Compass Points 140

There has been a LOT of feature coverage over the summer for a new film Suffragette which will have its world premiere in London on 7 October, at the beginning of the London film festival, before opening nationwide in the UK on 30 October. You can watch a trailer for it here and it looks terrific! The cast stars Carey Mulligan and Meryl Streep and the film tells the story of the working-class British women who, inspired by the suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst, took their fight for enfranchisement to the male establishment in Westminster. Director Sarah Gavron was the first ever film-maker working on a commercial project to receive permission to film inside the Houses of Parliament, and the film also stars Helena Bonham Carter, Anne-Marie Duff, Ben Wishaw and Brendan Gleeson so there will be loads more publicity on it to come, I’m sure. Hesperus Nova are publishing Suffragette: My Own Story by Emmeline Pankhurst (978 1843915591, £7.99, pb) which is the original autobiography the most famous and controversial suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst: played in the film by Meryl Streep. With insight and great wit, Emmeline’s autobiography chronicles the beginnings of her interest in feminism through to her militant and controversial fight for women’s right to vote. While she received a good education, she rebelled against conventional women’s roles. At the age of fourteen a meeting of women’s rights activists sparked a lifelong passion in her to fight for women’s freedom and she would later claim that it was on that day she became a suffragist. As one after another of the proposed feminist bills were defeated in parliament, Pankhurst was inspired to turn to extreme actions. While she was the figurehead of the suffragette movement, it advocated some controversial tactics such as arson, violent protest and hunger strikes. Even today there is still debate about the effectiveness of her extreme strategies, but her work is recognised as a crucial element in achieving women's suffrage in Britain. The film is absolutely certain to stir new interest in her legacy – so make sure you have Suffragette: My Own Story on the shelves: you can order it here.

Ahh, who doesn’t love a bit of Meryl Streep! Watch here for an entertaining trawl through of her top ten film performances – maybe her interpretation of Emmeline Pankhurst is set to become another classic!

Another book that there has been a great deal of publicity for is the new James Bond title Trigger Mortis, written by Antony Horowitz. If you are a fan of James Bond (and frankly, who isn’t) , then you’ll probably enjoy this quiz in the Guardian – where you can see if you can identify original  James Bond quotes written by Ian Fleming, versus those from the newbie Horowitz!

This brings me neatly onto the next title we have for you; which is coming from Robson Press in October.  Ian Fleming: A Personal Memoir by Robert Harling (hb, £20.00 978 1849549356) is a fascinating and unprecedented insight into the mind and life of the creator of James Bond, from one of those who knew him best, which is a timely bit of publishing with the new James Bond movie, Spectre opening across the UK on 26 October – here's a trailer for it – looks pretty cracking to me!  Ian Fleming: A Personal Memoir is Robert Harling’s account of his enduring friendship with one of the twentieth century’s most iconic writers, a relationship forged in the Second World War that helped define the lives of both men. The war made the men fast friends, and Fleming would later write Harling into his Bond novels Thunderball and The Spy Who Loved Me. Despite the author’s close relationship with his subject, this book is a searching psychological investigation, and frequently critical of its protagonist. Indeed, as the narrative develops, Fleming becomes a tragic figure; his magnetism and charm often tempered by bouts of depression and failing health, and a deep-rooted misogyny, which meant that his relationships with women were destined to end in failure and recrimination. In this extraordinary memoir, which the author stipulated should not be published before his death and which features a cast of characters from General Patton to Noel Coward, Evelyn Waugh and John Betjeman, Harling brings a unique and authoritative perspective to a compelling subject. This sounds very interesting to me, and I am sure it will be very widely reviewed. An excellent present for those hard to buy for uncles and fathers I think!

You can find out more and order it here.

There is a fascinating 1963 interview with Ian Fleming on Desert Island Discs – it’s just 10 mins, and well worth a listen, which you can do here.

