What do Zen masters, sixteenth-century Samurai, and the world's elite climbers have in common?

They have perfected the of awareness, of being in the moment, of trusting the process.

Climbing is a sport of perception, and our successes and failures are matters of mind as much as body.

Written by philosopher, essayist, and lifelong climber Francis Sanzaro, The Zen of Climbing explores the fundamentals of successful climbing, delving into sports psychology, neuroscience, philosophy, and Taoism. Awareness, he argues, is the alchemy of climbing, allowing us to merge mental and physical attributes in one embodied whole.

This compact volume puts the climber's mind at the forefront of practice.

Nominated for Reading the West Awards 2025

From the author of The Zen of Climbing, this enlightening and essential book is an inspired collection of concise essays and reflections on the art of bouldering.

More than a sport, bouldering is a craft that demands equal fine-tuning of the mind and body. It calls for total commitment and attentiveness.

Climber, writer, and philosopher Francis Sanzaro brings the discipline into conversation with other sports and arts including architecture, dance, skateboarding, painting, parkour, martial arts, and gymnastics.

Sanzaro shows how the pursuit of bouldering is akin to developing a philosophy--something that can be nurtured and strengthened like a muscle, benefiting both body and soul. He explores all aspects of the craft and gives boulderers a voice of their own.

Learn from Britain's leading dragonfly expert how to invite dragonflies and damselflies into your garden and help them thrive there.

In this compact and accessible wildlife primer, 'Dragonfly Ambassador' Ruary Mackenzie Dodds shows how to set up a tranquil garden haven for dragonflies, with straightforward, easy-to-follow guidance on preparing your pond, what plants to include in it, and how to manage and enjoy it.

Caring for something as precious and delicate as a dragonfly can provide a welcome respite from the everyday demands of life. We can, as always, learn so much from the natural world, even--and sometimes especially--from its smallest creatures.

Learn how to transform your garden into a haven for dragonflies and damselflies, nurturing your own mental health and protecting the planet as you do so. With stunning colors and phenomenal flying abilities, dragonflies are beautiful creatures that are also vital to our ecosystem. Every pond counts!

From a Costa Book of the Year winner, Booker nominee and double Granta-selected Best Young British novelist comes a searing portrayal of the gradual uncovering of one woman's past psychological wounds, set in motion by the arrival of an unexpected letter.

In the 1980s, Anna McCormick was an anti-nuclear peace activist. She was used to taking on those abusing their political power, but when she was targeted by abuse herself, it left a wound so deep it would still be reverberating through her life decades later.

In 2020, Anna is teaching nine-year-olds on Zoom, navigating a relationship interrupted by enforced distance, and coping with a teenaged son who cannot leave the house. When an unstamped envelope arrives overnight, the traumatic past she had tried to bury begins to cast its own long shadow on the present.

This is a twisty, heart-racing page-turner and an incisive look at the personal impact of the violence of the state, the police and the villains much closer to home.

It's the eve of the 1980s. Police officer Liz Seeley joins the squad investigating the murders. With a violent boyfriend at home and male chauvinist pigs at work, she is drawn to a feminist collective led by the militant and uncompromising Rowena. There she meets Charmaine--young, Black, artistic, and fighting discrimination on two fronts.

As the list of victims grows and police fail to catch the killer, women are too terrified to go out after dark. To the feminists, the Butcher is a symptom of wider misogyny. Their anger finds an outlet in violence, and Liz is torn between loyalty to them and her colleagues and job.

In this novel based on the true events of the Yorkshire Ripper murders and the feminist arson campaign it triggered targeting porn outlets, Ajay Close combines the tension of a police procedural with the power and passion of the Women's Lib movement. By turns emotional, action-packed, and darkly funny, What Doesn't Kill Us reveals just how much the world has changed since the 1970s--and how much it hasn't

Bringing together landscapes, geology, history, people, and their whisky, and addressing the key role of peatlands in mitigating climate change, Peat and Whisky: The Unbreakable Bond is a love letter to the unique substance that forms part of the DNA of Scotch whisky.

