'I hadn’t been very comfortable with fame, but I didn’t know what to do with myself after I was famous. On the surface, I was just hugely relieved to be shot of the whole thing. I felt like I’d been let off the hook . . . But underneath that, I was pretty miserable.'

When 'Never Gonna Give You Up’ propelled Rick Astley into the pop stratosphere, it changed his life forever. Nothing could have prepared the young, unassuming lad from Lancashire for what was in store for him. This is Rick's story – in his own words.

At just nineteen, Rick agreed to sign with legendary music producer Pete Waterman – under the wings of music powerhouse Stock Aitken Waterman. Unpredictable, outlandish adventures followed, giving him a peek into the mechanics of the music industry – all of which would eventually take Rick from the shadows of local bands to international stardom. From platinum-selling albums to worldwide tours, the world was at Rick’s feet. And then, suddenly, at what seemed like the height of fame, it wasn’t.

At twenty-seven, Rick retired himself from the industry that had brought him much success and financial stability. Behind the hits and the glitz and glamour was a young man coming to terms with his new-found fame, the realities of life in the pop-music machine and the pressures of life on the road, not to mention reconciling with his childhood spent between his divorced parents in a volatile family dynamic. Time out of the industry offered Rick room for much-needed reflection and therapy – and unknowingly helped to set the stage for his triumphant return to music.

Balancing nostalgia, fresh perspectives and introspection, with a good dose of northern humour, Never is an intimate look at the man behind the hits – and is a portrait of truth, artistic evolution and the astounding power of contentment.

Piet Maritz was vir jare lank 'n karakoelpelskoper in die ou Suidwes. Gedurende sy vele omswerwinge het hy baie interessante mense ontmoet en dinge ondervind. In Kruis en dwars deur ou Suidwes deel hy van hierdie herinneringe en laat jou lag, huil en verlang na vervloe dae.

'HI, MY NAME IS MATTHEW, although you may know me by my full name. My friends call me Matty.'

So begins the riveting story of acclaimed actor Matthew Perry, taking us along on his journey from childhood ambition to fame to addiction and recovery in the aftermath of a life-threatening health scare. Before the frequent hospital visits and stints in rehab, there was five-year-old Matthew, who travelled from Montreal to Los Angeles, shuffling between his separated parents; fourteen-year-old Matthew, who was a nationally ranked tennis star in Canada; twenty-four-year-old Matthew, who nabbed a coveted role as a lead cast member on the talked-about pilot then called Friends Like Us . . . and so much more.

In an extraordinary story that only he could tell - and in the heartfelt, hilarious, and warmly familiar way only he could tell it - Matthew Perry lays bare the fractured family that raised him (and also left him to his own devices), the desire for recognition that drove him to fame, and the void inside him that could not be filled even by his greatest dreams coming true. But he also details the peace he's found in sobriety and how he feels about the ubiquity of Friends, sharing stories about his castmates and other stars he met along the way.

Frank, self-aware, and with his trademark humour, Perry vividly depicts his lifelong battle with addiction and what fuelled it despite seemingly having it all.

Die skrywer Erika Murray-Theron wou weet waar die vroue in haar familie vandaan kom. Wat kry ’n mens van wie? Waar kom alles wat jý is vandaan? Hoe is die vroue in haar familie se lewe geraak deur trauma en groot wêreldgebeurtenisse waaroor hulle geen beheer gehad het nie? Theron se ouma Issie is op 3 Mei 1885 gebore; 133 jaar gelede. In hierdie verhaalbiografie gaan soek Theron in ou kookboeke, aantekeninge, foto’s, herinneringe, albums, briewe en geslagsregisters na haar ouma Issie se storie. ’n Lewe ontvou wat geraak is deur die verlies van ouers, die Anglo-Boereoorlog, die Rebellie van 1914 en daarna die energie wat dit verg om ’n groot huisgesin te behartig. ’n Skerfie glas wys hoe die verlede, selfs die verre verlede, spore op latere geslagte laat.

De Vos ken die kunste, en die mense agter die kunste, so hy kan heerlik spot met die hogere dinge in die lewe. Die bundel bevat ’n hele vertellings oor bekende figure uit die kunstewereld, soos die Karel Schoeman. Kop op 'n blok is vlymskerp geskryf en die humor (wat dikwels selfspot insluit) is werklik snaaks. Inderwaarheid vorm die teks 'n soort outobiografie van een van die mees geliefde skrywers in Afrikaans.

Kha bugu iyi yavhudi i neaho mafulufulu, Mufumakadzana wa lunako wa Afrika Tshipembe, Shudufhadzo Musida, u ri anetshela tshiori tsha he a thoma hone; tsha u imba na u tshina na musidzana a ambesaho a bvaho kusini ku vhidzwaho nga la Ha Vhangani, o tangwaho nga lufuno nahone zwihulusa nga mme awe na makhulu wawe.