U.A. Fanthorpe, who would go on to become one of England’s most popular contemporary poets, (she was awarded the CBE in 2001 and the Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry in 2003) started out in 1974 as a clerk-receptionist in a neuro-psychiatric hospital. It was a job that would define her early years, not least as “poetry struck during my first month behind the desk.” Berowne’s Book is a witty commentary on what she saw around her, and includes some of her very earliest poems. Hilarious, tender, profound and deeply humane, this series of snapshots of hospital life in the 1970s shocks partly because so much is immediately familiar today. On Saturday, the Guardian will feature one of the poems as their weekly poem. Berowne's Book (pb, 978 1910392133, £9.99) by U A Fanthorpe is published by Enitharmon Press and you can you can find out more and order it here

Biteback are clearly in a mood to spend a bit of money at the moment! Firstly they recently acquired Berlusconi: the Epic Story of the Billionaire Who Took Over Italy by Alan Friedman .The Italian media tycoon and billionaire turned Prime Minister, Silvio Berlusconi has co-operated with the bestselling author and award-winning journalist Alan Friedman in the telling of his life story “warts and all” ; and in a series of “candid and revealing” interviews, Berlusconi discusses “everything from the infamous bunga-bunga parties” to his “most secret moments” with world leaders including Barack Obama and Vladimir Putin. Starting from the bottom in his incredible rise to power, Berlusconi was a cruise-ship crooner as a young man, became a real estate tycoon in the '70s, started the first commercial television network in history, and turned AC Milan into a world-class soccer club. And that was all before he entered and survived the squalid swampland of Italian politics, becoming the longest-serving Italian Prime Minister in history, and generating, arguably, the most controversy of any world leader today. Biteback MD Iain Dale said: “Silvio Berlusconi is undoubtedly the most colourful character to have graced the world’s political stage in recent years. Alan Friedman has done a remarkable job at really getting Berlusconi to open up about his astonishing life. The result is a book full of candid insights and fresh revelations, and I am delighted that Biteback will be publishing it.” Berlusconi by Alan Friedman (hb, 978 1849549868 £18.99) will be published in October and you can find out more abut it here.

Biteback also announced this week that they have acquired world rights to a biography on the newly-elected Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn entitled Comrade Jeremy: A Very Unlikely Coup: How Jeremy Corbyn Stormed to the Labour Leadership by journalist Rosa Prince. Comrade Jeremy will tell the story of "the most unexpected leadership contest ever to take place in modern British politics". It will discuss Corbyn’s “cosy rural upbringing” and his “long espousal of contentious causes, including Irish republicanism and free Palestine”. The biography will also attempt to answer questions such as “how did this very British iconoclast manage to snatch the leadership of a party he spent forty years rebelling against?” and "what exactly happened over the space of an extraordinary summer to propel an old lefty called Jeremy to inspire and excite hundreds of thousands of people, and breathe new life into the socialist ideals he has, almost alone, held true to for so many years?" Prince said: “Jeremy Corbyn’s unlikely journey to the leadership of the Labour Party is one of the great adventures of modern British political history. I am so honoured to have been trusted with the task of telling his extraordinary story.” Iain Dale commented: “The 2015 Labour Leadership election has been a riveting episode, and Jeremy Corbyn’s unlikely victory will go down in political history. Love him or hate him, Corbyn is a fascinating character, and I’m delighted that Biteback will be publishing his remarkable story.” Comrade Jeremy will be published in January 2016 and will be supported by a major press campaign. There has already been a plug for it in the Telegraph – its author Rosa Prince is their Political Editor – so there will no doubt be lots more publicity here to come!

Rebecca F. John ‘s short stories Clown’s Shoes was shortlisted for the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award, and the PEN International/New Voices Award and although she did not win, the fact that she was a finalist was already something of a win considering the stature of the other shortlisted writers. A series of stories from the collection will be broadcast on Radio 4 Extra for five days between 9-13 November 2015. Clown’s Shoes is a dazzling, ambitious debut collection from a new young talent and these critically acclaimed stories dip into the shadows and spotlights of life. From the pale waking hours to the darkling places, Clown’s Shoes introduces a cast of lost characters trying to find their way, and those who populate the exciting and intriguing world of this alluring paperback, really do have stories that enthrall the imagination. As I’ve said before, short story collections are becoming increasingly popular, and this is as diverse and impressive a collection as you will find. Clown’s Shoes by Rebecca F. John (pb, £8.99) 978 1910409671) is published by Parthian in October and you can find out more and order it here.

