Writing Reverse Harem for Fun and Money by S. C. Green

$30.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

If you want to create the ultimate wish-fulfillment story where a strong, sassy heroine gets all the hot guys, check out this guide by Steff Green, a six-figure bestselling author.

Mantel Pieces by Hilary Mantel

$45.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

In 1987, when Hilary Mantel was first published in the London Review of Books, she wrote to the editor, Karl Miller, ‘I have no critical training whatsoever, so I am forced to be more brisk and breezy than scholarly.’ This collection of twenty reviews, essays and pieces of memoir from the next three dec ades, tells the story of what happened next. Her subjects range far and wide: Robespierre and Danton, the Hite report, Saudi Arabia where she lived for four years in the 1980s, the Bulger case, John Osborne, the Virgin Mary as well as the pop icon Madonna, a brilliant examination of Helen Duncan, Britain’s last witch. There are essays about Jane Boleyn, Charles Brandon, Christopher Marlowe and Margaret Pole, which display the astonishing insight into the Tudor mind we are familiar with from the bestselling Wolf Hall Trilogy. Her famous lecture, ‘Royal Bodies’, which caused a media frenzy, explores the place of royal women in society and our imagination. Here too are some of her LRB diaries, including her first meeting with her stepfather and a confrontation with a circus strongman. Constantly illuminating, always penetrating and often very funny, interleaved with letters and other ephemera gathered from the archive, Mantel Pieces is an irresistible selection from one of our greatest living writers. ...Show more

Fucking Apostrophes by Simon Griffin

$19.00 NZD

Category: Gifts & Gift Books

A hilarious, furious and profoundly useful short guide to the most maddening punctuation in English   Apostrophes are an f'ing pain. The rules about how to use them are complicated, and have evolved haphazardly.   Originally written as advice by a copywriter for designers -- wont to insert and remov e apostrophes at will, for visual effect -- this is a lighthearted pocket-sized guide to getting the f'ing things right.   Simon Griffin lets off steam so that we don't have to, showing precisely why "Rihanna and Jennifer's photos were all over the Internet" is quite different to "Rihanna's and Jennifer's photos" or what words apostrophes are replacing in sentences such as "He'd like you to buy him some cocaine," or "They've got it all on camera."   Elegantly produced, this is the perfect gift for any pedant, as well as an indispensable guide in all our moments of grammar-related frustration.   WARNING: CONTAINS EXPLICIT LANGUAGE ...Show more

How to Rock Self Publishinga Rage Against the Manuscript Guide by Steff Green

$37.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

Do you have a story you’re bursting to tell the world? Are you sick of being rejected by the publishing establishment? Do you want to inject a little punk rock, DIY ethos into your indie author career?   In How to Rock Self-Publishing, bestselling indie author and publishing coach Steff Green shows you how to tell your story, find your readers, and build a badass author brand.    As a self-published author you’ll learn how to: Define your measure of success and set attainable goals. Create an exciting author brand you want to write under forever. Tame your monkey mind and consolidate your gazillion ideas into a solid plan. Choose the best platforms, editors, designers, and tools to create a high-quality book. Plan a compelling book series in any genre that will have your readers chomping for more. Write faster, release more often, and enjoy what you create. Spot trends and gaps in the market where you can add your unique voice. Publish your book in print, ebook, and audio with all the nuts and bolts. Launch with a BANG! – including handy launch checklists. Create an engaging author platform to turn your readers into lifelong fans. Find unique and emerging opportunities in self-publishing to build your audience and earn a living.   Steff breaks down the 11-step process that’s seen her go from failed archaeologist and obscure music blogger to a USA Today bestseller with a six-figure income. With dozens of examples from across the publishing landscape and real-talk from her own career, Steff shows how imagination, creativity, and perseverance can help you achieve your dreams.    How to Rock Self-Publishing isn’t just a book about writing, it’s about grabbing your dreams by the balls, living faster, harder and louder, and cranking your art up to 11.   ...Show more

