THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'This is my kind of history: carefully researched but so vivid that you are convinced Lucy Worsley was actually there at the party - or the parsonage.' Antonia Fraser 'A refreshingly unique perspective on Austen and her work and a beautifully nuanced exploration of gender, creativity, and domesticity.' Amanda Foreman Lucy Worsley 'is a great scene-setter for this tale of triumph and heartbreak.' Sunday Times On the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's death, historian Lucy Worsley leads us into the rooms from which our best-loved novelist quietly changed the world. This new telling of the story of Jane's life shows us how and why she lived as she did, examining the places and spaces that mattered to her. It wasn't all country houses and ballrooms, but a life that was often a painful struggle. Jane famously lived a 'life without incident', but with new research and insights Lucy Worsley reveals a passionate woman who fought for her freedom. A woman who far from being a lonely spinster in fact had at least five marriage prospects, but who in the end refused to settle for anything less than Mr Darcy.

Before "The Red Tent" won her international literary acclaim, Anita Diamant was a columnist in Boston. Over the course of twenty years, she wrote essays that reflected the shape and evoution of her life, as well as the trends of her generation. In the end, her musings about love and marriage, birth and death, nature versus nurture, politics and religion -- and everything from female friendships to quitting smoking -- have created a public diary of the progress of her life that resonated deeply with her readers. Now, "Pitching My Tent" collects the finest columns of a writer who is a reporter by training and a storyteller by heart, all revised and enriched with new material. Personal, inspiring, and often funny, "Pitching My Tent" displays the warmth, humor, and wisdom that Diamant's legions of fans have come to cherish.

"Every page brings forth the elegiac tone of JRR Tolkien's work... It is a beautiful book, including many wonderful pictures by Tolkien himself... Garth's book made me realise the impact that Tolkien has had on my life." The Times A lavishly illustrated exploration of the places that inspired and shaped the work of J.R.R. Tolkien, creator of Middle-earth. This new book from renowned expert John Garth takes us to the places that inspired J.R.R. Tolkien to create his fictional locations in The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit and other classic works. Featuring more than 100 images, it includes Tolkien's own illustrations, contributions from other artists, archive images, maps and spectacular present-day photographs. Inspirational locations range across Great Britain - particularly Tolkien's beloved West Midlands and Oxford - but also overseas to all points of the compass. Sources are located for Hobbiton, the elven valley of Rivendell, the Glittering Caves of Helm's Deep, and many other key spots in Middle-earth, as well as for its mountain scenery, forests, rivers, lakes and shorelands. A rich interplay is revealed between Tolkien's personal travels, his wide reading and his deep scholarship as an Oxford professor. Garth uses his own profound knowledge of Tolkien's life and work to uncover the extraordinary processes of invention, to debunk popular misconceptions about the inspirations for Middle-earth, and to put forward strong new claims of his own. Organised by theme, The Worlds of J.R.R. Tolkien is an illustrated journey into the life and imagination of one of the world's best-loved authors, an exploration of the relationship between worlds real and fantastical, and an inspiration for anyone who wants to follow in Tolkien's footsteps.

As an American author who chose to live in Europe, Henry James frequently wrote about cultural differences between the Old and New World. The plight of bewildered Americans adrift on a sea of European sophistication became a regular theme in his fiction. This collection of twenty-four papers from some of the world's leading James scholars offers a comprehensive picture of the author's crosscultural aesthetics. It provides detailed analyses of James's perception of Europe - of its people and places, its history and culture, its artists and thinkers, its aesthetics and its ethics - which ultimately lead to a profound reevaluation of his writing. With in-depth analysis of his works of fiction, his autobiographical and personal writings, and his critical works, the collection is a major contribution to current thinking about James, transtextuality and cultural appropriation.

This charming book is a series of entertaining and thought-provoking musings, mainly about the imagination, the sense of identity, the compulsion to write, and Isaac Asimov-who, as Janet Asimov says, was good at all of them. Dr. Janet J. Asimov, a psychiatrist and celebrated fiction writer, has penned this delightful memoir with insight, poignancy, and wit on topics that she and her husband, Isaac Asimov, found especially meaningful over the years. From profound issues such as religion, philosophy, sex, personal identity, and mortality, to lighter subjects such as traveling together, camping, the golden thirties, and the problems and joys of writing, Asimov reveals many new and fascinating details about two engaging and creative people whose greatest creation-in addition to their writings-was the life they made together. Replete with new information about Isaac Asimov and never-before-published excerpts from his witty letters to her, in addition to family photos, this collection of personal reminiscences complements Isaac Asimov's highly acclaimed one-volume autobiography, It's Been a Good Life, which Janet Asimov edited. The Times Literary Supplement praised it as "an excellent introduction to his vision and his personality." Janet Asimov concludes this singular memoir with her own short stories, many published in magazines, but never before collected together in one book. Notes for a Memoir is guaranteed to delight, entertain, and inspire.

