Listmania!
Creative, disturbing, shocking and just plain useful!
Immoral ConsensusImmoral Consensus by Richard Faith
Buy new: £8.91 / Used from: £7.31
Perhaps overdetailed, but I loved this book from the moment I read it. Political dynamite. Disturbing, but certainly provocative.
Wind, Sand and Stars (Penguin Modern Classics)Wind, Sand and Stars (Penguin Modern Classics) by Antoine De Saint-Exupery
Buy new: £5.99 / Used from: £3.14
Gorgeous writing from a master of spiritual and lyrical prose. I keep it close to hand.
The Fateful Triangle: United States, Israel and the PalestiniansThe Fateful Triangle: United States, Israel and the Palestinians by Noam Chomsky
Buy new: £11.62 / Used from: £4.95
A good, in-depth analysis of the origins and structure of the Middle East ongoing (manufactured) crisis.
Mandate Days: British Lives in Palestine, 1918-1948Mandate Days: British Lives in Palestine, 1918-1948 by A.J. Sherman
Buy used from: £5.09
As an insight into a situation running out of control thanks to a lack of will and confusion, this is hard to beat.
In a Free StateIn a Free State by V.S. Naipaul
Buy new: £3.09 / Used from: £5.00
Written in a wonderfully lucid style, it almost doesn't matter what the stories are. Tales of people away from their roots.
Characters and Viewpoint (The Elements of Fiction Writing)Characters and Viewpoint (The Elements of Fiction Writing) by Orson Scott Card
Buy new: £3.53 / Used from: £3.36
Orson Scott Card's ideas for authors wanting to create believable characters. Entertaining and instructional.
Rewriting: A Creative Approach to Writing Fiction (Books for Writers)Rewriting: A Creative Approach to Writing Fiction (Books for Writers) by David Michael Kaplan
Buy used from: £23.00
A good guide to being a ruthless self-editor - a worthwhile writer's guide.
Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes (Novelists Essentials)Novelist's Essential Guide to Crafting Scenes (Novelists Essentials) by Raymond Obstfeld
Buy new: £3.79 / Used from: £7.91
Excellent guide to the mechanics of dialogue and keeping the reader's motor running.
From Pitch to Publication: Everything You Need to Know to Get Your Novel PublishedFrom Pitch to Publication: Everything You Need to Know to Get Your Novel Published by Carole Blake
Buy used from: £7.50
Wonderful guide, knowledgeably written and yet with the humanity to explain the long odds involved in the process of getting published.
For Whom the Bell TollsFor Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
Buy new: £5.49 / Used from: £1.98
There are not enough superlatives to describe Hemingway's writings. Read the reviews, then click "add to basket" - it's that simple.
One Palestine, Complete: Jews and Arabs Under the British MandateOne Palestine, Complete: Jews and Arabs Under the British Mandate by Tom Segev
Buy new: £10.49 / Used from: £6.90
An excellent and generally balanced account of Palestine under the British Mandate.
Arabians: The Classic Arabian HorseArabians: The Classic Arabian Horse by Peter Upton
Buy used from: £5.24
Beautifully illustrated homage to one of the most photogenic creatures on the planet.
How to Get Planning PermissionHow to Get Planning Permission by Roy Speer
Buy used from: £19.38
This one is an oddball entry, but having had to go through the process I was always glad to have had an earlier edition of this book to hand.
Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 11 (Wildlife Photographer Annual)Wildlife Photographer of the Year: Portfolio 11 (Wildlife Photographer Annual)
Buy new: £16.25 / Used from: £7.90
Just about every book in this series is worth having, although you'll need to strengthen your coffee table if you want them all.
Dead WeightDead Weight by Brian Lecomber
Buy used from: £45.00
Lecomber gave up writing novels - but why? This is a brilliant tale with down-at-heel goodies and slimy villains, all set in the sunny Caribbean. Who could wish for more?
UK VFR Flight GuideUK VFR Flight Guide
The latest edition of the UK's guide for "visual pilots" - necessary and useful, a must-have for your flight-bag.
Pat Metheny Song BooksPat Metheny Song Books by Pat Metheny
Buy new: £15.89 / Used from: £30.06
For those like me who cannot figure out just how such great music is made!
War Story (Cassell Military Paperbacks)War Story (Cassell Military Paperbacks) by Derek Robinson
Buy used from: £6.25
An amusing and almost anecdotal story that gets across the futility of war without once descending into preaching.
Other Men's Flowers: An Anthology of PoetryOther Men's Flowers: An Anthology of Poetry
Buy new: £14.00 / Used from: £1.82
Generally good anthology - definitely worth checking out.
The Collected Dorothy Parker (Penguin Modern Classics)The Collected Dorothy Parker (Penguin Modern Classics) by Dorothy Parker
Buy new: £7.69 / Used from: £5.90
I expect the very best of Dorothy Parker was spoken, not written, but this is a good second best!
The Complete Poems (Cambridge Editions)The Complete Poems (Cambridge Editions) by Anne Sexton
Buy used from: £0.33
Sometimes profound and sometimes very moving explorations of a troubled heart. A good insight into her life, in her own words.
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American WestBury My Heart at Wounded Knee: An Indian History of the American West by Dee Brown
Buy new: £4.54 / Used from: £4.99
One of the many episodes in human history where we could say "never again" - except that we're now allowing this in Palestine. A great insight into how movie culture can kill the realities of history.
Still MeStill Me by Christopher Reeve
Buy new: £6.74 / Used from: £0.01
Christopher Reeve could fight just about anything - and now he's so sadly gone, we at least have his words on how an indomitable spirit can make something of anything fate has in store. Beautiful.
The Creative Leap: Psychological Transformation Through CrisisThe Creative Leap: Psychological Transformation Through Crisis by Verena Kast
Buy new: £8.83 / Used from: £3.66
A fascinating and instructional book that offers the prospect of good in everything.
I Was a StrangerI Was a Stranger by Sir John Hackett
Buy new: £11.99 / Used from: £2.48
Astonishing and moving account of Hackett's escape through occupied Holland after the debacle at Arnhem in Sept 1944. A brilliant insight into the courage of ordinary Dutch civilians - true heroes.