What does Christmas mean to you? From cake to crackers, trees to turkey and stockings to Santa Claus, The Great British Christmas explores Christmas past and the origins of the traditions we hold dear today. This delightful anthology includes the legend of King Arthur pulling the sword from the stone one fateful Christmas day; tales of the day a Puritan Parliament tried to 'ban' Christmas; and how the first ever Christmas tree arrived in England, courtesy of Prince Albert. Re-live a bygone era of merrymaking and indulge in Mrs Beeton's Christmas cake recipe or read Charles Dickens's memories of boyhood celebrations. This is simply the perfect book with which to celebrate Christmas.

Travel with nature and wildlife photographer Wouter Pattyn to explore 12 of the most beautiful nature reserves on the European continent. Along with photographs of stunning landscapes, Wild Places of Europe is a sourcebook of information for the adventurous traveller, including practical tips for booking your visit and taking the best photographs. Immerse yourself in these wonderful places and perhaps make plans to go to one yourself.

The area around Hoyland is very special indeed. Developed over 1,000 years, it is a microcosm of agricultural, architectural and industrial development, whose historical significance is without equal. Some of the buildings found here are of a quality which can be found nowhere else in England. This delightful collection by local historian Geoffrey Howse, whose great-grandparent's shop gave Elsecar the name 'Howse's Corner', includes many rare antique photographs of the area, each set alongside an image of the same view today. Deeply nostalgic and meticulously researched, it will delight residents and visitors alike.

Sacred wells have played an important part in the culture and landscape of Cornwall for several millennia, and continue to do so. Holy Wells: Cornwall is a collection of beautiful colour photographs of forty-five of the most important and pre-eminent wells in the county, accompanied by an informative text about the history and legends associated with them, and a number of poems celebrating them by Robert Southey, Arthur Quller Couch and others. Like Wales and Ireland, Cornwall was an influential centre for the Celtic church and pagan places of worship were taken over by Christianity. Many Celtic saints - St Piran, St Euny, St Nonna, St David, St Mary, St Cuby, St Anne, St Sampson - are referenced in the names of churches and wells which stand in towns and villages, alone on moorland next to stone circles and iron age settlements, hidden in valleys and even in sea caves. Phil Cope takes the reader on a journey of discovery through densely wooded terrain, past bare tors, into ancient churches and along almost forgotten road and tracks, to lead us to special places of wonder and enrichment. Holy Wells: Cornwall includes over 256 photographs, together with a map, bibliography and index.

The ultimate recipe collection for feeding a crowd When the mood calls for food that feeds the people we love, this every-eventuality entertaining bible will have you covered. With over 400 recipes and page after page of mouthwatering photographs, this book is filled with dishes to suit all types of gatherings and celebrations. There are canapes and slow cooks, brunches, bakes and barbecue spreads, as well as meat, fish and vegetarian dishes and the most decadent seasonal feasts. What's more, every recipe has been Triple-Tested in the Good Housekeeping kitchens to ensure it works perfectly, every time. From one of the world's most trusted brands, this book is full of convivial, flavour-packed food to reunite over and indulge in.

Want to know how to wear a kilt, prevent a hangover, get out of a sinking car, survive when you're lost, deliver a baby, brew a great beer and much, much more? The new and expanded Bigger Book of Everything has it all (well, almost) and is the quintessential guide to travel, to the world and all sorts of things you didn't know you needed to know. Learn something new, enjoy a world of smart, safe and exciting travel and use your witty know-how to make friends wherever you go. You never know: this book might just save your life. Written and illustrated by Nigel Holmes, a graphics director who has written a number of books on aspects of information design and infographics, the book covers everything from how etiquette varies from country to country, how to deal with venomous snakebites, what to do if you're attacked by a crocodile or a shark and how to predict the weather just by looking at the clouds. A series of six light-hearted chapters (understanding the world, outdoors, etiquette, food and drink, health and safety and other fun stuff) takes you on a journey of discovery and answers all the questions which you won't even have thought about asking. Besides covering factual subjects, such as the world's longest rivers and what exactly the Northern Lights are, the book also touches upon more serious subject matter, such as how to deliver a baby in an emergency, how to defend yourself from an attacker or how to survive getting lost on a hike. You never know: this book might just save your life. About Lonely Planet: Lonely Planet is a leading travel media company and the world's number one travel guidebook brand, providing both inspiring and trustworthy information for every kind of traveller since 1973. Over the past four decades, we've printed over 145 million guidebooks and grown a dedicated, passionate global community of travellers. You'll also find our content online, on mobile, video and in 14 languages, 12 international magazines, armchair and lifestyle books, eBooks, and more.

