Literary Figures

Arthur Ransome was, from 1930 to the early 1960s, what J.K. Rowling is today: author of a series of children's books which shaped the imagination of a generation. Rooted in the heyday of the British Empire, Swallows and Amazons and its sequels described...

For the first time, John Drury convincingly integrates the life and poetry of George Herbert, giving us in Music at Midnight the definitive biography of the man behind some of the most famous poems in the English Language.'Love bade me welcome . . ...

This first full-length biography of Anglo- American poet and activist Denise Levertov (1923-1997) brings to life one of the major voices of the second half of the twentieth century, when American poetry was a powerful influence worldwide. Drawing on...

Colm Toibin's Lady Gregory's Toothbrush is a beautiful insight into the life of outspoken Irishwoman, Augusta Gregory.A remarkable figure in Celtic history, she was married to an MP and land-owner, yet retained an unprecedented independence of both...

Even when I was funny, I wasn't this funny'Augusten Burroughs, author of Running With Scissors Have you ever embarrassed yourself so badly you thought you'd never get over it? Have you ever wished your family could be just like everyone else's? Have you...

Life Writing: A Writers' & Artists' Companion is an essential guide to writing biography, autobiography and memoir. PART 1 explores the history and forms of life writing and the challenges and potential pitfalls of the genre. PART 2 includes tips...

'Extraordinary . . . Moss is a towering figure in the contemporary literary landscape' - The Daily Telegraph'Devastating, funny . . . a brave and important book' - Melissa Harrison'Full of daring . . . revelatory' - The Observer'An observational...

A look at 100 inspiring novels that have left a significant mark on the world of literature and popular culture. Before the novel, the world of books was dominated by scientific tomes, religious tracts and histories...

Bestselling novelist Amanda Prowse knew how to resolve a fictional family crisis. But then her son came to her with a real one... Josiah was nineteen with the world at his feet when things changed. Without warning, the new university student's mental...

***AS READ ON BBC RADIO 4***NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD WINNER'A gripping account of the heartbreaks and triumphs of two of history's most formidable female intellectuals, Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley. Gordon has reunited mother and...

Winner of the Crime Fest HRF Keating Award 'Not merely the conclusive homage to a compulsively fascinating character, but an insightful study into the biographical process itself' Nicholas Shakespeare 'Now that he is dead, we can know him better.' ...

Virginia Woolf turned to her diary as to an intimate friend, to whom she could freely and spontaneously confide her thoughts on public events or the joys and trials of domestic life. Between 1st January 1915 and her death in 1941 she regularly recorded...

J. G. Ballard was, for over fifty years, one of this country's most significant writers. Beginning with the events that inspired his classic novel, 'Empire of the Sun', this revelatory autobiography charts the course of his astonishing life. ...

Wallace Stevens (1879-1955) lived a richly imaginative life that he expressed in his poems. The Whole Harmonium presents Stevens within the living context of his times and as the creator of a poetry that continues to shape how we understand and define...

In 2008, J.K. Rowling delivered a deeply affecting commencement speech at Harvard University. Now published for the first time in book form, Very Good Lives offers J.K. Rowling's words of wisdom for anyone at a turning point in life, asking the profound...

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ADAPTED INTO A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE, STARRING JIM BROADBENT "A painful, funny, frightening, moving, marvellous book ... everybody should read it" - Nick Hornby And when did you last see your father? Was it when they burnt the coffin? Put the lid on...

A compelling portrait of one of the greatest philosophers of the nineteenth century, by one of the bestselling writers of the twentieth. In this vivid biographical study, Zweig eschews traditional academic discussion and focuses on Nietzsche's habits,...

'I couldn't put this book down. Although harrowing at times, Lesley's indomitable spirit shines through. What an inspiration, what a book!' Katie Fforde'More extraordinary than any plot twist in Pearse's novels' Mail on SundayREAD THE SPELLBINDING MEMOIR...

SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORWELL PRIZE 'I loved this book... An exhilarating romp through Orwell's life and times' Margaret Atwood 'Outside my work the thing I care most about is gardening' George Orwell In 1936 Orwell planted roses at his cottage...

Robert A. Caro is one of the most acclaimed writers of his generation, whose landmark biographies are widely hailed as masterpieces.This is the captivating account of his life as a writer, describing the sometimes staggering lengths to which he has gone...

