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Visualise: Think, Feel, Perform Like the Top 1% by Maya Raichoora

Do you know how to manage your emotions? Do you know how to rewire your brain to be more confident? Can you reach your goals without burning out? 

Visualisation is a neurological mental training technique that rewires the brain using your thoughts and imagination for a deliberate outcome. 

It has been used by elite athletes and performers for decades and now #1 visualisation expert Maya Raichoora will teach you the five visualisation techniques to retrain your brain.  In just 7-10 minutes a day, you can take control of the way you think, feel and perform.

Visualise

Think, Feel, Perform Like the Top 1%

by Maya Raichoora

Hardback non-fiction / Rider Books, Ebury / 27 March 2025 / £16.99

FIVE VISUALISATION TECHNIQUES TO MASTER YOUR MIND, BUILD CONFIDENCE AND ENHANCE PERFORMANCE

We all have habits, thoughts and behaviours that hold us back from reaching our fullest potential. In Visualise, Maya Raichoora shows you how to harness the power of visualisation to rewire and retrain your brain so you can take control of the way you think, feel and perform.

 Drawing on neuroscience, sports psychology, the author’s personal experience and compelling case studies, this book presents five tangible and easy-to-implement visualisation techniques that will help you boost your productivity, achieve your goals and create the best version of yourself. If the best athletes in the world can use it, why can’t we?

ABOUT Maya Raichoora

Maya Raichoora is one of the UK’s leading mental fitness and visualisation experts. She is an award-winning entrepreneur, founder and CEO of Remap Mental Fitness and host of monthly Mental Fitness Live.

 Maya has also just signed as Nike’s first ever mental fitness and visualisation trainer. Day to day she works with global companies like Amex, LEGO, PWC and Puig. Because of her unique expertise and experience, she is also a coach to elite athletes, executives and business owners. 

 Maya has a decade of experience mastering the technique of visualisation and is on a mission to share it with others. As a two-time TEDx speaker and public figure, her story and expertise has the power to inspire, empower and educate the masses. She currently reaches 10 million people online each month. Maya lives in London and is available for interview, features and events. Follow Maya on instagram at @maya.mental.fitness

Talking points / feature ideas:

  • Maya’s personal story – how her mindset and visualisation techniques helped her reframe the management of her chronic pain

  • From the changing rooms at Wimbledon to the sidelines of premier league football matches, how Maya coaches athletes to succeed

  • From Tiger Woods and Mo Salah to Walt Disney and Nikola Tesla - the science behind visualising your goals to achieve success – and how it will re-wire your brain

  • The potential power of Negative Visualisation and why ‘always think positive’ is a myth

  • How to build a visualisation habit

  • The scientific power of self-belief 

  • Why visualisation is the new manifesting

  • Visualisation versus meditation, mindfulness and manifestation

  • Mental health versus Mental Fitness, and why it’s crucial to train our minds as well as our bodies

  • Why high performance is not just about achieving extraordinary results, it is about process, sustainability and balance

  • How to use visualisation techniques in your relationships, to reduce stress and manage tricky conversations

The 5 Techniques:

  • Process: Mentally rehearsing a task to make it faster/easier/smarter. E.g. a golf swing, rehearsing your to-do list, public speaking.

  • Creative: Using visualisation to make an emotion/feeling/sensation tangible. This is extremely beneficial for managing emotions, reducing pain and working on a cellular level.

  • Negative: Visualising the worst-case scenario/challenges to help you feel more prepared and motivated. This one is used with caution. Included in this is the death bed visualisation which helps you to make life-changing decisions.

  • Explorative/Receptive: This is where there is no specific goal or outcome, you are using your mind like a whiteboard. Used by the likes of Walt Disney/Nikola Tesla – it is great for creating content, ideas and pursuing goals.

  • Outcome: Mentally rehearsing the results in advance. When repeated, this rewires the brain and increases motivation.

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

I Was There: Dispatches from a Life in Rock and Roll By Alan Edwards (Paperback)

*Out now in paperback*

Alan Edwards is the godfather of modern music PR, whose stellar list of clients has ranged over the years from David Bowie to Amy Winehouse via the Rolling Stones, Blondie, Prince and the Spice Girls and, outside of music, David Beckham and Naomi Campbell – now he tells his story.

‘A jaw-dropping memoir.’ – The Times

 'An absorbing read . . . Raw, warm and packed with incident' – The Observer

 ‘[a] hugely entertaining memoir’ – The Independent

 ‘Gossipy, insightful and a whole lot of fun.’ – The Telegraph

 ‘Deliciously candid…[an] extraordinary new memoir’ – The Express

 ‘If Edwards played at Glastonbury, he’d be in the Sunday afternoon ‘legends slot’’ - Number 1 Entertainment PR in the ‘UK Power Book 2024’, PR Week

I Was There:

Dispatches from a Life in Rock and Roll

By Alan Edwards

Simon & Schuster / PB / 15 February 2025 / £9.99

I Was There traces Edwards’ career from the thriving punk scene of ’70s London, which inspired him to set up his own PR company, through his work with acts such as Blondie and the Rolling Stones, his collaboration with David Bowie over nearly four decades, his move into the pop world with the Spice Girls, and beyond.

Along the way, we’re treated to all the entertaining tales of debauchery and rock-star antics you might expect, but more uniquely we’re privy to Edwards’ fascinating observations about the brilliant artists he has worked with, and what makes them tick. We also get a front-row seat to the rise of PR as a major force in British society, from the seven-figure media deal Edwards brokered for the Beckhams’ wedding, to the role of spin in the New Labour government.

Even as Edwards grows into the consummate PR, playing a crucial background role in the lives and careers of some of the world’s biggest stars, he retains a powerful sense of being an outsider – never forgetting how lucky he is to look back on decades of music and culture and say, ‘I was there’.

Feature ideas and talking points:

  • Entertainment PR in the beginning - a cottage industry that used Hollywood publicists as a blueprint

  • The British media then, now and the future

  • On the road with celebrities – being mentored by Mick Jagger; touring the Sistine Chapel with David Bowie; playing football with Beckham; dealing with the Mob in the US; playing Russian roulette with a Hells Angel in Amsterdam; introducing Shakira to Tony Blair and chatting about Bowie with Bill Clinton

  • Working with some of the biggest black music legends of all time - Teddy Pendergrass, Luther Vandross, Janet and Michael Jackson and Prince - and racism in the media  

  • Involvement with reggae, and playing football with Bob Marley

  • The influence of Punk

  • Pioneering the worldwide stadium tour - how The Rolling Stones, and then Bowie, created a whole new industry

  • Finding a ‘family’ with the Spice Girls, and brokering the famous £1million OK deal for Posh and Becks’ wedding

Alan Edwards is the founder and CEO of public relations firm The Outside Organisation which has represented an eclectic range of clients including the biggest music stars on the planet, corporations and brands, government, royalty, celebrities, charities, events, sports legends and clubs.

Edwards’ 45 year career has seen him work with David Bowie (for nearly four decades), the Who, Victoria and David Beckham, Bon Jovi, Led Zeppelin, Amy Winehouse, Shakira, P Diddy, Britney Spears, Naomi Campbell, the Rolling Stones, Prince, Michael Jackson, Lin Manuel Miranda, Sir Paul McCartney and the Spice Girls, among many others.

Edwards was the third ever inductee to PR Week’s Hall of Fame in 2017, and as of March 2023 has been named the magazine’s number one entertainment PR for ten years running. He is a regular contributor to TV and radio, and has fronted programmes in the Music Moguls and Hits, Hype and Hustle series for the BBC.  In 2015 he staged his own show at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, called “Always Print the Myth: PR and the Modern Age”. Among the contributors were Bob Geldof and Alastair Campbell.

“At times in my career I’ve felt like a foreign correspondent, bag packed and always ready to fly off to the next conflict zone. I realised early on that I was a witness to rock and roll history – I was always writing notes on scraps of paper, airline tickets or the backs of my hands. But it was only years later, when I finally sat down to make sense of it all, that I realised I had wandered through some of the most incredible moments in the last half-century of culture.”
— Alan Edwards

‘A brilliant book by a brilliant man.’ - Dylan Jones

 ‘A beautiful, warm, jaw-dropping, once-in-a-lifetime, lifting-the-stone guide to a secret world…I loved it.’- Tony Parsons

 ‘Alan is a master of intrigue and suspense . . . An absorbing read’ - Hugh Cornwell

‘Frank, fascinating and funny.’ - John Niven

‘For anyone interested in the workings of the media and celebrity, from the 70s the present day, this book is a must read.’  -  Roger Daltrey

‘Far more than just another music book. It gives a real insight into media and PR, what really happens as opposed to what we may think happened!’ - Alastair Campbell

‘Alan Edwards [is] a wonderful storyteller!’ - Debbie Harry

‘An exhilarating account from the man who shaped modern music PR as we know it. Entertaining and educational in equal measure.’ - Yomi Adegoke

‘Alan Edwards is a class act: observant, attentive, always in the right place at the right time: I Was There tells you how.’ - Jon Savage

‘Thank you for the smiles, the laughs, the flood of memories… and the soul you put into I Was There.  I felt such warmth in your book.  The rush and challenges of working with your heroes is such a wonderful and sometimes heartbreaking roller-coaster.  You brought it all back to me in technicolour.’  – Cameron Crowe

‘A fascinating book… such interesting stories…If you love music you should definitely read this book…’ - Nihal, BBC Radio 5

‘a master of page-turning readability ... an insider's view of operating inside the world of David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, Paul McCartney and a gaggle of A+ listers' **** - Mojo

 ‘A giddy, gleeful ride through five decades of working with some of the biggest names on the planet.’ - The Sunday Post

 ‘PR guru Alan Edwards has myriad fascinating tales of an eventful life…[He] is a consummate storyteller with some insights into what makes rock stars tick.’ – The Ham & High 

‘fascinating… loaded with showbiz…strongly recommended… Fans of Bowie, Blondie, Prince and The Stones in particular won’t want to miss this for insight into what made those acts tick and how they relate to the media.’ – Louder Than War

For further information or to request an interview or event, please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts by Oliver Burkeman

“Full of wisdom and comfort…a really important book about embracing truth and reality which will help a lot of people leave their fantasies and dive into real life”
— Chris Van Tulleken , author of Ultra-Processed People
“Oliver Burkeman has a way of giving you the most unexpected productivity advice exactly when you need it”
— Mark Manson, author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck.
“Meditations for Mortals offers a practical path toward personal transformation … A must-read”
— Cal Newport, author of Slow Productivity

Meditations for Mortals:

Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts

by Oliver Burkeman
Hardback / 12 September 2024 / Vintage

Four Thousand Weeks, Oliver Burkeman’s breakout international bestseller, touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of readers. Inspired and moved by Burkeman’s investigation into how to live unblinkingly in the face of our limited time on earth, some of them changed their lives: they made big decisions to rethink careers, relationships, priorities, and misguided assumptions about productivity.

