Neutral for fifty years in his work for the BBC, now he tells us what he thinks and thought about all those prime ministers, presidents, elections and scandals.
Selections from the man who threatened to bite scoundrels; with the Greek on facing pages and an introduction. One of three niftily pocket-sized classical guides to life from Princeton.
The ideal present for that rare breed of person mostly to be found head-down in the compost bin, with just a pair of legs with gumboot finials waving ecstatically at passers-by or spouses, l... read more
The perpetual appeal of walled gardens, let alone Venetian ones - private, invisible to those outside, with a delicious water gate giving onto a canal, and exhaling drifts of orange blossom ... read more
A girl paints a picture, with a blue tree frog and a red hot-air balloon to float away in: with a rhyming text and splendid illustrations, flaps to lift and peep-holes. For ages 3-5.
A reprint of this charming, beautifully illustrated children's book, first published in 1992, which tells the legend behind the ubiquitous and much-loved design found on plates and bowls in ... read more
The first violinist of the Takacs Quartet ruminates on the work of Bartók, Britten, Dvořák and Elgar in relation to ideas of home, exile, nostalgia and place, the hope and even dread of r... read more
Often hilarious and certainly astonishing, this is the novelist's memoir of growing up in Sheffield in the 1950s. His father, an insecure bully, adopted a toup?e, which functioned as an inst... read more
Often hilarious and certainly astonishing, this is the novelist's memoir of growing up in Sheffield in the 1950s. His father, an insecure bully, adopted a toupée, which functioned as an ins... read more
England still has a greater concentration of ancient oaks than the rest of Europe combined. The Dutch dendrologist's explanation and historical survey is compelling.
From the archives of The Times comes a celebration of individuality: April Ashley, Zsa Zsa Gabor, John Lucas, Diana Athill, Nick Mosley, Vincent Poklewski-Koziell, Ruaraidh Hilleary, Naim At... read more
Is it to exalt the mountain or the climber that the mountain should be climbed? Or to gain a good vantage point for telling things, pace James Baldwin?
M.F.K. Fisher is, in our opinion, the greatest and most entertaining writer about food there has ever been - but we are far from alone in this. A wonderful reprint.
A long novel in which an artist watches versions of himself slip away into alcohol and loneliness. (Previously published as three separate paperbacks).
After her adventures with Bonnie Prince Charlie in the aftermath of Culloden, Flora MacDonald emigrated to North Carolina, married, and got caught up in the War of Independence. This is an a... read more
Zervudachi did his first house aged 21, under the eye of David Mlinaric, and ever since has been creating interiors that are both chic and understated.