UK

Who travelling through Totteridge and Whetstone is aware that the station got its name from the medieval soldiers who sharpened their (read more)

Who travelling through Totteridge and Whetstone is aware that the station got its name from the medieval soldiers who sharpened their swords at the whetstone before the bloody Battle of Barnet? Or that Canary Wharf was built for importing fruit from the Canary Islands? Or that Shepherd's Bush was previously known as Gagglegoose Green? The names of the 300 or so underground stations are part of everyday life for Londoners, but we hardly ever question their meanings or history. This entertaining book delves into their origins, ensuring you never view your journey beneath the city in the same way again. (hide)

It's not until we push ourselves past our perceived limits, till we feel so cold and so tired that we feel we can't go on any further, (read more)

It's not until we push ourselves past our perceived limits, till we feel so cold and so tired that we feel we can't go on any further, that we discover what we are truly capable of...Britain's most famous wild camper and best-selling author of Extreme Sleeps, Phoebe Smith, is back. After bivvying under boulders and camping in caves on her last tent-bound adventure, she's decided to hit the UK's wild places once again but this time take it further. Determined to discover what defines a truly 'extreme' night out, and see if she has the guts to do it, she heads to the extremities of the country.

Battling whiteouts in Wales, facing monster waves in Suffolk and attempting to make camp in gale-force winds on Britain's highest mountain, Phoebe takes us on a series of inspirational expeditions into the wilderness as she quests to find the ultimate pitch. (hide)

In Wilding, Isabella Tree tells the story of the `Knepp experiment', a pioneering rewilding project in West Sussex, using free-roaming (read more)

In Wilding, Isabella Tree tells the story of the `Knepp experiment', a pioneering rewilding project in West Sussex, using free-roaming grazing animals to create new habitats for wildlife. Part gripping memoir, part fascinating account of the ecology of our countryside, Wilding is, above all, an inspiring story of hope. Forced to accept that intensive farming on the heavy clay of their land at Knepp was economically unsustainable, Isabella Tree and her husband Charlie Burrell made a spectacular leap of faith: they decided to step back and let nature take over.
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Women's London is the only guidebook that focuses on the women who have shaped London through the centuries and the legacy they have (read more)

Women's London is the only guidebook that focuses on the women who have shaped London through the centuries and the legacy they have left behind. This new book provides the perfect opportunity to explore sights, statues, plaques and buildings associated with famous and some not so famous women who have left their mark on London's heritage, culture and society. Their stories include scientists and suffragettes, reformers and royals, military and medical pioneers, authors and artists, fashion and female firsts ...

and more. The author, a popular London tour guide and lecturer, specialises in women's history and has provided a series of original self-guided walking tours taking you to historic areas where important women lived, worked and are commemorated. Illustrated with new full-colour photography and specially commissioned maps, Women's London will inspire visitors and Londoners alike to discover how much London owes to women.
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Wordsmiths and Warriors explores the heritage of English through the places in Britain that shaped it. It unites the warriors, whose (read more)

Wordsmiths and Warriors explores the heritage of English through the places in Britain that shaped it. It unites the warriors, whose invasions transformed the language, with the poets, scholars, reformers, and others who helped create its character. The book relates a real journey.

David and Hilary Crystal drove thousands of miles to produce this fascinating combination of English-language history and travelogue, from locations in south-east Kent to the Scottish lowlands, and from south-west Wales to the East Anglian coast. David provides the descriptions and linguistic associations, Hilary the full-colour photographs. They include a guide for anyone wanting to follow in their footsteps but arrange the book to reflect the chronology of the language.
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There is no single event in the history of our nation that has impacted society as profoundly as the Norman Conquest. These were (read more)

There is no single event in the history of our nation that has impacted society as profoundly as the Norman Conquest. These were brutal times and revolts prompted the erection of a large number of timber and earth castles, the majority being built between 1071 and 1145\. Yorkshire has many examples and this book goes in search of sites that represent the earliest feudal stamp of the Normans on the county s landscape.

Many are situated off the beaten track and command superb views of outstandingly beautiful countryside, while others are close to populated areas. In some instances, the visible remains have long since blended into the local scenery due to land cultivation, decay, neglect, vandalism, or uncaring (or unwitting) civil engineering works. A few were subsequently development in stone, but the majority remain obscure and go largely unnoticed by all but the most informed visitor. (hide)