<p>Although he is little known today, Jan Gopal was an important vernacular intellectual of early modern India.</p><p>Many nirguni Bhakti poets, write the authors of this book, have not received the attention they deserve, despite their poetic excellence and historical significance. Jan Gopal, a Rajasthani poet and storyteller of the 16th century, is one such figure. So Says Jan Gopal is an unprecedented study of his life and work.</p><p>Jan Gopal does not conform to the stereotype of a typical follower of the nirgun panth, or sect. Born into a prosperous merchant family, he chose to join a nirguni panth not because of family tradition or social location. He chose it through a conscious, personal decision, and brought not only an excellent knowledge of prosody, poetic conventions and classical Hindustani music, but also an urbane and progressive sensibility to his literary works, of which the best-known are Dadu Janma Lila, a seminal biography of his guru, Dadu Dayal (a contemporary of Akbar); and retellings of stories from the Bhagvata Purana: Prahlad Charitra, Dhruv Charitra and Jad Bharat Charitra. As the authors show, in his Hindi/Braj retellings of the Puranic stories, Jan Gopal makes them subtly ‘contemporary’, and reworks the very core of traditional theodicy by presenting bhakti with a strong egalitarian component as the way to liberation.</p><p>In addition to analysing Jan Gopal’s life and work, and locating him in the nirgun Bhakti tradition, the authors have also included in this important book, excerpts from his longer works, and twenty of his songs (pads) in Nagari script and in English translation.</p>

<p>Written by Kathleen Perricone, this is truly an inside look at Taylor Swift. From her songs to her clothes to her history and even, some fun things just for fans, this book is honestly one of the coolest ones I've read this year.</p><p>―Culturess</p><p>Celebrate your best Swiftie life with this gorgeously illustrated, all-encompassing fan book on everything there is to know and love about the modern icon that is Taylor Swift.</p><p>From her first vocal lessons at age nine, to learning the guitar at twelve, to becoming the most downloaded women on Spotify, and then breaking the internet with her Eras Tour, Taylor Swift has rocked the music scene and captured the hearts of fans across the globe. Gathering her incredible life story, music, and fan culture all in one place, Taylor Swift Is Life captures her epic achievements, brilliant lyrics, and her incredible ability to connect with her fans like no other musician before her.</p><p>&nbsp;This treasure trove of essential Swiftie knowledge includes:</p><p>1. A full biography capturing her early inspiration and first performances through her through her sensational 2023-2024 Eras Tour</p><p>2. A full discography of Taylor’s music, including the significance of each album personally and professionally, the meaning behind every Track 5, and all the hidden Easter eggs and symbolism behind the songs.&nbsp;</p><p>3. Swiftology, or Taylor A to Z, covering significant words, imagery, and people in Taylor’s life that every Swiftie should know, from arm poetry to maple lattes, and polaroids to Zoë Kravitz</p><p>4. Taylorscopes for every sign, to find out how your stars align with Swift’s music, and learn which Taylor song represents you</p><p>Both a tribute to our beloved Tay and a chic showpiece for any well-appointed bookshelf, Taylor Swift Is Life is a must-have title for every true Swiftie.</p><p>The Modern Icons series takes you on a journey through the lives and legacies of cultural icons who have shaped our world, from fashion to music to media. With original illustrations and meticulously crafted prose, this series captivates and enlightens, offering a glimpse into the personalities whose unparalleled charm and authenticity have left an indelible mark on popular culture.</p><p>The series includes: Beyoncé Is Life, Harry Styles Is Life, Rihanna Is Life, Zendaya Is Life, Lady Gaga Is Life, Adele Is Life, Timothee Chalamet Is Life, and Billie Eilish Is LIfe.</p>

<p>Studios of Their Own travels around the world examining the unique spaces,</p><p>habits and rituals of over 50 famous artists.</p><p>From Picasso, to Hockney, to Caravaggio, discover the eclectic creative spaces</p><p>used by artistic visionaries, brought to life with evocative illustrations.</p><p>Crossing centuries, continents and genres, Alex Johnson explores these artists’</p><p>workspaces and habits. How do they practise their craft? What do they look for in a</p><p>studio? Do they work in silence or with music… in a shared space or in solitude? How</p><p>do they harness the light? And how do their physical spaces affect and inspire</p><p>their output?</p><p>This striking collection focuses on more than 50 international artists, including:</p><p>1. Claude Monet, who created an inspirational garden in which to work en plein air</p><p>and paint his famous water lilies</p><p>2. Frida Kahlo, forced to work from her bed, inspired by the lucky talismans she</p><p>surrounded herself with</p><p>3. Jean-Michel Basquiat, working in an old stable, could turn anything into</p><p>&nbsp;canvas, walking and lying on his works as he created them</p><p>4. Lee Krasner’s art dramatically changed when she moved from her small studio</p><p>into the larger, light-filled one that she took over when her husband, Jackson</p><p>Pollock, died</p><p>In looking at the working lives of our favourite artists, readers will be transported</p><p>to other worlds, as well as gaining a deeper insight into the creative process.</p><p>Also in the series: Rooms of Their Own: Where Great Writers Write.</p><div><br></div>