You can find out a bit more about Rebecca on her website here.

And to finish, who enjoys a bit of Kurt Cobain? If you are a fan, who will no doubt be excited to hear that the soundtrack (featuring unheard music by Cobain) of  the recent Kurt Cobain film, Montage of Heck, will be released as the same day as the DVD of the film comes out, on 6 November. You can read more about that here. The accompanying book, Kurt Cobain: A Montage of Heck by Brett Morgen and Richard Bienstock (hb, 978 1783059669, £24.95) was published by Omnibus in August. It includes full transcripts of interviews with Cobain’s family members and friends, many of whom have never spoken in public before as well as interviews with Courtney Love and Wendy O’ Connor (Kurt’s mother). The book also includes stunning animation by award-winning animator Hisko Hulsing, and never before seen photographs, journal pages and other artefacts, offering revealing new insights into the life and character of Kurt Cobain. The release of the DVD and soundtrack are sure to provoke new focus on Kurt – more than 20 years have passed since he killed himself and his legacy still continues to fascinate and inspire people. This riveting chronicle paints an illuminating and honest portrait of the complex Nirvana frontman; and you can order A Montage of Heck here.

You can watch a trailer for the Montage of Heck film here.

We are currently very much enjoying #VeryBritishProblems on Twitter and Facebook! Here are some of our favourites!

• Being 100% certain that you'd mess up the saying your name bit on University Challenge.‪
• Saying sorry to someone for no reason and receiving the reply "that's okay" instead of "sorry".
• "That Friday feeling" - Translation: Watching telly while tired.
• How to receive directions: 1) Look very serious 2) Repeat last two instructions 3) Say thank you and drive immediately to a dead end
• Hanging up after three rings in case someone answers the phone.
• Demonstrating that there's nothing on TV tonight by reading out everything that's on TV tonight.
• Spotting someone you know in the supermarket and immediately burying yourself in a pile of onions.
• Being sure you're about to deposit your keys, wallet and phone the moment before dropping a letter into the post box.
• "What are you having?" - Translation: Please say you're having booze because I want booze

That’s all for now folks! More next week!

This blog is taken from a newsletter sent weekly to over 700 booksellers as well as publishers and publicists. If you would like to order any of the titles mentioned, then please click here to go to the Compass New Titles Website or talk to your Compass Sales representative.

Compass Points 139

I daresay many of you, like us here at Compass Towers, are on tenterhooks as we await the results of the Labour leadership election tomorrow – but in the meantime the country is run by a man who many feel still remains an enigma to those outside his tight-knit inner circle. However, a new unauthorised biography is set to change all that. Call Me Dave is on of the most hotly anticipated political books of the year, and promises to reveal the real David Cameron – Britain’s youngest Prime Minister for nearly 200 years. Co-authored by Lord Ashcroft, former deputy chairman of the Tory Party, and Isabel Oakeshott, award-winning political journalist; Call Me Dave will be published on the eve of the Conservative Party Conference and will be serialised in a major newspaper – which guarantees plenty of publicity!  Based on hundreds of interviews; with everyone from Westminster insiders to intimate friends; this book takes us from Eton to Oxford, through his gap-year adventures in Russia to Dave’s early days as a party apparatchik and his stint as a PR man. It scrutinises Cameron’s journey to the premiership and his record so far as the most powerful man in the land. Call Me Dave by Michael Ashcroft and Isabel Oakeshott (hb, 978 1849549141) contains 8 pages of colour pics, and is published by Biteback in October.  You can find out more and order it here

And if you really want to find out who’s running the country - have a look here at the brilliant Cassetteboy’s take on the latest news!

