Footloose: Twisted Travels Across Asia, From Australia To Azerbaijan (Gonzo Travel Books, #1)


Mark Walters - 2022
    He catches a cargo ship across the Indian Ocean, risks a dicey gauntlet of terrorists and Chinese tanks, has beers with a naked ex-Soviet officer in Kazakhstan... And he wears flip-flops for the whole journey. Why? For no good reason — though it does mean saving money on socks.

Far Horizons


Frank Gardner - 2009
    But ever since his student days, the BBC security correspondent has done some epicly hard travelling in a remarkable number of countries. Drawing on the diaries, sketches and photos he kept during his travels, his immaculately observed accounts of these often strange, sometimes daring, adventures in many of the world's most out of the way places form the backbone of his new book.In June 2004, while reporting on what should have been a routine assignment in Riyadh, his life - never mind his ability to travel the world - was nearly brought to a violent end by Islamist gunmen. Incredibly, Frank not only survived being shot six times at point blank range but also, against all the odds and through force of will, has found himself looking towards those far horizons once more. He's not only been slalom skiing in the Alps, scuba diving in the Red Sea and explored the jungle in northern Thailand. And he is also reporting once more from far-flung destinations like Afghanistan and Colombia - and this is a man who no longer has the use of his legs...This is Frank Gardner's compelling, personal yet unsentimental account of the myriad adventures that made him the man he was on that fateful day five years ago - and of the journeys he's made since, and how they've helped him to become the remarkable and inspiring individual he is today.

Cross My Heart


Ferne McCann - 2016
    Since exploding onto our screens, Ferne has become one of TOWIE’s standout cast members and is widely regarded for her style and inimitable personality. Renowned for her straight talking attitude and unbridled wit, Ferne is a regular on TV and chat shows. She is currently working on This Morning as a showbiz reporter and her exclusive column in Star Magazine is the longest running celebrity column to date. Before Fern found fame, she was one of London's top hair stylists & colourist, which provided major grounding for her passion and talent for fashion and beauty.

To the Wilds of Alaska: A New Life in the Alaskan Wilderness


Janette Ross Riehle - 2016
    And while they weren’t survivalists they survived, and even thrived, for months at a time in the subarctic wilderness without electricity, telephones, indoor plumbing or ready access to medical services. Sylvia, an attractive, strong-minded 14-year-old who loved the outdoors, came to Alaska with her family in 1934, hoping to escape the despair and poverty of the Depression years in southern Oregon. Although their first winter on a forested 160-acre homestead was spent in a log cabin without windows or a floor, it was still better than back in Oregon where things were tough. Three years later, while working at a fish cannery in Anchorage, Sylvia came to the notice of a good-looking, good-natured young man who had spent the previous two winters on the remote Yentna River with his older brother. Vernon was looking for a wife to move to the wilderness with him and immediately decided that she was the one. Six weeks later they were married and ready to begin their life together in a world that no longer exists—a world of sled dogs, moose meat, fresh trout, snowshoes, outboard motors and wooden dories. They worked hard and faced many dangers, but enjoyed their life depending largely on their own resources and on each other. While written for the general public, this book, as well as the other three in the series, is also suitable for older children who are interested in how families lived in earlier times and in far different circumstances than their own. The later books are written in part from the perspective of the children, as well as that of their parents.

Behind the Laughter


Sherrie Hewson - 2011
    From her dazzling performances in the Carry On films to Russ Abbott's Madhouse, to her favourite character Maureen Holdsworth in Coronation Street to the green hills of Emmerdale, Sherrie's warmth and good humour won her a place in the heart of the nation. And now an adored presenter on Loose Women, which she joined eight years ago, Sherrie has become a friend and confidante to the millions who tune in for her naughty sense of fun, openness and quick wit.But behind the laughter Sherrie has been hiding a secret heartache. After 30 years of marriage, she is finally divorcing the man who cheated on her and squandered all her money, leaving her bankrupt, on the brink of an alcohol problem and suicidal. It has taken her nine years to reach this point; but Sherrie is now ready to share her story – and it's one that at times seems more fitting to a soap opera than real life.From living in a brothel to being ditched at the altar, to living in fear of her stalker to nearly murdering her Corrie co-star (by accident, of course!), to the on- and off-screen lovers, friends and foe, to struggling to conceive her much-loved daughter,Sherrie – a natural storyteller – always manages to see the funny side and tells it like it is with warmth and a cheeky smile.Brimming with brilliantly funny anecdotes and larger-than-life characters, Sherrie’s story will delight, entertain and, above all, make you laugh.

