Newsletter Archive

2024

April – Contemplate the rise and fall of history’s greatest empires

March – How can we be good in a world gone bad?

February – ‘The blade must woo the wood’: Jenny Uglow reflects on the work of David Esterly

January – On pain, strength and mother-daughter relationships with Monica Macias

2023

December – An avid reader in the family? We’ve got you

November – Which Irish writers should you be reading?

October – The cow that got stuck in a tree

September – ‘Soon all of Europe will know our songs’

August – Forward, backward and forward again for women’s rights

July – The World’s Fair, Feminism and… the French?

June – ‘I have lived a pilgrim life’

May – Are we alone in the cosmos?

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duck_books

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Proudly independent for 125 years 🎉🦆

We’re honoured to announce #InGreen by @louis.d.hall has been longlisted for the @saltirebookawards.

Seeking a salve for his existential apprehensions and inspired by Don Quixote, Louis’ journey on horseback reconnects him with wild places, taking readers along old paths and ancient villages across Europe. From rural Scotland to the Galician Coast, Louis discovers more than he bargained for.

‘A classic adventure narrative in the vein of Patrick Leigh Fermor and Robert Louis Stevenson... life-changing’ @calflyn author of #IslandsOfAbandonment

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We’re honoured to announce #InGreen by @louis.d.hall has been longlisted for the @saltirebookawards.

Seeking a salve for his existential apprehensions and inspired by Don Quixote, Louis’ journey on horseback reconnects him with wild places, taking readers along old paths and ancient villages across Europe. From rural Scotland to the Galician Coast, Louis discovers more than he bargained for.

‘A classic adventure narrative in the vein of Patrick Leigh Fermor and Robert Louis Stevenson... life-changing’ @calflyn author of #IslandsOfAbandonment

And some more incredible stories... 🚂👏

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

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And some more incredible stories... 🚂👏

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

Here are just some of the amazing stories you can find in our latest publication, The Untold Railway Stories…. 🚞📚

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

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Here are just some of the amazing stories you can find in our latest publication, The Untold Railway Stories…. 🚞📚

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

✨🚂 Happy Publication Day! 🚂✨

We’re thrilled to celebrate the release of The Untold Railway Stories, a compendium of fascinating and evocative new writing on railway travel and history.

Telling of little known journeys and uncovered histories on railway routes around the world - from the UK, Europe and Africa to North America, the Middle East and Asia.

From Myanmar`s highlands to the British Pennines, from slow travel between coffee plantations in Borneo to a cross-continent odyssey on African railways, from the pioneers of the American West to European trains in war, this is a new prism through which to explore human lives, and global landscapes, politics and history.

The Untold Railway Stories is a testament to both the joy and impact of train travel - to the ambition and ingenuity, and also to destruction and sacrifice within its history - and is published to coincide with the 200th anniversary of first passenger railway line.

📖 Out now — climb aboard!

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

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✨🚂 Happy Publication Day! 🚂✨

We’re thrilled to celebrate the release of The Untold Railway Stories, a compendium of fascinating and evocative new writing on railway travel and history.

Telling of little known journeys and uncovered histories on railway routes around the world - from the UK, Europe and Africa to North America, the Middle East and Asia.

From Myanmar's highlands to the British Pennines, from slow travel between coffee plantations in Borneo to a cross-continent odyssey on African railways, from the pioneers of the American West to European trains in war, this is a new prism through which to explore human lives, and global landscapes, politics and history.

The Untold Railway Stories is a testament to both the joy and impact of train travel - to the ambition and ingenuity, and also to destruction and sacrifice within its history - and is published to coincide with the 200th anniversary of first passenger railway line.

📖 Out now — climb aboard!

#PublicationDay #TheUntoldRailwayStories #RailwayHistory #TrainTravel #NewBook

Author @dureazizamna has landed in the UK to celebrate her brilliant new novel A Splintering! 🙌

Yesterday we had the best time visiting bookshops around London on a whirlwind tour, and you can now find signed copies at 📚
 📍 Waterstones Richmond 📍 Waterstones Trafalgar Square 📍 Foyles Charing Cross

We also made a stop at the BBC for a very exciting interview for the BBC Radio 2 Book Club 🎙️ — keep your ears peeled for that coming soon! 💛

#ASplintering #DurEazizAmna #BookTour #SignedCopies #BBC #Radio2BookClub #Bookstagram #AuthorTour #Bookish