Talking of power-crazed dictators… take yourself back to October 2011 when in the dying days of the Libyan civil war, Muammar Gaddafi was hiding out in his home town of Sirte along with his closest advisors. As we know (but of course he did not); that October night was to be Gaddafi’s final one. The Dictator’s Last Night is a gripping imagining by Yasmina Khadra of what these last hours of President Gaddafi might have been like – providing us with a fascinating insight into the mind of one of the most complex and controversial figures of recent history – one who thinks  “People say I am a megalomaniac. It is not true. I am an exceptional being, providence incarnate, envied by the gods, able to make a faith of his cause.” In this short paperback, Gaddafi reflects on an extraordinary life, whilst still raging against the West, his fellow Arab nations and the ingratitude of the Libyan people. The novella ends with Gaddaffi’s thoughts as he is dragged out of a water drain, beaten and eventually shot dead.  Yasmina Khadra is a bestselling author with sales of 3 million copies in 42 countries: one reviewer said of his writing that “like all the great storytellers of history, Khadra espouses the contradictions of his characters, who carry in themselves the entirety of the human condition." This is an interesting title, by an author who the TLS describe as “a skilled storyteller working at the height of his powers” – you can read a thoughtful review by a blogger here. The Dictator’s Last Night (pb, 978 1910477137, £7.99) is published by Gallic in October and you can find out more and order it here.

You know we love a bit of Harry Potter gossip in Compass Points, and OMG – apparently we’ve been pronouncing Voldemort’s name wrong all these years! Read here how JK thinks he who cannot be named should be said!

Thanks very much for all your support of The Moor’s Account (pb, 978 1859644270, £9.99) by Laila Lalami published by Periscope which is selling strongly – so far it’s the 7^th bestselling title on the Booker Longlist of thirteen titles  – which is pretty good considering it wasn’t released when the longlist was announced! There’s less than a week (Tuesday 15^th September) to go until the shortlist is announced – have a look at this article in the Bookseller here which tells you how all the titles are doing and what the odds are on the winner!

And if you haven’t got round to reading all the titles yet, have a look at some extracts from each of them here to give you a flavour!

Paul Gambaccini is going to be all over the airwaves and press next week publicising his autobiography:  Love, Paul Gambaccini (hb, £20.00, 978 1849549110). Subtitled My Year Under the Yewtree, this book could not be more topical – and this full, no-holds-barred story of Paul Gambaccini’s twelve months of horror and trauma before being told he would not face historic sex assault charges looks set to trigger a change in how we prosecute allegations of abuse in the UK. Paul Gambaccini was arrested in October 2013. Forced awake in the middle of the night, he had many of his possessions confiscated for more than a year. He was disgraced in the press and made unemployable, despite having to pay tens of thousands of pounds in legal fees during a year in which he had no income. Finally, and inevitably, he became the latest celebrity to be exonerated over allegations of historic sexual abuse. The serialisation of this first person account has just begun the Mail on Sunday , and you can also read these articles in the Daily Telegraph, the The Times  and the  Daily Mail – The Mail on Sunday serialisation continues this weekend. 

Paul will be on ITV’s Loose Women next Tuesday, and also that day he’ll be interviewed on BBC Radio 4, on the Today Programme and there will be a live interview that evening with Evan Davies. Then the next morning (Weds) he’ll be on Radio 5 Live Breakfast –with Nicky Campbell and The Victoria Derbyshire Programme and BBC Radio 2, talking to Jeremy Vine at lunchtime, then HardTALK for an interview with Stephen Sackur and finally a live interview with Huw Edwards the BBC News Channel.  Love, Paul Gambaccini is published this week by Biteback and you can order it and find out more here.

Imagine a young mother, standing on Tower Bridge, holding her baby, ready to jump. No, this isn’t the start of some gripping new thriller – but an event that really happened. This single defining moment was Mary Daniels' darkest time – and the point when her life changed forever. Wild Awakening tells the story of what happened next, the journey to 'self' that she never saw coming and the discovery of nine simple, yet powerful questions that truly saved her life. Wild Awakening: 9 Questions that Saved my Life is an uplifting and moving story of how a series of events culminated in nine powerful questions that not only saved Mary’s  life, but have gone on to become a transformative process for many others. This deeply moving story reveals how all it takes is 9 minutes each morning – so this is the ideal guide for real people, living real lives, who are looking for a 'doable' daily practice for lasting change. An inspiring speaker, powerful storyteller and original 'wild woman', Mary Daniels and this title, Wild Awakening, will feature in a future issue of the Daily Express, the November issue of Soul & Spirit magazine and also in Kindred Spirit magazine. Wild Awakening (pb, 978 1781805831, £10.99) is published by Hay House in October and you can find out more and order it here.