The Road Chose Me Volume 1: Two years and 40,000 miles from Alaska to Argentina


Dan Grec - 2018
    Over the course of two years, Dan's expedition spanned forty thousand miles through sixteen countries. Now he will never be the same. After years of saving, dreaming and planning, Dan wanted to find out if an ordinary guy can achieve the extraordinary. With no sponsorship, a modest savings account and a willingness to learn Spanish, Dan threw himself in. Going solo, with no GPS and sleeping in a ground tent, Dan wanted to experience everything the Americas have to offer. From poking lava with a stick and hiking among world-famous mountains to corrupt military and camping with Ecuadorian locals - every day provided something new. With his eyes and ears open to the world around him, Dan met many interesting and thought-provoking characters. With their guidance and prodding, and by using their unique perspective, Dan was able to learn many valuable life lessons. Running to the beat of a different drum, Latin America was the perfect classroom for Dan to view our modern work-a-day world through an entirely new lens.

The Jewel Garden


Sarah Don - 2012
     At the same time THE JEWEL GARDEN is the story of a creative partnership that has weathered the greatest storm, and a testament to the healing powers of the soil. In his weekly column for the Observer, Monty Don has always been candid about the garden's role in helping him to pull back from the abyss of depression; THE JEWEL GARDEN elaborates on this much further. Written in an optimistic, autobiographical vein, Monty and Sarah's story is truly an exploration of what it means to be a gardener.

The Secret Player


Anonymous - 2013
    Based on the hugely popular The Player columns in FourFourTwo magazine, the book gives a warts-and-all insight into the daily life of professional footballers. Month by month, it chronicles the oscillating rhythms of the season, from the trudge of pre-season to the "squeaky-bum time" of promotion and relegation. The player himself has played at all levels of English football, from Premier League to a season of non-League, and represented England (alongside David Backham) at U21 level.

Rags to Richie: The Story So Far


Shane Richie - 2003
    As Eastenders' loveable rogue Alfie Moon he is now the darling of every soap fan in Britain. In this candid autobiography Shane reveals the highs and lows of his life.

Old Too Soon, Smart Too Late: My Story


Oliver Holt - 2018
    unsparing, honest' GQ magazineKieron Dyer's memoir, Old Too Soon, Smart Too Late, is the first intimate and unsparing portrait of the failures and excesses of the generation of English footballers made rich beyond their wildest dreams by the post-1990 World Cup boom in the game and the explosion of the Premier League. It shares the same brutal honesty and self-awareness of the bestselling No Nonsense by Joey Barton and GoodFella by Craig Bellamy.In the public mind, Kieron Dyer came to symbolise so much of what was self-destructive about a group of football players known collectively as the 'Baby Bentley generation'. Nicknamed 'The King of Bling' by the tabloid press, Dyer was caught up in many of the scandals that characterised the history of a talented crop of players who promised so much and delivered so little, a generation whose wages and lavish lifestyles began to alienate them from the fans who once worshipped them.The brash young man is gone now, and in his place is the quiet, caring, wise man who was such a favourite on I'm a Celebrity, Get me Out of Here! in 2015. Dyer narrates, in uncompromising detail, how a generation of talented English footballers, taken out of working class childhoods and presented with a world of glitz, glamour, wealth and temptation, failed to cope with the riches that were presented to them and often fell apart.Old Too Soon, Smart Too Late is about a moment in time, a social and historical record of English football at the start of its gold rush. For Dyer, the end of the book brings a measure of personal redemption and peace but for the English game, there is only a lingering sense of waste and regret for an opportunity lost.

Candace Owens: An Unauthorized Biography of the Conservative Thinker and Founder of Blexit


Richard West - 2020
    Owens launched the Blexit movement to encourage black voters to leave the Democrat plantation.Today, the mainstream media calls her a white nationalist, even though she is the black granddaughter of a Southern sharecropper. Some conservatives, on the other hand, believe she will one day be President.In this biography, Richard West provides Candace Owens’ life story, showing how she evolved from a victim-mentality liberal to a victor-mentality conservative. She went from being “a girl who started with nothing” to a true American success.

