The third novel in the international bestselling Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, following four new customers in a cafe where customers can travel back in time.
On the hillside of Mount Hakodate in northern Japan, Cafe Donna Donna is fabled for its dazzling views of Hakodate port. But that's not all. Like the charming Tokyo cafe Funiculi Funicula, Cafe Donna Donna offers its customers the extraordinary experience of travelling through time.
From the author of Before the Coffee Gets Cold and Tales from the Cafe comes another story of four new customers, each of whom is hoping to take advantage of the cafe's time-travelling offer. Among some familiar faces from Toshikazu Kawaguchi's previous novels, readers will also be introduced to:
A daughter who begrudges her deceased parents for leaving her orphaned
A comedian who aches for his beloved and their shared dreams
A younger sister whose grief has become all-consuming
A young man who realizes his love for his childhood friend too late
Translated from Japanese by Geoffrey Trousselot and featuring signature heart-warming characters and wistful storytelling, in Before Your Memory Fades, Kawaguchi once again invites the reader to ask themselves: what would you change if you could travel back in time?
Traduttore, traditore: An act of translation is always an act of betrayal. Oxford, 1836. The city of dreaming spires. It is the centre of all knowledge and progress in the world. And at its centre is Babel, the Royal Institute of Translation. The tower from which all the power of the Empire flows. Orphaned in Canton and brought to England by a mysterious guardian, Babel seemed like paradise to Robin Swift. Until it became a prison... But can a student stand against an empire? An incendiary new novel from award-winning author R.F. Kuang about the power of language, the violence of colonialism, and the sacrifices of resistance.
'A masterpiece that resonates with power and knowledge. BABEL is a stark picture of the cruelty of empire, a distillation of dark academia, and a riveting blend of fantasy and historical fiction - a monumental achievement' Samantha Shannon, author of The Priory of the Orange Tree
The Bookshop in Wigtown is a bookworm's idyll - with thousands of books across nearly a mile of shelves, a real log fire, and Captain, the bookshop cat. You'd think after twenty years, owner Shaun Bythell would be used to the customers by now.
Don't get him wrong - there are some good ones among the antiquarian erotica-hunters, die-hard Arthurians, people who confuse bookshops for libraries and the toddlers just looking for a nice cosy corner in which to wee. He's sure there are. There must be some good ones, right?
Filled with the pernickety warmth and humour that has touched readers around the world, stuffed with literary treasures, hidden gems and incunabula, Remainders of the Day is Shaun Bythell's latest entry in his bestselling diary series.
The breathtaking new novel from the No. 1 bestselling author of Hamnet, winner of the Women's Prize for Fiction 2020. **AS SELECTED FOR BBC RADIO 2 BOOKCLUB** The Marriage Portrait is a dazzling evocation of the Italian Renaissance in all its beauty and brutality.
Winter, 1561. Lucrezia, Duchess of Ferrara, is taken on an unexpected visit to a country villa by her husband, Alfonso. As they sit down to dinner it occurs to Lucrezia that Alfonso has a sinister purpose in bringing her here.
He intends to kill her. Lucrezia is sixteen years old, and has led a sheltered life locked away inside Florence's grandest palazzo. Here, in this remote villa, she is entirely at the mercy of her increasingly erratic husband.
What is Lucrezia to do with this sudden knowledge? What chance does she have against Alfonso, ruler of a province, and a trained soldier? How can she ensure her survival. The Marriage Portrait is an unforgettable reimagining of the life of a young woman whose proximity to power places her in mortal danger.
From the internationally bestselling author of Exit West, a story of love, loss, and rediscovery in a time of unsettling changeOne morning, Anders wakes to find that his skin has turned dark, his reflection a stranger to him. At first he tells only Oona, an old friend, newly a lover. Soon, reports of similar occurrences surface across the land.
Some see in the transformations the long-dreaded overturning of an established order, to be resisted to a bitter end. In many, like Anders's father and Oona's mother, a sense of profound loss wars with profound love. As the bond between Anders and Oona deepens, change takes on a different shading: a chance to see one another, face to face, anew.
1628. Embarking on a journey in search of her father, a young girl called Mayken boards the Batavia, the most impressive sea vessel of the age. During the long voyage, this curious and resourceful child must find her place in the ship's busy world, and she soon uncovers shadowy secrets above and below deck.
As tensions spiral, the fate of the ship and all on board becomes increasingly uncertain. 1989. Gil, a boy mourning the death of his mother, is placed in the care of his irritable and reclusive grandfather.
Their home is a shack on a tiny fishing island off the Australian coast, notable only for its reefs and wrecked boats. This is no place for a child struggling with a dark past and Gil's actions soon get him noticed by the wrong people. The Night Ship is an enthralling tale of human brutality, providence and friendship, and of two children, hundreds of years apart, whose fates are inextricably bound together.
A hilariously funny story about embracing the unexpected! Welcome to the Antarctic, where an intrepid bunch of explorers is making an in-depth study of penguins... But one young explorer has discovered something different. Something totally wild, spectacularly cool and quite a lot ... EXTINCT. Will anyone believe it? Would YOU?!
LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2022Can one person change the course of history?'Genius' Lauren GroffA sweeping, breathtakingly ambitious novel about power, wealth and truth, told by four unique, interlocking voices and set against the backdrop of turbulent 1920s New York. The legendary Wall Street tycoon whose immense wealth gives him the power to do almost anything. The second-generation Italian immigrant tasked with recording his life story.
The reclusive, aristocratic wife. And the writer who observes them from afar. In a city devoted to making money and making stories like no other, where wealth means power, who gets to tell the truth? And to rise to the top of a glittering, destructive world, what - and who - do you have to sacrifice?
Biography of Dic Penderyn, hanged for stabbing a soldier after the 1831 Merthyr Rising – a crime later confessed to by someone else – and held as a Welsh Martyr. The book examines his life and background as far as we can now know it, his long-term legacy and role as the first labour martyr.
Luned Aaron's first novel for 7-9 year olds. The story follows Mira - the older, conscientious and brainy sister - as she begins a new term at school. How will she cope in Year 3, without Non, her best friend? And when, when will her stubborn first tooth fall out?!
Hidden in Cardigan Bay, between New Quay and Aberaeron is the charming beach of Cei Bach. In a little cottage, an old lady sits smoking her pipe with clocks on her feet. She is the famous Siani Bob Man. A story about an unusual character, with striking illustrations by talented artist Valériane Leblond.
