New books to hit the spot


TOUCHDOWN is a weekly selection of outstanding new titles: books either anticipated or surprising, just out of the carton! Follow the links for more information, to purchase these books or to have them put aside for you.

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31 October 2014

 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826037?barcode=9781782114079&title=TheBookofStrangeNewThingsThe Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber      $35.00 
"Michel Faber's second masterpiece, quite different from The Crimson Petal and The White, but every bit as luminescent and memorable. It is a portrait of a living, breathing relationship, frayed by distance. It is an enquiry into the mountains faith can move and the mountains faith can't move. It is maniacally gripping." - David Mitchell 
"I can't remember being so continually and unfailingly surprised by any book for a long time, and part of the surprise is the tenderness and delicacy with which he shows an emotional relationship developing in one direction while withering in another. I found it completely compelling and believable, and admired it enormously." - Philip Pullman
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826087?barcode=9781408853498&title=LetMeBeFrankWithYou
 Let Me Be Frank With You by Richard Ford      $36.99
The three previous Frank Bascombe novels, Independence Day, The Sports Writer and The Lay of the Land, cemented Ford as one of the most perceptive and evocative contemporary writers. In this book, Bascombe returns, aged 67, in a razor-sharp portrayal of contemporary America. 
>> Ford speaks.  
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/813164?barcode=9781848667518&title=F
F by Daniel Kehlmann       $37.00
The Friedland brothers have nothing in common. Martin is a priest with no faith. Ivan is an artist with no integrity. Eric is a financier - now, with no money. Each, in their own way, a fake.
"Kehlmann's prose is sophisticated, his musings on religion, art and life are intellectually rigorous, and his plotting masterful in the linking of the story's separate narratives with overlaps that, when revealed, surprise and shock the reader. A hugely rewarding read." - NPR
>> "I could have been someone else."

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/821636?barcode=9781408856727&title=Mecca%3ATheSacredCity
 Mecca: The sacred city by Ziauddin Sardar      $37.00
"A major achievement and a hugely enjoyable and important study of one of the world’s great cities. A beautifully rendered account of the Muslim version of events, as told by a rational, likable, intelligent and mildly sceptical follower of the prophet. Sardar aims to make us understand why this great city has been the focus for the prayers of so many billions of human beings through time and across the globe." - William Dalrymple, The Guardian
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827542?barcode=9781922182531&title=FirstImpressions%3AANovel
First Impressions by Charlie Lovett      $37.00
A novel about old books, young love and Jane Austen, from the author of A Bookman's Tale
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/828213-SpiritoftheSouth-9780143571865
 Spirit of the South by Andris Apse      $90.00
Stunning polished images of the South Island's grandeur from the outstanding photographer. 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826542?barcode=9781927213322&title=LandofBirds%3AAnIllustratedTributetotheBirdsofNewZealand
Land of Birds: An illustrated tribute to the birds of New Zealand by Niels Meyer-Westfeld    $49.99
The beautifully detailed illustrations capture the character and variety of New Zealand's wild birds.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/830064?barcode=9781925106237&title=WolfinWhiteVan
Wolf in White Van by John Darnielle    $35.00
Isolated by a disfiguring injury since the age of seventeen, Sean Phillips crafts imaginary worlds for strangers to play in. But when they take their play into the real world, disaster strikes, and Sean is called on to account for it. 
"Strange and involving." - The New York Times
>> You may know Darnielle from The Mountain Goats.   
>> Oh, no! Hidden messages in this book.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826541?barcode=9781927213216&title=TheHeartofHunting%3AWildernessandHuntinginNewZealand
The Heart of Hunting: Wildness and hunting in New Zealand  by Greig Caigou & Matt Winter    $49.99
This well-illustrated book captures the unique New Zealand hunting experience and expresses the intimacy with wildlife and landscape felt by hunters of all sorts. Wide coverage.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/808757?barcode=9781877578373&title=Kitchens%3ATheNewZealandkitcheninthe20thcentury
Kitchens: The New Zealand kitchen in the 20th century by Helen Leach     $49.99
  This engrossing history of the domestic kitchen covers 10 decades that saw our culinary traditions accommodate extraordinary changes in technology, not to mention dramatic social change.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827428?barcode=9781840916607&title=Vogue%3ATheGown
 Vogue: The gown by Jo Ellison     $180.00 
We are delighted to be able to offer a limited number of copies of this very desirable and sumptuous boxed limited edition collection of over 300 stunning images from the archives of the world’s most influential fashion magazine. 
Contact us now to secure a copy.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/821938?barcode=9781409151562&title=TheBeatGoeson%3AtheCompleteRebusShortStories
 The Beat Goes On: The complete Rebus short stories by Ian Rankin      $39.99
A cache of excellent stories spanning the beloved fictional detective’s entire career, from young Detective Constable to his dramatic (if impermanent) retirement. DI John Rebus, brilliant, irascible, frustrating, has been the bane of Edinburgh’s criminal underworld for almost 30 years. 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827793-TheMakingofHome-9781848877986
 The Making of Home by Judith Flanders    $55.00
The idea that 'home' is a special place, a separate place, a place where we can be our true selves, is so obvious to us today that we barely pause to think about it. But, as Judith Flanders shows in her fascinating new book, 'home' is a relatively new idea.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/736818?barcode=9781846686153&title=AdventuresinStationery-StoriesfromYourPencilCase
 Adventures in Stationery: Stories from your pencil case by James Ward      $29.99
We are surrounded by stationery: half-chewed Cristal Bics and bent paper clips, rubber bands to fiddle with or ping, blunt pencils, rubbers and Twink. They are integral parts of our everyday environment. So much so that we have no idea of the stories they have to tell. But James Ward is here to explain how important stationery is to us. After all, who remains unmoved by the sight of the first sheet of a brand new notepad?
>> Highlights from the author's collection.  
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826202?barcode=9781782395577&title=PlatoattheGoogleplex-WhyPhilosophyWon%27tGoAway
Plato at the Googleplex: Why philosophy won't go away by Rebecca Newberger Goldstein      $39.99
If Plato came back to life, what would he make of ‘tiger mothers’, mass media, Freudian psychoanalysis, Google, religious fundamentalism, crowd-sourced knowledge? This enjoyable, original book makes the case for philosophy’s relevance today.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/821959?barcode=9781409151234&title=LoveBecomesaFuneralPyre-ABiographyoftheDoors
 Love Becomes a Funeral Pyre: A biography of the Doors by Mick Wall      $39.99
The dark energy and powerful theatrical originality of the Doors carved them an almost archetypal place in rock history. Mick Wall has written a compelling and penetrating account of the four band members and the beautiful monster they made together.