If the above title is not your cup of tea, you may be one of the many booksellers with a deep suspicion of anything “new agey” or “dippy hippie”. Perhaps you also believe that food intolerances are an entirely 21st century invention, and that it’s the abandoning of meat and two veg every day that has plunged the world into decline? Well, you might be surprised to know that the world’s first ever raw, gluten-free, vegan restaurant actually opened in 1917! Mrs Vera Richter was something of a trailblazing guru whose restaurant in LA served up a delicious array of soups, pies and confections, enticing diners to the table throughout the 1920s. Vintage Vegan: Recipes from Inside the World’s First Vegan Restaurant collects over 100 of her most mouth-watering recipes for readers to recreate at home. From cow-less ice-cream to egg-less mayonnaise, gluten-free tamales to homemade almond milk, Vintage Vegan relies upon choppers and blenders; but never the oven or the hob. One hundred percent raw, the vitamin content of her dishes was never compromised by conventional baking or frying methods. Thanks to endorsements from A-list celebrities like Beyoncé and Gwyneth Paltrow and a vast array of bloggers online; interest in the raw food and vegan lifestyle is at an all-time high. Over 60% of the British population is either obese or overweight, with 45% of people suffering from gluten intolerance, and Vintage Vegan offers a more wholesome, healthier lifestyle; guaranteed to make you glow from the inside out while shedding a few pounds in the process. It also provides a tantalising taste of the Roaring Twenties – what’s not to love! Vintage Vegan by Mrs Vera Richter (hb, 978 0859655446, £12.99) is published by Plexus in October and you can find out more about it here.

Mind you; if we’re on the subject of retro diets – I think I’d probably prefer to follow Fats Waller’s – here he is with all that meat and no potatoes!

Following the same vintage theme, Make Do and Send: Carrying on and Keeping Calm About Rationing by Sam Taylor is a very amusing collection of original letters of complaint which were sent from all over Britain about food and clothes rationing from 1940 to 1954. In 1941 clothes rationing was announced as a result of the war with Germany, while food rationing had already been introduced. The propaganda was upbeat under the banner Make Do and Mend; but one of the UK’s favourite national pastimes – grumbling - soon followed! For example, civil war on the War Office was openly declared when in 1943 women weren't getting enough corsets, yet men won their battle for turn-ups on trousers to make a long-wished-for come back! In Make Do and Send, Sam Taylor has gathered together the most arch, polemical, amusing and interesting letters on issues that enraged wartime Britain that will make anyone smile with its nod to Dads Army. It is a hilarious record of the stiff British upper lip that trembled with ill-concealed disgust whenever an injustice or unfair advantage was spotted. Sam Taylor is a novelist, editor of The Lady magazine and a features writer for the Daily Mail, and this compilation is an ideal Christmas gift hardback for families who can laugh at bickering! Collections of letters are sell very well  – Outraged of Tunbridge Wells by Nigel Cawthorne is a bestseller, as is Am I Alone in Thinking – the unpublished letters to the Telegraph; and Make Do and Send (hb, 978 1783340866, £9.99) is very much in the same vein. It’s published by Gibson Square in October - find out more here!

I expect there are times when you wonder whether it would be better to be an author than a bookseller – none of that tiresome stock-checking or unpacking boxes – and plenty of working in your pyjamas and drinking warm white wine at parties! But maybe it’s not all fun fun fun – here’s an entertaining list  of the many fears that plague writers!

