In Funny Thing, Getting Older, one of our most beloved novelists shares his reflections from a lifetime of writing stories about the world. Here, collected for the first time on Michael's 82nd birthday, are his thoughts on nature, childhood, writing, peace and war, and getting older. Some are deeply personal, some political, others in between. And woven in amongst them you will find a play, a poem or two, and even a few stories.

Full of wonder, gentle humour and sharp observation, Funny Thing, Getting Older is a book to treasure.

A story is like a kite. If I make it right, if I fly it right, it will swoop and soar. And it will please my heart when it's up there, floating on the wind.

Petrovna Metelerkamp het geen bekendstelling nodig nie. Sy het jare lank vir tydskrifte soos Huisgenoot en Insig geskryf en in 2000 die uitgewery Hemel & See Boeke gestig. Sy het bekendheid verwerf vir haar biografieë van Ingrid Jonker en Jeanne Goosen.

Petrovna was ook verantwoordelik vir die publikasie van die brieweboeke van onder andere Audrey Blignault, Uys Krige en Hennie Aucamp, asook die memoires van Wilna Snyman, Fanus Rautenbach en Ollie Viljoen.

Met hierdie langverwagte boek deel Petrovna haar herinneringe, wat die geskiedenis van haar herkoms en haar persoonlike ervarings oor baie dekades insluit.

Between 1960 and 1989 in South Africa, more than 130 people were executed for crimes that had a political motive. Who were they, what did they do, and why did they do it?

While many people have heard of Solomon Mahlangu, John Harris or even Vuyisile Mini, the vast majority of executed activists remain very much unknown, even though they paid the ultimate price for their actions.

This book tells their stories, drawing on the author’s interviews with fellow activists, the families left behind, lawyers on both sides, judges who passed sentence, warders on death row, and even functionaries tasked with informing the condemned of their impending fate.

In the process, the book sheds light on forgotten aspects of South African history, such as the actions of the PAC/Poqo in the 1960s, which resulted in dozens of executions, and people who heeded the ANC’s call to make the country ungovernable in the 1980s and who were then disowned by the organisation. The book also makes startling revelations about miscarriages of justice, defence attorneys working against their clients, and, sadly, the post-apartheid state’s neglect of those who suffered as a result of political executions.

From the celebrated author of Square Haunting comes a biography as unconventional and surprising as the life it tells.

'Think of the Bible and Homer, think of Shakespeare and think of me,' wrote Gertrude Stein in 1936. Admirers called her a genius, sceptics a charlatan: she remains one of the most confounding - and contested - writers of the twentieth century.

In this literary detective story, Francesca Wade delves into the creation of the Stein myth. We see her posing for Picasso's portrait; at the centre of Bohemian Parisian life hosting the likes of Matisse and Hemingway; racing through the French countryside with her enigmatic companion Alice B. Toklas; dazzling American crowds on her sell-out tour for her sensational Autobiography - a veritable celebrity.

Yet Stein hoped to be remembered not for her personality but for her work. From her deathbed, she charged her partner with securing her place in literary history. How would her legend shift once it was Toklas's turn to tell the stories - especially when uncomfortable aspects of their past emerged from the archive? Using astonishing never-before-seen material, Wade uncovers the origins of Stein's radical writing, and reveals new depths to the storied relationship which made it possible.

This is Gertrude Stein as she was when nobody was watching: captivating, complex and human.

Italy, Summer 1944

A unit of German soldiers arrives at a villa near Florence. Villa Il Focardo is home to Robert Einstein, cousin to the most famous scientist in the world, Albert Einstein – a prominent enemy of the Nazi regime. Having renounced his German citizenship a decade earlier, Albert’s safely in America, well beyond Hitler’s reach.

The same is not true for his cousin.

Twelve hours after arriving, the soldiers have vanished – and a family is dead. This crime – and what happened next – still haunts those who survived.

Who ordered it? Who was involved?