Meditations for Mortals takes us on a liberating journey towards a more meaningful life – one that begins not with fantasies of the ideal existence, but with the reality in which we actually find ourselves.

Addressing the fundamental questions about how to live, it offers a powerful new way to take action on what counts: a guiding philosophy of life Oliver Burkeman calls ‘imperfectionism’. How can we embrace our non-negotiable limitations? Or make good decisions when there’s always too much to do? What if purposeful productivity were often about letting things happen, not making them happen?

Reflecting on ideas drawn from philosophy, religion, literature, psychology, and self-help, Burkeman explores practical tools and shifts in perspective. The result is a bracing challenge to much familiar advice, and a profound yet entertaining crash course in living more fully.

To be read either as a four-week ‘retreat of the mind’ or devoured in one or two sittings, Meditations for Mortals will be a source of solace and inspiration, and an aid to a saner, freer, and more enchantment-filled life. In anxiety-inducing times, it is rich in truths we have never needed more.

ABOUT OLIVER Burkeman

Oliver Burkeman is the author of the Sunday Times bestselling Four Thousand Weeks and The Antidote, and for many years wrote a popular weekly column on psychology for the Guardian, 'This Column Will Change Your Life'. His work has also appeared in the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Psychologies and New Philosopher.

He has a devoted following for his writing on productivity, mortality, the power of limits, and building a meaningful life in an age of bewilderment. For more information - oliverburkeman.com

Selected Praise for Four Thousand Weeks

 'Perfectly pitched somewhere between practical self-help and philosophical quest' - Observer

'Full of such sage and sane advice, delivered with dry wit and a benevolent tone' - Guardian

'Life is finite. You don't have to fit everything in... Read this book and wake up to a new way of thinking and living’ - Emma Gannon

'Every sentence is riven with gold’ - Chris Evans

'Comforting, fascinating, engaging, inspiring and useful' - Marian Keyes

‘Four Thousand Weeks is a book to read and re-read, to absorb and reflect on. Compassionate, funny and wise, it has not left my mind since I read it. The modern world teaches us to pretend to be immortal - this book is a dip in the cold, clear waters of reality, returning us refreshed and alive.’ - Naomi Alderman, author of The Power

Oliver will be speaking at events around publication:

  • Edinburgh International Festival – 24 August

  • City Screen Picturehouse, York (Waterstones) – 10 September

  • Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights, Bath – 11 September

  • How To Academy (at the Royal Geographical Society) – 12 September

  • Cambridge Literary Festival – 17 September

  • Cheltenham Literary Festival – 8 October

  • Durham Literary Festival – 13 October

  • Wimbledon BookFest – 20 October

  • Toppings, Edinburgh – 6 November

  • Stroud Festival – 7 November

  • Berwins Salon North – 13 February 2025

With more to be confirmed

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

Genius Gut by Dr Emily Leeming

“In an ocean of much needed books on health, I’m so glad I’ve got Dr Emily’s Genius Gut. As a fellow ex private chef, I love how she writes practically and deliciously on food. And as someone who is also always trying to offer suggestions to busy people, I adore the clever BGBGs menu planning reminder - you’ll have to buy the book to find out what that is!” - ”
— Melissa Hemsley
“The gut is the gateway to the brain - and this is the go-to guide. This brilliant book goes into the details of how and what to eat to empower your gut to boost your mood, mental health, resilience to stress and access to intuition.
”
— Dr Tara Swart, neuroscientist

Genius Gut

The Life-Changing Science of Eating for Your Second Brain

By Dr Emily Leeming

Penguin Michael Joseph | 25th July 2024 | Trade paperback | £18.99

10 New Gut-Brain Hacks to Revolutionise Your Energy, Mood and Brainpower

Ever experienced ‘gut feelings’ or ‘butterflies in your stomach’? Turns out there’s real science behind them. Your gut isn’t just a digestive system, it’s a powerhouse - your second brain.

 In new book Genius Gut, microbiome scientist and registered dietitian Dr Emily Leeming explains the ground-breaking new evidence on the relationship between food and mood, unveiling the powerful gut-brain connection…and exciting new links to your gut bacteria.

Understand how the food you eat and the habits surrounding it can elevate your mood, sharpen your focus, and make you feel amazing through the Genius Gut method.

Say goodbye to food-related stress. No more cutting out foods, feeling hungry, or worrying about what you ‘should’ or ‘shouldn’t’ eat. Genius Gut cuts through the nutritional noise to get you to achieve a healthy balance - without restriction and with plenty of science-backed tips.

Dr Emily has translated complex science into 10 actionable gut-brain hacks to boost your health, mood, and brainpower. Packed with ready-to-go tips and expert advice, Genius Gut is your ultimate ally for everyday gut (and brain) health that will make the world of difference.

“An essential and refreshing read.”
— Joshua Fletcher, the Anxiety Therapist and author of And How Does That Make You Feel?
“Apart from being an exceptional academic, Emily’s talent and passion for disseminating the science into digestible nuggets is second to none. I devoured this book.
”
— Alana Macfarlane, author of The Gut Stuff
“Dr Emily Leeming masterfully distils emerging and complex science into easy and actionable reading, dispelling common myths along the way. Everyone should own a copy!”
— Angela Foster, High Performance Health Podcast
“This truly is a gut health bible. Emily’s storytelling in this book about the gut breaks down everything you need to know into easily digestible tips, tricks, and recommendations, delving into the science to separate facts from fads. It’s a comprehensive go-to guide for anyone looking to improve their gut health with no-nonsense advice, all backed by science.”
— Kaitlin Colucci, gut health dietitian
“With so much conflicting health advice out there, this book stands out as a beacon of clarity. Emily expertly debunks common health myths, simply explains complex ideas and tells you exactly how to use food to boost your mood, health and brainpower! A definitive guide!”
— Dr Sophie Mort, Clinical Psychologist and Sunday Times bestselling author of A Manual For Being Human
“Genius Gut demystifies the science of gut-brain signalling and offers a wealth of practical solutions for individuals hoping to increase their overall wellbeing”
”
— Prof. John Cryan, Neuroscientist & Co-Author of The Psychobiotic Revolution

Dr Emily Leeming PhD MSc RD is a microbiome scientist, registered dietitian, and chef. She is a Research Fellow at King’s College London. Dr Emily writes for The Daily Mail and frequently appears in media outlets such as BBC Radio 4, The Sunday Times, The Telegraph, and The Guardian. She authors the popular weekly Substack newsletter Second Brain and regularly gives talks, translating new research findings into actionable everyday advice. Genius Gut is her first book.

www.emilyleeming.com
Substack newsletter - Second Brain           
Instagram - @dremilyleeming

Dr Emily Leeming - Credit: Breeana Dunbar

Tips, stats and hacks…

  • Your gut microbiome influences every aspect of your health and has the capacity to signal to your brain influencing your mood and how well you think.

  • Your thoughts and moods can influence the biology of the rest of your body.

  • Children - Scientists have been able to predict whether a two-year-old child is likely to have early symptoms of anxiousness if the mum had a less diverse gut microbiome during her third trimester. In the microbiome of children from two months to ten years old, differences in gut bacteria have been related to both how well they think and the size of multiple parts of the brain.

  • Your gut bacteria are a key factor in healthy ageing, and they influence your immune systems response, for better or worse.

  • Male Bias - only 0.5% of neuroscience research is female focussed, and 2% of all medical research.

  • Sex hormones influence your microbiome and vice versa – for women when your oestrogen levels are high your microbiome tends to be more diverse, with lower diversity of bacteria in menopause and later life.

  • Research shows that antibiotic use is linked to early puberty in girls, but not boys.

  • Menopause - Women in Asia tend to experience fewer menopause symptoms than Western women, and this could be down to their gut microbiome.

  • Neurodiversity and gut microbiome - we don’t yet know if ADHD and Autism are partly caused by the gut microbiome, but research does highlight that the microbiome might be relevant in ADHD and Autism.

  • Importance of fibre – if starved of fibre bacteria chew through our inner lining of mucus to reach our skin cells, triggering a red alert to our immune system. Our gut-barrier lining becomes inflamed, damaged, and susceptible to ‘bad’ bacteria leaking from the gut into our circulation. The connection between fibre and your health is powerful - it’s linked to a 30 per cent lower risk of death.

  • The science behind current advice to eat '30 plants a week for your gut microbiome' is surprisingly weak - it's based on one small part of a large study. It's not the new '5 a day' it's being proclaimed to be, but diversity in your diet is still important. You can eat more diverse for your gut bacteria by thinking of 5 colours of fruit and veg and the BGBGs, rather than stressing about hitting the 30 plants a week target that can be expensive and cause food waste.

  • Air pollution has been shown to change the make-up of the gut microbiome to produce dangerous metabolites, disrupting the gut barrier lining and triggering excess inflammation.  Air pollution can also be linked to behavioural changes, mental health issues and neurodegenerative diseases.

  • Loneliness is a huge problem for our gut microbiome - we get new bacteria into our gut microbiome from those we interact with - sharing bacteria back and forth when we hug, shake hands and kiss. Those who are lonely tend to have lower diversity of gut bacteria, often linked with poor health.

  • Certain gut bacteria are thought to be involved in the release of oxytocin, potentially influencing how social you are. Human studies have found links between gut bacteria and personality traits like how conscientious you are and how much empathy you have.

  • Your gut bacteria influence how your body makes your ‘happy' hormone serotonin, and your reward neurotransmitter dopamine - influencing your mood, motivation, and behaviour.

  • IBS - There’s a clear link between the gut and the brain in IBS. Stress often triggers symptoms: 38% of people with IBS have anxiety, and over 27% have depression.
    Non-diet strategies targeting the gut-brain connection, like gut-directed hypnotherapy and ·        yoga have also been shown to be just as effective for managing IBS symptoms as dietary treatment.

  • A number of studies have linked cognitive performance to your gut microbiome, in particular to your learning and memory in both health and disease - there’s early but convincing evidence that Parkinson’s disease begins in the gut not the brain.

