Remove!!! (text NM, title NM/JM)
a quirky addition to the ever-increasing genre of celebrity-infected memoir,
'Remove!!!' tells the life story of John Flogger, removals contractor to the
stars in the golden age of Elstree studios. 'Remove!!!' has it all, from his
humble beginnings as a Billingsgate porter, through his first encounter with
the entertainment industry when he pushed a drunken Frankie Howard home
in his wheelbarrow in 1946, to his time in the sun as the monopoly provider of
removals through a controversial arrangement with UK Equity. Packed with
anecdotes, including the hilarious items that fell out of Alec Guinness's
bedside cabinet and the time Sylvia Sims' drawers were set on fire by Alistair
Sim, 'Remove!!!' is an essential read for any lover of this period of cinema
history.
With a Creamy Texture (text NM, title NM/JM)
The latest from the pen of the country's best-loved historical novelist,
'With a Creamy Texture' takes us slap-bang into the world of Elizabeth I's head
chef, Mary Withencraft. The first-person present-tense narrative brings the
sensual world of the sixteenth century to life, as Mary witnesses affairs,
plots against the monocracy and against celibacy, and along the way manages to
invent 'Creme Anglaise'.
"Contains some very interesting recipes" - Heston Blumenthal
"Juicy, foody, educational" - Greg Wallace
With a Creamy Texture (text JM, title NM/JM)
This slim volume packs a punch! Gerald Tossington has carved out a
reputation as a respected dealer of fine art objects. His name is, while not
exactly world known, well respected in the South East of England. But few who
value his talents in buying and selling realise that he is also an accomplished
essayist and diary-maker. Tossington's pen is arch and knowing, and his
tone both bitchy and acute. He waves a sharp sword which scythes through the
quaint world in which he moves: fine art auctions and those who attend them.
These delicate pen portraits stay in the memory like an etching on glass. He adeptly
mixes reverence and guile in his description of the people who cross his path,
and his erudition shines through. An elegant addition to your bookcase.
The Quality (text JM, title NM)
'The Quality' is to science fiction what the queen is to the royal family!
This one redefines a jaded genre for the new generation. This book astounds
with a zingy confidence not seen since the heady days of cyberpunk. Nick Nutz
is a school teacher. Confused about life, and fed up with his profession after
only six months on the job, he accepts a new post after an unconventional
interview in the cellar of a pub. Little does he realise that 'the quality'
which got him the job is his (unrealised by himself) ability to dissolve the parameters
of time and space. In this sci-fi blockbuster that reads like HG Wells on speed
copulating with Doris Lessing on acid, hyper-realistic narrative gives way to
gobsmacking hero-poetry and madcap romance. Part light-hearted comedy, part
philosophical treatise and all hardcore action, 'The Quality' is ahead of its
genre. Pure magic!