And why did they get away with it?

This is the untold story of the Einstein vendetta.

An intimate, original biography of tennis legend Rafael Nadal, and the first to cover his entire career.

After his award-winning look at Roger Federer, Christopher Clarey, one of the world's pre-eminent tennis writers, focuses his lens on Nadal, the Spanish force of nature. When he arrived on the scene in 2005, the record for men's singles titles at the French Open stood at six. Nadal more than doubled that total to a mind-blowing fourteen titles: one of the greatest sporting achievements in history.

Nadal won big and won often on all of tennis's surfaces: securing two Wimbledon titles on grass and six on the US Open and Australian Open hard courts. But clay, the grittiest of the game's playgrounds, is where it all came together best for his whipping forehand and warrior mindset.

Clarey, who has covered Nadal since he was seventeen, draws on interviews over twenty years with Nadal, his team and rivals like Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic. Brimming with behind-the-scenes insight, The Warrior tells the story of a global sporting icon, interlacing man and place in a unique, must-read account of the evolution of excellence.

A biography of the late spiritual pioneer Dr. David R. Hawkins, or "Doc" as he was known to many of his devotees.

"This is more than a biography; it’s a heartfelt journey, an invitation to experience his life and witness the extraordinary legacy he left behind."

Dr. David R. Hawkins, a man whose existence was a symphony of curiosity, discovery, and transformation, a man, who not only was a brilliant thinker, but a man of deep compassion and love, dedicated to the upliftment of all of humanity.

From his discoveries as a science-based psychiatrist to the confirmed reality of his own unique spiritual experiences, David R. Hawkins has gifted us with a treasure trove of insights into the human psyche and consciousness itself, that are as mind-blowing as they are soul-nourishing. He handed us a road map to Truth with his visionary Map of Consciousness®, an extremely useful guide in gaining profound insights into the nature or our existence and purpose on earth.

In this book, you will come face to face with the revelations that turned his world upside down and elevated the consciousness of anyone fortunate enough to encounter his work.

Let’s begin this journey of Dr. David R. Hawkins, an extraordinary yet ordinary life whose imprint on the world stands for Truth as the highest endeavor, embraces compassion for all sentient beings, and in complete surrender and devotion to God as the Ultimate Reality.

The true story of a Jewish lawyer who returned to Germany after WWII to prosecute war crimes, only to find himself pitted against a nation determined to bury the past.

At the end of the Nuremberg trial in 1946, some of the greatest war criminals in history were sentenced to death, but hundreds of thousands of Nazi murderers and collaborators remained at large. The Allies were ready to overlook their pasts as the Cold War began, and the horrors of the Holocaust were in danger of being forgotten.

In The Prosecutor, Jack Fairweather brings to life the remarkable story of Fritz Bauer, a gay German Jew who survived the Nazis and made it his mission to force his countrymen to confront their complicity in the genocide. In this deeply researched book, Fairweather draws on unpublished family papers, newly declassified German records, and exclusive interviews to immerse readers in the dark, unfamiliar world of postwar West Germany where those who implemented genocide run the country, the CIA is funding Hitler’s former spy-ring in the east, and Nazi-era anti-gay laws are strictly enforced. But once Bauer lands on the trail of Adolf Eichmann, he won’t be intimidated. His journey takes him deep into the rotten heart of West Germany, where his fight for justice will set him against his own government and a network of former Nazis and spies determined to silence him.

In a time when the history of the Holocaust is taken for granted, The Prosecutor reveals the courtroom battles that were fought to establish its legacy and the personal cost of speaking out. The result is a searing portrait of a nation emerging from the ruins of fascism and one man’s courage in forcing his people––and the world––to face the truth.

Lady Gaga, Adele, Amy Winehouse, Dua Lipa, Bruno Mars, Miley Cyrus, the Barbie soundtrack—Mark Ronson’s musical fingerprints are everywhere in our pop culture. Now comes his electrifying memoir, which captures the music, characters, escapades, and raw emotional journey of his DJ days in ’90s New York.