  • A healthy balanced diet can significantly help with your mood and anxiety. The Mediterranean diet is also linked with being able to think faster and problem-solve better, and a lower risk of cognitive decline and dementia. People who eat more fibre tend to perform far better in cognitive tests, involving memory and problem solving.

  • People experience low mood on a continuum towards depression. People with depression have a different gut microbiome and tend to have lower levels of short-chain fatty acids, special healthy molecules that are produced by the gut bacteria when you eat fibre, the roughage from plant foods.

  • Importance of nature - As little as ten minutes a day walking or sitting in nature is related to better mental well-being. Being outside is also an opportunity for your gut bacteria. One teaspoon of soil contains more microbes than there are humans in the world.

  • Habits - Small, easy changes are the secret to success. We have the power to rewire our own brains, forming new neural pathways by repeating actions over and over again until it becomes natural and easy.

Genius Gut Method Hacks

  • Make half your plate veggies
    Veggies are bright, colourful, packed with flavour and textures; they also contain the double whammy of fibre and polyphenols, rocket fuel for your gut bacteria. They’re proven to make you happier too!
    Having two or more servings of veggies a day is linked to having the cognitive age of someone five years younger in later life.

  • Go for the colourful 5
    A more diverse gut microbiome is linked to better health, and for those with certain gut bacteria – with better emotional well-being.
    Try mixed bags of stir fry veg; mixed bags of salad leaves; mixed frozen vegetables; frozen forest fruits; mixed bags of nuts and sees; cans of mixed beans…

  • Have your dinner early
    Eating at regular times and early before bed (and ideally in an eating window of ten hours) can help in sleeping better at night, being less likely to feel hungry; and is linked to more energy, better mood, higher diversity of gut bacteria, better blood sugar and fat control, and improved blood pressure.

  • Oily fish twice a week
    Regular fish eaters tend to have more grey matter in key brain regions like the hippocampus and pre-frontal cortex, linked with better cognitive function.

  • Bring on the fibre-protein breakfast
    Breakfast is a prime opportunity to add in some fibre and polyphenols for your gut bacteria; it also seems to make us happier too. Make sure to add in protein too, keeping you feeling fuller and more energised for longer, and dramatically easing sweet and savoury cravings later in the day.

  • Drink Up!

    Two cups of coffee a day is related to better brain health and function than having no coffee or drinking decaf.

For copies and publicity enquiries please contact

Ella on ewatkins@penguinrandomhouse.co.uk or Emma on emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk

I Was There: Dispatches from a Life in Rock and Roll By Alan Edwards

Alan Edwards is the godfather of modern music PR, whose stellar list of clients has ranged over the years from David Bowie to Amy Winehouse via the Rolling Stones, Blondie, Prince and the Spice Girls and, outside of music, David Beckham and Naomi Campbell – now he tells his story.

“Alan wasn’t just there, he was everywhere, as immersed in the world of rock as any of the bold-face names he represented. From glam to punk, from Bowie to Jagger, from small clubs and sweaty pubs to stadiums and enormodomes, Alan saw it all… and wrote it all down. A brilliant book by a brilliant man.”
— Dylan Jones
“A beautiful, warm, jaw-dropping, once-in-a-lifetime, lifting-the-stone guide to a secret world . . . Edwards is an endlessly charming and gently amused companion as he reveals the truth about that lost time when the music was an embarrassment of riches. I loved it. And if the music ever mattered a damn to you, then you will love it too”
— Tony Parsons

I Was There:

Dispatches from a Life in Rock and Roll

By Alan Edwards

Simon & Schuster / HB / 6 June 2024 / £25

I Was There traces Edwards’ career from the thriving punk scene of ’70s London, which inspired him to set up his own PR company, through his work with acts such as Blondie and the Rolling Stones, his collaboration with David Bowie over nearly four decades, his move into the pop world with the Spice Girls, and beyond.

Along the way, we’re treated to all the entertaining tales of debauchery and rock-star antics you might expect, but more uniquely we’re privy to Edwards’ fascinating observations about the brilliant artists he has worked with, and what makes them tick. We also get a front-row seat to the rise of PR as a major force in British society, from the seven-figure media deal Edwards brokered for the Beckhams’ wedding, to the role of spin in the New Labour government.

Even as Edwards grows into the consummate PR, playing a crucial background role in the lives and careers of some of the world’s biggest stars, he retains a powerful sense of being an outsider – never forgetting how lucky he is to look back on decades of music and culture and say, ‘I was there’.

Feature ideas and talking points:

  • The hippy trail - escaping from the suburbs and travelling the hippy trail age 16 years with no contacts, no mobile phone and barely any money and ending up with typhoid, dysentery and weighing under 7 stone

  • Entertainment PR in the beginning - a cottage industry that used Hollywood publicists as a blueprint

  • The British media then, now and the future

  • On the road with celebrities – being mentored by Mick Jagger; touring the Sistine Chapel with David Bowie; playing football with Beckham; dealing with the Mob in the US; playing Russian roulette with a hells angel in Amsterdam; introducing Shakira to Tony Blair and chatting about Bowie with Bill Clinton

  • Working with some of the biggest black music legends of all time - Teddy Pendergrass, Luther Vandross, Janet and Michael Jackson and Prince - and racism in the media  

  • Involvement with reggae, and playing football with Bob Marley

  • The influence of Punk

  • US coast to coast road trip adventures with punk star Hazel O’Connor, generating ideas to follow the hit movie Breaking Glass

  • Pioneering the worldwide stadium tour - how The Rolling Stones, and then Bowie, created a whole new industry

  • Finding a ‘family’ with the Spice Girls, and brokering the famous £1million OK deal for Posh and Becks’ wedding

Alan Edwards is the founder and CEO of public relations firm The Outside Organisation which has represented an eclectic range of clients including the biggest music stars on the planet, corporations and brands, government, royalty, celebrities, charities, events, sports legends and clubs.

Edwards’ 45 year career has seen him work with David Bowie (for nearly four decades), the Who, Victoria and David Beckham, Bon Jovi, Led Zeppelin, Amy Winehouse, Shakira, P Diddy, Britney Spears, Naomi Campbell, the Rolling Stones, Prince, Michael Jackson, Lin Manuel Miranda, Sir Paul McCartney and the Spice Girls, among many others.

Edwards was the third ever inductee to PR Week’s Hall of Fame in 2017, and as of March 2023 has been named the magazine’s number one entertainment PR for nine years running. He is a regular contributor to TV and radio, and has fronted programmes in the Music Moguls and Hits, Hype and Hustle series for the BBC.  In 2015 he staged his own show at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London, called “Always Print the Myth: PR and the Modern Age”. Among the contributors were Bob Geldof and Alastair Campbell.

“At times in my career I’ve felt like a foreign correspondent, bag packed and always ready to fly off to the next conflict zone. I realised early on that I was a witness to rock and roll history – I was always writing notes on scraps of paper, airline tickets or the backs of my hands. But it was only years later, when I finally sat down to make sense of it all, that I realised I had wandered through some of the most incredible moments in the last half-century of culture.”
— Alan Edwards

For further information or to request an interview or event, please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

HIP-HOP IS HISTORY BY QUESTLOVE WITH BEN GREENMAN

WHITE RABBIT TO PUBLISH

HIP-HOP IS HISTORY, BY QUESTLOVE WITH BEN GREENMAN

Hip-HOP is History

By QuestLove WITH BEN GREENMAN

White Rabbit / HB / Audio / E-Book / 11 June 2024

Questlove’s Hip-Hop is History has been acquired by Lee Brackstone, Publisher at White Rabbit. Brackstone has acquired UK & Commonwealth rights from Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

This is a book only Questlove could have written: a perceptive and personal reflection on the first half-century of hip-hop.

When hip-hop first emerged in the 1970s, it wasn’t expected to become the cultural force it is today. But for a young Black kid growing up in a musical family in Philadelphia, it was everything. He stayed up late to hear the newest songs on the radio. He saved his money to buy vinyl as soon as it landed. He even started to try to make his own songs. That kid was Questlove, and decades later, he is a six-time Grammy Award–winning musician, an Academy Award–winning filmmaker, a New York Times bestselling author, a producer, an entrepreneur, a cofounder of one of hip-hop’s defining acts (the Roots), and the genre’s unofficial in-house historian.

In this landmark book, Hip-Hop Is History, Questlove skilfully traces the creative and cultural forces that made and shaped hip-hop, highlighting both the forgotten but influential gems and the undeniable chart-topping hits—and weaves it all together with the stories no one else knows. It is at once an intimate, sharply observed story of a cultural revolution and a sweeping, grand theory of the evolution of the great artistic movement of our time. And Questlove, of course, approaches it with not only the encyclopaedic fluency and passion of an obsessive fan but also the expertise and originality of an innovative participant.

Hip-hop is history, and also his history.

Academy Award-winning filmmaker, drummer, DJ, producer, director, culinary entrepreneur, New York Times best-selling author, and member of The Roots – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, is the unmistakable heartbeat of Philadelphia’s most influential hip-hop group. He is the Musical Director for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where his beloved Roots crew serves as house band. Beyond that, this 6-time GRAMMY Award winning musician's indisputable reputation has landed him musical directing positions for everyone from D'Angelo to Jay-Z. Questlove made his directorial debut with the Academy Award winning feature documentary Summer of Soul. The movie broke the record for the highest-selling documentary to come out of Sundance, and it has since gone on to win “Best Feature Documentary” at the 2022 Academy Awards, “Best Documentary” at the 2022 British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) and “Best Music Film” at the 2022 Grammy Awards, as well as a Peabody Award. In addition, Summer of Soul was crowned the “Best Movie of 2021” by The New York Times and included among the “best of the year” by The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, TIME Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone and more. Outside of Summer of Soul, Questlove partnered together with Black Thought of The Roots to launch a production company, Two One Five Entertainment. Together, the pair announced a first-look deal with Universal Television to develop scripted and non-scripted programming. In 2022, the company executive produced the acclaimed feature documentary Descendant about the historic discovery of The Clotilda—the last known slave ship to arrive in America illegally transporting enslaved Africans. The documentary, which made its world premiere at Sundance in 2022, was acquired by Netflix and Higher Ground—President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company. The film earned an impressive three nominations for “Best Documentary Feature,” “Best Director,” and “Best Historical Documentary” and took home the award for “Best Historical Documentary” at the 2022 Critics Choice Documentary Awards. It also received a nomination for “Outstanding Documentary” for the 2023 NAACP Image Awards and was also named one of the “Top 5 Documentaries” of 2022 by the National Board of Review. Questlove’s web series, Quest for Craft, produced by Two One Five and launched in partnership with the single malt whiskey brand, The Balvenie, took home a Webby Award in 2023. Up next, Questlove will make his feature film directing debut with a live-action hybrid reimagining of The Aristocats for Walt Disney Studios. Two One Five is set to produce the film alongside Olive Bridge. Questlove has written multiple books, including the New York Times bestsellers Mo’ Meta Blues, Creative Quest, Music is History, and The Rhythm of Time, as well as the GRAMMY nominated audio books Music Is History and Creative Quest. Expanding his literary endeavors, in 2023 he launched his own book imprint, AUWA Books, within MCD Books, a publishing division of Farrar, Straus and Giroux. The imprint will publish both nonfiction and fiction on a wide range of topics.