Zwithu zwo khakhea kha Shudu musi a tshi pfulutshela doroboni ntswa he a do tambudzwa nga vhane a dzhena navho kilasini.

Vhalani uri Shudu o kunda hani matungu awe na dzikhaedu, na uri a vha musidzana, mualuwa, we a guda u difuna ene mune!

An essential introduction to Fanon’s remarkable life and philosophy. Connecting his writing, psychiatric practice and lived experience in the Caribbean, France and Africa, Gibson highlights Fanon’s philosophical commitments and the vision of revolution that he stood for. Fanon’s oeuvre is essential to thinking about race today.

Revolutionary humanist and radical psychiatrist Frantz Fanon was one of the greatest Black thinkers of the twentieth century. Born in Martinique and known for his involvement in the Algerian liberation movement, his seminal books Black Skin, White Masks and The Wretched of the Earth are widely considered to be cornerstones of anti-colonial and anti-racist thought.

In this essential introduction to Fanon’s remarkable life and philosophy, Nigel C. Gibson argues that Fanon’s oeuvre is essential to thinking about race today. Connecting Fanon’s writing, psychiatric practice and lived experience in the Caribbean, France and Africa, Gibson highlights Fanon’s his philosophical commitments and the vision of revolution that he stood for. Despite his untimely death, the revolutionary pulse of Fanon’s ideas has continued to beat ever more strongly in the consciousness of successive revolutionary generations, from the Black Panthers and Black power to the Black Lives Matter and Fallist student movements, as well as to grassroots resistance movements working to improve the lives of Black and indigenous people who are continuously oppressed by systems of capitalism, imperialism and colonialism.

As Fanon’s thought comes alive to new activists thinking about their mission to ‘humanise the world,’ Gibson reminds us that Fanon’s revolutionary humanism is fundamental to all forms of anti-colonial struggle across the world.

On bended knee, he leaned over the stricken boxer and counted him out. When he waved the fight over, there was exactly one second to go in the dramatic and brutal world championship bout and Víctor Galíndez had retained his title. But the referee, his shirt stained with the champion’s blood, had cemented his reputation as a cool professional, one destined to become an esteemed figure in world boxing.

South Africa’s own Stanley Christodoulou has officiated an unprecedented 242 world title fights over five decades, some of them among the most iconic in boxing history, and became his nation’s very first inductee into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. He rose from humble beginnings, learning his trade in the South African townships of the 1960s, and went on to lead his national boxing board as it sought to shed the racial restrictions of the apartheid era. It was a contribution to his country’s sporting landscape that saw him recognised by the president of the ‘new’ South Africa, Nelson Mandela.

The Life and Times of Stanley Christodoulou is Stanley’s memoir in boxing. It takes the reader to a privileged position, inside the ropes with champions and into the company of boxing legends.

Through exclusive interviews and over a decade of deep research, renowned music journalist Jan Gradvall explores the secrets to ABBA's success.

More than half a century after their songs were recorded, ABBA still make people the world over dance and sing their hearts out. After interviewing the four members for an article in 2013 - at which time the band had not been interviewed for over thirty years - Jan Gradvall was granted unique access to them for the next decade. In The Book of ABBA, the band share their thoughts and opinions more openly than ever before, while Jan reveals the context in which their sound developed - and shows how the story of ABBA is also the story of Sweden and the globalisation of pop culture.

From their chart-topping ABBA Voyage - their first album in forty years - to the two-million-ticket-selling concert-experience of the same name, it is undeniable that, in the history of pop culture and music, there has never been a group like ABBA. With remarkable intimacy, Gradvall's book brings readers closer than ever to one of the world's most notoriously private music icons

Gender based violence is widely prevalent in South African society, but male rape is often a neglected area. According to The Conversation, in an article by Prof Louise Du Toit, men make up around 10% of victims of sexual violence.

The group South African Male Survivors of Sexual Abuse says one in six adult males in the country have been victims of sexual offences in their lifetimes and, in 2012, almost 20% of all sexual abuse victims were male. But men are up to 10 times less likely than women to report sexual violence against them. Frequently men who report sexual assault are accused of being gay. In addition, according to Prof Du Toit, “Some feminist activists are reluctant to focus on the male victims because they think it will undermine long-fought-for attention for female victims.”

Silent Scream is a refreshing acknowledgement of this disturbing picture, told firsthand by a survivor of multiple instances of sexual violence, including gang rape and other forms of physical and sexual violence.

The author is a man in his fifties, intelligent and multifaceted, who carried the weight of the ages on his tattooed shoulders. Following a childhood marred by distant parents, he was assaulted in his late teens.

This is a book filled with hurt, with anger, with events that should never occur, but that the author has been able to rise above. It’s also a book about recovery, redemption, and the power of healing. No punches are pulled. It’s a very necessary book for our country and our time.