‘What happens when your music obsession catapults you beyond your wildest dreams? The answer is Night People – the most life-affirming coming-of-age story I’ve read in an age, with a soundtrack to die for. You know how your favourite record sounds? That’s how Mark Ronson writes.’ Pete Paphides, author of Broken Greek

Mark Ronson was born a night person. With hedonistic creatives for parents, parties became his playground. Yet, having moved to New York City from London at a young age, he always felt like a bit of an outsider, until discovering himself in the pulsing, unifying joy of the city’s parties and hip-hop scene. Each night brought a heady mix of music, ambition, danger, delight, and possibilities. Having well and truly caught the DJing bug, he worked to find his place and make his name in the city that never sleeps.

Night People conjures the undeniable magic of '90s New York. It evokes the rush of a time and place where fashionistas and rappers on the rise danced alongside club kids and 9-to-5'ers – and invites us into the tribe of creatives and partiers who came alive when the sun went down. A heartfelt coming-of-age tale, Night People is the definitive account of a cultural moment and the making of a musical mastermind.

From Elizabeth II to King William, The Windsor Legacy offers a riveting exploration of the British monarchy's resilience and influence over the past century, looking at its key players and conflicts, with a forward-looking examination of its future.

In an age where resilience is essential The Windsor Legacy delivers an enthralling narrative of inspiration and royal intrigue. Penned by Robert Jobson, a Sunday Times and New York Times bestselling author and a front-line royal correspondent for over three decades, this extraordinary work will take readers deep into the heart of royal history as well as through the secrets and secrets that plague it to this day.

From the abdication crisis, royal family entanglements, Cold War espionage, betrayal, scandalous love affairs, to more recent constitutional crises and the monarchy's most closely guarded secrets and feuds. The historic narrative romp, told through the key characters and clashes at the heart of the family will be packed with exclusive revelations, and be as comprehensive as it is captivating.

With exclusive band interviews and over a decade of deep research, in The Book of ABBA, renowned music journalist Jan Gradvall explores the secret to ABBA's success.

Over half a century after their songs were recorded, ABBA’s songs still make people the world over dance and sing every day, and their ability to evoke every emotion has made them the ultimate soundtrack to major life events, from birthday parties and weddings to heartbreaks and memorials. Since interviewing the four members of ABBA for an article in 2013 – at which time the band had not been interviewed for 30 years – a relationship was sparked between writer Jan Gradvall and the band, and he was granted unique access for the next decade. He has interviewed each of them exclusively, and they share their thoughts and opinions with him here more openly than ever before.

Gradvall places ABBA at the centre of the musical universe, and alongside his fascinating interviews, he gives readers the socio-cultural context of how the band’s sound was formed – including the melancholic hints of Swedish folk music and the dansband culture of their formative years – and shows how the story of ABBA is also the story of Sweden and the internationalisation of pop culture.

This remarkably intimate, approved biography brings readers a few steps closer to one of the world’s most famously private bands.

Discover the reigns of twelve African queens and warriors from across the continent, from pioneering historian and writer, Paula Akpan.

There are women who ruled vast swathes of the African continent. They led, loved and fought for their kingdoms and people and their impact can still be felt today. However, beyond the lands they called home, so few of us have heard their names.

From pre-colonial Nigeria to the rich plains of Rwanda, from Ancient Egypt to apartheid South Africa, historian Akpan writes the stories of these powerful queens and takes you on a spellbinding, enrapturing and immersive journey that is nothing short of revelatory.

Off-beat, irreverent and subversive – a Jewish family memoir about convenient delusions and unsayable truths, from the acclaimed author of the cult classic novel, Submarine.

Joe Dunthorne had always wanted to write about his great-grandfather, Siegfried: an eccentric scientist who invented radioactive toothpaste and a Jewish refugee from the Nazis who returned to Germany under cover of the Berlin Olympics to pull off a heist on his own home.

