In two I'll slice the hair-seat / of Helga's kiss-gulper'
In this epic tale from the Viking Age that ranges across Scandinavia and Viking Britain, two poets compete for the love of Helga the Fair - with fatal consequences.
Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguin's 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries. They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California and the Russian steppe. Here are stories lyrical and savage; poems epic and intimate; essays satirical and inspirational; and ideas that have shaped the lives of millions.
The Icelandic Sagas were oral in origin and written down in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. Other Icelandic Sagas available in Penguin Classics include Njal's Saga, Egil's Saga, Sagas of Warrior-Poets, Gisli Sursson's Saga and the Saga of the People of Eyri, The Saga of Grettir the Strong, The Saga of the People of Laxardal and Bolli Bollason's Tale, The Vinland Sagas and Comic Sagas from Iceland.
‘A breakthrough book. Wonderfully applicable to everything in life, and funny as hell.’ Nassim Nicholas Taleb
To be brilliant, you have to be irrational
Why is Red Bull so popular – even though everyone hates the taste? Why do countdown boards on platforms take away the pain of train delays? And why do we prefer stripy toothpaste?
We think we are rational creatures. Economics and business rely on the assumption that we make logical decisions based on evidence.
But we aren’t, and we don’t.
In many crucial areas of our lives, reason plays a vanishingly small part. Instead we are driven by unconscious desires, which is why placebos are so powerful. We are drawn to the beautiful, the extravagant and the absurd – from lavish wedding invitations to tiny bottles of the latest fragrance. So if you want to influence people’s choices you have to bypass reason. The best ideas don’t make rational sense: they make you feel more than they make you think.
Rory Sutherland is the Ogilvy advertising legend whose TED Talks have been viewed nearly 7 million times. In his first book he blends cutting-edge behavioural science, jaw-dropping stories and a touch of branding magic, on his mission to turn us all into idea alchemists. The big problems we face every day, whether as an individual or in society, could very well be solved by letting go of logic and embracing the irrational.
Mark Renton is finally a success. An international jet-setter, he now makes significant money managing DJs, but the constant travel, airport lounges, soulless hotel rooms and broken relationships have left him dissatisfied with his life. He’s then rocked by a chance encounter with Frank Begbie, from whom he’d been hiding for years after a terrible betrayal and the resulting debt. But the psychotic Begbie appears to have reinvented himself as a celebrated artist and – much to Mark’s astonishment – doesn’t seem interested in revenge.
Sick Boy and Spud, who have agendas of their own, are intrigued to learn that their old friends are back in town, but when they enter the bleak world of organ-harvesting, things start to go so badly wrong. Lurching from crisis to crisis, the four men circle each other, driven by their personal histories and addictions, confused, angry – so desperate that even Hibs winning the Scottish Cup doesn’t really help. One of these four will not survive to the end of this book. Which one of them is wearing Dead Men’s Trousers?
For anyone who loved Chrissy's first cookbook, this is a sure-fire winner - full of irresistible recipes written with the sense of humour that's made her a social media sensation.
After two years of parenthood, falling in love with different flavours, and relearning the healing power of comfort food, this book is like Chrissy's new edible diary: recipes for quick-snap meals; recipes for lighter, brighter healthier-ish living; and recipes that, well, are gonna put you to bed, holding your belly.
'Böll's novel blows a stent in the human heart. . . It feels more necessary than ever.' Anna Funder, from the introduction
Twenty-four-year-old Andreas, a disillusioned German soldier, is travelling on a troop train to the Eastern Front when he has an awful premonition that he will die in exactly five days. As he hurtles towards his death, he reflects on the chaos around him - the naïve soldiers, the painfully thin girl who pours his coffee, the ruined countryside - with sudden, heart-breaking poignancy. Arriving in Poland the night before he is certain he will die, he meets Olina, a beautiful prostitute, and together they attempt to escape his fate...
'His work reaches the highest level of creative originality and stylistic perfection' Daily Telegraph
'Boll combines a mammoth intelligence with a literary outlook that is masterful and unique' Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22
'My most-admired contemporary novelist' John Ashbery
'From the moment I stepped on board the troop train with Private Andreas, concerns pertaining to my own world fell away completely. Holding this impelling book is tantamount to holding the young soldier's fate in one's hands. It is impossible to let go.' Claire-Louise Bennett, author of Pond
'A highly readable, fascinating book that jerks the debate on religion versus atheism right out of its crusted rut into the light of serious intellectual scrutiny' Observer
A meditation on the importance of atheism in the modern world - and its inadequacies and contradictions - by one of Britain's leading philosophers
'When you explore older atheisms, you will find some of your firmest convictions - secular or religious - are highly questionable. If this prospect disturbs you, what you are looking for may be freedom from thought.'
