When Peter Ackroyd, one of Britain's undisputed literary masters, writes a new novel, it is a literary event. With his last novel, The Trial of Elizabeth Cree, "as gripping and ingenious a murder mystery as you could hope to come across," in the words of the San Francisco Chronicle, he reached a whole new level of critical and popular success. Now, with his trademark blending of historical fact and fictive fancy, Ackroyd has placed the towering poet of Paradise Lost

VOL. 2: THE UPSTART CROW.Ambitious Actor and Poet.(c. 1590 - Midsummer Night's Dream)Peter Ackroyd's insightful new biography positions Shakespeare in the close context of his world. In this way, Ackroyd not only richly conjures up the texture of Shakespeare's life, but also imparts an amazing amount of vivid, interesting material about place, period and background. Walk with Ackroyd through sixteenth century London and Stratford as he uncover...

From the author of Chatterton and Shakespeare: A Biography comes a gripping novel set in London that re-imagines an infamous 19th-century Shakespeare forgery. Charles and Mary Lamb, who will in time achieve lasting fame as the authors of Tales from Shakespeare for Children, are still living at home, caring for their dotty and maddening parents. Reading Shakespeare is the siblings’ favorite reprieve, and they are delighted when an ambitious young bookseller comes ...

A gripping short biography of the extraordinary Wilkie Collins, author of The Moonstone and The Woman in White, two early masterpieces of mystery and detection.Short and oddly built, with a head too big for his body, extremely nearsighted, unable to stay still, dressed in colorful clothes, Wilkie Collins looked distinctly strange. But he was nonetheless a charmer, befriended by the great, loved by children, irresistibly attractive to women—and avi...

A boy dies in the Maine woods. His death is judged an accident but suspicions are raised. Set in the remote sugar camps of northwestern Maine, the story unfolds around the maple syrup industry and its producers; the little-known world of the largely French-speaking Canadian acericulteurs.

In this magnificent vision of Venice, Peter Ackroyd turns his unparalleled skill at evoking place from London and the River Thames, to Italy and the city of myth, mystery and beauty. He leads us through the history of the city, from the first refugees arriving in the mists of the lagoon in the fourth century to the rise of a great mercantile state and a trading empire, the wars against Napoleon and the tourist invasions of today. There are wars and sieges, scandals and seductions, fountain...

Did you know that dreams about houses symbolise exploration of the self? And that water symbolizes fertility, creativity and potential? Dreams provide vital clues to hidden feelings, fears and desires; understanding your dreams can lead to greater self-awareness and self-healing. Each image that appears in a dream has a meaning and The Dream Dictionary is an invaluable, detailed guide to decoding these meanings.This essential bedside book introduces the cl...

If your tastes run to Victorian mysteries and murder, you'll enjoy Peter Ackroyd's special blending of fact and fiction in this magnificent recreation of the bizarre murders that rocked Victorian England. Drawing on surviving police records and court transcripts, Ackroyd paints a fascinating portrait of a savage murderer, the terror that rippled across London, and the innocent woman charged with the crimes.

Drama Lessons: Ages 7–11 offers an exciting and varied range of tried and tested lessons tailor-made for busy teachers. Drama Lessons: Ages 7–11 emerges from the continuing positive responses to Drama Lessons for Five to Eleven Year Olds (2001).In this book you will find a carefully chosen selection of the best lessons from the original book, plus some exciting new material – a combination of brand new and classic lessons. This new collection introduces Literacy A...

A gripping short biography of the extraordinary Alfred Hitchock, the master of suspense.Alfred Hitchcock was a strange child. Fat, lonely, burning with fear and ambition, his childhood was an isolated one, scented with fish from his father's shop. Afraid to leave his bedroom, he would plan great voyages, using railway timetables to plot an exact imaginary route across Europe. So how did this fearful figure become the one of the most respected film directors of the ...

Colonial Adventure is an epic in free-form verse depicting a slice of British colonial history (1936 - 1977) as experienced by individuals on both sides of the racial conflict. It starts with a British couple who establish a large agricultural operation in what was then Southern Rhodesia, later Rhodesia and now Zimbawe. With the rise of black nationalism, the black majority rebels, leading to a brutal civil war that damages every segment of the population. Of the other shorter stories, all...

The Subliminal Bed FeliciasCreated By ‘The Producers’, Osborne and Fawkner PublishingQueer Romance Sketch ComedyQueer humorist, robust, raw and edgy. Dramatically totally over the top dilemmas of à la carte queer comedia.Recorded with rawness, feels like your in the audience at the latest comedy shows.If you are one for Saturday Night Live's then this one is for you.Short story comedy sketch delights on intim...