Ben Greenman is a New York Times bestselling author and New Yorker contributor who has written both fiction and nonfiction. His novels and short-story collections include The Slippage and Superbad. He has been Questlove's collaborator on a series of books, including Mo’ Meta Blues, Creative Quest, and Music Is History, and he has written memoirs with Sly Stone, George Clinton, and Brian Wilson. His writing has appeared in numerous publications.

Publisher Lee Brackstone said: ‘If you had to choose any practitioner and writer in the world to write a personal history of hip hop, arguably the greatest art form of the late twentieth century, it would be Questlove of The Roots. Written to recognise the 50th anniversary of hip hop’s birth in the Bronx, Hip Hop is History is a landmark publication for White Rabbit, a book that will surely become the canonical work on the genre, its origins, many mutations and superstars. This book will be in print for decades, enrich your musical lexicon, remind you of artists you loved but have forgotten, and introduce you to pioneers you’d heard of but perhaps neglected. A masterpiece.’

All press enquiries should be directed to:

Emma Finnigan emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk , Sarah Bennie sarah@sarahbennie.com or Francesca Pearce francesca.pearce@orionbooks.co.uk

The contact for Questlove’s team is Carleen Donovan carleen@theoriel.co

White Rabbit is dedicated to publishing the most innovative books and voices in music and literature and creating magic from the alchemical reaction where these two things meet. Led by Publisher, Lee Brackstone, White Rabbit publishes titles encompassing memoir, history, fiction, translation, traditional pop culture, lyrics, illustrated books and high-spec limited editions. Since launching in spring 2020, White Rabbit has published several Sunday Times Bestsellers (including the likes of Mark Lanegan’s Sing Backwards and Weep, Carl Cox’s Oh Yes! Oh Yes!, Chris Frantz’s Remain in Love, and Ten Thousand Apologies by Lias Saoudi and Adelle Stripe), and established itself as the go-to destination for books emerging from and celebrating the counter-culture. Feed Your Head!

 The Orion Publishing Group
Where every story matters.

The Orion Publishing Group is one of the UK’s leading publishers. Our mission is to bring the best publishing to the greatest variety of people. Open, agile, passionate and innovative – we believe that everyone will find something they love at Orion.

Founded in 1991, the Orion Publishing Group today publishes under nine main imprints: Gollancz, the UK’s No.1 science fiction and fantasy imprint; Laurence King Publishing, one of the world’s leading publishers of books and gifts on the creative arts; Orion Fiction, a heartland for brilliant commercial fiction; Orion Spring, home of wellbeing and health titles written by passionate celebrities and world-renowned experts; Seven Dials, for the very best commercial non-fiction, beautifully designed and produced; Trapeze for commercial fiction and non-fiction books that start conversations; Phoenix, a bespoke imprint publishing fiction and memoir that combine literary merit and commercial potential; Weidenfeld & Nicolson, one of the most prestigious and dynamic literary imprints in British and international publishing; and White Rabbit, dedicated to publishing the most innovative books and voices in music and literature.

The Orion Publishing Group is part of Hachette UK which is a leading UK trade publishing group.

Environomics By Dharshini David

The perfect introduction to the new green economy: an original, highly accessible tour through a single day from the BBC’s Chief Economics Correspondent

Environomics

How the Green Economy is Transforming Your World

By Dharshini David

Elliott & Thompson / HB / 20 June 2024 / £22

Why might an orangutan care which toothpaste you choose? What does your mobile phone have to do with wind turbines? And can your morning coffee really power a bus?

Economics affects every aspect of our lives, from the clothes on our backs to the bread on our tables and the fuel in our cars. And there are huge changes afoot as the global green revolution sweeps across the globe.

In this vibrant and eye-opening book, economist and broadcaster Dharshini David follows the course of an average day – from the moment we flick on the light in the morning – to reveal the green changes that are already taking place in every aspect of our world. Exploring industries such as energy, food, fashion, technology, manufacturing and finance, she asks what is happening, how quickly, who is driving it all – and what it means for us. Ranging from crucial issues such as sustainability and corporate greenwashing, to global flashpoints such as industrialisation and trade wars, she shows how even the smallest details in our day are part of a much bigger story about where our world is heading.
If you’ve ever wondered what green issues really mean for your day-to-day life, this book is for you.

Dharshini David is the Chief Economics Correspondent for BBC News and Presenter of programmes for Radio 4, including the Business News on the Today Programme. She won the Harold Wincott prize for Audio Journalism in 2023 for her Analysis documentary for Radio 4.

She has worked as an economist for the UK government, on the trading floor for HSBC Investment Bank, advised the Tesco Board about broadcasting and covered the credit crunch from Wall Street. Dharshini is the author of the bestselling book The Almighty Dollar and read Economics at Downing College, Cambridge.

Praise for The Almighty Dollar

‘Original and engaging’ – Joel Hills, ITV News

‘Brilliantly revealing’ – Ian King, Sky News, and Times columnist

‘Readable and illuminating’ – The Bookseller

‘A brilliant book … very, very readable’ – Iain Dale, LBC

Stats and facts…

  • Fossil fuels – coal, oil, gas – account for about 80 per cent of the world’s energy use.

  • Households are responsible for over a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions.

  • Fashion is now the second biggest industrial polluter on the planet - its responsible for up to a tenth of greenhouse gas emissions – more than aviation and shipping combined.

  • Textile production as a whole is estimated to be responsible for about 20 per cent of global clean water pollution. 

  • Despite being the world leader in developing and installing renewables like wind and solar, China burns more coal than the rest of the world put together. 

  • At the height of its building boom, around a third of China’s economic growth came from its property sector. According to think-tank Chatham House, China devoured more cement in the three years between 2010 and 2013 than the US did in the entire twentieth century.

  • Cement currently accounts for 7 per cent of global CO2 emissions and about a quarter of all industry CO2 emissions. 

  • 11 billion tonnes of cargo crosses the seas per year. That’s about 1.5 tonnes per person on average.

  • Multinationals such as Amazon, Ikea and Unilever are among those who’ve signed pledges to only move goods on ships with zero carbon fuel by 2040.

  • In 2002, there were 800 million cars on the road – that is set to reach 2 billion by 2030.

  • Estimates vary but the manufacture of batteries (for electric vehicles) can account for over 7 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions – or over half the total involved in those vehicles’ production.

  • Typically, however, it only takes a year or two of driving for an electric vehicle to close the emissions gap with its traditional rival.

  • Research shows that switching to a ‘green pension’ can be over twenty times as effective at reducing your carbon footprint as giving up flying, going veggie and switching energy providers.

  • Charity Rainforest Rescue claims that the equivalent of 300 football fields of forest are cleared and burnt every hour in Indonesia, to make way for palm oil trees. These are some of the world’s most biodiverse lands that are being destroyed; habitats for already endangered species, such as orangutans and Sumatran elephants. 

  • Meat and dairy production accounts for 14.5 per cent of the world’s greenhouse gases.

For further information or to request an interview or event, please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

Question 7 By Richard Flanagan

Love, family and nuclear fission collide in a genre-busting return from Booker Prize winner Richard Flanagan

Question 7
By Richard Flanagan

Chatto & Windus / hardback, ebook, audio / 30 May 2024

‘Question 7 is a profoundly moving love song for the writer’s parents, a forensic excavation, a lament, a confession, a jig-saw puzzle in which Hiroshima connects to HG Wells, and the Martians colonise Tasmania. We are all competitive, of course, so this is not an easy thing to say: but Question 7 may just be the most significant work of Australian art in the last 100 years.’ - Peter Carey, Sydney Morning Herald – ‘Best Reads of the Year’ 

‘Richard Flanagan’s Question 7 is the strangest and most beautiful memoir I’ve ever read. Magnificent.’ - Tim Winton, Sydney Morning Herald – ‘Best Reads of the Year’ 

‘Sometimes a book is an experience felt almost in the body. Richard Flanagan’s is such a book. It holds a life between its covers and while you read, it holds you too. A celebration of all life, it is also a reckoning with the 20th century and what it revealed about us to ourselves. It is intimate, beautiful, unsparing and profound. It nudges at eternity, and then comes back home, to decency and love.’ - Anna Funder, Sydney Morning Herald – ‘Best Reads of the Year’

The summer after I died, I returned as a ghost

‘Beginning by Japan’s Inland Sea and ending by a river in Tasmania, Richard Flanagan’s astonishing new book Question 7 is about the choices we make about love and the chain reaction that follows.

By way of H. G. Wells and Rebecca West’s affair through 1930s nuclear physics to Flanagan's father working as a slave labourer near Hiroshima when the atom bomb is dropped, this daisy chain of events reaches fission when Flanagan as a young man finds himself trapped in a rapid on a wild river not knowing if he is to live or to die.

The title of this book takes from a riddle by Chekhov, which asks, insistently: who loves longer? Flanagan answers with a passionate song to his island home and his parents, and to the history that delivered him to his place. A hypnotic melding of memory and history, science and dream he shows, dazzlingly, how our lives so often arise out of the stories of others and the stories we invent about ourselves.

Memory is as much an act of creation as it is of testimony… one without the other is a tree without its trunk, wings without a bird, a book without its story. 

“A brilliant meditation on the past of one man and the history that coalesced in his existence.... Flanagan explores old, razed and sacred ground... the Japanese death railway, white Australia’s Black history, the convict and settler bloodlines of fertile Tasmanian country, and the cold rapids of the mighty Franklin River.... Question 7 is Flanagan’s finest book…the psychological and philosophical sweep of Tolstoy... tuned as finely as W.G. Sebald’s Rings of Saturn.”
— Tara June Winch, Guardian (Australia)

Richard Flanagan has been described as ‘one of our greatest living novelists’ (Washington Post). His books have received numerous honours and are published in forty-two countries. He won the 2014 Man Booker Prize for The Narrow Road to the Deep North and the Commonwealth Prize for Gould’s Book of Fish. A rapid on the Franklin River is named after him.  