The only problem was that Siegfried had already written the book of his life – an unpublished, two-thousand page memoir so dry and rambling that none of his living descendants had managed to read it. And, as it turned out when Joe finally read the manuscript himself, it told a very different story from the one he thought he knew…

Thus begins a mystery which stretches across the twentieth century and around the world, from Berlin to Ankara, New York, Glasgow and eventually London – a mystery about the production of something much more sinister than toothpaste. On the trail of one ‘jolly grandpa’ with a patchy psychiatric history and an encyclopaedic knowledge of poison gases, Joe Dunthorne is forced to confront the uncomfortable questions that lie at the heart of every family. Can we ever understand where we come from? Is every family in the end a work of fiction? And even if the truth can be found – will we be able to live with it?

Children of Radium is a remarkable, searching meditation on individual and collective inheritance. Witty and wry, deeply humane and endlessly surprising, it considers the long half-life of trauma, the weight of guilt and the ever-evasive nature of the truth.

Gallagher chronicles the fall and rise again of one of the world's biggest bands: Oasis. With a focus on Noel Gallagher and Liam Gallagher's individual journeys, this absorbing biography starts from the shattered remnants of Oasis in 2009, taking fans through 15 years of high and lows as the brothers become formidable solo artists, pinpointing the significant events that allowed them to bridge their fraternal rift and stage the greatest comeback of all time.

Inside, PJ Harrison, a former label owner and artist manager (but above all Oasis fan) who spent time on the road and in the studio with the band, takes fans on a filmic journey to the heart of Oasis and everything they stand for. Through meticulous research, exclusive interviews and inside access, Harrison strives to understand how two brothers rose from a council estate in Manchester to create the dominant musical force of their generation throughout the 1990s and 2000s and why they have such enduring legacies both together and apart.

With a foreword from legendary Rolling Stones manager and producer, Andrew Loog Oldham, this unique telling of the Oasis story allows fans new and old to draw their own comparisons between two very different brother; casting a new light on how they navigated fame, feuds and family to create music history before shocking the world with the reunion nobody thought could happen.

Before his murder at twenty-five, Tupac Shakur rose to staggering artistic heights as the pre-eminent storyteller of the 90s, building, in the process, one of the most iconic public personas of the last half century. He recorded several platinum-selling albums, starred in major films and became an activist and political hero known the world over.

In this cultural history and brilliantly researched biography, Van Nguyen reckons with Tupac's coming of age, fame and influence and how the political machinations that shaped him as a boy have since buoyed his legacy as a revolutionary following the George Floyd uprising. Words for My Comrades crucially engages with the influence of Tupac's mother, Afeni, whose role in the Black Panther Party, with its dedication to dismantling American imperialism and police brutality, informed Tupac's art. Tupac's childhood as a son of the Panthers, coupled with the influence of his militant step-father Mutulu Shakur, became his own riveting code of ethics that helped listeners reckon with America's inherent injustices.

Drawing upon conversations with the people who bore witness - from Panther veterans and other committed Marxist revolutionaries of 1970s America, to good friends and close collaborators of the rapper himself - Van Nguyen demonstrates how Tupac became one of the most enduring musical legends in hip-hop history and how intimately his name is threaded with the legacy of Black Panther politics.

Words for My Comrades is the story of how the energy of the Black political movement was subsumed by culture and how America produced, in Tupac and Afeni, two of its most iconic, enduring revolutionaries.

In this fourth volume of The Deals of Warren Buffett, we trace Buffett’s journey as he made Berkshire Hathaway the most respected company in the world.

When we left Buffett at the end of Volume 3 towards the end of the 1990s, he was leading the largest corporation in America and his personal fortune had reached $40 billion. In this enthralling next instalment, we follow Buffett’s investment deals over the first few years of the 21st century, as Berkshire grew to become a giant with annual profits north of $4 billion.

