'A moving and direct study of frailty, love and time and luck and grief' Guardian Edvard Behrends is a diplomat, highly regarded for his work on international peace negotiations. Under his arbitration, unimaginable atrocities are coolly dissected; invisible lines, grown taut and frayed with conflict, redrawn. In his latest post, Edvard has been sent to a nondescript hotel in the Tyrol. High up on this mountain, the air is bright and clear. He confides in no one - no one but his wife Anna. Anna, who he loves with all his heart; Anna, always present and yet forever absent.

'There are war stories and there are love stories, but we only occasionally get war stories and love stories braided together. Tim Finch has written a wonderful novel, tiny and epic both. Laced with humour and sadness, this is an intimate account of what it means to make peace, both with others and with oneself' COLUM McCANN 'A shrewd delight' independent.co.uk Edvard Behrens is a senior diplomat of some repute, highly regarded for his work on international peace negotiations. Under his arbitration, unimaginable atrocities are coolly dissected; invisible and ancient lines, grown taut and frayed with conflict, redrawn. In his latest post, Edvard has been sent a nondescript resort hotel in the Tyrol. High up on this mountain, the air is bright and clear. When he isn't working, Edvard reads, walks, listens to music. He confides in no one - no one but his wife Anna. Anna, who he loves with all his heart; Anna, always present and yet forever absent. Honest, honourable, tragic, witty, wise, an unforgettable novel of love, loss, and the human longing for peace, Peace Talks maps the darkest and most tender territories of the human heart.

`This is the first really thought-provoking book that I have read on management development. It is a book primarily addressed to students, but in this field, we are all students. It merits a wide readership both among practising managers as well as among those responsible for developing them' - Max Boisot, ESADE `Mabey and Finch-Lees inject a breath of fresh air into the management development field by expanding upon its heretofore functionalist base. They offer an informative critique of mainstream views, featuring alternative discourses to examine such hard questions as why management development hasn't quite delivered on management's considerable investment in it. As a veritable tour de force in its absorbing integration and review of a large tract of literature, the book informs both management scholars and practitioners what might be expected from management development's intended but also unanticipated outcomes' - Joe Raelin, Northeastern University `In a well-written, accessible and yet sophisticated text, Mabey and Finch-Lees show themselves to be as familiar with the latest in management development practice as they are with the sometimes arcane theoretical literature that surrounds it. Its great strength is to recognize the plurality of discourses - some overlapping and complementary, others distinct and oppositional - about the subject. This book can be recommended as a unique resource for students and scholars of management development' - Chris Grey, University of Warwick This book represents a significant step forward in the theory of management and leadership development. It offers an international perspective in this era of globalisation and a new and questioning perspective on the common belief that leadership is something completely different to, and more important than, management. This book will be of great help to the serous theorist and researcher of management and leadership development. It is an invaluable point of reference for a broad range of theory and research in this area, which it summarises with admirable brevity and clarity' - John G Burgoyne, Lancaster University Management School and Henley Management College Management development is a potent and high-profile human resource activity, involving some of the organizations' key players and attracting huge hopes and investments from governments, organizations and individuals alike. Yet at several levels, the high expectations often remain unfulfilled. So why is this a subject and activity that continues to command such intense interest from scholars and practitioners alike? Chris Mabey and Tim Finch-Lees provide a fresh analysis of the concept and practice of management and leadership development (MLD). Grounded in research, the authors set out the current state of management and leadership development practices, before introducing readers to competing theories of MLD and offering them a more critical perspective. Throughout the book, ideas are illustrated by international case studies and vignettes that evoke the perceptions and interests of the whole range of stakeholders in the management development process. Management Development has been written for upper level undergraduate and masters level students pursuing courses in HRM, HRD, Leadership Development, Organizational Behaviour, Management, Organization Change, Personnel Management, and training and development modules.