http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827499?barcode=9780143800095&title=Frog
Frog by Mo Yan      $37.00
"Mo Yan deserves a place in world literature. His voice will find his way into the heart of the reader, just as Kundera and Garcia Marquez have." - Amy Tan
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/822736?barcode=9781408840184&title=TheDownfallofMoney%3AGermany%27sHyperinflationandtheDestructionoftheMiddleClass
 The Downfall of Money: Germany's hyperinflation and the destruction of the middle class by Frederick Taylor      $25.00
The story of the Weimar Republic's financial crisis has a clear resonance in the second decade of the twenty-first century, when the world is anxious once more about what money is, what it means and how we can judge if its value is true.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/557578?barcode=9781846685385&title=TheQuestionBook
The Question Book by Mikael Krogerus and Roman Tschappeler     $35.00
What makes you tick? Ask yourself these questions and learn a lot about yourself and how you interact with your world. From the authors of the equally pertinent The Change Book  and The Decision Book
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/828948?barcode=9780241180020&title=SenseofStyleTheThinkingPerson%27sGuidetoWritinginthe21stCentury
 The Sense of Style: The thinking person's guide to writing in the 21st century by Steven Pinker       $37.00
Cognitive scientist and linguist Steven Pinker uses the latest scientific insights to bring us a style and usage guide for the 21st century.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827573?barcode=9781863956925&title=Laurinda
Laurinda by Alice Pung      $26.00
Laurinda is an exclusive school for girls. At its hidden centre of power is The Cabinet, a triangle of girls who wield power over their classmates - and some of their teachers. A thoughtful book about young women making choices.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827351?barcode=9781472221667&title=IfIKnewYouWereGoingtobeThisBeautiful%2CINeverWouldHaveLetYouGo
 If I Knew You Were Going to Be This Beautiful I Never Would Have Let You Go by Judy Chicurel      $34.99
 "Chicurel has perfect pitch for the characters’ patter. The book is blunt, cynical, often profane and sometimes laugh-out-loud funny. The author’s masterful writing makes this short stay in Elephant Beach worthwhile." - Kirkus Review

