Biography: literary

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Book Cover:  Talking About Jane Austen in Baghdad: The True Story of an Unlikely Friendship
Talking About Jane Austen in Baghdad is the story of two women who share laughter and tears, and swap their confidences, dreams and fears. And, between the grenades, the gossip, the jokes and the secrets, they also hatch an ingenious plan to help May escape the bombings of Baghdad . . .
Talking About Jane Austen in Baghdad is the story of two women who share laughter and tears, and swap their confidences, dreams and fears. And, between the grenades, the gossip, the jokes and the secrets, they also hatch an ingenious plan to help May escape the bombings of Baghdad . . .
Published: 03/03/2010
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141038537
RRP: $22.95
Book Cover:  Wasted: The true story of Jim McNeil, violent criminal and brilliant playwright
When he wrote his first play, McNeil had never set foot in a theatre. Just four years later he was a celebrity.
When he wrote his first play, McNeil had never set foot in a theatre. Just four years later he was a celebrity.
Published: 30/08/2010
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780670073955
RRP: $32.95
Book Cover:  Goodbye To All That: Popular Penguins

In 1929 Robert Graves went to live abroad permanently, vowing 'never to make England my home again'. This is his superb account of his life from his childhood and desperately unhappy school days, to his time serving as a young officer in the First World War.

Containing memorable encounters with fellow writers and poets, Goodbye to All That , is a classic war document, and also has immense value as...

In 1929 Robert Graves went to live abroad permanently, vowing 'never to make England my home again'. This is his superb account of his life from his childhood and desperately unhappy school days, to his...

Published: 29/06/2009
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141045542
RRP: $9.95
Book Cover:  Katherine Mansfield: The Story-teller

'I was jealous of her writing – the only writing I have been jealous of.'

—Virginia Woolf

Widely acknowledged as New Zealand's finest writer, Katherine Mansfield holds a special place in the hearts of New Zealanders. A new biography is a significant literary event.

Katherine Mansfield: The Story-teller is the first new biography of Mansfield for a quarter of a century. It is published at...

'I was jealous of her writing – the only writing I have been jealous of.'

—Virginia Woolf

Widely acknowledged as New Zealand's finest writer, Katherine Mansfield holds a special place in the...

Published: 02/08/2010
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9780670074358
RRP: $55.00
Book Cover:  Land's Edge: A Coastal Memoir
Complemented by the breathtaking photographs of Narelle Autio, Land's Edge is a celebration of the coastal life and those who surrender themselves to it.
Complemented by the breathtaking photographs of Narelle Autio, Land's Edge is a celebration of the coastal life and those who surrender themselves to it.
Published: 22/11/2010
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9781926428284
RRP: $29.95
Book Cover:  My Family and Other Animals
By Gerald Durrell

'What we all need,' said Larry, 'is sunshine . . . a country where we can grow.'
'Yes, dear, that would be nice,' agreed Mother, not really listening.
'I had a letter from George this morning – he says Corfu's wonderful. Why don't we pack up and go to Greece?'
'Very well, dear, if you like,' said Mother unguardedly.



'What we all need,' said Larry, 'is sunshine . . . a country where we can grow.'
'Yes, dear, that would be nice,' agreed Mother, not really listening.
'I had a letter from George this morning – he...

Published: 13/05/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780241951460
RRP: $19.95
Book Cover:  Out of Africa

'I had a farm in Africa, at the foot of the Ngong Hills . . . Up in this high air you breathed easily . . . you woke up in the morning and thought: Here I am, where I ought to be.'

From the moment Karen Blixen arrived in Kenya in 1914 to manage a coffee plantation, her heart belonged to Africa. Drawn to the intense colours and ravishing landscapes, Blixen spent her happiest years on the farm, and her...

'I had a farm in Africa, at the foot of the Ngong Hills . . . Up in this high air you breathed easily . . . you woke up in the morning and thought: Here I am, where I ought to be.'

From the moment Karen...

Published: 13/05/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780241951439
RRP: $19.95
Book Cover:  Beatrix Potter: The Extraordinary Life of a Victorian Genius
By Linda Lear
Beatrix Potter's books are adored by millions, but they were just one aspect of an extraordinary life. This captivating biography brings us the passionate, unconventional woman behind the beloved stories: a gifted artist and shrewd businesswoman; a pioneering scientific researcher; a powerful landowner who conserved acres of Lakeland countryside; a daughter who defied her parents with her first, tragically...
Beatrix Potter's books are adored by millions, but they were just one aspect of an extraordinary life. This captivating biography brings us the passionate, unconventional woman behind the beloved stories:...
Published: 07/04/2008
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141003108
RRP: $26.95
Book Cover:  A Life in Letters
By George Orwell

Edited with an Introduction by Peter Davison

'Arguably the most influential writer thrown up by the West in the twentieth century … the real Orwell — whoever he is — continues to take shape'
The Times

Edited with an Introduction by Peter Davison

'Arguably the most influential writer thrown up by the West in the twentieth century … the real Orwell — whoever he is — continues to take...

Published: 13/04/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141192635
RRP: $24.95
Book Cover:  Saul Bellow: Letters
By Benjamin Taylor

THE LIFE OF A MASTER, TOLD IN LETTERS

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, three National Book awards, and the Nobel Prize in Literature, Saul Bellow wrote marvellously acute, unsparing, tender, ferocious, hilarious, and wise letter throughout his long life (1915-2005).



THE LIFE OF A MASTER, TOLD IN LETTERS

Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, three National Book awards, and the Nobel Prize in Literature, Saul Bellow wrote marvellously acute, unsparing, tender, ferocious, hilarious...