There’s been quite a bit of publicity coming up for 101 Gins to Try Before You Die by Ian Buxton (£12.99, hb, 978 1780272993) from Birlinn. There’s going an interview with Ian coming up in the Times, and there’s just been a feature in the Daily Record. Also many local papers have featured it – including the Irish News, the Liverpool Echo and the Manchester Evening News. Here are two videos which you may enjoy – firstly Ian talking about his book and then secondly,  a one minute film showing us how to make the perfect gin based cocktail – just the pick-me-up required for a tired bookseller on a Friday evening I would think! Cheers!

And you can order 101 gins here (the book that is – sadly not literally 101 gins.)

Compass is on Twitter! Follow us @CompassIPS. Here are some of our favourite tweets from last week...

Freight Books ‏@FreightBooks  

We're delighted to announce that @freightbooks is joining forces with @cargopublishing 312030 …

The Bookseller ‏@thebookseller  

'TV book shows could help BBC survive' says Robert Harris: http://bit.ly/1VRggPO 

Leah Moyse ‏@LeahJMoyse  

@urbanebooks @deanlilleyman @CompassIPS Amazing interview. Must read Billy and the Devil but scared for personal reasons. Such candidness is admirable.

Scott Pack ‏@meandmybigmouth  

Thrilled to see a nice pile of The Miner at Foyles Waterloo.

UrbanePublications ‏@urbanebooks 

Great storytelling....5 stars....I love this book....thrilling... Eden-Burning

Blackwell's Holborn‏@BlackwellsHH

Yes! @DanRhodes101 will be here October 1st - free event for the launch of @AardvarkBureau's release of Professor!

Gallic Books ‏@gallicbooks  

History from a Woman's Perspective- A Book Blog: The Lady Agnès Mystery - Volume 1: The Season of t... http://www.historywomanperspective.comme-1-season.html?spref=tw …

That’s all for now folks! More next week!

This blog is taken from a newsletter sent weekly to over 700 booksellers as well as publishers and publicists. If you would like to order any of the titles mentioned, then please click here to go to the Compass New Titles Website or talk to your Compass Sales representative.

Compass Points 138

Without any doubt the film of the week has been 45 Years. Launched last Friday (28th August), having already won four international awards, and been tipped for Oscar nominations it made over £470K in its first weekend at the UK box office. Directed by rising British talent, Andrew Haigh, and produced by Tristan Goligher, 45 Years picked up won two Silver Bears at the Berlin Film Festival earlier this year - for Best Actor (Tom Courtenay) and Best Actress (Charlotte Rampling) - and won the Michael Powell Award for Best British Film at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, as well as an award for Best Performance for Rampling. The film is a faithful adaptation of a David Constantine short story entitled In Another Country (pb, 978 1905583768, £9.99) and this paperback collection: In Another Country: Selected Stories published by Comma Press as you can see here, has an excellent cover which is the same as the striking black and white film poster and a tag line featuring 45 Years. 

The film has been highly praised by pretty much everyone for its subtle yet powerful portrayal of a marriage threatened by a potentially devastating revelation. You can read a really good summary on the Comma Press website of all the publicity for it with lots of links to interviews and feature articles here. This has seriously been the most unanimously acclaimed film of the year so far – so do make sure you’ve got the paperback prominently displayed at the front of your store! David Constantine is no stranger to acclaim; and has previously won the Frank O’Connor Short Story Prize 2013 and BBC National Short Story Award 2010 for his short story Tea at the Midland – which is included in this collection . The Independent on Sunday said “the whole book is excellent, and every story is excellent, and every paragraph is excellent, and every sentence is excellent. And, unlike some literary fiction, it's effortless to read.”

Find out more and order it here

Watch the trailer for 45 Years here, and you can see David Constantine reading the first part of his short story In Another Country here.

In Another Country is a story very much concerned with looking back to the past. However, what if we are to look forward into the future? What would be your predictions for the book trade? Have a look at these fascinating suggestions on Book Machine and see if you agree – interestingly one of them is that short stories will revive – based the success of 45 Years/In Another Country I think we can certainly raise a glass to that! Other suggestions are: that novels will be published in instalments online with payment by the chapter; piracy will be officially rebranded as marketing and that deals between sales teams and retailers will disappear. Hmmmm.