Celebrated film director Justin Kurzel (The True History of the Kelly Gang, Macbeth) is adapting The Narrow Road to the Deep North for television. It is now in production, starring Jacob Elordi (Saltburn, Priscilla) and Ciarán Hinds (Belfast, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy).

Question 7 was published by Knopf in Australia in October 2023 and is being hailed as Flanagan’s most brilliant work yet and has been riding high in the Australian bestseller lists.

Richard Flanagan will be visiting the UK on publication and is available for interview please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

DIVINE MIGHT: Goddesses in Greek Myth by Natalie Haynes - Paperback

'Natalie Haynes is the nation's great muse' - Adam Rutherford

‘Haynes is a master of her trade... She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories.’ – Daily Telegraph

‘Natalie Haynes is beyond brilliant.’ – Amanda Foreman

‘[Haynes] deftly drags the classics into the modern world.’ – Kate Atkinson

‘[Haynes is] the great champion of women in Greek myth…One of the delights of the book is that Haynes reacquaints us with forgotten goddesses.’ – Daily Mail on Divine Might

 ‘another beauty of a book…her zingy, lively style will bring these myths to a new, younger audience, especially girls…One of the great joys in Haynes’s work is her use of ancient art and poetry to explain the stories of these goddesses.’ - Herald on Divine Might

‘Natalie Haynes’ Divine Might will shed a new light on the goddesses whose stories have been told countless times, but perhaps never in this way…a powerful read that really opens a new dialogue on the Greek goddesses and will leave you feeling like you understand their stories in a way you haven’t before.’ - Independent on Divine Might

Divine Might

Goddesses in Greek Myth

by Natalie Haynes
Paperback / 2 May 2024 / Picador / £10.99

In Divine Might Natalie Haynes, author of the bestselling Pandora’s Jar, returns to the world of Greek myth and this time she examines the role of the goddesses.

We meet Athene, who sprang fully formed from her father’s head: goddess of war and wisdom, guardian of Athens. We run with Artemis, goddess of hunting and protector of young girls (apart from those she decides she wants as a sacrifice). Here is Aphrodite, goddess of sex and desire – there is no deity more determined and able to make you miserable if you annoy her. And then there’s the queen of all the Olympian gods: Hera, Zeus’s long-suffering wife, whose jealousy of his dalliances with mortals, nymphs and goddesses lead her to wreak elaborate, vicious revenge on those who have wronged her.

We also meet Demeter, goddess of agriculture and mother of the kidnapped Persephone, we sing the immortal song of the Muses and we warm ourselves with Hestia, goddess of the hearth and sacrificial fire. The Furies carry flames of another kind – black fires of vengeance for those who incur their wrath.

 These goddesses are as mighty, revered and destructive as their male counterparts. Isn’t it time we looked beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within?

ABOUT NATALIE HAYNES

Natalie Haynes is a writer and broadcaster. She is the author of novels THE AMBER FURY, shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize; THE CHILDREN OF JOCASTA, a feminist retelling of the Oedipus and Antigone stories; A THOUSAND SHIPS (shortlisted for the Women’s Prize), a retelling of the Trojan War from an all-female perspective and STONE BLIND a re-telling of the Medusa story (long listed for the Women’s Prize); and non-fiction books THE ANCIENT GUIDE TO MODERN LIFE and PANDORA’S JAR about the women in Greek myths. She has written and presented seven series of the BBC Radio 4 show, NATALIES HAYNES STANDS UP FOR THE CLASSICS. In 2015, she was awarded the Classical Association Prize for her work in bringing Classics to a wider audience.

Selected Praise for PANDORA’S JAR

 'Hugely enjoyable and witty' - Guardian

'Haynes is a brilliant classicist as well as a stand-up comedian and with her latest offering, Pandora's Jar, she has effectively written the first textbook codifying this new feminist take on the Greek myths.' - Neil Mackay, Herald

‘Haynes…puts the women of Greek myths on equal footing with the menfolk in an exploration of their stories, motivations and myths. Written in Haynes’ immediately gripping and readable style, we get the stories of Medea – a seriously powerful girl – who ends up betrayed by Jason as well as deep dive into the stories of The Amazons, Penelope and Phaedra to name a few. Both fascinating and incredibly researched if you want to catch up on your Greek myths, this is the place to start.’ - Stylist

‘Beyoncé, Star Trek, Ray Harryhausen ...  the most enjoyable book about Greek myths you will ever read, absolutely brimming with subversive enthusiasm.’ - Mark Haddon

‘Natalie Haynes is beyond brilliant. Pandora’s Jar is a treasure box of classical delights. Never has ancient misogyny been presented with so much wit and style.’ - Amanda Foreman

‘Funny, sharp explications of what these sometimes not-very-nice women were up to, and how they sometimes made idiots of... but read on!’ - Margaret Atwood

Selected Praise for STONE BLIND

'Witty, gripping, ruthless' – Margaret Atwood via Twitter

'Beautiful and moving' – Neil Gaiman

‘A fierce feminist exploration of female rage, written with wit and empathy’ Glamour

‘Haynes’ clever, empathetic writing transforms Medusa from Gorgon into a girl, who’s a victim of the cruel machinations of the gods and of circumstance.’ Red

‘brilliant and compellingly readable.’ Observer

‘feminist, funny and thought provoking.’ Mail on Sunday

‘Stone Blind is inventive and playful. There is a debt to Aristophanes; the depiction of the absurdities of the bickering gods is very funny’ Times

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

This Book May Save Your Life by Dr Karan Rajan

The hilarious, myth-busting survival guide to the human body from the internet’s favourite General Surgeon, Dr Karan Rajan

This Book May Save Your Life

by Dr Karan Rajan

Everyday health hacks to worry less and live better

Hardback non-fiction / 28 December 2023 / Century / £18.99

'When you want to sort medical fact from medical fiction, Dr Karan is your man. This is the only book that will have you laughing and learning in equal measure’ - Dr Julie Smith, bestselling author of Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before

Though the odds are stacked against us, the human body has an extraordinary tendency to survive. In This Book May Save Your Life, Dr Karan Rajan explains the weird and wonderful bodily functions that keep us going and offers practical advice to help you thrive.

Full of everyday health hacks to worry less and live better, it will teach you:

  • The dangers of plucking your nose hairs

  • You untapped natural reflexes to combat stress

  • How to manage pain with simple mind tricks

  • How to slow cognitive decline

  • And why you should never hold in a fart

 

‘I’m here to guide you safely around your body’s biological barbs, traps, slides and pitfalls to improve your quality of life.’ Dr Karan Rajan

'I'll never look at my anus the same way' Hayley Morris, bestselling author of Me Vs Brain

ABOUT DR karan rajan

Dr Karan Rajan is an NHS surgeon and one of the biggest health and science creators on social media, with over 8.5 million followers across his social media channels. His refreshingly frank medical myth-busting and health advice videos combine education, entertainment, and generous servings of dark humour.

Dr Rajan has been featured on news programmes all over the world including BBC Morning Live, This Morning, Good Morning Britain, BBC News, Sky News and national radio, with coverage in the Guardian, Independent, Washington Post, New York Post, Metro, Sun, LADBible and the Daily Mail. A former weekly health columnist for Mail+, Dr Rajan was also a co-presenter on BBC Two’s six-part series Your Body Uncovered

Over the past few years, as well as being a regular advocate of health promotion on behalf of the NHS and the UK government, he has also worked closely with the UN, the WHO and the British Red Cross in an ambassadorial capacity. He is also a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Sunderland Medical School and formerly at Imperial College London. He brings his passion for education, health and science to life in speaking engagements and has delivered keynote speeches and talks at Oxford University, Imperial College London, Birmingham University, Uber, Peloton, TikTok and General Electric.

Dr Karan Rajan is available for interviews, features and events.

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

HOW MIGRATION REALLY WORKS: A Factful Guide to the Most Divisive Issue in Politics by Hein de Haas

An authoritative and myth-busting analysis that tells us why we're wrong about migration. 

How Migration Really Works

A Factful Guide to the Most Divisive Issue in Politics

by Hein de Haas
Hardback / 9 November 2023 / Penguin - Viking / £25

What are we getting so wrong about migration – and why?

Are borders beyond control after being deluged by desperate people in small boats? Are immigrants taking jobs away from native workers? Or do we badly need immigrants to boost economic growth and innovation? As debates on migration have reached fever pitch, so has political and media fearmongering, but what are the facts behind the headlines?

In this ground-breaking and revelatory book, based on over three decades of research, Professor Hein de Haas explodes the myths that politicians, interest groups and media regularly spread about migration. Draining the vitriol from a debate that has poisoned politics for decades, Hein de Haas shows us that global migration is not at an all-time high; climate change will not lead to mass migration; immigration mainly benefits the already wealthy, not workers; and border restrictions have paradoxically produced more migration.

Comparing trends and perspectives from Western ‘destination countries’ (the United Kingdom, United States and in Europe) as well as ‘origin countries’ in Asia and Africa, de Haas equips readers with essential knowledge on migration based on the best evidence and data, enabling us to have better and more informed conversations about the most hot-button issue in politics.

Above all, How Migration Really Works offers a new vision of migration based on facts rather than fears, and a paradigm-altering understanding of this perennially important subject.

ABOUT Hein de Haas

Hein de Haas is Professor of Sociology at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) and Professor of Migration and Development at the University of Maastricht. He formerly taught at the University of Oxford, where he co-founded and co-directed the International Migration Institute (IMI). One of the world’s top migration scholars, he continues to direct IMI from its current home at UvA. He is the lead author of The Age of Migration, a seminal textbook in the field of migration studies. He lives in Amsterdam.

'‘A careful, balanced, and convincing take on one of the most divisive issues of our age. Backed by masses of data, Hein de Haas challenges much of what we think is obvious about migration, systematically busting myths and exposing propaganda from all across the political spectrum’

Ian Morris, author of Why The West Rules – For Now

 ‘Compelling…it engages with the arguments behind the myths…How Migration Really Works ultimately uses its convincing research to ask us to worry less about migration. In doing so, it instead alights upon global inequality as the true cause for concern.’

The World Today, Chatham House

TOP SURPRISING FACTS ABOUT MIGRATION 

1) International migrants only make up 3% of the global population, and refugees represent 5-10% of this number – much smaller than we are led to believe by the media and politicians.