Published: 15/12/2010
Format: Hardback
ISBN: 9780670022212
RRP: $45.00
Book Cover:  Jane Austen: A Life
The novels of Jane Austen depict a world of civility, reassuring stability and continuity, which generations of readers have supposed was the world she herself inhabited. Claire Tomalin's biography paints a surprisingly different picture of the Austen family and their Hampshire neighbours, and of Jane's progress through a difficult childhood, an unhappy love affair, her experiences as a poor relation...
The novels of Jane Austen depict a world of civility, reassuring stability and continuity, which generations of readers have supposed was the world she herself inhabited. Claire Tomalin's biography paints...
Published: 06/02/2001
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780140296907
RRP: $26.95
Book Cover: The Art of Graeme Base

Creator of Animalia , The Eleventh Hour , The Waterhole and many other bestselling titles, Graeme Base has won the hearts of children and adults around the world with his lavishly illustrated picture books.

The Art of Graeme Base explores the life and work of this remarkable artist, and includes more than 200 illustrations, many of which have never been seen before. In this delightful account, former...

Creator of Animalia , The Eleventh Hour , The Waterhole and many other bestselling titles, Graeme Base has won the hearts of children and adults around the world with his lavishly illustrated picture books...

Published: 23/11/2009
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780670074297
RRP: $49.95
Book Cover:  Goodbye to All That
By Robert Graves

'There has been a lot of fighting hereabouts. The trenches have made themselves rather than been made, and run inconsequently in and out of the big thirty-foot high stacks of bricks; it is most confusing. The parapet of a trench which we don't occupy is built up with ammunition boxes and corpses . . .'

'There has been a lot of fighting hereabouts. The trenches have made themselves rather than been made, and run inconsequently in and out of the big thirty-foot high stacks of bricks; it is most confusing...

Published: 13/05/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780241951415
RRP: $19.95
Book Cover:  Hermit in Paris
By Italo Calvino

With a Preface by
Esther Calvino

'These pages are distinguished by a sly philosophic humour . . .  a sensuous immediacy of detail and a droll wit'
Guardian

With a Preface by
Esther Calvino

'These pages are distinguished by a sly philosophic humour . . .  a sensuous immediacy of detail and a droll wit'
Guardian

Published: 07/03/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141189758
RRP: $24.95
Book Cover:  Navigation: A Memoir

In the world of New Zealand children's books, the name Joy Cowley engenders enormous respect and affection.

 She has published dozens and dozens of children's trade books of all kinds, such as the Mrs Wishy Washy series, the award-winning Shadrach trilogy and Hunter . And she has written literally hundreds of readers for the international educational book market. She is constantly in demand as...

In the world of New Zealand children's books, the name Joy Cowley engenders enormous respect and affection.

 She has published dozens and dozens of children's trade books of all kinds, such as the...

Published: 27/09/2010
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780143205715
RRP: $35.00
Book Cover:  Waugh in Abyssinia
By Evelyn Waugh
In 1935 Italy declared war on Abyssinia and Evelyn Waugh was sent to Addis Ababa to cover the conflict. His acerbic account of the intrigue and political machinations leading up to the crisis is coupled with amusing descriptions of the often bizarre and seldom straightforward life of a war correspondent rubbing shoulders with less-than-honest officials, Arab spies, pyjama-wearing radicals and disgruntled...
In 1935 Italy declared war on Abyssinia and Evelyn Waugh was sent to Addis Ababa to cover the conflict. His acerbic account of the intrigue and political machinations leading up to the crisis is coupled...
Published: 12/10/2010
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141185057
RRP: $22.95
Book Cover:  Nikolai Gogol
By Vladimir Nabokov

'One of the most exhilarating, engaging, and original works ever written by one writer about another'
ELIZABETH HARDWICK

'One of the most exhilarating, engaging, and original works ever written by one writer about another'
ELIZABETH HARDWICK

Published: 12/04/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9781846143304
RRP: $29.95
Book Cover: The Education of a British-Protected Child
By Chinua Achebe

'His is a voice that roars . . . one of the world's most important thinkers and writers'  Bernardine Evaristo, Independent

This acclaimed volume of autobiographical essays is one of Chinua Achebe's most powerful and personal works to date, containing reflections on personal and collective identity, on home and family, on literature, language and politics.

'His is a voice that roars . . . one of the world's most important thinkers and writers'  Bernardine Evaristo, Independent

This acclaimed volume of autobiographical essays is one of Chinua Achebe's...

Published: 07/03/2011
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780141043616
RRP: $24.95
Book Cover:  Wasted: The true story of Jim McNeil, violent criminal and brilliant playwright

At thirteen, Jim McNeil quit school for good. At fourteen, he started an affair with a brothel madam and was introduced to Melbourne's underworld. Despite his love of reading and philosophy, McNeil relished his life among thugs, thieves and whores, becoming one of the city's most violent criminals.

At thirteen, Jim McNeil quit school for good. At fourteen, he started an affair with a brothel madam and was introduced to Melbourne's underworld. Despite his love of reading and philosophy, McNeil relished...

Published: 25/08/2010
Format: Digital
ISBN: 9781742531205
Book Cover:  100: An Oral History of Ayn Rand
By Scott McConnell

An extensive collection of never-before-published interviews reflecting on Ayn Rand's life and character.

An extensive collection of never-before-published interviews reflecting on Ayn Rand's life and character.

Published: 01/12/2010
Format: Paperback
ISBN: 9780451231307
RRP: $26.95

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08 Feb 2012
USBBY annual list of outstanding international books

Selected for the 2012 United States Board of Books for Young People (USBBY) list of Outstanding International Books for children and young adults.

The Garden of Empress Cassia by Gabrielle Wang

The Midnight Zoo by Sonya Hartnett

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