For a generation now, public debate has been corroded by a narrow derision of religion in the name of an often very vaguely understood 'science'. John Gray's stimulating and extremely enjoyable new book describes the rich, complex world of the atheist tradition, a tradition which he sees as in many ways as rich as that of religion itself, as well as being deeply intertwined with what is so often crudely viewed as its 'opposite'.
The result is a book that sheds an extraordinary and varied light on what it is to be human and on the thinkers who have, at different times and places, battled to understand this issue.
From the bestselling author of The Monk of Mokha andThe Circle comes a taut, suspenseful story of two foreigners' role in a nation's fragile peace.
'Tightly written, carefully designed to wrong-foot preconceptions, and astute... An intensely gripping story' Evening Standard
'Certainly his best book since What is the What, The Parade may well be the sound of a major writer finding his mature voice' Spectator
An unnamed country is leaving the darkness of a decade at war, and to commemorate the armistice the government commissions a new road connecting two halves of the state. Two men, foreign contractors from the same company, are sent to finish the highway. While one is flighty and adventurous, wanting to experience the nightlife and people, the other wants only to do the work and go home. But both men must eventually face the absurdities of their positions, and the dire consequences of their presence. With echoes of J. M. Coetzee and Graham Greene, this timeless novel questions whether we can ever understand another nation's war, and what role we have in forging anyone's peace.
Moss is all around us. While it is most often associated with damp, shady spaces, it can be found in the most unexpected and far-flung places, from deserts to Antarctica. This book is a celebration of its quiet, unassuming beauty and a primer to understanding the secrets of the world's most ancient plant:
· Discover the fascinating history of this soft and tactile plant
· Learn how and where to identify and gather different moss species.
· Take a tour of some of the most beautiful moss gardens in the UK, the US and Japan, where moss viewing has become a national phenomenon.
· Learn how to cultivate moss, tie Japanese moss balls (kokedama) and plant moss landscapes in pots and terrariums.
With stunning photography and botanical illustration, this is an utterly unique book that will be treasured by plant enthusiasts of all kinds.
She was his perfect wife, until she went missing . . .
Alexandra Southwood has vanished. Her husband, Marc, is beside himself. It isn't long before the police are searching for a body.
But Alexandra is alive - trapped, far away from her husband and young daughters.
Desperate, Marc will stop at nothing to find the woman he loves. Even if it means discovering that he never really knew her at all.
Because Alexandra is no ordinary missing person - but then neither is she quite a perfect wife . . .
Belle Hatton has embarked upon an exciting new life far from home: a glamorous job as a nightclub singer in 1930s Burma, with a host of sophisticated new friends and admirers. But Belle is haunted by a mystery from the past - a 25 year old newspaper clipping found in her parents' belongings after their death, saying that the Hattons were leaving Rangoon after the disappearance of their baby daughter, Elvira.
Belle is desperate to find out what happened to the sister she never knew she had - but when she starts asking questions, she is confronted with unsettling rumours, malicious gossip, and outright threats. Oliver, an attractive, easy-going American journalist, promises to help her, but an anonymous note tells her not to trust those closest to her. . .
Belle survives riots, intruders, and bomb attacks - but nothing will stop her in her mission to uncover the truth. Can she trust her growing feelings for Oliver? Is her sister really dead? And could there be a chance Belle might find her?
Kurt and his crew are in a deadly race against time to stop the sea rising. A mission deep inside the swirling Pacific. Their objective? To save the world.
The world's sea levels are rising at an alarming rate. So fast that nobody can explain it.
It's up to Kurt and the NUMA team to find out why, before it's too late.
Their search for answers sends them racing around the world, from the high-tech streets of Tokyo, to a forbidden secret island.
But it's in the East China Sea that they discover a secret underwater mining operation, and a plot more dangerous than they could have ever imagined . . .
The world is drowning and fast - but has Kurt Austin arrived in time to save the day?