<p>A collection of writings by the author of the 2022 Booker Prize-shortlisted Treacle</p><p>Walker</p><p>'His work has a symphonic quality unique in fiction' THE TIMES</p><p>‘The autobiography of one of the most distinct and profound writers we have’</p><p>GUARDIAN</p><p>In this rich collection of writings, spanning more than twenty years, Alan Garner, the Booker</p><p>shortlisted author of Treacle Walker, explores his interest in a dazzling range of subjects; from</p><p>archaeology, myth and language, to education, literature, film, music and philosophy, as well as</p><p>mental health and our most profound quest for the spiritual.</p><p>The Voice That Thunders serves as an early poetic autobiography of one of England's best-loved but</p><p>least public writers. These essays chart how, after hearing himself declared dead at the age of six, he</p><p>went on to become the writer he is today: one drawing on the deep well of a rural working-class</p><p>childhood and one inspired by a family of craftsmen who instilled in him the passion for excellence</p><p>and innovation and humour that guides him to this day.</p><p>Candid and illuminating, The Voice That Thunders is an enchanting collection from one of Britain’s</p><p>greatest living writers.</p><p>‘A brilliant collection of essays’ INDEPENDENT</p>

<p>An incredible true story of murder, romance, and a fateful search for utopia in the</p><p>Galápagos–from the New York Times bestselling author of The Ghosts of Eden Park</p><p>At the height of the Great Depression, Los Angeles oil mogul George Allan Hancock and his crew of</p><p>Smithsonian scientists came upon a gruesome scene: two bodies, mummified by the searing heat, on</p><p>the shore of a remote Galápagos island. For the past four years Hancock and other American elites</p><p>had traveled the South Seas to collect specimens for scientific research. On one trip to the</p><p>Galápagos, Hancock was surprised to discover an equally exotic group of humans: European exiles</p><p>who had fled political and economic unrest, hoping to create a utopian paradise. One was so devoted</p><p>to a life of isolation that he'd had his teeth extracted and replaced with a set of steel dentures.</p><p>As Hancock and his fellow American explorers would witness, paradise had turned into chaos. The</p><p>three sets of exiles–a Berlin doctor and his lover, a traumatized World War I veteran and his young</p><p>family, and an Austrian baroness with two adoring paramours–were riven by conflict. Petty slights led</p><p>to angry confrontations. The baroness, wielding a riding crop and pearl-handled revolver, staged</p><p>physical fights between her two lovers and unabashedly seduced American tourists. The conclusion</p><p>was deadly: with two exiles missing and two others dead, the survivors hurled accusations of murder.</p><p>Using never-before-published archives, Abbott Kahler weaves a chilling, stranger-than-fiction tale</p><p>worthy of Agatha Christie. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the march to World</p><p>War II, with a mystery as alluring and curious as the Galápagos itself, Eden Undone explores the</p><p>universal and timeless desire to seek utopia–and lays bare the human fallibility that, inevitably,</p><p>renders such a quest doomed.</p>

<p>I always think the last Nigel Slater book is my favourite but, a bit like the Olympics, he</p><p>just keeps getting better' ELIZABETH DAY</p><p>From award-winning writer Nigel Slater, comes a new and exquisitely written</p><p>collection of notes, memoir, stories and small moments of joy.</p><p>For years, Nigel Slater has kept notebooks of curiosities and wonderings, penned while at his kitchen</p><p>table, soaked in a fisherman’s hut in Reykjavik, sitting calmly in a moss garden in Japan or sheltering</p><p>from a blizzard in a Vienna Konditorei.</p><p>These are the small moments, events and happenings that gave pleasure before they disappeared.</p><p>Miso soup for breakfast, packing a suitcase for a trip and watching a butterfly settle on a carpet,</p><p>hiding in plain sight. He gives short stories of feasts such as a mango eaten in monsoon rain or a dish</p><p>of restorative macaroni cheese and homes in on the scent of freshly picked sweet peas and the</p><p>sound of water breathing at night in Japan.</p><p>This funny and sharply observed collection of the good bits of life, often things that pass many of us</p><p>by, is utter joy from beginning to end.</p><div><br></div>

<p>For fans of books like Waiter Rant, and all those who have always wondered how the other half lives, comes this heartfelt, laugh-out-loud memoir from a New York City doorman with astute ears and a penchant for storytelling</p><p>As an academically gifted Latino kid growing up in the Bronx, Stephen Bruno’s family had high aspirations for his future. He attended magnet schools and selective academic programs and was on track to realize his potential. But those dreams were derailed when, much to his Mami’s dismay, he followed a girlfriend to Minnesota and a dead-end job. Languishing and unable to get it together, Stephen eventually moved back home. Broke and eager to make a way for himself—and away from the oppressively religious father wreaking havoc on his love life—the affable, easy going, and quick-witted Stephen lands a much-coveted job as a doorman at a high-end building on Park Avenue.</p><p>Hilarity and drama soon abound as Stephen learns the dos and don’ts of being a doorman for the rich and famous and witnesses the antics going on behind the front entrance of this swanky building. In Building Material, he shares those entertaining tales and introduces an unforgettable cast of characters—from Puerto Rican and Albanian doormen battling it out for turf to quirky one percenters to slimy sugar daddies to his peers, both friends and frenemies. Throughout, Stephen offers a glimpse into the unfathomable lives of the residents and a sharp portrait of an everyday man wanting more for himself.</p><p>Both poignant and laugh-out-loud funny, Building Material is a captivating true tale of class, failure, and redemption—and how to come back swinging—from a gifted young talent.&nbsp;</p><div><br></div>