Keats Lives by Moya Canon (pb, 978 1784100605, £9.99) has just been published by Carcanet. Moya gave a most interesting interview in the Irish press recently about it, describing why she believes “poetry can illuminate people’s lives” which you can read here. Keats Lives is a new collection from this award-winning Irish poet examining how art connects the past with our present. The poems examine how traces of the past - cave paintings, textile fragments, buried objects and so on, can enable us to make imaginative connections with our distant ancestors and emphasises the vital importance of art as a way of giving meaning to our fleeting lives.

Find out more and order Keats Lives here

Capitalism by John Plender (hb, 978 1849548687, £20.00) has just received a stellar review from Tim Montgomerie in Saturday’s Times, saying it “does a better job of bringing together all the key issues facing today’s global economy than any other book I’ve read”, and that it’s “a delight to read.” I really do not think you could get a better recommendation for a business title than that – so please do make sure you have this title on display – many of you are already doing very well with it.  It’s also been reviewed by Vicky Pryce in this month’s Prospect, where she calls it “a splendid book” and there have also been big pieces in  The Financial Times: “thoughtful and stimulating”; The Economist: “approaches the quandaries of capitalism with a shrewd eye for detail” and there are lots more to come – a big review in the Sunday Times is due this weekend! Capitalism is published by Biteback and you can find out more and order it here.

Would you say that you personally are more of a paperback – soft and floppy: or a hardback: firm and chunky? Take this quiz here on Buzzfeed to find out!

No one can be unaware of the phenomenon that is Deliciously Ella – bestselling cookbooks, regular cookery writer for the Telegraph and a massively successful blog/website – she’s everywhere. Two cookbooks – both published by Hay House are featured on DeliciouslyElla.com this month and next – the site gets four million visitors a month – so this is amazing publicity! 

The titles are The Uncook Book: The Essential Guide to a Raw Food Lifestyle by Tanya Maher (hb, £16.99 978 1781805640) which is published this month and Crazy Sexy Juice: 100+ Simple Juice Smoothie and Nut Milk Recipes to Supercharge Your Health by Kris Carr (pb, £14.99 978 1401941529) which is published in October.

Order the Uncook Book here

Order Crazy Sexy Juice here

The Entirely Accurate Encyclopaedia of Evolution is a new BBC Radio 4 series – from Robert Newman, (of Newman and Baddiel fame); one the UK’s most interesting and influential comedians; which begins on Radio 4 on 5th October. The Entirely Accurate Encyclopaedia of Evolution, by Robert Newman (hb, 978 1908885531, £11.99) is a new hardback based on this series. This is a fierce, fascinating and funny exploration of one of science’s great shibboleths - demonstrating through compelling argument and great gags that it’s co-operation not competition that drives human development.  It is full of quirky black and white illustrations – and will undoubtedly appeal to fans of QI, David Mitchell, Bill Bryson, George Monbiot, Stephen Fry etc – in short it’s a great Christmas gift for popular science and comedy lovers! The Independent said of the comedy tour on which the series is based that “Rob Newman has recalibrated his shtick... to something genuinely academic … this has a political point to make.” This book is perfect who like their comedy clever and their science accessible, it’s published in October by Freight and Cargo and you can find out more and order it here.

How do you prop up your ever expanding library on your bookshelves? Have a look here for some wacky ideas that are a little bit more original than that cracked plant pot and wonky candlestick you’re currently using!

While we’re on the subject of books that are ideal for Xmas prezzies – here’s another! The Ups and Downs of Being a Grandparent is a gently humorous book by one of Britain's leading cartoonists about the role of grandparents in helping to bring up kids. Tony recently became a grandparent, so it's all from life, and these entertaining drawings certainly struck a chord with those of us in the office lucky to be blessed with another generation of ankle biters! This gift book features more than 120 cartoons and is a cute and light-hearted present that can be shared and enjoyed by different generations. Tony Husband has drawn cartoons for many leading publications, including Private Eye, The Spectator, The Times, Playboy and Punch. His Yobs strip (Private Eye) is one of the best known comic strips in the UK and, at 25 years, one of the longest-running. Tony has won more than 15 major awards, including the prestigious Pont Award. The Ups and Downs of Being a Grandparent by Tony Husband (hb, 978 1784049089, £7.99) is published by Arcturus in October and you can find out more and order it here.