2) Instead of a ‘desperate flight from misery’, migration is generally a deliberate and rational investment in the long-term well-being of families.

3) Labour demand, not inequality or poverty, is the root cause of migration. While wage gaps often motivate people to migrate, most migrants would have stayed home without concrete job opportunities.

4) Rather than taking jobs from native workers, migrants fill vacancies for which not enough local workers are available.

5) The lack of affordable housing, substandard schooling and healthcare are not caused by immigration, but by policies to roll back the welfare state and to defund and privatize government services.

6) There is no evidence that immigration leads to more crime. In fact, crime rates have dropped as immigration has increased. Immigrants – legal and illegal – tend to be equally or less criminal than native-born people.

7) Claims that migration ‘lifts all boats’ reflect elite views and corporate agendas, and conceal the fact that migration mainly benefits the already privileged. Although it is a myth that foreign workers steal jobs or undercut wages, native workers barely reap any economic benefits from immigration.

8) It is an illusion that immigration can reignite growth and innovation in stagnating economies, as high immigration is the result, rather than the cause of, economic success.

9) While measures such as border walls help to create an appearance of control, extraordinarily low levels of labour enforcement prove that politicians are, in practice, willing turn a blind eye towards employment of illegal migrants.

10) There is no left-right divide in immigration policy making. The issue divides political parties internally. On average, right-wing governments do not adopt more restrictive immigration policies compared to left-wing governments.

11) Although inflammatory rhetoric by politicians can embolden nativist groups and racist violence, there is no evidence that public opinion has generally turned against immigration.

12) Smuggling is a reaction to border controls, not the cause of illegal migration. Smugglers deliver a service that migrants are willing to pay for, so that they can cross borders without being caught by abusive state agents, border guards or criminals.

13) Migrant workers mislabelled as trafficking victims resist being ‘rescued’ as this usually implies deportation and loss of income. By criminalizing precarious work but failing to stop abusive employers, anti-trafficking policies have made workers more vulnerable, perpetuating a vicious cycle of abuse, exploitation and stigmatization.

14) Ill-conceived immigration restrictions often backfire by paradoxically producing more migration. The effectiveness of border restrictions is also undermined by pre-emptive ‘now or never’ migration surges.

15) Apocalyptic forecasts of massive South-North climate migration lack any scientific basis. They ignore evidence that most displacement in response to floods, droughts and hurricanes is short-distance and temporary, and that vulnerable populations lack the resources to move over long distances.

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

DIVINE MIGHT: Goddesses in Greek Myth by Natalie Haynes

'Natalie Haynes is the nation's great muse' - Adam Rutherford

‘Haynes is a master of her trade... She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories.’ – Daily Telegraph

‘Natalie Haynes is beyond brilliant.’ – Amanda Foreman

‘[Haynes] deftly drags the classics into the modern world.’ – Kate Atkinson

Divine Might

Goddesses in Greek Myth

by Natalie Haynes
Hardback / 28 September 2023 / Picador / £20

In Divine Might Natalie Haynes, author of the bestselling Pandora’s Jar, returns to the world of Greek myth and this time she examines the role of the goddesses.

We meet Athene, who sprang fully formed from her father’s head: goddess of war and wisdom, guardian of Athens. We run with Artemis, goddess of hunting and protector of young girls (apart from those she decides she wants as a sacrifice). Here is Aphrodite, goddess of sex and desire – there is no deity more determined and able to make you miserable if you annoy her. And then there’s the queen of all the Olympian gods: Hera, Zeus’s long-suffering wife, whose jealousy of his dalliances with mortals, nymphs and goddesses lead her to wreak elaborate, vicious revenge on those who have wronged her.

We also meet Demeter, goddess of agriculture and mother of the kidnapped Persephone, we sing the immortal song of the Muses and we warm ourselves with Hestia, goddess of the hearth and sacrificial fire. The Furies carry flames of another kind – black fires of vengeance for those who incur their wrath.

 These goddesses are as mighty, revered and destructive as their male counterparts. Isn’t it time we looked beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within?

ABOUT NATALIE HAYNES

Natalie Haynes is a writer and broadcaster. She is the author of novels THE AMBER FURY, shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize; THE CHILDREN OF JOCASTA, a feminist retelling of the Oedipus and Antigone stories; A THOUSAND SHIPS (shortlisted for the Women’s Prize), a retelling of the Trojan War from an all-female perspective and STONE BLIND a re-telling of the Medusa story (long listed for the Women’s Prize); and non-fiction books THE ANCIENT GUIDE TO MODERN LIFE and PANDORA’S JAR about the women in Greek myths. She has written and presented seven series of the BBC Radio 4 show, NATALIES HAYNES STANDS UP FOR THE CLASSICS. In 2015, she was awarded the Classical Association Prize for her work in bringing Classics to a wider audience.

Selected Praise for PANDORA’S JAR

 'Hugely enjoyable and witty' - Guardian

‘Agile, rich, subversive, Pandora's Jar proves that the classics are far from dead, and keep evolving with us.' - Madeleine Feeny, Mail on Sunday

'Haynes is a brilliant classicist as well as a stand-up comedian and with her latest offering, Pandora's Jar, she has effectively written the first textbook codifying this new feminist take on the Greek myths.' - Neil Mackay, Herald

‘Haynes…puts the women of Greek myths on equal footing with the menfolk in an exploration of their stories, motivations and myths. Written in Haynes’ immediately gripping and readable style, we get the stories of Medea – a seriously powerful girl – who ends up betrayed by Jason as well as deep dive into the stories of The Amazons, Penelope and Phaedra to name a few. Both fascinating and incredibly researched if you want to catch up on your Greek myths, this is the place to start.’ - Stylist

‘Beyoncé, Star Trek, Ray Harryhausen ...  the most enjoyable book about Greek myths you will ever read, absolutely brimming with subversive enthusiasm.’ - Mark Haddon

‘Natalie Haynes is beyond brilliant. Pandora’s Jar is a treasure box of classical delights. Never has ancient misogyny been presented with so much wit and style.’ - Amanda Foreman

‘Witty, erudite and subversive, this takes the women of Greek myth—the women who are sidelined, vilified, misunderstood or ignored—and puts them centre stage.’ - Samantha Ellis

‘Funny, sharp explications of what these sometimes not-very-nice women were up to, and how they sometimes made idiots of... but read on!’ - Margaret Atwood

Selected Praise for STONE BLIND

'Witty, gripping, ruthless' – Margaret Atwood via Twitter

'Beautiful and moving' – Neil Gaiman

‘A fierce feminist exploration of female rage, written with wit and empathy’ Glamour

‘Haynes’ clever, empathetic writing transforms Medusa from Gorgon into a girl, who’s a victim of the cruel machinations of the gods and of circumstance.’ Red

‘brilliant and compellingly readable.’ Observer

‘feminist, funny and thought provoking.’ Mail on Sunday

‘Stone Blind is inventive and playful. There is a debt to Aristophanes; the depiction of the absurdities of the bickering gods is very funny’ Times

‘With wit, humanity and extraordinary imagination, Haynes breathes life and meaning into myths as she has done so brilliantly before.’ iPaper

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

The Maverick: George Weidenfeld and the Golden Age of Publishing by Thomas Harding

The story of the famed publisher George Weidenfeld, who transformed not only publishing but the culture of ideas, from his struggles as an Austrian-Jewish refugee in London to his rise as a world-renowned literary figure.

‘The Maverick anchors George Weidenfeld as one of the foremost influencers in modern literature and a man who rose from extraordinary circumstances to lead an even more extraordinary life.
A treasure trove of insight and history’

Arianna Huffington

 ‘A fascinating biography of an unlikely cultural hero. I couldn't put it down’

Alan Posener, journalist for Die Welt

 ‘Thomas Harding has doggedly unearthed fascinating and surprising tales from George Weidenfeld's life as he rose from poverty and Nazi persecution to become one of the world's most powerful publishers. Harding reveals a complex personality in a richly told narrative that leaves the reader awed’

Lynn Medford, former editor, Washington Post Magazine

‘George Weidenfeld was a titan of a man, an irresistible character and something of a genius.
This book does him full justice’

Simon Heffer, author of The Age of Decadence and High Minds‘

‘Like George Weidenfeld himself, Thomas Harding's accomplishment is substantial, lively, and full of interest. The Maverick is a fine biography’

Henry Kissinger

The Maverick
George Weidenfeld and the Golden Age of Publishing
Thomas Harding
Weidenfeld & Nicolson / HB / 31 August 2023 / £25, ebook and audio £21.99

After arriving in London just before the Second World War as a penniless and friendless Austrian-Jewish refugee, George Weidenfeld went on to transform not only the world of publishing but the culture of ideas. The books that he published include momentous titles such as Lolita, Double Helix, The Group and The Hedgehog and the Fox, with authors he championed ranging from Joan Didion, Mary McCarthy, Golda Meir and Edna O'Brien to Henry Miller, Harold Wilson, Saul Bellow and Henry Kissinger.

In this first biography, Thomas Harding provides a full, unvarnished and at times difficult history of a complex and fascinating character. Throughout his long career, George Weidenfeld was written about in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Time, Vanity Fair and other publications. Was he, as described by some, the ‘greatest salesperson’, ‘the world’s best networker’, ‘the publisher’s publisher’ and ‘a great intellectual’? Was his lifelong effort to be the world’s most famous host a cover for his desperate loneliness? Who, in fact, was the real George Weidenfeld and how did he rise so successfully within the ranks of London and New York society?

Drawing on author correspondence, internal memos, and other documents buried deep in the secret publishing files of Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Harding crafts a portrait of the publisher’s life that is inextricable from the efforts and intricacies of putting a book into the world. Structured around twenty books associated with George Weidenfeld and intercut with explorations of contemporary concerns such as the right to publish, freedom of speech and separating the art from the artist, The Maverick tells the captivating story behind the life of this iconic publisher.

Covering topics such as democracy, identity, the plight of refugees, globalism, the liberal international order, tension in the Middle East, inter-generational trauma and reconciliation, and dialogue between faiths, the issues that George Weidenfeld faced are still as current and relevant today.

ABOUT ME THOmas harding

Thomas Harding is a bestselling author whose books have been translated into more than sixteen languages. He has written for the Sunday Times, the Washington Post and the Guardian, among other publications. His books include Hanns and Rudolf, which won the JQ-Wingate Prize for Non-Fiction; The House by the Lake, which was shortlisted for the Costa Biography Award; Blood on the Page, which won the Crime Writers’ Association ‘Golden Dagger Award for Non-Fiction’ and White Debt: The Demerara Uprising and Britain’s Legacy of Slavery.