A TRUE STORY THAT HAS TOUCHED THE HEARTS OF THOUSANDS'Unmitigated delight from cover to cover' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'A real-life love story . . . A timeless period piece. Do read it' WALL STREET JOURNAL 'Beguile an hour of your time and put you in tune with...

In her early twenties, Esther Rutter suffered an acute mental breakdown while teaching English in Japan. Sectioned and held in a Japanese psychiatric institution until she could be flown home under escort, her recovery only began when she came to live...

Celebrating Fifty Years of Picador BooksYou think adoption is a story which has an end. But the point about it is that it has no end. It keeps changing its ending.From the moment when, as a little girl, she realizes that her skin is a different colour...

Volumes have been written by and about Patrick Leigh Fermor, but his wife Joan is almost entirely absent from their pages. Now Simon Fenwick, the first archivist to see the Leigh Fermor papers, reveals a woman hitherto only fleetingly glimpsed. A...

A FASCINATING TRUE STORY OF FRIENDSHIP, INTRIGUE AND UNFORGIVABLE BETRAYAL, NOW A MAJOR TV SERIES Readers LOVE Capote's Women: 'A genuinely fascinating account of a great writer and his muses.' 'Loved it! Fabulous book about a extremely...

Nevil Shute was a power and a pioneer in the world of flying long before he began to write the stories that made him a bestselling novelist. This autobiography charts Shute's path from childhood to his career as a gifted aeronautical engineer working at...

James Lees-Milne (1908-97) made his name as the country house expert of the National Trust and for being a versatile author. But he is now best known for the remarkable diary he kept for most of his adult life, which has been compared with that of Samuel...

A comprehensive and authorised biographical companion to the works of Agatha Christie covering books, films, TV and plays - revised and updated edition. Agatha Christie was the author of over 100 plays, short story collections and novels which...

Richard Holmes's great work of biographical exploration, published alongside its sister volume 'Sidetracks'. In 1985, Richard Holmes published a small book of essays called Footsteps and the writing of biography was changed forever. A daring...

Over the past few decades, the bestselling author of Hitch-22 has crisscrossed the globe debating religious scholars, Catholic clergy, rabbis, and devout Christians on the existence of God- appearances that have attracted thousands of people on both...

Winner of the 1989 Whitbread Prize for Book of the Year, this is the first volume of Holmes's seminal two-part examination of Samuel Taylor Coleridge, one of Britain's greatest poets. 'Coleridge: Early Visions' is the first part of Holmes's...

The first biography of David Garnett goes beyond stereotype and myth and presents a clear sighted account of this often contradictory figure at the centre of literary London in the era of the Bloomsbury Group. Shortlisted for the James Tait Black...

The #1 New York Times BestsellerAn Entertainment Weekly Top Ten Book of the YearNow a Major Motion PictureThis is the true story of a boy who wanted to grow up with the Brady Bunch, but ended up living with the Addams Family. Augusten Burroughs's mother...

INTRODUCED BY LISSA EVANS'I envy anyone yet to discover the joy of Monica Dickens. She's beady eyed, big hearted and blissfully funny' NINA STIBBE ' Humorous, moving and fascinating' CLARE MACKINTOSH Considering herself unsuitable for any other...

The autobiography of Cass Pennant is packed with amazing stories of a life lived on the edge of the law. In this thrilling book, he tells of how he saved World Boxing Champion Frank Bruno from a potentially vicious attack; how he was shot three times in...

'Compelling, remorseless, brilliant' John Gray I can still see Simenon coming into my office the next day, pleased with himself, displaying even more self-confidence, if possible, than before, but nevertheless with a touch of anxiety in his eyes.'...

Apologies but we at Booksplease don't have a full description for this book.Book InformationISBN 9781590173213Author Henry David ThoreauFormat PaperbackPage Count 704Imprint NYRB ClassicsPublisher The New York Review of Books, IncWeight(grams)...

The Great Thinkers is a collection of some of the most important ideas of Eastern and Western culture - drawn from the works of those philosophers, political theorists, sociologists, artists and novelists whom we believe have the most to offer to us...

Born in England in 1857, Agnes Mary Frances Robinson contributed to cultural and literary currents from nineteenth-century Victorianism to twentieth-century modernism; she was equally at home in London and Paris and prolific in both English and French...