The first biography about Bertram Fletcher Robinson, who acted as 'assistant plot producer' to Arthur Conan Doyle over the Sherlock Holmes story The Hound of the Baskervilles (1901/02).

Includes an exciting sneak peek extract from Three Sisters - the conclusion to The Tattooist of Auschwitz Trilogy. Available now. The Tattooist of Auschwitz is one of the bestselling books of the 21st Century. Now, in this essential companion, Heather Morris presents an inspiring manual for life, with a series of tales of the remarkable people she has met, the incredible stories they have shared with her, and the lessons they hold for us all. In Stories of Hope, Heather will explore her extraordinary talents as a listener - a skill she employed when she first met Lale Sokolov, the tattooist at Auschwitz-Birkenau and the inspiration for her bestselling novel. It was this ability that led Lale to entrust Heather with his story, which she told in her novel The Tattooist of Auschwitz and the bestselling follow up, Cilka's Journey. Now Heather shares the story behind her inspirational writing journey and the defining experiences of her life, including her profound friendship with Lale, and explores how she learned to really listen to the stories people told her - skills she believes we can all learn. 'Stories are what connect us and remind us that hope is always possible.' Heather Morris An international phenomenon, The Tattooist of Auschwitz has sold over six million copies. Cilka's Journey has sold over a million copies worldwide.

The first thorough and in depth biography of Nevil Shute, covering his life from childhood to his last years in Australia. Nevil Shute was the world famous and best-selling author of "A Town Like Alice," "On the Beach," and over 20 other novels. "Parallel Motion is the first true biography of Nevil Shute. Based on meticulous research, it contains a wealth of information about this wonderful (and often-overlooked) novelist. Biographer John Anderson, is, like Shute, an engineer, and he brings that knowledge and Shute spirit to this long-overdue chronicle of Shute's life. " - Michael S. Berliner, Editor, Letters of Ayn Rand

This incisive exploration probes the relationship between the novels of bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark and the key events and influences of her life. In her 2002 memoir, Kitchen Privileges, Mary Higgins Clark shared the details of her life with her readers, but she offered little significant reflection on those details. For that, readers must look to her fiction, where her themes, characters, and subjects suggest her responses to her life experiences. Mary Higgins Clark: Life and Letters provides readers with an analysis of these connections in a volume that should increase their understanding-and appreciation-of the author and her work. Focusing on subjects associated with the literary elements of representative Clark novels, Linda De Roche explores the relationship between the life of this bestselling author and the books that have won her legions of fans for more than a quarter century. Themes and issues woven into Clark's fiction-such as the role of the past in people's lives, repercussions of violence, and the concept of identity-are considered, while close critical readings uncover psychological, feminist, and sociopolitical interpretations that will delight fans and inform scholars. A plot synopsis and analysis of character development for each major work Clark family photographs A comprehensive list of Clark's published works, with reviews and criticism of the works covered in this volume An extensive list of additional biographical sources including Clark's most recent interviews A filmography listing adaptations of Clark's novels and stories

Challenging. Successful. Controversial. All terms used to accurately describe African American novelist and autobiographer John Edgar Wideman. This book examines his life and work-and the connections between them. The Life and Work of John Edgar Wideman is ideal for readers who might not be familiar with Wideman's work or those who may have been intimidated by descriptions of his writings. Through its coverage of Wideman's life from several generations back to the present and explanations of how Wideman makes use of life experiences, this book breaks down barriers for new readers and enables them to better relate and connect to his writing. Author Keith E. Byerman discusses Wideman's book-length works of fiction and nonfiction, as well as some of his shorter, journalistic pieces. The book emphasizes how Wideman integrates family and personal experience into what is typically labeled postmodern writing, and explains how he has evolved as a public intellectual who supplies shrewd commentary on subjects such as the prison system, terrorism, and the role of sports in American society.