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Author @dureazizamna has landed in the UK to celebrate her brilliant new novel A Splintering! 🙌

Yesterday we had the best time visiting bookshops around London on a whirlwind tour, and you can now find signed copies at 📚
 📍 Waterstones Richmond 📍 Waterstones Trafalgar Square 📍 Foyles Charing Cross

We also made a stop at the BBC for a very exciting interview for the BBC Radio 2 Book Club 🎙️ — keep your ears peeled for that coming soon! 💛

#ASplintering #DurEazizAmna #BookTour #SignedCopies #BBC #Radio2BookClub #Bookstagram #AuthorTour #Bookish

An utterly inspiring talk @frontlineclub about the Afghan women judges who fled the Taliban and those they left behind. Karen Bartlett interviews Fawzia Amini and Anisa Dhanji about their struggle to save these women and the work still left to do.

The full story: Afghanistan appointed its first woman judge in 1969. In the intervening years, the status and safety of Afghan women has been shockingly volatile. The late 70s saw the rise of the mujahedeen when women’s rights were eroded, followed by a period of political instability in the late 80s when female judges had the chance to work again. The Taliban seized power in the mid-90s and imposed a strict Islamic regime under which women suffered unspeakable brutality. The aftermath of 9/11 ushered in a new democratic government and in the following two decades, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country - tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy that respected the rule of law and human rights. However, the catastrophic withdrawal of Western forces in August 2021 placed the women judges of Afghanistan in mortal danger.

Afghan women judges symbolised everything the Taliban despised and feared. Without help, the judges knew the Taliban would hunt them down and kill them. This is a remarkable, never-before-told account of how a global network of female judges created a support group, working round-the-clock to help many Afghan women judges and their families escape. The heart-stopping stories of their journeys and the shocking fates of those unable to get out are documented by the best-selling veteran journalist, Karen Bartlett. She had unique access to many of the women involved, including those in exile and the judges still trapped in Afghanistan, as well as the women judges from other parts of the world who were vital to the escape effort.

Karen Bartlett’s book The Escape from Kabul is a searing testimony to the extraordinary power of women – those trapped in the most hostile of conditions and those desperately trying to help them.

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An utterly inspiring talk @frontlineclub about the Afghan women judges who fled the Taliban and those they left behind. Karen Bartlett interviews Fawzia Amini and Anisa Dhanji about their struggle to save these women and the work still left to do.

The full story: Afghanistan appointed its first woman judge in 1969. In the intervening years, the status and safety of Afghan women has been shockingly volatile. The late 70s saw the rise of the mujahedeen when women’s rights were eroded, followed by a period of political instability in the late 80s when female judges had the chance to work again. The Taliban seized power in the mid-90s and imposed a strict Islamic regime under which women suffered unspeakable brutality. The aftermath of 9/11 ushered in a new democratic government and in the following two decades, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country - tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy that respected the rule of law and human rights. However, the catastrophic withdrawal of Western forces in August 2021 placed the women judges of Afghanistan in mortal danger.

Afghan women judges symbolised everything the Taliban despised and feared. Without help, the judges knew the Taliban would hunt them down and kill them. This is a remarkable, never-before-told account of how a global network of female judges created a support group, working round-the-clock to help many Afghan women judges and their families escape. The heart-stopping stories of their journeys and the shocking fates of those unable to get out are documented by the best-selling veteran journalist, Karen Bartlett. She had unique access to many of the women involved, including those in exile and the judges still trapped in Afghanistan, as well as the women judges from other parts of the world who were vital to the escape effort.

Karen Bartlett’s book The Escape from Kabul is a searing testimony to the extraordinary power of women – those trapped in the most hostile of conditions and those desperately trying to help them.

You can read a fabulous extract from A Splintering by @dureamna on @wearebookanista! Here is a teaser for you...

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You can read a fabulous extract from A Splintering by @dureamna on @wearebookanista! Here is a teaser for you...

🎉 Happy Publication Day 🎉

Dur e Aziz Amna’s A Splintering is out now — an unforgettable story of motherhood, obsession and ambition.

✨ “Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting” – Kamila Shamsie ✨ “A lacerating novel… great insight and deep compassion” – Mohsin Hamid

Set against an oppressive backdrop of political violence and natural disaster, A Splintering traces the class struggle of a woman stuck between province and metropolis, motherhood and ambition.

🔥 Gripping, disquieting, and impossible to put down.