With its strategic shipping ports and factories, the towns and cities dotted along the River Mersey soon became some of Hitler's most heavily targeted sites during the Second World War. In August 1940 the German Luftwaffe attacked Birkenhead in what was to be the first of over 300 such bombing raids Merseyside sustained that year. Almost 4,000 people perished and many more were seriously injured as the streets and buildings of Liverpool and Wirral were destroyed and their residents left in turmoil. Featuring 45 vistas of bomb-damaged suburbia and city centre carnage alongside 45 photographs of the area as it is today, Merseyside War Years: Then & Now sensitively documents the changes and developments that have taken place in Merseyside since those dark days of war, demonstrating both architectural progress and Britain's resilience and in the face of adversity.

Crossing open waters has always been a dangerous undertaking, but drawing close to the destination is the most hazardous part of the sailor's journey. Reaching the right harbor during the night and knowing how to avoid razor-sharp rocks or reefs is a task that can defeat the most experienced navigator--often with fatal results.
Since earliest times the response to these dangers has been to erect a light-bearing tower, a beacon to sailors that could guide them into port safely. Some of these early lighthouses were merely stone towers built on the shore, but others, like the Colossus of Rhodes--a 110-foot (33m) statue of the sun god Helios, built in 282 B.C. in the Mediterranean--became wonders of the ancient world.
Architecturally imposing and cloaked with an air of romance, lighthouses continue to fascinate us. Often there are tales of strange events connected to lonely lighthouses--tragic stories of keepers and ghosts at sea.
Minot's Ledge is one such place. At least forty vessels had run aground off this deadly outcrop just southeast of Boston before construction of a tower began in 1847. It didn't last very long. Four years later, the original lighthouse was toppled by a devastating hurricane that washed its two keepers into the sea. Although Minot's Ledge Light is no longer manned, tales persist of eerie sounds, slamming doors, and apparitions of a man, soaking wet, clinging to a rope outside the new tower This is a chilling reminder that even the most valiant efforts to prevent tragedy can be in vain.
Leo Marriott's LIGHTHOUSES, illustrated with more than 100 color photographs, takes readers on a historical and international tour of these wonderful structures. It recounts tales of great courage and tragedy, as well as details of why and how the lighthouses were built.

Rachel Roddy's Five Quarters won the Guild of Food Writers' First Book award and the Andre Simon Food Book award 2015. 'Five Quarters stands out as particularly considered and evocative...Impeccably researched and transportive, it's a proper read, rather than a quick flick.' AA Gill, Sunday Times best cookbooks 2015 'Of course I thought Rome was glorious, but I didn't want to stay. A month, three at most, then I'd take a train back to Sicily to finish the clockwise journey I'd interrupted, before moving even further southwards...' Instead, captivated by the exhilarating life of Testaccio, the wedge-shaped quarter of Rome that centres round the old slaughterhouse and the bustling food market, Rachel decided to rent a flat and live there. Thus began an Italian adventure that's turned into a brand new life. Five Quarters charts a year in Rachel's small kitchen, shopping, cooking, eating and writing, capturing a uniquely domestic picture of life in this vibrant, charismatic city. Combining Rachel's love of Italian food and cooking with a strong nostalgia for home and memories of growing up in England, this is a cookbook to read in bed as well as to use in the kitchen. Chapters: Antipasti Soup & Pasta Meat & Fish Vegetables Dolci