Getting into Practice (Edward Vernon's Practice series Book 3)


Edward Vernon - 2014
    Still wet behind the ears, he found himself on a whirlwind tour through the seven ages of man and the 57 varieties of human nature. He has to learn how to examine real people, diagnose them without becoming emotionally involved and fend off the crises of confidence which await around every corner. The book is set in the 1970s and there will no doubt be some readers who might think that things were better then. Edward Vernon is a pen name of a well known British doctor/author. Here's what the critics said about the series: Delightfully and wittily written. His descriptions of daunting receptionists, magazine-strewn waiting rooms and hypochondriacal patients will strike many familiar cords, but Dr Vernon is at his best when recounting his encounters in the surgery and at the bedside. For anyone needing to be entertained, and at times moved, there could be no better prescription than one chapter...taken each night at bedtime - Liverpool Echo Truthful, well observed and consistently readable - Daily Telegraph The funniest of the funny doctor books - Richard Gordon Dr Vernon is onto a good thing; we could do with some more - Oxford Times Hilarious - Titbits Thoroughly delightful - Fresno Bee Delightfully funny - Sunday Advocate, Baton Rouge For entertainment, a chapter or two before bedtime is just what the doctor ordered - Sacromento Bee Does for British GPs what Herriot has done for vets - Booklist Hilarious - Grimsby Evening Telegraph Very funny - Citizen, Gloucester Genuinely funny - South Wales Echo Wise, funny, sad and heartwarming - Chattanooga Times Good fun - Homes and Gardens Jolly good reading - Publishers Weekly Views the human species he treats with much the same affection, compassion and humour as Herriot brings to the animal world - Cleveland Plain Dealer Sometimes serious, sometimes hilarious - Lancashire Evening Post Will amuse, amaze and entertain - Yorkshire Post etc etc

Do Not Go Gentle. Go to Paris.: Travels of an Uncertain Woman of a Certain Age


Gail Schilling - 2019
    So begins the journey through France of an optimistic, infinitely curious, 62-year-old woman, who seeks to ransom her self-confidence and learn how to age. Deftly weaving scenic description with sketches of feisty Frenchwomen and flashbacks of older women she has admired, Gail draws wisdom from people and places that have gracefully endured the passing years. By the time she reaches the Mediterranean village that once existed only on her calendar, she feels revitalized. Her refreshed self-concept takes a hit, however, when her beloved proves fickle and a train strike maroons her on the edge of the sea. By the end of her journey, Gail recognizes the joie de vivre beneath the wrinkles of bygone beauty in French women. Now she awakens to her own joy of living and finds that it has no expiration date.

Staunch


Eleanor Wood - 2020
    How did she get here?Truthfully, it could be for any one of the below reasons, if not all combined:• Stepmum dying/Stepdad leaving – family falling apart, subsequent psychotic break; both parents now on third marriage• Breaking up with J after 12 years – breaking up a whole life, a whole fucking universe – for reasons that may have been… misguided?• New boyfriend moving in immediately, me insisting ‘it’s not a rebound!’ even after everyone has stopped listening, being cited in his messy divorce, him being sectioned, then breaking up with me• Going into therapy after dating a potentially violent, certainly threatening, narcissist (the most pertinent point of which should be noted: I did not break up with him – he ghosted me)How to address this situation? Take a trip to India with your octogenarian nan and two great aunts of course. The perfect, if somewhat unusual, distraction from Eleanor’s ongoing crisis.But the trip offers so much more than Eleanor could ever have hoped for.Through the vivid and worldly older women in her life, she learns what it means to be staunch in the face of true adversity.

From the Heart


Kym Marsh - 2010
    By the time she was 21, she was a single mum with two very young children, David and Emily, and it was a real struggle to make ends meet.But Kym had always dreamt of performing and even though the odds were stacked against her, she was determined to make her dream a reality. One day she auditioned for a new TV show called Popstars and her life changed forever.Kym now stars in the nation's favourite soap, Coronation Street. But her life off-screen hasn't been easy. She reflects on her marriage to Jack Ryder and how hard she tried to make it work. Kym found new love with Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas and after tragically losing their first baby Archie in 2009, the couple were over the moon to welcome little Polly Lomas into the world earlier this year.Entertaining, funny and incredibly honest, From the Heart is a fantastic read all about how sometimes the best things happen in life when you refuse to give up hope.