Why did people build the way they did? What were their daily lives like, how did it affect the structure of their communities and why did they leave? This is a careful look at domestic spaces, streets and gathering places and the remnants left by ordinary folk. It is enlightening and entertaining, two essential factors in nonfiction narrative.
The much-admired author gives us entry into the chamber of his literary wisdom, both in reading and writing. With a breezy tone he walks us through the tricks of the trade, useful to enjoying literature and vital to creating it
A weighty multi-generational epic of 13th century Germany played out upon the backdrop of a massive cathedral and the machinations behind its construction. Plenty of blood and thunder along with some insightful commentary on the human condition.
This fascinating book within a book (literally) will please fans of the author and also anyone who loves a substantial whodunit. Plenty of inside information about books, writers and publishing.
A circus tent of wordplay and bizarre lexicography, this tale of two toilers in the trenches of dictionary-making is funny, creative and often amazes with the facility displayed by the author in making the English language fresh.
An Atmospheric Victorian fantasy/mystery featuring a hapless divinity student and a hardened Scotland Yard detective searching for sinister serial murderers.
A moving and meaningful meditation on our relationship to the earth and those things we owe it. Gratitude, respect, appreciation and love. A book for everyone.
The struggle between labor and management in the early twentieth century was a violent, passionate and lengthy. This is the story of two brothers desperately trying to find their path through the dangerous wilderness of murderers, zealots and immoral tycoons.