This volume offers a reasoned critical account of a wide range of travel writing about rural Ireland. The focus is on work by English travellers who visited Ireland for pleasure, from the 'scenic tourists' of the post-Romantic period to Eric Newby in the 1980s. Ryle also discusses accounts by American and English anthropologists, as well as writing by Irish authors including J.M. Synge, George Moore, Sean O'Faolain and Colm TA(3)ibA n. The materials reviewed and discussed here, including many books which are now difficult to find, offer illuminating and sometimes entertaining evidence about the development of tourism. Ryle also shows how the discourses and practices of pleasurable travel have intersected with and been marked by the dimensions of power and proprietorship, hegemony, and resistance, which have characterised Anglo-Irish and Hiberno-English cultural relations over the last two centuries. Journeys in Ireland will interest all those concerned with the literature and history of those relations, and will be an invaluable resource for scholars, teachers and students concerned with travel writing and tourism with and beyond these islands.

A new edition of a modern classic of photography. Martin Parr is Europe's premier contemporary photographer, and "The Last Resort" is the book that is considered to have launched his career. Taken at the height of the Thatcher years, it depicts the "great British seaside" in all its garish glory. Described by some as cruel and voyeuristic and by others as a stunning satire on the state of Britain, early editions are now much sought after by collectors worldwide. Includes a new essay by Gerry Badger, photographer, architect, curator, and critic.

Test your 00s knowledge with this awesome trivia card game! Too soon to get nostalgic about the 2000s, noughties, aughts or whatever we're supposed to call them? Of course not: this is the decade that gave us cheap downloads and not-so-cheap iPods. Whether you preferred Love Actually or Avatar, Kanye or The Killers, this ultimate quiz card pack will make you nostalgic for the good times when socialising was all about MySpace and the Motorola Razr.

As read on BBC Radio 4 'Book of the Week'
Shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year Award
Longlisted for the RSL Ondaatje Prize

'Sherman’s is a special book. Every sentence, every thought she has, every question she asks, every detail she notices, offers something. The Bells of Old Tokyo is a gift . . . It is a masterpiece.' - Spectator

For over 300 years, Japan closed itself to outsiders, developing a remarkable and unique culture. During its period of isolation, the inhabitants of the city of Edo, later known as Tokyo, relied on its public bells to tell the time. In her remarkable book, Anna Sherman tells of her search for the bells of Edo, exploring the city of Tokyo and its inhabitants and the individual and particular relationship of Japanese culture - and the Japanese language - to time, tradition, memory, impermanence and history.

Through Sherman’s journeys around the city and her friendship with the owner of a small, exquisite cafe, who elevates the making and drinking of coffee to an art-form, The Bells of Old Tokyo presents a series of hauntingly memorable voices in the labyrinth that is the metropolis of the Japanese capital: An aristocrat plays in the sea of ashes left by the Allied firebombing of 1945. A scientist builds the most accurate clock in the world, a clock that will not lose a second in five billion years. A sculptor eats his father’s ashes while the head of the house of Tokugawa reflects on the destruction of his grandfather’s city (‘A lost thing is lost. To chase it leads to darkness’).

The result is a book that not only engages with the striking otherness of Japanese culture like no other, but that also marks the arrival of a dazzling new writer as she presents an absorbing and alluring meditation on life through an exploration of a great city and its people.

1950s Ireland was the age of De Valera and John Charles McQuaid. It was the age before television, Vatican II, and home central heating. A time when motor cars and public telephones had wind-up handles, when boys wore short trousers and girls wore ribbons, when nuns wore white bonnets and priests wore black hats in church. To the young people of today, the 1950s seem like another age. But for those who played, learned and worked at this time, this era feels like just yesterday. This delightful collection of memories will appeal to all who grew up in 1950s Ireland and will jog memories about all aspects of life as it was.

