Books

Derby Day at Epsom Downs. A multitude of people crowd to watch the races: dukes and dustmen, bishops and beggars, privileged ladies and prostitutes. The gamut of Victorian society and a hotbed for crime and crooks of all kinds. With the nation a-flutter in the run up to this national event, a disembodied head is discovered on a passenger train.

Mari sips her coffee and reads a book, but soon her solitude is disturbed: a girl has been beaten up at the Alphaville hotel, and needs Mari's help. Meanwhile Mari's beautiful sister Eri lies in a deep, heavy sleep that is 'too perfect, too pure' to be normal;

Moran is an old Republican whose life was forever transformed by his days of glory as a guerrilla leader in the War of Independence. Now, in old age, living out in the country, Moran is still fighting - with his family, his friends, even himself - in a poignant struggle to come to terms with the past.

A guide to the strategies of war. Spanning world civilisations, and synthesising dozens of political, philosophical, and religious texts, it features the subtle social game of everyday life. It contains examples of the genius and folly of those from Napoleon to Margaret Thatcher and Hannibal to Ulysses S Grant.

One night in the reform club, Phileas Fogg bets his companions that he can travel across the globe in just eighty days. He sets off with his valet Passepartout, and passes through exotic lands and dangerous locations, they seize whatever transportation is at hand - whether train or elephant - overcoming set-backs and racing against the clock.

States that throughout history, some books have changed the world. They have transformed the way we see ourselves and each other. They have inspired debate, dissent, war and revolution. This book presents works of the great thinkers, pioneers, radicals and visionaries whose ideas shook civilization and helped make us who we are.

Sammar is a young Sudanese widow, working as an Arabic translator at a British university. Estranged from her son, she drifts, grieving and isolated. Life takes a positive turn when she finds herself falling in love with Rae, a Scottish academic. To Sammar, he seems to come from another world and another culture, yet they are drawn to each other.

College freshman Claire Danvers has had enough of her nightmarish dorm situation, where the popular girls never let her forget just where she ranks in the school's social scene: somewhere less than zero. When Claire heads off-campus, the imposing old house where she finds a room may not be much better.

Focuses on you - and how you can make yourself more appealing to others in almost every situation - whether you have a man or not. This title reveals: five truths every woman needs to know: live in the moment, men do not want to be changed or improved; and, seven habits of highly unattractive women: Boring in bed, Being needy.