The Wolf Hall Companion by Lauren MacKay

$35.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

An accessible but hugely authoritative companion to the bestselling Wolf Hall trilogy by Hilary Mantel. What is the true story behind the blockbuster Wolf Hall trilogy--and of Thomas Cromwell, its principal protagonist? This companion guide concisely illuminates both Cromwell's life and Tudor history, c overing the books' key court and political characters. It looks at everyone from Cromwell to Anne Boleyn, Thomas Cranmer to Jane Seymour, Henry VIII to Thomas Howard, and Cardinal Wolsey to Richard Fox, as well as the most significant sites, including Hampton Court, Cromwell's home Austin Friars, and of course Wolf Hall. Along with the full history of these people and places, there's insight into Hilary Mantel's individual interpretation. Family trees, plans of Tower of London, and beautiful woodcut portraits accompany the text, along with incisive features on various aspects of Tudor society, from the structure of government and royal hunting to the rules of courtly love and Tudor executions. This beautiful and insightful book enriches the reading of Mantel's work. ...Show more

The Secret Life of Books: Why They Mean More Than Words by Tom Mole

$27.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

We love books. We take them to bed with us. They weigh down our suitcases on holiday. We display them on our bookshelves, give them as gifts, write our names in them. We take them for granted. And all the time, our books are leading a double life.   The Secret Life of Books is about everything that isn 't just the words. It's about how books transform us as individuals, the stories they tell us about  ourselves. It's about how books - and readers - have evolved over time. And it's about why, even with the arrival of other media, books still have the power to change our lives.   In this stylish and thought-provoking meditation, Tom Mole looks at everything from binding innovations to binding errors, to books defaced by lovers, to those imprisoning professors in their offices, to books in art, to burned books, to the books that create nations, to those we'll leave behind. A striking text in a stunning package, it will change how you think about books.  ...Show more

Rebel Without a Clause by Susan Butler

$30.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

The English language is changing constantly. We invent new words and phrases, we mash up idioms, we mispronounce, misuse, misappropriate. Sue Butler has heard it all and is ready to defend and disagree with common usage. Veering from tolerance to outrage, she examines how the word sheila took a nose-div e after World War II, considers whether we should hunker or bunker down, and bemoans the emptiness of rhetoric. She shouts 'down with closure' as it leaps from the psychoanalyst's couch, explains why we've lost the plot on deceptively, untangles the manuka honey stoush, fathoms why the treatment of famous is infamous, and ponders whether you would, could or should ...Rebel without a Clause is a fascinatingly idiosyncratic romp through the world of words by lexicographer and former Macquarie Dictionary Editor, Sue Butler. ...Show more

Great Diaries: The World's Greatest Diaries, Notebooks, and Letters Explored and Explained by DK

$48.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

Travel back in time and witness both everyday life and great moments in history in this fascinating compilation of diaries through the ages. Great Diariestraces the history of the diary in all its forms, from ancient times to the present day. It brings together historical and literary diaries, artists' sketchbooks, explorers' journals, and scientists' notebooks. Discover what is was life to build a pyramid, sail the seas with Magellan, travel into the heart of Africa, or serve on the Western Front. Find out how writers and artists planned their masterpieces and how scientists developed their groundbreaking theories. Great Diariesexplores the world's greatest diaries and notebooks, including those of Samuel Pepys, Charles Darwin, Virginia Woolf, and Anne Frank. Stunning images of the original diaries and journals are complemented by key extracts and close-ups of important details. Feature boxes provide additional biographical information and set the works in their cultural and historical context. Essential reading for everyone who is passionate about history and literature, Great Diariesprovides an intimate insight into the lives and thoughts of some of the most interesting people of the last two thousand years. ...Show more

Gifts of Reading by Jennie Orchard (Curated by); Robert Macfarlane; Jackie Morris; William Boyd; Candice Carty-Williams; Chigozie Obioma; Philip Pullman; Imtiaz Dharker; Roddy Doyle; Pico Iyer; Andy Miller

