{"title":"Books by Ben Smith","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9780008313401","title":"Doggerland","description":"\u003cp\u003e‘The Road meets Waiting for Godot: powerful, unforgettable, unique’ Melissa Harrison, author of At Hawthorn Time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDoggerland is a superbly gripping debut novel about loneliness and hope, nature and survival – set on an off-shore windfarm in the not-so-distant future. ‘His father’s breath had been loud in the small room. It had smelled smoky, or maybe more like dust. He had knotted and unknotted a strap on the bag he was holding – he must have been leaving to go out to the farm that day. ‘I’ll get out,’ he’d said. ‘I’ll come back for you, ok?’ The boy remembered that; had always remembered it. And, for a time, he’d believed it too.’\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the North Sea, far from what remains of the coastline, a wind farm stretches for thousands of acres. The Boy, who is no longer really a boy, and the Old Man, whose age is unguessable, are charged with its maintenance. They carry out their never-ending work, scoured by wind and salt, as the waves roll, dragging strange shoals of flotsam through the turbine fields. Land is only a memory. So too is the Boy’s father, who worked on the turbines before him, and disappeared. The boy has been sent by the Company to take his place, but the question of where he went and why is one for which the Old Man will give no answer. As his companion dredges the sea for lost things, the Boy sifts for the truth of his missing father. Until one day, from the limitless water, a plan for escape emerges…\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis beautifully crafted novel about loneliness and hope, nature and survival, is as haunting as it is compelling – a very special debut indeed.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43201231356082,"sku":"9780008313401","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780008313401.jpg?v=1785658792"},{"product_id":"9780593299753","title":"Traffic","description":"\u003cb\u003e“Engrossing and suspenseful.\" \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Expertly pulls readers in.”\u003ci\u003e —The Guardian\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e“Smith sharply chronicles the revolutionary moment.”\u003ci\u003e — Financial Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe origin story of the post-truth age: the candid inside tale of two online media rivals, Nick Denton of Gawker Media and Jonah Peretti of\u003ci\u003e HuffPost\u003c\/i\u003e and BuzzFeed, whose delirious pursuit of attention at scale helped release the dark forces that would overtake the internet and American society\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf attention is the new oil, \u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of the time between the first gusher and the perceptible impact of climate change. The curtain opens in Soho in the early 2000s, after the first dot-com crash but before Google, Apple, and Facebook exploded, when it seemed that New York City, rather than Silicon Valley, might become tech’s center of gravity. There, Nick Denton’s merry band of nihilists at his growing Gawker empire and Jonah Peretti’s sunnier team at \u003ci\u003eHuffPost\u003c\/i\u003e and BuzzFeed were building the foundations of viral internet media. Ben Smith, who would go on to earn a controversial reputation as BuzzFeed News’s editor in chief, was there to see it, and he chronicles it all with marvelous lucidity underscored by dark wit.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e explores one of the great ironies of our time: The internet, which was going to help the left remake the world in its image, has become the motive force of right populism. People like Steve Bannon and Andrew Breitbart initially seemed like minor characters in the narrative in which Nick and Jonah were the stars. But today, anyone might wonder if the op­posite wasn’t the case. To understand how we got here, \u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e is essential and enthralling reading.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56292369400181,"sku":"9780593299753","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780593299753_a746b033-0dc4-4b5c-8837-b0024c980b1e.jpg?v=1786014946"},{"product_id":"9781399610117","title":"#ItsFine","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eWhat if we told you that you can eat anything you like and lose weight?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWell, you probably wouldn't believe us, would you? And if you did believe us, you would ask HOW?\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe asked the same question. After both struggling with our weight and the effects of crash dieting, we knew there had to be a better way to shed the pounds. That's how we developed the #itsfine plan. With a unique approach to portion control and by debunking the many myths around fad diets, it aims to help you free yourself from unhealthy obsessions with dieting and show how you can achieve food freedom whilst sustaining a healthy lifestyle and weight-loss goals. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWe want you to say two words to all the misinformation around dieting, and they aren't 'I can't' or 'it's wrong', but instead, with a big smile on your face and with complete confidence, \u003cb\u003e'it's fine'\u003c\/b\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWith step-by-step guidance and over 75 recipes to help you on your journey, this book will give you everything you need to build a healthier relationship with food. So let's get started: lose weight eating the food you love and give yourself the power to say \u003cb\u003e#itsfine\u003c\/b\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eYou've got this!\u003cbr\u003eBen \u0026amp; Pete\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56298643063157,"sku":"9781399610117","price":20.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781399610117_cbc08f72-28a9-4741-93af-e00847cc9fbf.jpg?v=1786019512"},{"product_id":"9780593299777","title":"Traffic","description":"\u003cb\u003e“Engrossing and suspenseful.\" \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e—\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“Expertly pulls readers in.”\u003ci\u003e —The Guardian\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e“Smith sharply chronicles the revolutionary moment.”\u003ci\u003e — Financial Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe origin story of the post-truth age: the candid inside tale of two online media rivals, Nick Denton of Gawker Media and Jonah Peretti of\u003ci\u003e HuffPost\u003c\/i\u003e and BuzzFeed, whose delirious pursuit of attention at scale helped release the dark forces that would overtake the internet and American society\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf attention is the new oil, \u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of the time between the first gusher and the perceptible impact of climate change. The curtain opens in Soho in the early 2000s, after the first dot-com crash but before Google, Apple, and Facebook exploded, when it seemed that New York City, rather than Silicon Valley, might become tech’s center of gravity. There, Nick Denton’s merry band of nihilists at his growing Gawker empire and Jonah Peretti’s sunnier team at \u003ci\u003eHuffPost\u003c\/i\u003e and BuzzFeed were building the foundations of viral internet media. Ben Smith, who would go on to earn a controversial reputation as BuzzFeed News’s editor in chief, was there to see it, and he chronicles it all with marvelous lucidity underscored by dark wit.\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e explores one of the great ironies of our time: The internet, which was going to help the left remake the world in its image, has become the motive force of right populism. People like Steve Bannon and Andrew Breitbart initially seemed like minor characters in the narrative in which Nick and Jonah were the stars. But today, anyone might wonder if the op­posite wasn’t the case. To understand how we got here, \u003ci\u003eTraffic\u003c\/i\u003e is essential and enthralling reading.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56311821959541,"sku":"9780593299777","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780593299777_37f99a7b-098a-4761-946f-6c2a3b4d20a7.jpg?v=1786014948"},{"product_id":"9781835433201","title":"Two Gay Men Three Cats and a Dog","description":"\u003cbr\u003eBinding: Paperback \/ softback","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56312989647221,"sku":"9781835433201","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781835433201.jpg?v=1791213238"}],"url":"https:\/\/backstory.london\/collections\/author-ben-smith.oembed","provider":"Backstory","version":"1.0","type":"link"}