Through epic journeys around Scotland and elsewhere, and back in time, Mike Billett dives deep into the science and stories of ancient peatlands and bogs, capturing the spirit of places where whisky has been distilled for centuries. He sheds light on how peat imparts its distinctive aroma and flavor to the world's finest single malts. He looks back to tradition and heritage, as well as forward to a future in which peat will remain part of the whisky recipe, while at the same time becoming an increasingly precious living sponge for atmospheric carbon. He takes us to places where the bond between peat and whisky is growing around the world.

Whether you're a whisky connoisseur, a lover of Scotland's beautiful landscapes, an armchair traveler or a history buff, this unforgettable book will deepen your appreciation for the land itself and help you to understand the profound connection between peat and the unmistakable character of uisge beatha, the water of life.

New from the popular In the Moment series--in search of the darkest night skies, Anna Levin uncovers a sense of wonder about the universe that will help you to understand more about our own pale blue dot.

The darkness of the night represents something unknowable and mysterious. But when we look up, we can find celestial light shows, whole galaxies, and even a new perspective on our Earthly concerns. The night sky offers us an essential connection to something bigger than ourselves, a vast, timeless expanse that extinguishes our individual concerns.

Humans have tried to make sense of the night sky since ancient times. From physicists and meteorologists to astrologists, artists, philosophers and poets, it has been a source of inspiration, wonder, and exploration. Now, our access to darkness is under threat, and many of us are flocking to see the stars while we can--in a new wave of 'astrotourism'.

In this concise volume, Anna Levin looks at how we can learn from and nurture our relationship with the night sky, even--especially--in the context of our changing world.

Birds are beloved for their song and have featured in our own music for centuries. Singing Like Larks opens a rare window onto birdlife, folklore, traditional verse, and song writing, especially in the British Isles.

In this charming volume, folklore, verse, and nature writing combine to explore why birds appear in so many folk songs, with song lyrics, history, and anecdotes drawing on a rich heritage. Ornithological folk songs are themselves something of a threatened species. Melodies lost in the passage of time, their lyrics tucked in archives, our awareness of birds, their song and our own traditions must be passed down from one generation to the next. Lifetimes of wisdom are etched into these songs, preserving the natural rhythms of times past and our connection to feathered friends.

A treasury of bird-related folk songs, this is also an account of one young nature writer's journey into the world of folk music, and a joyous celebration of song, the seasons, and our love of birds.

Past and present converge as Linda Cracknell doubles back to walk in the footsteps of others.

Across Norway, Kenya, and the northerly islands of Skye in Scotland and Lindisfarne in England, Doubling Back traces the contours of history. Following paths long mythologized by writers and relatives gone before, Linda Cracknell charts how places immortalized in writing and memory create portals; wrinkles in time and geography that allow us to recreate journeys of others moving at a slow and steady pace, on foot.

Join Linda as she traverses the dangerous crevasses of the Swiss Alps to retrace the mountaineering past of the father she barely knew. Walk with her as she follows the escape route of a Norwegian scientist on the run in the Second World War, or as she simply celebrates the joy found in the 'friendly paths' of her local, regular terrain, and the rhythms and ritual of returning home.

Published in the UK to rave reviews and serialized on BBC radio, this beautifully rendered account of walking and memory helps us to locate ourselves in time and space and to reflect on our future on this fragile Earth.

From the leading lady of Scottish historical mysteries comes her US debut novel: a shocking tale of betrayal and murder in the court of Mary, Queen of Scots.

1567, Scotland: no place for a woman. Mary, Queen of Scots, is forced to abdicate in favor of her infant son. She can rely only on the loyalty of her ladies-in-waiting, chiefly Marie Seton. Meanwhile the political turmoil in the country is mirrored behind the walls of beautiful Fyvie Castle. Lilias's marriage to Marie's nephew, the ruthlessly ambitious Alexander Seton, goes awry after the birth of yet another daughter. He blames her--and contemplates drastic action. To what lengths will a man go to secure a son and heir?

The Green Lady is a shocking tale of intrigue, secrets, treachery, and murder, based on true events, but seen from a different perspective than is found in most history books. Casting a fascinating light on the ruthless nature of power, the story highlights the precarious position of sixteenth-century women, even those in the most privileged of circumstances.