Buffett, then in his early 70s, was still tap dancing to work, thoroughly enjoying analysing companies, finding bargains and interacting with his growing team of managers.

By studying the decision-making that went into his investment deals and the successful and unsuccessful outcomes, we can learn from Buffett and become better investors ourselves.

During this period, exploiting the low prices following the dot-com crash, Buffett made investments in the following companies: MidAmerican Energy, CORT, Moody’s, H&R Block, Shaw Industries, Star Furniture, Jordan’s Furniture, Ben Bridge Jeweler, Justin Boot, Acme Brick, Benjamin Moore and CTB.

For each of these deals, investing expert and Buffett historian Glen Arnold dives into unprecedented detail to analyse the investment rationale, the stories of the individuals involved and, where possible, the profits Buffett made.

From world traveler, entrepreneur, and content creator @DearAlyne, a vulnerable and hilarious memoir of how she escaped the restrictive expectations of her family and faith and found herself in the process.

Alyne Tamir was raised to live her life for others: for her husband, her family, and the Mormon church. For twenty-five years, she put them ahead of herself, repressing things that didn’t fit the neat, traditional story that had been written for her. On the surface, her life seemed picture-perfect. But in reality, Alyne was miserable, struggling to reconcile her flawless image with the pain and humiliation of abuse, an eating disorder, infidelity, and depression.

Until Alyne reached a breaking point: the day her husband asked for a divorce—over email. Thank God! Or, not God. Finally free from the expectations of her family and faith, Alyne had to start a new life, which meant rediscovering herself and what she secretly wanted all along: the liberating life of a digital nomad.

In a singular voice brimming with honesty and humor, Alyne invites us on a journey of strength and self-discovery—with a little bit of irreverence along the way. Dear Alyne is a one-of-a-kind, coming-of-age story and a testament to the limitless possibilities that await those brave enough to defy convention.

From the acclaimed author of Foreskin's Lament, a memoir of the author's attempt to escape the biblical story he'd been raised on and his struggle to construct a new story for himself and his family.

Shalom Auslander was raised like a veal in a dysfunctional family in the Orthodox community of Monsey, New York: the son of an alcoholic father; a guilt-wielding mother; and a violent, overbearing God. Now, as he reaches middle age, Auslander begins to suspect that what plagues him is something worse, something he can't so easily escape: a story. The story. One indelibly implanted in him at an early age, a story that told him he is fallen, broken, shameful, disgusting, a story we have all been told for thousands of years, and continue to be told by the religious and secular alike, a story called "Feh."

Yiddish for "Yuck."

FEH follows Auslander's midlife journey to rewrite that story, a journey that involves Phillip Seymour Hoffman, a Pulitzer-winning poet, Job, Arthur Schopenhauer, GHB, Wolf Blitzer, Yuval Noah Harari, and a pastor named Steve in a now-defunct church in Los Angeles.

Can he move from feh to merely meh? Can he even dream of moving beyond that? Auslander's recounting of his attempt to exorcize the story he was raised with-before he implants it onto his children and/or possibly poisons the relationship of the one woman who loves him-isn't sacred. It is more-than-occasionally profane. And like all his work, it is also relentlessly funny, subversively heartfelt, and fearlessly provocative.

Night Divides the Day is the definitive chronicle of The Doors, offering an intimate and richly illustrated exploration of the band’s legendary journey. Featuring interviews with Robby Krieger and John Densmore and meticulously sourced archival text from Jim Morrison and Ray Manzarek, their 50,000-word manuscript comes to life with a treasure trove of rare, unpublished photographs, original recording and production notes and exclusive memorabilia – all drawn from The Doors’ private archives.

In this first-hand account, The Doors narrate the band's story from their early days playing local clubs on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles to the iconic, and sometimes infamous, moments that defined their career. From the electrifying release of anthems like ‘Light My Fire’, ‘The End’ and ‘Riders on the Storm’, to the notorious Dinner Key Auditorium performance in Miami, Night Divides the Day captures the essence of The Doors’ meteoric rise and the reverberations they left in their wake.

