A magical, wondrous novel by the author of The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy – about a boy who longs to swim, and a town with a mysterious past ... 'A hilarious and warm-hearted mystery set in a secretive seaside town, Son of the Sea had me hooked!' JENNIFER BELL, AUTHOR OF LEGENDARIUM 'A splashing success, frothing with adventure. This beautiful book is a witty, warm-hearted, web-toed delight.' SAM SEDGMAN, AUTHOR OF THE ADVENTURES ON TRAINS SERIES HIS FEET WERE THE FIRST CLUE ... Casper dreams of swimming the Channel. Surely, he was born to use his webbed toes ... Instead, he's strictly forbidden to go near water. When his parents have an unlucky accident, Casper is sent to stay with a grandmother he's never met - where he discovers his special tie to the sea ... From the acclaimed author of The Peculiar Tale of the Tentacle Boy – winner of the Times/Chicken House Competition Chairman's Choice Award Packed full of magical realism, humour, LGBTQ+ representation and a message of acceptance  Perfect for readers aged 9 and up  

WHAT IF THE FAMILY YOU WANT... ...ISN'T THE FAMILY YOU NEED? 'It was up to her now; everything was up to her; she needed only to make a choice and step towards it, out from the shadows and into the light.' At forty-three, Christina Lennox thought her future was settled: marriage to Ed, children, a house of their own. But this is not that future: her marriage has ended, fractured by the stress of five rounds of IVF and two miscarriages. Overwhelmed by grief and disappointment, Ed has relocated to San Francisco and Christina's dream of becoming a mother rests on persuading him to let her go ahead with one final round of IVF, using the last frozen embryo they have stored at the clinic. But when Ed drops a bombshell that threatens to undo everything Christina has strived for, she is forced, once again, to realign her plans. Is this the end of her dream, or an opportunity to consider a different - perhaps happier - version of her future?

In 2007, Adam, then a toaster salesman, was inspired by a film about a man attempting to change his life by swimming the English Channel to try to emulate the feat. After a year of rigorous training without a coach, Adam achieved his goal in 11 hours 35 minutes, despite a ruptured bicep tendon leading to medical advice to give up long-distance swimming. In 2011, after two operations and a change to his swimming style to take pressure off his injured shoulder, he became the first Briton to achieve a two-way crossing from Spain to Morocco and back. In the process, he broke the British record one way. Shortly afterwards, the Ocean's Seven challenge was born, a gruelling equivalent to the Seven Summits mountaineering challenge. At first it seemed that injury would prevent Adam from participating but, ignoring medical advice, he developed an innovative technique - the Ocean Walker stroke - that would enable him to continue with the ultimate aim of completing this seemingly impossible feat. Whether man would triumph over ocean, or fail in the attempt, forms the core of this extraordinary autobiography. Always intriguing, sometimes terrifying, and occasionally very funny, Adam's story is about sport in its truest form: rather than competitions between teams and individuals, it is about man against nature - and against his own failings and demons. In that, it is truly inspirational.

Technique is critical in swimming performance. In the pool or open water, coaches and athletes alike know that efficiency in entering the water and in moving through it equates to milliseconds of improvement-milliseconds that make all the difference in a competition. That's where The Swimming Drill Book continues to deliver. The first edition quickly became the best-selling drill book in the sport. Now, this second edition ups the ante with more drills, new variations, and expanded coverage to help every swimmer. Inside, you'll find more than 175 drills for refining strokes, correcting faults, and improving your feel for the water. In addition to mastering all four competitive strokes-freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly-you'll learn the essentials of body position, sculling, starts, turns, and finishes. You'll even find all-new coverage of open-water drills and strength band workouts to be performed poolside. See for yourself why The Swimming Drill Book is on the shelf of every serious swimmer and coach. It delivers every stroke, every skill, and everything you need for swimming success.

From Lisa Congdon, bestselling author of Whatever You Are, Be a Good One , this lovely new book invites readers to dip into the many joys of swimming. Congdon brings her personal passion as a lifelong swimmer to this beautiful and thoughtful celebration of getting in the water. Hand-lettered inspirational quotes, watercolour portraits paired with real people's personal stories, illustrated collections of vintage objects-colorful swim caps, bathing suits through the ages, traditional pool signs-and much more evoke the beauty and inspiration of the subject. An emphasis on swimming as a way of life-taking the leap, going with the flow-makes this delightful volume one that will speak to serious swimmers, paddlers, and anyone pondering their next high dive.