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/834160?barcode=9781406358209&title=TheTwenty-ElephantRestaurant
The Twenty-Elephant Restaurant by Russell Hoban and Quentin Blake    $19.99
"This table," said the man. "What about the table?" said the woman. "It's wearing me out," said the man. What to do? The man makes a decision. He finds a tablewood tree, cuts it down, saws it up and makes a new table. There's nothing like a new table. This one is strong enough for elephants to dance on! But..."Where would we get the elephants?" said the woman....
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827433-AbductingaGeneralTheKreipeOperationandSOEinCrete-9781444799880
 Abducting a General: The Kreipe Operation and SOE in Crete by Patrick Leigh Fermor         $39.99
One of the greatest feats in Patrick Leigh Fermor's remarkable life was the kidnapping of General Kreipe, the German commander in Crete, on 26 April 1944. He and Captain Billy Moss hatched a daring plan to abduct the general, while ensuring that no reprisals were taken against the Cretan population. Dressed as German military police, they stopped and took control of Kreipe's car, drove through twenty-two German checkpoints, then succeeded in hiding from the German army before finally being picked up on a beach in the south of the island and transported to safety in Egypt on 14 May.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/828678-MemoryTree-9781408326343
 The Memory Tree by Britta Teckentrup     $19.99
 Fox has lived a long and happy life in the forest. One day, he lies down in his favourite clearing, takes a deep breath, and falls asleep for ever. Before long, Fox's friends begin to gather in the clearing. One by one, they tell stories of the special moments that they shared with Fox. And, as they share their memories, a tree begins to grow, becoming bigger and stronger, sheltering and protecting all the animals in the forest, just as Fox did when he was alive. 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826362?barcode=9781775540281&title=AkaroaCookingSchool
The Akaroa Cooking School: Great recipes for a great way of life by Ant and Lou Bentley      $49.99
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827395-SixStoriesandanEssay-9781472222664
 Six Stories and an Essay by Andrea Levy    $29.99
This collection opens with an essay about how writing has helped Andrea Levy to explore and understand her heritage.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/827783?barcode=9781781686140&title=HowIStoppedBeingaJew
How I Stopped Being a Jew by Shlomo Sand      $29.99
During his life, Sand has come to question his Jewish identity, even that as a 'secular Jew.' With this meditative and thoughtful mixture of essay and personal recollection, he articulates the problems at the centre of modern Jewish identity. How I Stopped Being a Jew also discusses the negative effects of the Israeli exploitation of the 'chosen people' myth and its 'holocaust industry'.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/829089-SouthofDarkness-9781743531563
 South of Darkness by John Marsden       $44.99
Marsden first novel for adults concerns the vicissitudes of Barnaby Fletch, a child convict transported to Botany Bay in the late 1700s. 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826040?barcode=9781760112240&title=MercilessGods
Merciless Gods by Christos Tsiolkas         $39.99
An incendiary collection of stories from the author of The Slap
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/834062?barcode=9780642278647&title=ADuckisWatchingMe%3AStrangeandUnusualPhobias
 A Duck is Watching Me: Strange and unusual phobias by Bernie Hobbs     $25.00
A lively visual guide to possible phobias.
[For me, it's coulrophobia - all the rest are amusing.]
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826044?barcode=9781781253656&title=Printer%27sDevilCourt
 Printer's Devil Court by Susan Hill      $29.99
A well-written ghost story set beyond the reaches of medical ethics.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/814863?barcode=9780714867465&title=Chop%2CSizzle%2CWow%3ATheSilverSpoonComicCookbook
Chop! Sizzle! Wow! The Silver Spoon comic cookbook by Adriano Rampazzo        $30.00
A graphic cookbook!
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826253?barcode=9781408852460&title=TheImaginary
The Imaginary by A.F. Harrold and Emily Gravett     $25.00
Rudger is Amanda's best friend. He doesn't exist, but nobody's perfect. Only Amanda can see her imaginary friend - until the sinister Mr Bunting arrives at Amanda's door. Mr Bunting hunts imaginaries. Rumour says that he eats them. And he's sniffed out Rudger. Soon Rudger is alone, and running for his imaginary life. But can a boy who isn't there survive without a friend to dream him up?
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/825850?barcode=9780007580262&title=TheIslandofLostHorses
The Island of Lost Horses by Stacy Gregg     $24.99
Two girls divided by time, united by their love for some very special horses - an epic Caribbean adventure based on a real-life mystery.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826244?barcode=9781905881833&title=Granta129
 Granta 129: Fate     $29.99
Includes contributions by Anjan Sundaram, Andrea Stuart, Fatima Bhutto, Sam Coll, Joanna Kavenna, Joseph Roth, Michael Cunningham, and Will Self.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/828949?barcode=9781846148590&title=ThingstoMakeandDointheFourthDimension
 Things to Make and Do in the Fourth Dimension by Matt Parker   $37.00
 Bizarre Klein Bottles, unimaginably small pizza slices, knots no one can untie and computers built from dominoes reveal some of the most exotic and fascinating ideas in mathematics. Fun!
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/829589?barcode=9780864739735&title=DearNeilRoberts
 Dear Neil Roberts by Airini Beautrais       $25.00
"We have maintained a silence closely resembling stupidity." In 1982, after painting these words, 22-year-old Neil Roberts blew himself up outside the Wanganui Police Computer Centre, protesting state surveillance. In this work of poetry, Beautrais examines the reverberations from this act.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/825569?barcode=9781927213131&title=MaoriArtForKids%28PB%29
Maori Art for Kids by Julie Noanoa and Norm Heke    $25.00
15 featured contemporary artists, 15 art activities.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826161?barcode=9781784081478&title=TheAgeofMagic
 The Age of Magic by Ben Okri      $25.00
 'The Age of Magic has begun. Unveil your eyes.' Eight weary film-makers, travelling from Paris to Basel, arrive at a small Swiss hotel on the shores of a luminous lake. Above them, strewn with lights that twinkle in the darkness, looms the towering Rigi mountain. Over the course of three days and two nights, the travellers will find themselves drawn in to the mystery of the mountain reflected in the lake. One by one, they will be disturbed, enlightened, and transformed, each in a different way.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/831998?barcode=9781846147128&title=CopernicusComplex%3ATheQuestForOurCosmic%28in%29significance
 The Copernicus Complex: The quest for our cosmic (in)significance by Caleb Scharf      $50.00
 Though the concept of "the universe" suggests the containment of everything, the latest ideas in cosmology hint that our universe may be just one of a multitude of others - a single slice of an infinity of parallel realities.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/816319?barcode=9780805098211&title=HighastheHorses%27Bridles
High as the Horses' Bridles by Scott Cheshire     $38.00
"A powerful novel, an unflinching examination of two centuries of American yearning and desire." - Colum McCann, The New York Times