Featuring new and insightful contributions from a diverse array of artists, including Van Morrison, Nile Rodgers, Slash, Nancy Sinatra and more, the book is anchored by a foreword from Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic and an afterword by maestro Gustavo Dudamel. These unique voices offer fresh perspectives on The Doors’ indelible cultural impact.

Granted unprecedented access to the band’s archives, Night Divides the Day is a visual and narrative feast. The book showcases a stunning personal collection of historical artifacts – childhood photographs, handwritten song lyrics, poster art, movie stills and previously unseen album cover outtakes. Images of the band in the recording studio, along with work from celebrated photographers and trusted insiders, transport readers behind the scenes and on the road with The Doors. In addition, rare and invaluable items from the band’s history, including vintage instruments and recording equipment, are specially photographed to enrich this kaleidoscopic portrait of one of rock music’s most legendary bands.

Night Divides the Day is the ultimate account of The Doors, capturing their incredible story and enduring legacy in a way that has never been seen before.

An esthetician and single mother with no connections, Anastasia Soare risked her life escaping communist Romania to come to America. Raising Brows tells the remarkable story of how she built a billion-dollar beauty brand and went from watching Oprah's TV show to learn English, to shaping Oprah's eyebrows on the very same show years later.

Anastasia disrupted the beauty industry by applying her art school training on the 'golden ratio' of beauty to eyebrows. Helping women find harmony with their face, Anastasia put eyebrows on the map. She pioneered new makeup products and built a glittering roster of clients like Michelle Obama, Jennifer Lopez, Kim Kardashian, and Cindy Crawford. But beneath the glossy exterior, Anastasia's path wasn't easy.

In this powerful memoir, she shares her extraordinary journey, putting her Romanian values of hard work, persistence, and optimism to the test in Los Angeles, ignoring the landlords and bank managers who laughed w hen she tried to open a salon focusing on eyebrows.

Anastasia's story serves as a powerful reminder that you can do anything you put your mind to so long as you are passionate and determined. As she says, 'it's the love and effort we put into our pursuits and relationships that truly define our success.'

An unforgettable memoir about a life of adventure in the great outdoors and the power of a dog's transformative love.

A tiny ad in a local newspaper catches Cédric Sapin-Defour’s eye: a litter of Bernese Mountain Dog puppies need homes. A lonely, single, sports teacher and mountain climber in the French Alps, Cédric visits the dogs and immediately falls for the puppy with a blue collar.

Named Ubac, French for the north side of the mountain – the rainy, cloudy slope – the puppy quickly upends Cédric’s life. They go on hikes together, taking to the hills and exploring, forging a bond that brings joy and a sense of fulfilment and adventure. They brave the world together, hate to be apart, crave the mountains and the natural world; they protect each other.

Over the course of thirteen years, their pack expands to include Mathilde, Cédric’s wife, and more dogs. Ubac and Me is an intimate meditation on a joyous life lived too fast, the aching pain of separation, and the transformative effect of unconditional love.

Ubac and Me has been a word-of-mouth sensation, selling over half a million copies in France.

Beloved wit and raconteur, star of stage and screen, multitalented writer, director and humanitarian – few stars of the twentieth century were as highly regarded as Sir Peter Ustinov.

From his birth in April 1921, this highly acclaimed autobiography spans Ustinov’s extraordinary career as the star of Spartacus, Quo Vadis, Death on the Nile and many other classics. Eccentric relatives, school masters and manic Hollywood moguls are all brought unforgettably to life alongside encounters with the great and the good, from Sir Laurence Olivier to J. B. Priestley.

This warm and revealing book gives an enthralling portrait of a man whose unique gift of laughter made him one of the most popular and respected entertainers in the world.