of Nuala
O’Faolain’s Are you Somebody? which we mentioned last week.
Primosole Bridge in Sicily from 13-16 July 1943 provided
the stage for the first instance of opposing elite paratroopers parachuting
into battle and then fighting each other in a see-saw battle raging under the
blazing Mediterranean sky. It’s a story of courage and determination. A story
of legendary military units and their commanders. A story that now, on the eve
of its 75th Anniversary, is told for the first time ever in The First Bridge
Too Far: The Battle of Primosole Bridge 1943 by Mark Saliger
(£19.99, hb, 978 1612006895). War
History Online are running a feature entitled “This is what happens when elite German and British paratroopers try
and land on the same bridge at the same time” and there are other articles coming up in the military media. This is a gripping and well-researched
narrative solely dedicated to one of the bloodiest and hardest fought battles
for British airborne troops of WWII, and the bravery and grit of the
paratroopers in standing up to overwhelming odds is something that deserves to
be more widely known. It is published on 13 July by Casemate.
July 2019 marks the fiftieth anniversary of Apollo 11's
epochal lunar landing. Here's the trailer for First Man – the film on this great achievement (staring Ryan
Gosling as Neil Armstrong) which is out this autumn. As you would expect, there
is going to be lots of publishing around this story, but I really think that London Stereoscopic have an absolute
belter on the subject with Mission Moon 3-D: A New Perspective on the Space Race (£30, 978 1999667405, hb) which is the story of the
lunar landing and the events that led up to it, grippingly told and with
visually stunning 3D images. It is written by editor of Astronomy magazine David Eicher, with a foreword by Apollo 16
astronaut Charlie
Duke and an epilogue by former NASA
Astronaut Naval Aviator Jim Lovell. Mission Moon 3-D offers
unique access to the Apollo astronauts and what they saw. It tells the story of
the US-Soviet space race, from Sputnik and the space dog Laika to Mercury,
Gemini, and Apollo. On July 20, 1969, President Richard Nixon told the
astronauts, and the nation, that it was "the
greatest week in the history of the world since the Creation." Mission Moon 3-D recounts all this and
more in memorable and visually stunning fashion. It has 192 pages, 300
photographs and includes the OWL 3D viewer. Astrophysicist (and lead
guitarist with Queen!) Brian May is the creative director behind the book
and think this will sell very well.
Always good to finish with some music – so here are the Top
Ten Space Songs! I think we can all guess what’s number one – which is also
fifty years old next year!
This
weekly blog is written for the UK book trade. If you would like to order any of
the titles mentioned, then please talk to your Compass Sales Manager, or call
the Compass office on 020 8326 5696. Every Friday an e-newsletter containing
highlights from the blog is sent out to over 700 booksellers – and if you’d
like to receive this then please contact nuala@compass-ips.london
thanks for sharing information....
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