'Poetically written, absorbing, harrowing' The Times 'The raw and emotional account of an optician whose family fishing trip suddenly placed him amid the human tragedy of hundreds of drowning migrants is a story that needed to be told' Fiona Wilson, The Times 'An important book ... I cried all the way through' Tracy Chevalier From an award-winning BBC journalist, this moving book turns the testimony of an accidental hero into a timeless story about human fellowship and the awakening of courage and conscience. 'I can hardly begin to describe to you what I saw as our boat approached the source of that terrible noise. I hardly want to. You won't understand because you weren't there. You can't understand. You see, I thought I'd heard seagulls screeching. Seagulls fighting over a lucky catch. Birds. Just birds.' Emma-Jane Kirby has reported extensively on the reality of mass migration today. In The Optician of Lampedusa she brings to life the moving testimony of an ordinary man whose late summer boat trip off a Sicilian island unexpectedly turns into a tragic rescue mission.

What happens when a regular person accidentally finds themselves lost in the middle of a war? In 1991, BBC journalist Chris Woolf travelled to Afghanistan. The government in Kabul was fighting for survival, after the withdrawal of the Soviet Union. The parallels to today are extraordinary. Woolf was visiting a colleague to see if he'd like the life of a foreign correspondent. They hitched a ride with an aid convoy and bumbled straight into the war. They kept going, despite the horror and terror. There was no choice. Amid the darkness, Woolf discovered the generosity and hospitality of ordinary Afghans. They became the first journalists to pass through the battle lines to meet with legendary warlord Ahmed Shah Massoud, and carried home a vital message for the peace process. They met with Soviet POW/MIAs and recorded messages for loved ones. Unlike a conventional war story, Woolf shares an intimate portrait of first encounters with death and real fear. He explores the lingering effects of trauma, and explains how he put his experience to good use. The author introduces readers to just enough of Afghanistan's history, geography, culture and politics for readers to understand what's going on around him. What people are saying: "Bumbling Through the Hindu Kush is at once gripping, informative, suspenseful, and at times it reads like a thriller." - Qais Akbar Omar, author of "A Fort of Nine Towers: An Afghan Family Story." "Chris Woolf has written a truly personal tale that is both gripping and historically significant for the war between the Soviet-backed government and Mujahidin in Afghanistan. His mix of personal, cultural, and wartime reflections make this a story well worth the time of Afghanistan aficionados and casual readers alike." - Dr Jonathan Schroden, former strategic adviser to the US military's Central Command, and to the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan "Combat can feel like the ant on an elephant's tail: overwhelmed and along for the ride. Chris Woolf's memoir of his ten days in late 1991 "bumbling" into the war in Afghanistan is just such an up-and-down tale, with the momentary highs and gut-crushing lows common to combat. When the teenage goat herder fires his AK-47 in the first few pages - you'll know how that ant feels, just holding on, exhilarated, terrified, never really knowing what comes next." - Lt-Col ML Cavanaugh, US Army; Senior Fellow, Modern War Institute at West Point; lead writer and co-editor, "Strategy Strikes Back: How Star Wars Explains Modern Military Conflict." The perfect Christmas gift for all those who like military history and think they understand war. The author believes in giving back, so a portion of the proceeds is donated towards helping Afghan kids with disabilities (enabledchildren.org), and towards clearing landmines in Afghanistan and around the world (HALOTrust.org).

Born in Ireland in 1879, W.P.M. Kennedy was a distinguished Canadian academic and the leading Canadian constitutional law scholar for much of the twentieth century. Despite his trailblazing career and intriguing personal life, Kennedy's story is largely a mystery. Weaving together a number of key events, Martin L. Friedland's lively biography discusses Kennedy's contributions as a legal and interdisciplinary scholar, his work at the University of Toronto where he founded the Faculty of Law, as well as his personal life, detailing stories about his family and important friends, such as Prime Minister Mackenzie King. Kennedy earned a reputation in some circles for being something of a scoundrel, and Friedland does not shy away from addressing Kennedy's exaggerated involvement in drafting the Irish constitution, his relationships with female students, and his quest for recognition. Throughout the biography, Friedland interjects with his own personal narratives surrounding his interactions with the Kennedy family, and how he came to acquire the private letters noted in the book. The result is a readable, accessible biography of an important figure in the history of Canadian intellectual life.