I don’t know if Bruce Springsteen is a grandparent yet – but he’s 62 and has three children, so I’m guessing it won’t be long! Whether or not he’d recognise himself in Tony Husband’s gentle cartoons is another matter – he certainly shows no sign at all of slowing down! 2015 is the 40th anniversary of his groundbreaking album Born to Run and The Bruce Springsteen Vault: An Illustrated Biography by Meredith Ochs is certain to have a massive market as he is a musician with a massive fan base. The Bruce Springsteen Vault chronicles the Boss's incredible musical career through photos and memorabilia. Its in-depth text tracks Springsteen through his childhood in New Jersey and early shows on the college circuit, to the formation of the E Street Band and breakout album Born to Run, right to the present day.  Also covered is Springsteen's evolution as a musician, an examination of his technique, his influences and inspiration, and an exploration of how his music has shaped American culture over the last 40 years. Packaged in a handsome hardcover format, The Bruce Springsteen Vault features over 100 images including concert photos (both on-stage and backstage), album covers, and personal photographs. There are new interviews with Springsteen insiders and artists he has collaborated with throughout his career; in addition to previously unpublished concert photographs and ephemera including ten pieces of removable memorabilia such as ticket stubs, posters, and handwritten lyrics. The Bruce Springsteen Vault by Meredith Ochs (hb, 978, 1783059331, £24.95) is published by Omnibus Press in October

and you can find out more and order it here.

Altogether now; tramps like us, baby we were born well you know the rest!

And just to be a bit less predictable, how about Chuck Berry and the Boss playing Johnny B Goode together - yep - it's a real thing!

To finish; here’s a heads up about something very exciting; although it won’t be in your stores until February 2016! A graphic novel of Marcel Proust's Swann's Way created by Stéphane Heuet (translated by Arthur Goldhammer) is currently a US bestseller and will be published in the UK by Gallic Press in Feb 2016. Read what the New York Times has to say about it here.

Compass is on Twitter! Follow us @CompassIPS. Here are some of our favourite tweets from last week...

Miranda Dickinson ‏@wurdsmyth  

A cracking surprise for the #ReadingChair today... Thanks @AardvarkBureau, I'm very excited to read Dan Rhodes' book!

Gallic Books ‏@gallicbooks  

Graphic novel of Proust's Swann's Way (Stéphane Heuet, @artgoldhammer) US bestseller. Out in UK from Gallic Feb 16 http://

Freight Books ‏@FreightBooks  

Fishnet by @kirstininnes reviewed on @GuardianBooks. Exploring sex work, "Fishnet is an effective act of empathy." http://www.

Sarah-Clare Conlon ‏@wordsnfixtures  

Fascinating hearing David Constantine discussing the short form and glaciers with @commapress as part of @McrLitFest.

Sayed Umaar ‏@UmaarKazmi  

A fantastic evening with Palestinian author, Atef Abu Saif. Well done to @FiveLeavesBooks and @commapress.

The Literateur ‏@TheLiterateur  

"This is a map to be misread." Matilda Bathurst reviews The Book of Tokyo http://literateur.com/the-book-of-tokyo-a-city-in-short-fi …

Read Something New ‏@chapter1uk  

Joining us next week! @urbanepub & @JamesSilvester1 talk publishing and this damn fine thriller! #booklaunch

David Swattridge ‏@Janet487  

@blackwellbooks “No book is really worth reading at the age of 10 which is not equally worth reading at the age of 50.” ― Gladys M. Hunt,

That’s all for now folks! More next week! 

This newsletter is sent weekly to over 700 booksellers as well as publishers and publicists. If you would like to order any of the titles mentioned, then please click here to go to the Compass New Titles Website or talk to your Compass Sales representative.