Author, photographer, historian, archeologist, and preservationist, Charles Fletcher Lummis stood tall in the affections of American Southwesterners at the turn of the 20th century. A flamboyant figure of enormous energy, he championed Indian rights and Hispanic culture, while introducing Easterners, through his many books, to the rich heritage of New Mexico, Arizona, and California. After years of fading from view, the large Lummis legacy is being rediscovered. His works are coming back into print and in 2006 the city of Los Angeles inaugurated an annual Lummis Day Festival. This little book can acquaint readers with a remarkable recorder of history and can help to reawaken interest in his efforts to preserve the distinctive cultures of the American Southwest. Additionally, this book contains, as its first chapter, the complete contents of the classic "Two Southwesterners: Charles Lummis & Amado Chaves" by Marc Simmons, originally published by San Marcos Press in 1968 and long unavailable until now. Marc Simmons, besides being an aficionado of the writings of Charles F. Lummis, is himself a historian and prolific author. In 1993 he was knighted by order of the King of Spain for his publications on Spanish colonial history of the Southwest. Among his most recent books are "New Mexico Mavericks," "Stalking Billy the Kid," and a new edition of "Southwestern Colonial Ironwork," all published by Sunstone Press.

William S. Burroughs's fiction and essays are legendary, but his influence on music's counterculture has been less well documented-until now. Examining how one of America's most controversial literary figures altered the destinies of many notable and varied musicians, William S. Burroughs and the Cult of Rock 'n' Roll reveals the transformations in music history that can be traced to Burroughs. A heroin addict and a gay man, Burroughs rose to notoriety outside the conventional literary world; his masterpiece, Naked Lunch, was banned on the grounds of obscenity, but its nonlinear structure was just as daring as its content. Casey Rae brings to life Burroughs's parallel rise to fame among daring musicians of the 1960s, '70s, and '80s, when it became a rite of passage to hang out with the author or to experiment with his cut-up techniques for producing revolutionary lyrics (as the Beatles and Radiohead did). Whether they tell of him exploring the occult with David Bowie, providing Lou Reed with gritty depictions of street life, or counseling Patti Smith about coping with fame, the stories of Burroughs's backstage impact will transform the way you see America's cultural revolution-and the way you hear its music.

Despite all the biographical studies devoted to William Faulkner, there are still many fundamental contradictions in the way he is perceived. He has been described as a creator of worlds a la Dickens and as one of postmodernism's avatars, as indifferent to the intellectual currents of his time and as profoundly indebted to them, as deeply insightful about issues like race, class, and gender and as someone who merely reflects contemporary anxieties about them. A concise and focused study of Faulkner's literary lives can help readers sort through the questions raised by his work and by the voluminous response to it.

In Floor Sample, the author of the international bestseller The Artist's Way weaves an honest and moving portrayal of her life. From her early career as a writer for Rolling Stone magazine and her marriage to Martin Scorsese, to her tortured experiences with alcohol and Hollywood, Julia Cameron reflects in this engaging memoir on the experiences in her life that have fuelled her own art as well as her ability to help others realise their creative dreams. She also describes the fascinating circumstances that led her to emerge as a central figure in the creative recovery movement - a movement that she inaugurated and defined with the publication of her seminal work, The Artist's Way. Julia Cameron is a passionate and wry observer of the world and describes her life as a 'floor sample' for all she teaches in her brilliant books on creativity. Floor Sample is an absorbing literary memoir that will surprise, entertain, and inspire Julia's many fans and win her new admirers.

This first full-length biography of the Nobel Laureate to appear in a quarter century explores John Steinbeck's long apprenticeship as a writer struggling through the depths of the Great Depression, and his rise to greatness with masterpieces such as The Red Pony, Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. His most poignant and evocative writing emerged in his sympathy for the Okies fleeing the dust storms of the Midwest, the migrant workers toiling in California's fields and the labourers on Cannery Row, reflecting a social engagement-paradoxical for all of his natural misanthropy-radically different from the writers of the so-called Lost Generation. A man by turns quick-tempered, contrary, compassionate and ultimately brilliant, Steinbeck took aim at the corrosiveness of power, the perils of income inequality and the growing urgency of ecological collapse, all of which drive fierce public debate to this day.

This selection of letters from James Schuyler to legendary poet Frank O'Hara reconstruct a friendship that lay at the heart of the New York school - a convocation of poets including Kenneth Koch and John Ashbery, with whom Schuyler later wrote a novel. It is an encapsulation of a friendship, a mind and a life.

Lives of the Most Eminent English Poets with Observations on their Poetry By Samuel Johnson Originally published circa 1880. A discussion on the lives of fifty two of the most eminent English poets with critical observations on their works. Also added is "the Preface to Shakespeare" and the review of "The Origin of Evil." Includes a sketch of Johnson's life by Sir Walter Scott. Many of the earliest poetry books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. Home Farm Books are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.

‘I walked in a daze of illusions toward my future.’

Deeply felt and told with an intrepid spirit, Tales from the Heart are the intimate, formative stories from the childhood of the legendary Caribbean writer, Maryse Condé.

These affecting vignettes follow Condé’s early encounters with love, grief, friendship, as she navigates the pernicious legacy of slavery and colonialism in her home of Guadeloupe and as a student in Paris.