* * * Special 75th Anniversary Edition * * * Hugh Sebag-Montefiore's Dunkirk: Fight to the Last Man tells the story of the rescue in May 1940 of British soldiers fleeing capture and defeat by the Nazis at Dunkirk. Dunkirk was not just about what happened at sea and on the beaches. The evacuation would never have succeeded had it not been for the tenacity of the British soldiers who stayed behind to ensure they got away. Men like Sergeant Major Gus Jennings who died smothering a German stick bomb in the church at Esquelbecq in an effort to save his comrades, and Captain Marcus Ervine-Andrews VC who single-handedly held back a German attack on the Dunkirk perimeter thereby allowing the British line to form up behind him. Told to stand and fight to the last man, these brave few battalions fought in whatever manner they could to buy precious time for the evacuation. Outnumbered and outgunned, they launched spectacular and heroic attacks time and again, despite ferocious fighting and the knowledge that for many only capture or death would end their struggle. 'A searing story . . . both meticulous military history and a deeply moving testimony to the extraordinary personal bravery of individual soldiers' Tim Gardam, The Times 'Sebag-Montefiore tells [the story] with gusto, a remarkable attention to detail and an inexhaustible appetite for tracking down the evidence' Richard Ovary, Telegraph Hugh Sebag-Montefiore was a barrister before becoming a journalist and then an author. He wrote the best-selling Enigma: The Battle for the Code. One of his ancestors was evacuated from Dunkirk.

'An elegant, densely textured work, like a tapestry ... A welcome contribution to polar studies.' Sarah Wheeler, Spectator '[MacInness] handles the whole thing with masterly skill...takes us to the heart of the hope, love, anguish and grief' The Times The men of Captain Scott's Polar Party were heroes of their age, enduring tremendous hardships to further the reputation of the Empire they served by reaching the South Pole. But they were also husbands, fathers, sons and brothers. For the first time, the story of the race for the South Pole is told from the perspective of the women whose lives would be forever changed by it, five women who offer a window into a lost age and a revealing insight into the thoughts and feelings of the five heroes. Kathleen Scott, the fierce young wife of the expedition leader, campaigned relentlessly for Scott's reputation, but did her ambition for glory drive her husband to take unnecessary risks? Oriana Wilson, a true help-mate and partner to the expedition's doctor, was a scientific mind in her own right and understood more than most what the men faced in Antarctica. Emily Bowers was a fervent proponent of Empire, having spent much of her life as a missionary teacher in the colonies. The indomitable Caroline Oates was the very picture of decorum and everything an Edwardian woman aspired to be, but she refused all invitations to celebrate her son Laurie's noble sacrifice. Lois Evans led a harder life than the other women, constantly on the edge of poverty and forced to endure the media's classist assertions that her husband Taff, the sole 'Jack Tar' in a band of officers, must have been responsible for the party's downfall. Her story, brought to light through new archival research, is shared here for the first time. In a gripping and remarkable feat of historical reconstruction, Katherine MacInnes vividly depicts the lives, loves and losses of five women shaped by the unrelenting culture of Empire and forced into the public eye by tragedy. It also reveals the five heroes, not as the caricatures of legend, but as the real people they were.

Publisher and Anthologist Brenda Dempsey brings together 45 Voices to share their true stories of resilience, positivity and hope from a pandemic. Sharing their experiences of surviving through a pandemic, and other stressful situations life throws at us, the 45 Voices come from all walks of life - from doctors and nurses, to parents and business owners - raising their voices and sharing their real-life inspirational stories, to show their bouncebackability and resilience. Each of the contributors are New-Found Heroes in their own way, baring their souls and finding the courage to allow themselves to be vulnerable, in a pandemic that in many ways unites us. All profits of Resilient Voices will be donated to the NHS in gratitude for their commitment, dedication and going beyond the duty of their role to support, help and protect lives. Our New-Found Heroes are: Chief Dr Cllr Kate Anolue, Chris Ashford, Rany Athwall, Michael Bacon, Jo Baldwin Trott, Jannette Barrett, Dee Blick, Sharon Brown, Dr Georgina Budd, Jackie Carter, Jaswinder Challi, Fiona Clark, Tammy Clark, Paul Corke, Brenda Dempsey, John Dempsey, Mitali Deypurkaystha, Mandy Dineley, Bella Donna, Robert Eddison, Dr Alison Graham, Sue Hardy Dawson, Kevin Hill, Anne Iarchy, Susan Kathleen, Sherine Ann Lovegrove, Uju Maduforo, Monike Martins, James Mellor, Dexter Moscow, Joy Bester Mwandama, Ihuaku P Nweke, Joyce Osei, Chief Lady Waynett Peters, Mark Stephen Pooler, Caroline Purvey, Una Rose, Satwinder Sagoo, Ritu Sharma, Alison Smith, Andrea A Smith, Carol Stewart, Dr Jacqui Taylor, Mira Warszawski, and Rhoda Wilson.