As the First World War reaches its final year, an illicit love affair is beginning between a sixteen-year-old boy and a young woman married to a soldier at the front. They meet secretly in her flat on the outskirts of Paris, in cornfields and on river banks. When she receives letters from her husband, they burn them together. Intoxicated by passion, they cannot bear to end their affair, even when it causes a scandal among their friends and neighbours. Instead, they hurtle towards tragedy.
Written in spare, haunting prose when Raymond Radiguet was still a teenager, this semi-autobiographical novel became an instant bestseller and its author was hailed as a genius before his tragic death at the age of twenty. Expressing all the anguish and joy of adolescence, it is a work of startling imagery and subtle beauty.
Translated by Robert Baldick with an introduction by Fay Weldon
'A woman must have money and a room of her own if she is to write fiction'
Ranging from the silent fate of Shakespeare's gifted (imaginary) sister to Jane Austen, Charlotte Brontë and the effects of poverty and sexual constraint on female creativity, A Room of One's Own, based on a lecture given at Girton College, Cambridge, is one of the great feminist polemics. Published almost a decade later, Three Guineas breaks new ground in its discussion of men, militarism and women's attitudes towards war. These two pieces reveal Virginia Woolf's fiery spirit, sophisticated wit and genius as an essayist.
From the brilliant psychoanalyst behind Strictly Bipolar and What is Madness, a short and fascinating guide to the history of human sleep - and why we can't seem to sleep any more
One in four adults sleeps badly.
Sleeping pill prescriptions have increased dramatically over the last three decades, as have the incidence of sleep clinics.
Sleep used to be a natural state, easy as breathing, but increasingly it is an insecure commodity.
...Isn't it?
Our relationship to sleep surfaces and resurfaces throughout human history, each time telling us something new about our indivudual and collective psychology. From the industrial revolution to blue-light on our phones, from the ancient art of dream interpretation to the modern science of Freud, sleep is connected to wider social patterns, to shifting norms and expectations. Weaving together cultural, social, economic and psychoanalytic influences, Darian Leader delves into the truth about this universal human experience.
International bestselling authors of The Element
As a parent, what should you look for in your children's education? How can you tell if their school is right for them, and what can you do if it isn't? In this important new book, Sir Ken Robinson, one of the world's most influential voices in education, offers clear principles and practical advice on how to support your child through the education system, or outside it.
Dispelling myths, tackling controversies and weighing up the main choices, You, Your Child, and School is a key book for parents to learn about the kind of education their children really need and what they can do to make sure they get it.
A stunning thriller in the internationally bestselling Jack Ryan Jr series
Jack Ryan Jr is in an assassin's sights . . .
Sent to the Balkans on an analytical mission, Jack Ryan Jr visits Sarajevo to meet Aida, the girl whose eyesight his mother saved in the war twenty-five years ago. He finds a selfless, attractive woman helping refugees in a restless country where a new war is brewing.
Coming to her aid, Jack is soon tangling with the Serbian mafia while dodging assassins from the mysterious Iron Syndicate. Alone and defying recall orders, he believes this is more than local trouble.
Has someone lit the fuse on the next world war?
Is Jack endangering Aida trying to find out?
And what can he alone do to stop it?
PRAISE FOR TOM CLANCY
'Heart-stopping action... entertaining and eminently topical... Clancy still reigns' Washington Post
'Highly entertaining' The Wall Street Journal
PRAISE FOR MIKE MADEN
'Maden's trail of intrigue will captivate you from page one' Clive Cussler
Every parent wants their child to be happy and every parent wants to avoid screwing them up. But how do you achieve that?
In this absorbing, clever and funny book, renowned psychotherapist Philippa Perry tells us what really matters and what behaviour it is important to avoid - the vital dos and don'ts of parenting.
Instead of mapping out the 'perfect' plan, Perry offers a big-picture look at the elements that lead to good parent-child relationships. This refreshing, judgement-free guide will help you to:
· Understand how your own upbringing may affect your parenting
· Accept that you will make mistakes and learn what you can do about them
· Break negative cycles and patterns
· Handle your own and your child's feelings
· Understand what different behaviours communicate
Full of sage and sane advice, this is the book that every parent will want to read and every child will wish their parents had.
Nine perfect strangers, each hiding an imperfect life.
A luxury retreat cut off from the outside world.
Ten days that promise to change your life.
But some promises - like some lives - are perfect lies . . .
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