The highly praised biography of an archetypal great house and the family who lived there for over 250 years. 'The Big House' is the biography of a great country house and the lives of the Sykes family who lived there, with varying fates, for the next two hundred and fifty years. It is a fascinating social history set against the backdrop of a changing England, with a highly individual, pugnacious and self-determining cast, including: 'Old Tat' Sykes, said to be one of the great sights of Yorkshire (the author's great-great-great-grandfather), who wore 18th-century dress to the day of his death at ninety-one in 1861. His son was similarly eccentric, wearing eight coats that he discarded gradually throughout the day in order to keep his body temperature at a constant. He was forced to marry, aged forty-eight, eighteen-year-old Jessica Cavendish-Bentick - a lively and highly intelligent woman who relieved the boredom of her marriage by acquiring a string of lovers, writing novels and throwing extravagant parties (her nickname became 'Lady Satin Tights'), all the while accumulating debts that ended in a scandalous court case. Their son, Mark, died suddenly whilst brokering the peace settlement at the Paris Peace Conference at the end of World War I; Sledmere was destroyed by fire shortly afterwards. But the rebuilt Sledmere rose from the flames to resound again with colourful, brilliant characters in the 1920s and 1930s including the author's grandmother, Lily, who had been a celebrated bohemian in Paris. 'The Big House' is vividly written and meticulously researched using the Sykes' own family's papers and photographs. In this splendid biography of place and time, Christopher Simon Sykes has resuscitated the lives of his ancestors and their glorious home from the 18th- through to the 20th-century.

Cath Kidston - queen of vintage-inspired homeware and joyously decorated spaces - grants unprecedented insight into her creative process and personal style in this lifestyle-meets-memoir-meets-interior-design book. The name 'Cath Kidston' is associated worldwide with pattern, colour, dreamlike nostalgia, and comforting, cheerful spaces. In her new book, the founder of the eponymous brand invites us on a tour of her Gloucestershire home, sharing stories, decorating tips and inspirational ideas along the way. The book is divided into four chapters, each of them focusing on the 21 featured spaces in the book, including: Entrance Hall, Sitting Room, Study, Dining Room, Office, Kitchen, Dressing Room, Attic, Greenhouse and Summer House. There are also the whimsically themed rooms such as the Castle Bedroom and Fish Bathroom. Delve into Cath's design process as she reveals the memories and motivations behind her style choices. With Cath's expertise and advice you'll discover how simple tricks make stimulating spaces; from using vintage-inspired prints to transform a quiet corner into an art gallery, to how the right rug can tie a room together and create a cosy, congenial atmosphere. Discussing colour, decor, pattern and passion in her own words, Cath will help make your house a beautiful, practical home. Filled with inspirational images, expert advice from an industry icon, and stories that reveal a remarkable life in design, this book will give you the confidence to click your heels and agree that there's no place like home.

In this entertaining volume, you'll find Governor General Award-winner Margaret Avison and American sci-fi novelist Piers Anthony rubbing shoulders with Blag Dahlia and Ben Bachelder. You'll read of Jello Biafra's encounter with shoe-eating cows, Alan Dean Foster's ride on a whale shark, and Kage Baker's hilarious account of actors broken down on Interstate 5. Filmmakers, politicians, stand-up comedians, poets, journalists, and carpenters all come together through the shared experience of hitching a ride. Throughout the '60s and '70s -- the heyday of hitchhiking -- this form of travel was a key means of transportation. Today, people continue to hitchhike all over the world. Money never changes hands, but all manner of social transactions take place. Hilarious, sad, nostalgic, sometimes scary, and always entertaining, these travelers' tales will open your eyes and take you back -- or forward. Just when you think you've heard it all, turn the page. You'll discover you haven't!