 

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/825567?barcode=9781927213339&title=ICONZ
Iconz by Belinda Ellis      $19.99
A visual encyclopedia of symbols and icons associated with New Zealand identity.
 

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826262?barcode=9781743363331&title=Connected
Connected: The sustainable landscapes of Phillip Johnson    $75.00
Connected focuses on Johnson's key passions, including integrated sustainable water management and the creation of natural, chemical-free pools; recreation of thriving habitats for indigenous plants and animals; and the thoughtful connection of the landscape to the home.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/809092?barcode=9780399165573&title=BadEnglish%3AAHistoryofLinguisticAggravation
 Bad English: A history of linguistic aggravation by Ammon Shea        $37.00
Many of the words and usages we embrace as standard and correct today were at first considered slang, impolite, or just plain wrong.
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826201?barcode=9781782113294&title=TheParisReview%3AVol210%3AAutumn
 The Paris Review: 210     $29.99
"One of the few truly essential literary magazines of the twentieth century - and now of the twenty-first. Frequently weird, always wonderful." - Margaret Atwood
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/829358-Winterkill-9780571313693
 Winterkill by Kate A. Boorman      $19.99
Where Emmeline lives, you cannot love and you cannot leave...The Council's rules are strict, but they're for the good of the settlement in which Emmeline lives. Everyone knows there is nothing but danger the other side of the Wall, and the community must prepare for the freezing winterkill that comes every year. But Emmeline struggles to be obedient under the Council's suffocating embrace - especially when she discovers that a Council leader intends to snatch her hand in marriage. Then Emmeline begins to hear the call of the trees beyond the Wall... 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/815497?barcode=9781927213186&title=AWinter%27sPaddle%3ASeaKayakingAroundtheSouthIsland
A Winter's Paddle: A kayak journey around the South Island of New Zealand by Tara Mulvany     $35.00
 
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/828959?barcode=9780141349015&title=VioletInk
Violet Ink by Rebecca Westcott     $18.00
Quiet, contemplative Izzy has always adored her charismatic, confident older sister, Alex. But when Alex starts going out with a new boyfriend, everything changes. Izzy isn't sure she can still trust her sister - but she will never stop loving her. Letters from Alex, written in her distinctive purple pen, keep their relationship alive...
http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826263?barcode=9781579129781&title=DeepSpace%3ABeyondtheSolarSystemtotheEndoftheUniverseandtheBeginningofTime
 Deep Space: Beyond the solar system to the end of the universe and the beginning of time by Govert Schilling    $39.99
Picks up where the solar system leaves off.

http://www.pageandblackmore.co.nz/products/826163?barcode=9780007553860&title=Emma
 Emma by Alexander McCall Smith    $34.99
Fresh from university, Emma Woodhouse triumphantly arrives home in Norfolk ready to embark on adult life with a splash...
McCall-Smith's intriguing modern reworking of Austen's classic.