$38.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

'This story, like so many stories, begins with a gift. The gift, like so many gifts, was a book...' So begins the essay by Robert Macfarlane that inspired this collection.In this cornucopia of an anthology, you will find essays by some of the world's most beloved novelists, nonfiction writers, essayists and poets.'You will see books taking flight in flocks, migrating around the world, landing in people's hearts and changing them for a day or a year or a lifetime.'You will see books sparking wonder or anger; throwing open windows into other languages, other cultures, other minds; causing people to fall in love or to fight for what is right.'And more than anything, over and over again, you will see books and words being given, received and read - and in turn prompting further generosity.'Published to coincide with the 20th anniversary of global literacy non-profit, Room to Read, The Gifts of Reading forms inspiring, unforgettable, irresistible proof of the power and necessity of books and reading.Inspired by Robert MacfarlaneCurated by Jennie OrchardWith contributions by: William Boyd, Candice Carty-Williams, Imtiaz Dharker, Roddy Doyle, Pico Iyer, Andy Miller, Jackie Morris, Jan Morris, Sisonke Msimang, Dina Nayeri, Chigozie Obioma, Michael Ondaatje, David PillingMax Porter, Philip Pullman, Alice Pung, Jancis Robinson, S.F.Said, Madeleine Thien, Salley Vickers, John Wood and Markus Zusak ...Show more

Word to the Wise - Untangling the Mix-Ups, Misuse and Myths of Language by Mark Broatch

$12.00 NZD

$30.00 (60% off)

Category: Writing & Reading

Even the best wordsmiths can find themselves tripping over words that are commonly misused, mixed up or misspelled. Most of us have suffered the embarrassment of suddenly discovering that they have been using or spelling a word wrong for years, or, in some cases, their entire life. This useful reference untangles the mix-ups and misuses of language so that you can ensure you've got the word you're looking for, whether it's 'taught', 'taut', 'tort' or 'torte'. With definitions, examples of how to sharpen up text and improve your writing, lists of useful social media abbreviations and a discussion of unusual plurals, this playful look at the often bizarre and frustrating English language has got you covered. Word to the Wise will help you get your word use straight, whether you're writing a book, blog, email or text message. ...Show more

The Happy Reader - Issue 15 by Various

$12.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

For avid readers and the uninitiated alike, this is a chance to reengage with classic literature and to stay inspired and entertained. The concept of the magazine is simple- the first half is a long-form interview with a notable book fanatic and the second half explores one classic work of literature f rom an array of surprising and invigorating angles. ...Show more

The Book Lover's Quiz Book by Gary Wigglesworth

$35.00 NZD

Category: Writing & Reading

'Brilliantly inventive and entertaining questions from the bookworm's bookworm' Mark Mason, author of Walk the Lines, Question Time and many more This is a literary quiz book with a difference. Rather than basic sets of questions, The Book Lover's Quiz Book mirrors the format of Gary's live quizzes, at the Betsey Trotwood in London and elsewhere. So, there are lots of multiple-choice questions, some amusing answers, clever red herrings, little-known facts about authors and some of the much-loved Say What You See picture round. Also, there are fixed and variable rounds - fixed ones include 'Blankety Books' (one word missing from the title - always with a theme), 'Literary Links and lists' (what connects/next in the list etc.) and '2 of a Kind' (name the character and the author that share the same initials). The changeable rounds keep the quizzes fresh and include 'What the Dickens?' (real or made-up Dickens names), 'RomeNo or JuliYess' (real or made-up Shakespearian insults) and 'Book Bingo!' (identify the correct number). There are also more standard rounds such as 'First Lines', 'Working Titles' and 'Banned Books'. The aim of all Gary's quizzes, and this book, is that people should have fun and be able to guess (if they don't know) as much as possible. ...Show more