The Infertile Midwife: In Search of Motherhood - A Memoir by Sophie Martin

An insightful, moving memoir, capturing life working as a midwife in a busy NHS hospital at the same time as dealing with experiences of infertility, IVF and loss.

“A vital, heartfelt read for anyone navigating the rough seas of infertility and pregnancy loss.” – LEAH HAZARD

“This beautifully written tender book has for me, captured so much of what I experienced and when women share, it’s incredibly comforting and empowering… I hope [Sophie’s] book – as a medical professional, individual and mother – plays a part in the women’s healthcare revolution that the world so needs.” – MELISSA HEMSLEY

The Infertile Midwife

In Search of Motherhood - A Memoir

by Sophie Martin
Hardback | 31 August 2023 | Hardie Grant | £16.99

As a young married couple, Sophie Martin and her husband spent years trying to conceive. They went through several rounds of IVF, at great expense, and even travelled overseas for treatment, never quite knowing whether they would one day have a family. Alongside this, Sophie was working hard at a job she loved: looking after expectant mothers and newborn babies as a midwife in a busy hospital, where the patients’ daily new additions were a constant reminder of Sophie’s own setbacks in pursuit of motherhood.

The Infertile Midwife is a deeply personal, moving account of chasing something that you want so desperately. It also offers a much-needed look at how society treats infertility – from the language we use to the small talk we make – and the ways in which we can all do more to make things better for hopeful parents. With great warmth and honesty, Sophie shares her experiences of the bursts of hope and moments of great loss, but also the humour, love and joy that can be found in even the darkest places..

ABOUT Sophie Martin

Sophie Martin is a registered midwife and worked in a Central London hospital for ten years before moving to a hospital in Essex. Her wider experience of infertility and baby loss informs her practice and has led to her being approached by organisations such as Emma’s Diary and My Surrogacy Journey to provide a professional overview for them. For the past three years, Sophie has curated and delivered a series of online talks and interviews to coincide with Baby Loss Awareness Week. Her interview with Elizabeth Day on infertility and baby loss was watched 17,500 times.

Sophie lives in Essex with her husband and their young son.

Follow Sophie on @the.infertile.midwife

“Sophie’s words provide a supportive lighthouse of hope for many. She is gifted at starting and facilitating the conversations ensuring those who feel like they sit in the shadows of other people’s celebrations are supported, seen and validated. She holds up a microphone to the stories that need to be heard, generously sharing her own along the way.” ANNA MATHUR

“An important, insightful book for midwives and anyone interested in birth…Well written, deeply personal [it’s] a story that will resonate with many readers. This is an important story to tell, and highlights, also, the importance of language used around birth.” ANNA KENT Midwife, Aid worker, Author of Frontline Midwife

Talking points and feature ideas

  • The importance of language, and changes that should be made within the NHS – including how to talk about medical conditions without portioning blame or shame to the individual.

  • Training and support needed for healthcare professionals around babyloss and infertility.

  • Complex PTSD and support needed for midwives going through babyloss / infertility themselves.

  • Sophie’s story and her drive to become a midwife and how maternity services can have a deep and lasting impact on the experiences of families.

  • How to speak to families who are going through babyloss and infertility, and how to support friends or family who are living through this.

  • IVF and what to expect. What the process entails, both emotionally and physically.

  • Grief, trauma and the effect on the body.

  • How to cope with infertility and babyloss as a family – how men or the non-biological partner may experience loss.

  • Pregnancy after loss and the intense emotions and need for support during this time.

  • The reality of having a child after loss, and reaching bittersweet milestones.

For further information please contact:

EMMA FINNIGAN PR

07870 210468 | emma@emmafinniganpr.co.uk | @emmafinnigan | www.emmafinniganpr.co.uk

Road to Surrender by Evan Thomas

A riveting, immersive account of the agonizing decision to use nuclear weapons against Japan – a crucial turning point in World War II and geopolitical history by New York Times bestselling author
 

Published to coincide with a major Hollywood biopic on Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb

 

“In this meticulously crafted and vivid account, Evan Thomas tells the gripping and terrifying story of the last days of the Second World War in the Pacific. Writing with insight and understanding, he re-creates for us those critical moments when, for better or worse, the decisions, from the dropping of the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki to the Japanese surrender, were made.” - Margaret MacMillan, author of War: How Conflict Shaped Us

Road to Surrender
Three Men and the Countdown to the End of World War II
by Evan Thomas
Hardback / 8 June 2023 / Elliott & Thompson / £20

At 9:20 a.m. on the morning of May 30, General Groves receives a message to report to the office of the secretary of war “at once.” Stimson is waiting for him. He wants to know: has Groves selected the targets yet?

So begins this suspenseful, impeccably researched history that draws on new access to diaries to tell the story of three men who were intimately involved with America’s decision to drop the atomic bomb—and Japan’s decision to surrender. They are Henry Stimson, the American Secretary of War, who had overall responsibility for decisions about the atom bomb; Gen. Carl “Tooey” Spaatz, head of strategic bombing in the Pacific, who supervised the planes that dropped the bombs; and Japanese Foreign Minister Shigenori Togo, the only one in Emperor Hirohito’s Supreme War Council who believed even before the bombs were dropped that Japan should surrender.

Henry Stimson had served in the administrations of five presidents, but as the U.S. nuclear program progressed, he found himself tasked with the unimaginable decision of determining whether to deploy the bomb. The new president, Harry S. Truman, thus far a peripheral figure in the momentous decision, accepted Stimson’s recommendation to drop the bomb. Army Air Force Commander Gen. Spaatz ordered the planes to take off. Like Stimson, Spaatz agonized over the command even as he recognized it would end the war. After the bombs were dropped, Foreign Minister Togo was finally able to convince the emperor to surrender. 

To bring these critical events to vivid life, bestselling author Evan Thomas draws on the diaries of Stimson, Togo and Spaatz, contemplating the immense weight of their historic decision. In Road to Surrender, an immersive, surprising, moving account, Thomas lays out the behind-the-scenes thoughts, feelings, motivations, and decision-making of three people who changed history.

ABOUT Evan Thomas

Evan Thomas is the author of ten books, including the New York Times bestsellers John Paul Jones, Sea of Thunder, and First: Sandra Day O’Connor. Thomas was a writer, correspondent, and editor for thirty-three years at Time and Newsweek, including ten years as Newsweek’s Washington bureau chief. He appears regularly on many TV and radio talk shows. Thomas has taught at Harvard and Princeton.

NEW MATERIAL AND INSIGHT

  • Previously unpublished correspondence between Spaatz and his wife, shared by General Spaatz’s granddaughter, Katharine Gresham, shows Spaatz’s deep ambivalence about how the war was progressing.

  • Unpublished materials shared by Togo’s grandsons, show Togo’s little-known role in avoiding an Armageddon far worse even than the damage wrought by two atomic bombs.

  • Through rare access to diaries and personal discussions we have insight into the moral dilemmas faced on both sides and how the key political decision makers grappled with these impossibly difficult decisions.

  • This story is more relevant than ever because of Putin’s threats, demonstrating again the strength of nuclear power as a political weapon.

Selected Praise

“A terrifying, heart-breaking account of three men under unimaginable pressure . . . This is history that crackles with journalistic immediacy. I challenge you not to read this book in a single sitting.” - Nathaniel Philbrick, author of In the Heart of the Sea and Travels with George

“With an unerring eye for detail and a deft touch with the dramatic, Evan Thomas tells one of the most important stories of all time with power and grace. Paced like a thriller, replete with fresh historical insight, and driven by new research, Thomas’s book explains how America came to deploy the deadliest weapons ever created. The result is an indispensable portrait of power, anxiety, and moral ambiguity.” - Jon Meacham, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of And There Was Light

“This dramatic, you-are-there masterpiece provides a convincing explanation of one of the great moral questions of twentieth-century history: Was America right to drop the atom bomb on Japan at the end of World War II? This is an indispensable book for those who want to understand the moral issues surrounding the use of great power.” - Walter Isaacson

“A taut, thrilling narrative, rich, compassionate, and superbly nuanced.” - Stacy Schiff, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Revolutionary

“In this mesmerizing account of the final weeks of World War II, Evan Thomas provides a haunting, deeply human look at the mental and physical torment of American and Japanese leaders as they confronted the catastrophic reality of the atomic bomb. Although U.S. officials were convinced that dropping the bomb on Japanese cities was necessary to end the war, Thomas reveals in cinematic, nail-biting detail that Japan’s surrender was not a foregone conclusion. Even as Emperor Hirohito made the wrenching decision to capitulate, senior Japanese military leaders launched a bloody, last-minute insurrection to overthrow the government and fight to the bitter end—a coup attempt that came unnervingly close to succeeding.” - Lynne Olson, New York Times bestselling author of Madame Fourcade's Secret War and Citizens of London

The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours by Niki Segnit

The hugely anticipated follow-up to Niki Segnit's landmark global bestseller The Flavour Thesaurus

 ‘As brilliant, informative and witty as the first Flavour Thesaurus… This book will inspire a new generation of home cooks, chefs and writers alike.’

Rukmini Iyer on The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours

 

‘Matching ingredients isn't a trivial matter and Niki Segnit is definitely the reigning champion.’ Yotam Ottolenghi on The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours

 

‘It’s been fascinating, if not to say dangerously appetising, to research the dozens of mostly plant-based ingredients in this all-new treasury of flavour combinations. As with its sister volume, the first Flavour Thesaurus, my hope is that the mix of science, culinary advice, tasting notes, recipes and stories will inform and inspire cooks, from the professional chef creating recipes in her test kitchen, to the home cook trying to avoid consigning half a cauliflower to the bin.’ Niki Segnit

The Flavour Thesaurus
More Flavours
Niki Segnit 
Bloomsbury / HB / 11 May 2023 / £20

In The Flavour Thesaurus: More Flavours – Plant-led pairings, recipes and ideas for cooks, Niki Segnit applies her ground-breaking approach to explore 92 plant-based flavours, from Kale to Cashew, Pomegranate to Pistachio. Every ingredient is vegetarian and explored with the economy of a thesaurus, then expertly paired with those they complement.

Some of the pairings are classic, like Honey & Yoghurt or Green Bean & Tomato, some are contemporary like Turmeric & Ginger or Black Bean & Avocado, many are global like Miso & Seaweed or Tofu & Chilli, and others are compellingly unexpected, like Tamarind & Cheese or Papaya & Green Bean. There are over 800 witty and erudite entries combining recipes, tasting notes and stories to bring each ingredient to life. 