Nothing beats a natural swimming hole for cooling off on a scorching summer day in Texas. Cold, clear spring water, big old shade trees, and a quiet stretch of beach or lawn offer the perfect excuse to pack a cooler and head out with family and friends to the nearest natural oasis. Whether you’re looking for a quick getaway or an unforgettable summer vacation, let The Swimming Holes of Texas be your guide. Julie Wernersbach and Carolyn Tracy highlight one hundred natural swimming spots across the entire state. The book is organized by geographic regions, so you can quickly find local places to swim—or plan a trip to a more distant spot you’d like to explore. Each swimming hole is illustrated with an inviting color photo and a description of what it’s like to swim there, as well as the site’s history, ecology, and conservation. The authors include all the pertinent info about admission fees and hours, parking, and on-site amenities such as showers and restrooms. They also offer tips for planning your trips and lists of the swimming holes that are most welcoming to families and pets. So when the temperature tops 100 and there’s nothing but traffic in sight, take a detour down the backroads and swim, sunbathe, revel, and relax in the swimming holes of Texas.

Covering a time of great social and technological change, this history traces the development of the four classic aquatic disciplines of competitive swimming, diving, synchronized swimming and water polo, with its main focus on racing. Working from the beginnings of municipal recreational swimming, the book fully explores the links between swimming and other aspects of English life society including class, education, gender, municipal governance, sexuality and the Victorian invention of the sports amateur-professional divide. Uniquely focused on swimming -often neglected in analytic sports histories- this is the first study of its kind and will be an important landmark in the establishment of swimming history as a topic of scholarly investigation. This book was previously published as a special issue of the International Journal of the History of Sport.

One Breath is a gripping and powerful exploration of the strange and fascinating sport of freediving, and of the tragic, untimely death of America's greatest freediver Competitive freediving-a sport built on diving as deep as possible on a single breath-tests the limits of human ability in the most hostile environment on earth. The unique and eclectic breed of individuals who freedive at the highest level regularly dive hundreds of feet below the ocean's surface, reaching such depths that their organs compress, light disappears, and one mistake could kill them. Even among freedivers, few have ever gone as deep as Nicholas Mevoli. A handsome young American with an unmatched talent for the sport, Nick was among freediving's brightest stars. He was also an extraordinary individual, one who rebelled against the vapid and commoditized society around him by relentlessly questing for something more meaningful and authentic, whatever the risks. So when Nick Mevoli arrived at Vertical Blue in 2013, the world's premier freediving competition, he was widely expected to challenge records and continue his meteoric rise to stardom. Instead, before the end of that fateful competition Nick Mevoli had died, a victim of the sport that had made him a star, and the very future of free diving was called into question. With unparalleled access and masterfully crafted prose, One Breath tells his unforgettable story, and of the sport which shaped and ultimately destroyed him.

A special 3rd edition has been released to mark the 100th Anniversary of the scuttling of the German Battle Fleet (16th June 1919). This definitive guide to Scapa Flow has been expanded and updated. Scapa Flow has international acclaim as one of the top five wreck diving locations in the world. Lawson Wood's anniversary edition has been fully revised and updated to be the most comprehensive guide to Scapa Flow. The shipwrecks are a mixture of battleships, cruisers and destroyers from the German High Seas Battle Fleet scuttled towards the end of WW1. The direct action of the British Admiralty saw a further 43 ships sunk during both world war conflicts to block the entrances to Scapa Flow. For divers travelling to Scapa Flow this is an essential guide containing information on all the dive sites together with a complete historical guide. Visitors to Scapa Flow will find Lawson's guide an invaluable investment.

It has been 12 years since the author published the 3rd edition of the Swimming Faster series and time has not stood still. Research has continued at a rapid pace, using increasingly sophisticated methodology to improve our knowledge of the training process. In this book, the author shares what he learned with members of the competitive swimming community throughout the world. The title of this book was changed to reflect his purpose in writing it. It is a source for coaches and athletes to improve their knowledge of the scientific aspects of training. It should also help readers become familiar with the sometimes confusing terms used by sports scientists so they can read the results of their studies with understanding. Furthermore, this book informs the readers' enough in the areas of physiology, biochemistry and molecular biology as they pertain to the training of athletes. It is the author's hope that they will be able to evaluate the validity of that research and decide for themselves if it has merit. Finally, this book provides the readers with the knowledge to apply the information they gain to their own unique training environments. This is so they will not have to copy the training of successful coaches without understanding why it was beneficial and how it might be modified to become even more useful within their surroundings.

Discover over 150 magical places to swim and explore in Spain. With stunning photography this book reveals the best crystal mountain lakes, secluded lake-side beaches, and turquoise pools hidden deep in waterfall-filled gorges. With recommendations for places to camp and eat this is all you need to take you off the beaten track.

