'Stella is just like a tiny bird. This is my first impression of her. A quiet little sparrow of a girl.' In her brand-new series 'Thrown Away Children', Louise Allen shares the harrowing stories she is exposed to as a foster mother. The first in the series, Stella's Story, tells the astonishing true story of a young girl scarred by an abusive past. Named after the lager that christened her at birth, Stella's life is characterised instability and neglect. Her teenage mother abandons her in the first few weeks of her life, and left in the 'care' of her father, she ends up lying deserted in a house with no food, no water, no clothes, and no warmth. She eventually lands in the care of foster carer Louise, who is determined to change her life for the better. Things seem to be going well - but when Stella has a startling response to having her photo taken, it becomes clear the scars of her abuse run deeper than anyone could have ever guessed.

Fifteen women. Fifteen inspirational stories. From highly influential individuals in politics, to award-winning leaders and inspirational philanthropists, to ordinary women who have embraced British life, a range of Punjabi women all share personal stories of racism, gender inequality and the partition of India and Pakistan. Together and alone they overcame adversity and dealt with the complexities of embracing dual identities and balancing a career with family life. Some even share their experiences of the partition of India in 1947 as well as the Jallianwallah Bagh Massacre, 1919. The first in a series of books, Voices from Punjab will resonate with readers as they accompany the women on their unique journeys. Different in many ways, ultimately each woman has a common background - coming from Punjab to celebrate their triumphs over cultural differences and gender stereotypes in the UK.

'Of course I'm a f**king hooligan, you pr**k. I am a hooligan...there I've said it...I'm a hooligan. And, do you know why? Because that's my f**king job.' In 1995, a film called I.D., about an ambitious young copper who was sent undercover to track down the 'generals' of a football hooligan gang, achieved cult status for its sheer brutality and unsettling insight into the dark and often bloody side of the so-called beautiful game. The film was so shocking it was hard to believe the mindless events that took place could ever happen in the real world. Well, believe it now... Almost twenty years on, the man behind the film has explosively revealed that the script was largely a true story. That man, James Bannon, was the ambitious undercover cop. The football club was Millwall F.C. and the gang that he infiltrated was The Bushwackers, among the most brutal and fearless in English football. In Running with the Firm, Bannon shares his intense and dangerous journey into the underworld of football hooliganism where sickening levels of violence prevail over anything else. He introduces you to the hardest thugs from football's most notorious gangs, tells all about the secret and almost comical police operations that were meant to bring them down, and, how once you're on the inside, getting out from the mob proves to be the biggest mission of all. A disturbing but compelling read, this is the book that proves fact really is stranger than fiction.

"In an age of increasing international insecurity, the concept of home becomes of still greater importance, as does our relationship with other races and cultures. This account of an American-born woman of Ukrainian extraction, married for 50 years to a Devon farmer, offers a small but entrancing vision of what unlikely meetings of culture, blood and tradition can produce. This wise and spirited account of one woman's life suggests how old traditions, transplanted, can become renewed and how brave life choices can generate creative outcomes. I read Karen's story with the kind of quiet pleasure that only the truly authentic can deliver." - Salley Vickers