There is a powerful sense of place at the seaside. You know what to expect. Fishing villages usually have a pier, boats, lobster pots, and masses of seagulls while resort towns have esplanades, piers, grand hotels and gardens. Certain seaside towns have just about everything: Weymouth, for example, has a grand parade of hotels, a wide esplanade and a small fishing village. Blackpool has more of everything - three piers, miles of hotels, the Tower, Winter Gardens, trams, illuminations - but no fishing and no castle There is something about the seaside that brings out the beating heart of John Bull in the English: doggedly erecting our wind-breaks to capture every vestige of a watery sun; wrestling with deckchairs; wrapping up against the determined wind on the verandas of our beach huts; accepting that 'sand' in 'sandwich' means just that But we still love it and nowhere else in the world can match its myriad charms and eccentricities. For too long the English seaside has suffered from bad press, accused of being tatty, cold grey and windswept. Peter Williams' evocative photographs in this fully revised edition of his acclaimed book will make you want to rediscover what a fantastic place the seaside is - full of character, charm and 'Englishness'.

The impact of people and places in Wolstanton and May Bank is recorded in this pictorial record that recognises the contribution of village notables, dear old friends and long-gone institutions. A wealth of photographs depicting the joys of community life mingle with contemporary pictures, showing, often with dramatic impact, the shocking demolition of facilities we perhaps took for granted, such as The Plough, the Oxford Arms and The Marsh Head. Elsewhere, images of former shops such as Holdridge's, Swettenham's and the Spinning Wheel show how High Street shopping patterns have changed. Author Mervyn Edwards has only ever lived in Wolstanton and May Bank, and through this unique selection of old and new images, he presents a tribute to the place he happily calls home.

Standing in Line is a humorous memoir, based on a variety of experiences in The Queue, one of sport's most fascinating traditions. Told through the eyes of a ten-year-old boy becoming a 39-year-old man, it is a love letter both to Wimbledon and to the wonder of British summertime. Watching the Championships is a national pastime, and this book is full of the ups and downs out on court, as well as the memorable pop-cultural moments off it. It is set against the desperate wait for a British Gentlemen's champion, viewed against the global reality show Wimbledon has become - transcending sport and class, yet still embracing tradition. Illustrated with drawings from renowned artist and author Zebedee Helm, the book observes both the changing world around us and the behaviour of the half-million fans who cram themselves into this leafy corner of London for two weeks every year. Standing in Line is a joyful, gently nostalgic read for anyone who has found themselves gazing for hours on end at coverage of Wimbledon.

From the Taj Mahal to the Parthenon, from Gettysburg to Heidelberg, from Beacon Hill to Tower Hill, from the Great Wall to Hadrian's Wall, from Jerusalem to Kyoto, the International Dictionary of Historic Places presents some 1,000 comprehensive and fully illustrated histories of the most famous sites in the world. Entries include: location, description, and site office details; and a 3,000 to 4,000 word essay that provides a full history of the site and the condition of the site today. An annotated Further Reading list of books and articles about the site completes each entry.

Ireland holds a special place in people's hearts - even for many who haven't been there. To some the appeal is its natural beauty, to others it's the history; to some it's the country's strong folk tradition, to others it even seems to be a mystical place. Ireland presents more than 200 outstanding photographs celebrating the island's most evocative and beautiful places, whether in nature or man-made, from the miles of near empty beaches to the Mourne Mountains in County Down, from the pretty fishing towns of County Cork to Dublin's elegant Georgian streets. Featuring images from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, the book ranges widely across landscapes and history, from rugged cliffs and rolling hills to mysterious stone circles, magnificent cathedrals and ruined abbeys; and from medieval forts and castles to grand Victorian follies and villages abandoned during the Potato Famine. While some images such as the striking basalt columns of the Giant's Causeway may be familiar, others you may know only from Game of Thrones and the Star Wars films but never realized that they, too, are in Ireland. Presented in a handy pocket-sized landscape format and with captions explaining the story behind each entry, Ireland is a stunning collection of images celebrating the island's natural beauty, culture and history.