Anything But Dull: the Life and Art of Jeff Nuttall reveals the life lived and the art created by a visionary polymath whose generosity of spirit defined his character. From childhood traumas to revolutionary acts, through triumphs, defeats and resurrections Jeff Nuttall's story is told here for the first time in all its richness and singularity. Based on over eighty interviews and meticulous archive research Anything But Dull shows just what made Jeff Nuttall such pivotal, provocative and important figure in twentieth century life and culture.Performer, poet, artist, writer, musician, teacher, film actor, bon vivant and hell raiser. Throughout his life Jeff Nuttall was always getting into scrapes, provoking outrage, drinking, fighting, falling in and out of love. Those intense experiences became the inspiration for his art. Almost no form of creative expression was foreign to him and within these nothing was forbidden - except, of course, to be dull.

Top music writer Steve Turner traces the biography of 'Amazing Grace', the world's most recorded song. Versions of this hymn have been performed by artists as diverse as Elvis Presley, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Johnny Cash, Rod Stewart and Destiny's Child. The book begins with the dramatic story of John Newton and his participation in the African slave trade through to his writing of 'Amazing Grace' and his campaigning against slavery. The second part of the book - picking up the thread in the years following Newton's death - tells the story of the song itself as it has spread and developed over the past 280 years and its recordings by artists from a wide variety of musical backgrounds. This includes the aftermath of September 11th when the hymn became an international anthem of hope and solidarity.

Nollywood is the general moniker for Nigeria's exciting and thriving film industry Behind its world-wide acclaim as an independent filming success story is an oft-ignored back story; the pains, push and perseverance of the major film-makers in the business. 'Nollywood till November' tells the insightful and exciting true story of Charles Novia, from his trudging days as a struggling film maker in the then cabal-styled Nollywood, to his eventual triumph And success as a major force in Africa's biggest film industry Novia's memoirs reveal a personal perspective of the monumental struggles each of the now-famous personalities in Nollywood must have faced on their road to fame. It is a brilliant and inspiring tale of succeeding against the odds in an industry that has been termed 'the third largest film industry in the world'

For years, I have wanted to write a book about the relentless determination it takes to succeed in the arts. Whether as a young artist in New York City, as a music coordinator of a Broadway musical, or as a musician traveling through Europe, I will share with you excitement, acclaim, and culture. Onward and Upward is the true account of my pursuit of a dream; a career in music. In this around-the-world journey, I share my stories of culture, family, laughter, friendship, wisdom, and heartache, with a generous splash of the likes of Strauss, motorcycle chases, and Hollywood. Any aspiring artist, would-be world traveler, or entrepreneur, will benefit from reading this book. Learn from another's experience about dedication, passion, and culture. Partly by means of behind-the-scene memoirs, partly by means of journal entries, we will walk hand in hand on this most extraordinary journey through a life in the arts.

A ten-year old boy hides at the top of a stairwell listening to his father tell his harrowing story-a story about almost being gassed to death in a Nazi concentration camp. He doesn't dare ask his father to explain. His dad offers no further details. Follow Mort Laitner's journey from childhood to retirement as he obsesses about his father, the Holocaust, Judaism, and life. Laitner learns about his father's nightmarish travels during World War II from his father's Holocaust tapes, from books describing how he worked as a doctor in slave labor camps, from a doctoral thesis on Holocaust studies, and from a transcript of his father's testimony at a US military tribunal which led to a Nazi commandant's death sentence. Clue by clue, missing details come to light describing that fateful day when his father stood naked and faced the gas chamber. Read the remarkable story of how Wolf Laitner was sent to Russia with a unit of 349 fellow Jewish prisoners in disguise. They were given German military training and uniforms bearing swastikas, then sent to Russia during Operation Barbarossa to work on the railway system. Hitch a ride across America, Europe, Asia and Africa, from the 1950s through the new millennium as Mort Laitner shares his family's stories about survival, prejudice, luck, love, and miracles.