Mama is a battle-hardened beauty of Tokyo's famous nightclub circuit - her life spent feeding the egos of politicians, businessmen and celebrities. With Tokyo in trouble, suicides are rising so she decides to act in her own novel way, stumbling into a lot of lives and laughs while she and her bumbling old barman Kenji embark on a scheme to enrich her failing nightclub.

'A funny thing happened on my way to the billabong…' Sure did. In fact, a lot of funny things happened on the 3rd Altrincham Rover Crew Australasian Expedition fifty years ago.Here's how my expedition from the UK to Australia missed its target by 5000 miles and ended up in Tokyo. In an old van it was a rough ride - few roads, but enough interesting memories and amusing stories for a lifetime

Highway humour for any driver. New to the wheel? Laugh as you learn! A chuckle on every page, it lists 120 questions from Driving Theory Tests, that apply to road users worldwide. A great way to get some grins as anyone struggles through the rules of the road. In each set of wacky answers there's a genuine response to help you remember on test day. Packed with original cartoons. Enjoy!

An entertaining novel centered around Britain's most popular indoor sport. Okay, perhaps the second most popular sport. Probably the only humour book written on the game, with lots of incidents that will be familiar to anyone who has been around the pub scene.Under the guiding hand of his canny old grandpa Kerry sets off toconquer the world of darts. And finds out that the climb up is not as easy as he thought. But he has a lot of fun trying.Both players and non-player...

The China Plot dramatizes an epic that could well stand as a sequel to The Last Emperor . It reveals an enthralling chapter in Asian history that has been overlooked for eighty years.In the l930's Pu-chieh, brother of the last emperor of China, was used by the Japanese military in an effort to establish a Japanese bloodline on the throne of China following their conquest of Manchuria.The Kwangtung Army, Japan's army of occupation, with the cooperation of the military-politica...

Following on from the hugely enjoyable A RIDE IN THE NEON SUN, Josie takes us on the second part of her journey through Japan; a country whose keyword is peace, yet spends millions each year on high-tech armament. Josie's travels are as fascinating as they are varied; she endures a horrific storm at sea, samples the deadly puffer fish and visits the two cities which will forever symbolise the horror of war: Nagasaki and Hiroshima. But wherever she goes, no matter how remote or industrious ...

YOU CAN'T KEEP A GOOD WOMAN DOWNIn this part of Ireland, the past can never stay buried.In Blarney, Cork, an old millworker's cottage guards its secrets. In 1921, a mother, father and their two young children disappeared from this house. Now their mummified bodies have been discovered under the floorboards.As DS Katie Maguire investigates a ninety-five-year-old murder, the flames of old family rivalries flare up once more, catching ...

'ONE OF THE MOST BRILLIANTLY INVENTIVE WRITERS OF THIS, OR ANY, COUNTRY' INDEPENDENTShortlisted for the Booker and James Tait Black Memorial Prizes'Spellbinding'INDEPENDENT'Exceptional'LITERARY REVIEW'Beautifully precise'GUARDIAN'Marvellous'OBSERVER'Constantly entert...

A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING MEMOIR'A beautiful and evocative story' TIME OUT'[Markham] can write rings around all of us . . . ' ERNEST HEMINGWAY'A vivacious account of an eccentric life' DAILY MAILWest with the Night appeared on thirteen bestseller lists on first publication in 1942. It tells the spellbinding story of Beryl Markham - aviator, racehorse trainer, fa...

A household name, an Australian rock icon, the elder statesman of Ozrock - there isn't an accolade or cliche that doesn't apply to Jimmy Barnes. But long before Cold Chisel and Barnesy, long before the tall tales of success and excess, there was the true story of James Dixon Swan - a working class boy whose family made the journey from Scotland to Australia in search of a better life.Working Class Boy is a powerful reflection on a traumatic and violent childhood, which fue...

Written in 1645, The Book of Five Rings (Go Rin no Sho) is a legendary Japanese treatise on strategy, combat, and discipline by master swordsman Miyamoto Musashi. Divided into five sections—Earth, Water, Fire, Wind, and Void—the book outlines Musashi's philosophy of martial arts and the mindset required for victory. Beyond swordsmanship, Musashi's teachings emphasize awareness, adaptability, mental clarity, and strategic thinking. His principles extend far beyond the battlefield, offering ...

Paul Theroux's Ghost Train to the Eastern Star is a journey from London to Asia by train.Winner of the Stanford Dolman Lifetime Contribution to Travel Writing Award 2020Thirty years ago Paul Theroux left London and travelled across Asia and back again by train. His account of the journey - The Great Railway Bazaar - was a landmark book and made his name as the foremost travel writer of his generation. Now Theroux makes the trip all...