Henry Carter Hull

The author of Armchair Nation and On Roads examines shyness in a"sparkling cultural history rang[ing]from Jane Austen to Silicon Valley" ( The Guardian ). Shyness is a pervasive human trait: even most extroverts know what it is like to stand tongue-tied at the fringe of an unfamiliar group or flush with embarrassment at being the unwelcome center of attention. And yet the cultural history of shyness has remained largely unwritten -- until now. With...

Did you know that Beethoven made every cup of coffee with exactly 60 beans? Or that Shirley Temple always had precisely 56 curls in her hair? Or that the young Frank Sinatra practiced underwater swimming as a way of developing his ability to hold long breaths? In I Didn't Get Where I Am, Charlie Croker brings his proven blend of gripping trivia and incisive humour to the question of how famous high achievers reached those heights. We'll see Chopin...

This edition includes a modern introduction and a list of suggested further reading. "Everything belonging to the Highlands of Scotland has of late become peculiarly interesting. It is not much above half a century since it was otherwise."-Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott placed the Scottish Highlands on the map of popular tourist destinations. This timeworn work-consisting of the 1816 essay "Manners, Customs and History of the Highlanders of Scotland"...

How has the idea of the South come to exert such a powerful hold over our imagination? From the beaches of Southern Europe to the Great White South of the Antarctic; from South America to the South Pacific, South explores this most diverse and captivating of regions. The South has long since cast its spell on writers and artists, from Goethe and Poe, to Gauguin, Lawrence and Kerouac; while landscapes of ice and snow, sand and sea, have lured explorers...

In our own time, the world of work has changed enormously and some of the once familiar names and terms have fallen into disuse only to be understood with the help of a dictionary. For instance, who now know what buddle boys, claquers, dobbers, hokey pokey men, rogue spotters and sperviters are? Colin Waters' excellent dictionary explains the function of nearly 4,000 old trades, titles and occupations, and contains over 70 illustrations. It is a comprehensive...

Hints and tips from the world of 1940s BritainIllustrated with period pictures throughout, this handbook brings old fashioned values and skills to our very modern world. The author shares recipes, tips on budgeting, repairing things, mending, scavenging, gardening, DIY, sewing and craft, and anything else that may prove useful in daily life. The Wartime Housewife knows only too well what it is like to manage on a tight budget and, by following her...

An uplifting tribute to the finest qualities of humankind, presenting examples of kind and selfless acts from the worlds of sports, fashion, military, and daily life Drawn from many sources, this engaging collection demonstrates that "gentlemanly behavior" transcends all barriers, from gender and wealth to age and class. Here are noble acts by footballers and fashionistas, television personalities and teenagers, great commanders and humble private...

Do you remember collecting shrapnel and listening to Children's Hour? Carrying gas masks or sharing your school with evacuees from the city? The 1940s was a time of great challenge for everyone who lived through it. From the hardships and fear of a World War, with Britain's towns and cities were being bombed on an almost nightly basis, to the trauma of being parted from one's parents and sent away to the country to live with complete strangers. For...

"Are we doomed? Is an almighty power or an earth-shattering meteor waiting for us just around the corner?In this thought-provoking book, Professor Adam Roberts explores our many different cultural visions of the end of the world - likely and unlikely, mundane and bizarre - and what they say about how we see ourselves and our societies. What is it is that we are really afraid of? An uncaring universe; an uncontrollable environment; the human capacity...

From intimate relationships to global politics, Sarah Schulman observes a continuum: that inflated accusations of harm are used to avoid accountability. Illuminating the difference between Conflict and Abuse, Schulman directly addresses our contemporary culture of scapegoating. This deep, brave, and bold work reveals how punishment replaces personal and collective self-criticism, and shows why difference is so often used to justify cruelty and shunning....