Together with Niki Segnit’s first book, The Flavour Thesaurus, this is a modern classic of food writing. Witty, playful and beautifully written, More Flavours is as much a bedside read as an indispensable kitchen resource.

The Flavour Thesaurus, first published in 2011, is a global bestseller and has been translated into fifteen languages. It was winner of the André Simon Award for best food book, the Guild of Food Writers Award for best first book and shortlisted for the Galaxy National Book Awards. It’s an iconic book with evangelists that span the world, from Nigel Slater, Yotam Ottolenghi, Heston Blumenthal, Brian Eno and Kate Winslet to baristas, bar tenders and wine writers.

ABOUT ME Niki Segnit

Niki Segnit lives in London with her husband and two children. On BBC Radio 4, she has contributed to The Food Programme, Woman’s Hour and Word of Mouth, and her columns, features and reviews have appeared in the Guardian, the Observer, The Times, The Times Literary Supplement, The Sunday Times and Prospect magazine. She is the author of The Flavour Thesaurus and Lateral Cooking.

Selected praise for The Flavour Thesaurus:

‘The books I value most are those I return to again and again. Such has been the case with The Flavour Thesaurus’ - Nigel Slater

‘An original and inspiring resource’ - Heston Blumenthal

‘Every time I return to it, which is often, it makes me tingle with happy greed’ - Bee Wilson

‘I heartily recommend The Flavour Thesaurus by Niki Segnit. It lists more than 4,000 possible combinations of 99 flavours, with lots of recipes to inspire you’ - Kate Winslet, Harper’s Bazaar

 

Selected praise for Lateral Cooking:

‘It is hard to convey just what a staggering achievement Lateral Cooking is … I can lose myself in it any time, from any page, and you could cook from it over a whole lifetime, and still be learning’ - Nigella Lawson

‘A rigorous, nuts-and-bolts bible of book, which works from the premise that there are base recipes from which all others can be built’ - Jay Rayner

‘The pleasure here is not in the technical know-how but the writing – witty, playful and conversational – and the juicy little nuggets of information’ - Diana Henry

'Pure, informative delight' - The New York Times

Twelve Moons by Caro Giles

Twelve Moons:
A Year Under a Shared Sky
Caro Giles
19 January 2023/ £14.99/ Hardback/ ebook/ audio

‘A multi-sensory experience of the natural world, which invites the reader to become both companion and witness in a timeless account of the power of the sea.’
- Katharine Norbury


TWELVE MOONS follows a year spent caught between the wild sea and the changing moon of the wide Northumberland skies.

Caro Giles lives on the far edge of the country, with her tribe of daughters: The Mermaid, The Whirlwind, The Caulbearer and The Littlest One. She is at once alone and yet surrounded. Bound by circumstance, financial constraints, illness and the challenges of single motherhood, she has nowhere to go but the fierce landscape that surrounds her.

Over the course of the year, the moon becomes her fellow traveller through dark times, and companion through joyful ones – and even when the sky is wreathed in cloud, the moon is still felt in the pull of the tides.

TWELVE MOONS follows the lunar calendar, each chapter sharing a month and a moon, and shows the simmering power that lies in our often hidden daily lives. A dazzlingly honest memoir that while never turning away from the awkward truths of life, also shows how love will flourish if we can only find a space for ourselves.

Set against windswept beaches and ancient hills, this is a story steeped in nature and landscape. Since our earliest days, mankind has looked up at the moon and seen a story reflected back. Twelve Moons is one of those stories – a book about finding yourself, your voice and a sense that even in the dark of the night, we are never truly alone.

ABOUT Caro Giles

Caro Giles is a writer based in Northumberland. Her words are inspired by her local landscape, the wide empty beaches and the Cheviot Hills. She writes honestly about what it means to be a woman, a mother and a carer and about the value in taking the road less travelled. Her writing has appeared in journals, press and periodicals and she was named Countryfile magazine’s New Nature Writer of the Year in 2021. She tweets @CaroGilesWrites.

A Book of Days by Patti Smith

A Book of Days
By Patti Smith
15 November 2022 / hardback / £25 / non-fiction Bloomsbury


A deeply moving and brilliantly idiosyncratic visual book of days by the National Book Award-winning author of Just Kids and M Train. More than 365 images chart Smith's singular aesthetic - inspired by her wildly popular Instagram.

In 2018, without any plan or agenda for what might happen next, Patti Smith posted her first Instagram photo: her hand with the simple message "Hello Everybody!" Known for shooting with her beloved Land Camera 250, Smith started posting images from her phone including portraits of her kids, her radiator, her boots, and her Abyssinian cat, Cairo. Followers felt an immediate affinity with these miniature windows into Smith's world, photographs of her daily coffee, the books she's reading, the graves of beloved heroes - William Blake, Dylan Thomas, Sylvia Plath, Simone Weil, Albert Camus. Over time, a coherent story of a life devoted to art took shape, and more than a million followers responded to Smith's unique aesthetic in images that chart her passions, devotions, obsessions, and whims. Original to this book are vintage photographs: anniversary pearls, a mother's keychain, and a husband's Mosrite guitar. Here, too, are never-before-seen photos of life on and off the road, train stations, obscure cafés, a notebook always nearby. In wide-ranging yet intimate daily notations, Smith shares dispatches from her travels around the world.

With 365 photographs, taking you through a single year, A Book of Days is a new way to experience the expansive mind of the visionary poet, writer, and performer. Hopeful, elegiac, playful - and complete with an introduction by Smith that explores her documentary process - A Book of Days is a timeless offering for deeply uncertain times, an inspirational map of an artist's life.

ABOUT PATTI SMITH

A writer, performer, and visual artist, Patti Smith has exhibited her drawings and photographs internationally, most recently Camera Solo at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum in Hartford. She has recorded thirteen albums, launched by the seminal Horses in 1975. Her many books include Witt, Babel, The Coral Sea, Auguries of Innocence and Just Kids, which won the National Book Award in 2010. Patti Smith lives in New York City.

Patti’s Instagram, @thisispattismith, has over 1 million followers.

Buzzin’ by Bez

Buzzin’
The Nine Lives of a Happy Monday
By Bez
(With Andrew Perry)
White Rabbit / HB / 3 November 2022 / £20
(also available as ebook and audio book)

At the height of his initial, turn-of-the-1990's infamy as the maraca-wielding dancer with 'Madchester' giants Happy Mondays, Mark Berry - forever known to the world as Bez - was visibly a danger to society. He became the so-called Chemical Generation's bug-eyed pied piper, every weekend leading millions out to oblivion and beyond, as they adopted his E-gobbling party lifestyle.

Neither an accomplished musician nor even a very good dancer, Bez was a prime candidate for fleeting celebrity, soon to sink into 'Where Are They Now?' obscurity. That, however, never happened, nor does it show any sign of happening. Through Black Grape, the second band he co-fronted with the Mondays' Shaun Ryder, and his ever-presence in the mass media, Bez's popularity has grown exponentially, his star rocketing ever upwards.

When he bowled into Celebrity Big Brother in 2005, he ended up winning the series, as viewers came to understand his fundamental decency and sunny outlook. His adult life has been extraordinary: unbelievable scrapes with mortality, periods of financial ruin, mindfuck moments like when David Bowie genuflected before him, and enough narcotic-strewn hi-jinx to fill several more volumes of memoir.

Written with the assistance of estimable rock and roll ghostwriter, Andrew Perry (John Lydon, Tricky), this is the story of a bad lad who has turned his life good, tracing his passage from early-thirty-something casualty to middle-aged politician, eco-warrior and bee-aficionado.

‘There is no one like Bez: you could literally throw him out of a helicopter at 60,000 feet and he would land in somebody’s extra-deep swimming pool, get out they would cook him Sunday dinner – and let him stay the night! Shaun Ryder on Bez

Access All Areas by Barbara Charone

Memoir from the writer and music PR legend Barbara Charone, telling the story of a music-obsessed girl from Chicago who falls in love with British counter-culture, destined to re-shape it for multiple generations

Access All Areas
A Backstage Pass Through 50 Years of Music and Culture
By Barbara Charone
Foreword by Elvis Costello
White Rabbit / HB / 23 June 2022 / £20

Access All Areas: A Backstage Pass Through 50 Years of Music and Culture tells the story of how a music-loving, budding journalist from a Chicago suburb became the defining music publicist of her generation. With an exclusive foreword from Elvis Costello, Barbara Charone’s debut memoir is a time capsule of the last fifty years, told through the lens of music, from the incredible woman who set the cultural agenda in her work with a myriad of stars including Keith Richards, Foo Fighters, REM, Rod Stewart and Madonna.

First as a journalist and then a publicist at Warner Brothers Records for nearly twenty years, Barbara Charone has experienced, first-hand, the changes in the cultural landscape. Access All Areas is a personal, insightful and humorous memoir packed with stories of being on the cultural frontline, from first writing press releases on a typewriter driven by Tip Ex, then as a press officer for heavy metal bands taking the bus up to Donnington Festival with coffee, croissants and the much more popular sulfate. To taking on Madonna, an unknown girl from Detroit, and telling Smash Hits 'you don't have to run the piece if the single doesn't chart', and becoming a true pioneer in music, Charone continues to work with the biggest names in music, including Depeche Mode, Robert Plant, Foo Fighters and Mark Ronson at her agency MBCPR.

ABOUT Barbara Charone

Born in Chicago, Barbara Charone moved to London after graduating from Northwestern University. The first half of her career was spent as a music journalist working for NME, Sounds, Rolling Stone, Crawdaddy and Cream before writing the authorised biography Keith Richards: Life As A Rolling Stone in 1979.

In November 2000, after almost 20 years at Warner Brothers, Barbara co-founded leading independent music agency MBCPR with Moira Bellas where she still works now. Within six months it became one of the country’s top music PR firms. The current client roster includes: Madonna, Mark Ronson, Foo Fighters, Elvis Costello, Keith Richards, Rod Stewart, Kasabian, Metallica, Depeche Mode, Texas, Rag’n’Bone Man, St Vincent, Pearl Jam, Olly Murs, Ray Davies  and Rufus Wainwright.

Barbara Charone is one of the most respected women working in the music business. In November 2001, Charone and her business partner, Moira Bellas, were honoured as Women of the Year by Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy and The Brit Trust and in 2006 and 2009 won the coveted Music Week PR Award.