📚 A Splintering is available today!
#literaryfiction #bookstagram

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🎉 Happy Publication Day 🎉

Dur e Aziz Amna’s A Splintering is out now — an unforgettable story of motherhood, obsession and ambition.

✨ “Smart and gripping – I read it in one sitting” – Kamila Shamsie ✨ “A lacerating novel… great insight and deep compassion” – Mohsin Hamid

Set against an oppressive backdrop of political violence and natural disaster, A Splintering traces the class struggle of a woman stuck between province and metropolis, motherhood and ambition.

🔥 Gripping, disquieting, and impossible to put down.

📚 A Splintering is available today!
#literaryfiction #bookstagram

The Crack has chosen A Splintering as their book of the month🥳🥳

Perfect timing too... A Splintering is OUT tomorrow

#bookstagram #books #asplintering #literaryfiction

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The Crack has chosen A Splintering as their book of the month🥳🥳

Perfect timing too... A Splintering is OUT tomorrow

#bookstagram #books #asplintering #literaryfiction

Check out this incredible review of A Splintering by @dureamna in The Sunday Times 📰🥳

💬Amna is a witty and spiky writer and A Splintering is a blistering portrayal of a woman unwilling to accept life’s unfairness. Despite Tara’s greed and cruelty, her disdain for the restraints of her society is mesmerising. As her schemes to escape get wilder, you urge her on💬

Out 4th September!!

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Check out this incredible review of A Splintering by @dureamna in The Sunday Times 📰🥳

💬Amna is a witty and spiky writer and A Splintering is a blistering portrayal of a woman unwilling to accept life’s unfairness. Despite Tara’s greed and cruelty, her disdain for the restraints of her society is mesmerising. As her schemes to escape get wilder, you urge her on💬

Out 4th September!!

✨ They’re here! ✨ Fresh from the printers: the very first proof reader copies of I’ll Be the Monster by Sean Gilbert.

Aren’t they gorgeous? Who’s excited to get their hands on a copy.. we will be choosing a select group of book bloggers. Like and leave a comment below if you are interested⬇️

A homicidal couple go on a luxury holiday to save their marriage… need I say more?

Publishing 12 February 2026. 🖤 p.s thanks to everyone who has expressed interest so far, we are collecting a list of book bloggers and noting down their details and will announce who has been chosen to receive a copy soon!

#IllBeTheMonster #SeanGilbert #ProofCopies #Bookstagram #ComingSoon

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✨ They’re here! ✨ Fresh from the printers: the very first proof reader copies of I’ll Be the Monster by Sean Gilbert.

Aren’t they gorgeous? Who’s excited to get their hands on a copy.. we will be choosing a select group of book bloggers. Like and leave a comment below if you are interested⬇️

A homicidal couple go on a luxury holiday to save their marriage… need I say more?

Publishing 12 February 2026. 🖤 p.s thanks to everyone who has expressed interest so far, we are collecting a list of book bloggers and noting down their details and will announce who has been chosen to receive a copy soon!

#IllBeTheMonster #SeanGilbert #ProofCopies #Bookstagram #ComingSoon

✨ The Escape from Kabul by Karen Bartlett OUT NOW! ✨

A gripping story of rescue, survival and female solidarity.

In the twenty years since 2001, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country – tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy. However, when Western forces withdrew in August 2021, the women judges of Afghanistan and their families faced mortal danger.

The Escape from Kabul is the never-before-told story of the escape of nearly 200 women and their families, thanks to a network of professional friends, female judges and lawyers from around the world, who refused to abandon them to the Taliban.

A searing insight into the challenges of safely building a new life overseas and also the captive fate of women in Afghanistan. 📚

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✨ The Escape from Kabul by Karen Bartlett OUT NOW! ✨

A gripping story of rescue, survival and female solidarity.

In the twenty years since 2001, Afghan women obtained legal degrees, became judges and set out to transform their country – tackling corruption, and reducing horrifying levels of violence against women and children. These educated and powerful women led the mission to build a modern democracy. However, when Western forces withdrew in August 2021, the women judges of Afghanistan and their families faced mortal danger.

The Escape from Kabul is the never-before-told story of the escape of nearly 200 women and their families, thanks to a network of professional friends, female judges and lawyers from around the world, who refused to abandon them to the Taliban.

A searing insight into the challenges of safely building a new life overseas and also the captive fate of women in Afghanistan. 📚

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