<p>A NPR Best Book of the Year</p><p>The number one New York Times bestselling authors of Vanderbilt return with another riveting history of a legendary American family, the Astors, and how they built and lavished their fortune.</p><p>The story of the Astors is a quintessentially American story—of ambition, invention, destruction, and reinvention.</p><p>From 1783, when German immigrant John Jacob Astor first arrived in the United States, until 2009, when Brooke Astor’s son, Anthony Marshall, was convicted of defrauding his elderly mother, the Astor name occupied a unique place in American society.</p><p>The family fortune, first made by a beaver trapping business that grew into an empire, was then amplified by holdings in Manhattan real estate. Over the ensuing generations, Astors ruled Gilded Age New York society and inserted themselves into political and cultural life, but also suffered the most famous loss on the Titanic, one of many shocking and unexpected twists in the family’s story.</p><p>In this unconventional, page-turning historical biography, featuring black-and-white and color photographs, #1 New York Times bestselling authors Anderson Cooper and Katherine Howe chronicle the lives of the Astors and explore what the Astor name has come to mean in America—offering a window onto the making of America itself.</p>

<p>“In this hilarious, uplifting memoir, Wolfe describes her intense bond with Harlow...as she grapples with the chaos of her 20s, marriage, and eventually new motherhood.”—Washington Post</p><p>“An engaging debut with a lighthearted memoir of her tender relationship with her dog, Harlow, and her rocky path to becoming a mother. . . . A sweet homage to a beloved pet.”—Kirkus Reviews</p><p>The funny and poignant story of one woman’s wonderfully codependent relationship with her dog – and what he taught her about chosen family and the reward of motherhood.</p><p>Birdie &amp; Harlow is the story of a baby and a dog. But motherhood is never quite that simple. In Taylor Wolfe’s case, it’s a long, zigzagging and winding road.</p><p>Meant to be a last-minute anniversary gift for her then boyfriend (and now husband), the highly-energetic and loud-mouthed Vizla puppy named Harlow turns out to be the best snap decision twenty-year-old Taylor ever makes—and the beginning of the most epic friendship she ever has. As Wolfe’s resistance to 9-5’s and traditional adulthood grows, Harlow becomes the perfect companion for her eccentricities in a world that thrives on conformity. Wolfe’s twenties—full of pitfalls and surprises, sad days and silver linings—led her to the realization that life is too short to spend your days in a crate (or a cubicle), that parks are meant to be enjoyed, and most importantly, she wants to be a mom. But really, isn't she one already?&nbsp;</p><p>A charming and touching memoir, Birdie &amp; Harlow is a tribute to the many expressions of modern motherhood, to both human and fur babies alike. Taylor’s story reminds all of us that life will surprise you and that families should come in every shape and size.</p><div><br></div>

<p>"There are many women like Belén whose names we don’t know, but whose stories are just as important. An uplifting chronicle of one woman’s fight for justice."—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)</p><p>Foreword by Margaret Atwood</p><p>The heartbreaking true story of an Argentinian woman imprisoned for having a miscarriage—an injustice that galvanized a feminist movement and became a global rallying cry in the fight for reproductive rights.</p><p>In 2014, Belén, a twenty-five-year-old woman living in rural Argentina, went to the hospital for a stomachache—and soon found herself in prison. While at the hospital she had a miscarriage—without knowing she was pregnant. Because of the nation’s repressive laws surrounding abortion and reproductive rights, the doctors were forced to report her to the authorities. Despite her protestations, Belén was convicted and sentenced to two years for homicide.</p><p>Belén’s imprisonment is a glaring example of how women’s health care has become increasingly criminalized, putting the most vulnerable—BIPOC, rural, and low-income—women at greater risk of prosecution. Belén’s cause became the centerpiece of a movement to achieve greater protections for all women. After two failed attempts to clear her name, Belén met feminist lawyer Soledad Deza, who quickly rallied Amnesty International and ignited an international feminist movement around #niunamas—not one more—symbolized by thousands of demonstrators around the globe donning white masks, the same kind of mask Belén wore when leaving prison. The #niunamas movement was instrumental in pressuring Argentine president Alberto Fernández to decriminalize abortion in 2021.&nbsp;</p><p>In this gripping and personal account of the case and its impact on local law, Ana Correa, one of Argentina’s leading journalists and activists, makes clear that what happened to Belén could happen to any woman—and that we all have the power to raise our collective voices and demand change.</p><p>Translated by Julia Sanches</p>