"Sewing for Skaters" is the second title in Marie Porter's "Spandex Simplified" series, and is all about designing and creating spectacular and durable figure skating dresses. It combines techniques taught in two of Marie's early manuals ("Skaters and Gynmasts and Dancers... Oh My " & "The Skating Dress Style Book"), updated with new styles and techniques... now in beautiful full color, featuring many photos and sketches This book is appropriate for beginner to advanced levels of sewing ability, and is written from both a designer, and former figure skater's point of view. It will teach everything from the basics, to tricks of the trade. "Spandex Simplified: Sewing for Skaters" will prepare the reader to design and make almost any design of practice or competition dress imaginable. Given the cost of decent competition suits - or even practice dresses - this manual will more than pay for itself with the savings from just one project The entire book is written completely in laymans' terms and carefully explained, step by step. Only basic sewing knowledge and talent is required. Learn everything from measuring, to easily creating ornate applique designs, to embellishing the finished suit in one book

The 50-mile wide lagoon of Truk Atoll, far out in the remote expanses of the Pacific, is quite simply the greatest wreck diving location in the world. Scores of virtually intact Japanese WWII wrecks of transport ships, still filled with cargoes of tanks, trucks, artillery, beach mines, shells and aircraft, rest in the crystal-clear waters of the lagoon - along with two Japanese destroyers and one submarine - each today a man-made reef teeming with sea life. The seemingly impregnable fortress islands of Truk Atoll were a powerful air base and the main forward anchorage for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). By 1944, the Allies were pushing westwards across the Pacific islands towards the Japanese homeland. On 4 February 1944, a daring 2,000-mile long-range U.S. reconnaissance flight revealed the Truk lagoon to be full of the might of the Imperial Japanese Navy, along with scores of large supply ships and transports. The Allies decided to attack immediately. Sensing this, the Imperial Japanese Navy scattered, but the merchant ships remained, as crews rushed to offload their war cargoes of aircraft, tanks, artillery, mines and munitions. Other heavily laden supply ships continued to arrive from Japan, unaware of the Allied assault plans. Task Force 58, codename Operation HAILSTONE, was formed for an immediate attack. In total secrecy, nine U.S. aircraft carriers, holding more than 500 combat aircraft, steamed towards Truk - supported by a screen of battleships, cruisers, destroyers and submarines. At dawn on 17 February 1944, an initial fighter sweep of Truk by 72 F6F Hellcat fighters roared in over Truk under Japanese radar - catching the Japanese by complete surprise. The Hellcats immediately began strafing Japanese airfields and soon hundreds of aircraft were involved in one of the largest aerial dogfights of WW II. The F6F Hellcat was by now vastly superior to the Japanese Zero fighter, and the Japanese planes were shot out of the sky within an hour. With air superiority established, U.S dive-bombers and torpedo-bombers spent two days sinking all the large ships trapped in the lagoon. These sunken ships, with their war cargoes, were largely forgotten about until 1969, when Jacques Cousteau located and filmed many of the wrecks. The resulting TV documentary, Lagoon of Lost Ships, went viral. Truk's secret was out - and the beautiful wrecks, untouched since WWII, have proved an irresistible lure for thousands of divers each year since then. New illustrations of most of the previously unillustrated wrecks have now been specially created to make this book the most comprehensive guide to diving Truk Lagoon that has ever been produced.

The definitive guide to exploring and diving the Shipwrecks of the Cayman Islands. The spectacular natural beauty of the islands hides a treacherous coastline that has seen many ships founder. For the first time in print, there is an accurate account of around 140 of the best-known and identified shipwrecks. This guide relates to how and where these ships have been lost and also gives important information on how to identify details on the various types of sailing vessel that have plied these waters over the last 500 years. Packed with over 200 photographs and illustrations this book will undoubtedly be used as an authoritative reference on how to dive and snorkel the most popular of these artificial reefs.

Is there anything quite so exhilarating as swimming in wild water? This is a joyful swimming tour of Britain, a frog's-eye view of the country's best bathing holes - the rivers, rock pools, lakes, ponds, lochs and sea that define a watery island. Charming, funny, inspiring, an assertion of the native swimmer's right to roam, a celebration of the magic of water - this book will indeed make you want to strip off and leap in. Selected from the book Waterlog by Roger Deakin VINTAGE MINIS: GREAT MINDS. BIG IDEAS. LITTLE BOOKS. A series of short books by the world's greatest writers on the experiences that make us human Also in the Vintage Minis series: Eating by Nigella Lawson Liberty by Virginia Woolf Summer by Laurie Lee Desire by Haruki Murakami