{"title":"Tom's non-fiction picks","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"9781800960206","title":"A Waiter in Paris","description":"\u003cp\u003eSHORT LISTED FOR THE ACKERLEY PRIZE FOR AUTOBIOGRAPHY \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e***\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'This astonishing book describes a cruel, feral existence and is worthy of standing on the shelf next to George Orwell's \u003ci\u003eDown And Out In Paris And London\u003c\/i\u003e (1933) as another classic about human exploitation.'\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Chisholm's story is immersive and often thrilling ... He's a fine writer.'\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003ci\u003eWSJ\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Kitchen Confidential for Generation Z'\u003c\/b\u003e - \u003ci\u003eFortune\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'An English waiters riveting account of working in Paris' \u003c\/b\u003e- \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Visceral and unbelievably compelling' \u003c\/b\u003e- Emerald Fennell\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Vividly written and merciless in its detail' \u003c\/b\u003e- Edward Stourton\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'An excellent book' \u003c\/b\u003e- \u003ci\u003eStrong Words magazine\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A completely fascinating read and feels like a the book Anthony Bourdain would have written' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eRosie Kellet\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A Dickensian tale of a young man's trial by fire in a French bistro gives rise to biting commentary on Parisian culture in Chisholm's intoxicating debut' \u003c\/b\u003e- \u003ci\u003ePublisher's Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Ah, Paris... \u003ci\u003egastronomie magnifique \u003c\/i\u003eand... insane shit going on behind the scenes. \u003ci\u003eA Waiter in Paris \u003c\/i\u003echarts Edward Chisholm's jaw-dropping experiences while serving tables in the French capital, a demi-monde of sadistic managers, thieves, fighting for tips and drug dealers. Seems like not much has changedsince George Orwell worked the same beat.' \u003c\/b\u003e- \u003ci\u003eEvening Standard\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA waiter's job is to deceive you. They want you to believe in a luxurious calm because on the other side of that door... is hell.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eEdward Chisholm's spellbinding memoir of his time as a Parisian waiter takes you below the surface of one of the most iconic cities in the world and right into its glorious underbelly. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe waiter inhabits a world of inhuman hours, snatched sleep and dive bars; scraping by on coffee, bread and cigarettes, often under sadistic managers, with a wage so low you're fighting your colleagues for tips.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt's physically demanding, frequently humiliating and incredibly competitive. And with a cast of thieves, narcissists, ex-Legionnaires, paperless immigrants and drug dealers, it makes for a compelling and eye-opening read.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShortlisted for the 2023 Ackerley prize.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43128066375858,"sku":"9781800960206","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781800960206_31608529-9f75-4ab2-9266-beb4299ffc27.jpg?v=1786026789"},{"product_id":"9781526643605","title":"The Art of Friday Night Dinner","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eHarper's Bazaar\u003c\/i\u003e BEST cookbooks to buy now\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eWaitrose Food Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e The Best Books of 2023 So Far \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e_______________\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eYou’ve made it to Friday, now what are you going to eat?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHaving spent years gathering friends around her kitchen table, Eleanor has perfected the art of Friday night dinner. It usually starts with a sip of something cold and ends with friends tipsily heading home, full and happy. But most importantly, there’s always something good to eat.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHere are more than a hundred recipes for the best night of the week. 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Her disappearance would haunt her orphaned children, the perpetrators of this terrible crime and a whole society in Northern Ireland for decades.In this powerful, scrupulously reported book, Patrick Radden Keefe offers not just a forensic account of a brutal crime but a vivid portrait of the world in which it happened. The tragedy of an entire country is captured in the spellbinding narrative of a handful of characters, presented in lyrical and unforgettable detail.A poem by Seamus Heaney inspires the title: ‘Whatever You Say, Say Nothing’. By defying the culture of silence, Keefe illuminates how a close-knit society fractured; how people chose sides in a conflict and turned to violence; and how, when the shooting stopped, some ex-combatants came to look back in horror at the atrocities they had committed, while others continue to advocate violence even today.Say Nothing deftly weaves the stories of Jean McConville and her family with those of Dolours Price, the first woman to join the IRA as a front-line soldier, who bombed the Old Bailey when barely out of her teens; Gerry Adams, who helped bring an end to the fighting, but denied his own IRA past; Brendan Hughes, a fearsome IRA commander who turned on Adams after the peace process and broke the IRA’s code of silence; and other indelible figures. By capturing the intrigue, the drama and the profound human cost of the Troubles, the book presents a searing chronicle of the lengths that people are willing to go to in pursuit of a political ideal, and the ways in which societies mend – or don’t – in the aftermath of a long and bloody conflict.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43201192100018,"sku":"9780008159269","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780008159269_7c4ff7ae-bf1b-45bd-bcce-b370e85e3180.jpg?v=1785658873"},{"product_id":"9780753557884","title":"Aftermath","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eTHE TIMES\u003c\/i\u003e TOP 10 BESTSELLER\u003cbr\u003e***SHORTLISTED FOR THE BAILLIE GIFFORD PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION***\u003cbr\u003e***SHORTLISTED FOR THE BRITISH ACADEMY BOOK PRIZE***\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e***SHORTLISTED FOR THE CUNDILL HISTORY PRIZE***\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Book of the Year\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Times \u003c\/i\u003e* \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e * \u003ci\u003eTelegraph \u003c\/i\u003e* \u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e * \u003ci\u003eFinancial Times\u003c\/i\u003e * \u003ci\u003eIrish Independent \u003c\/i\u003e* \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A masterpiece'\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eSPECTATOR\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Exemplary [and] important... 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The Americans send Hans Habe, an Austro-Hungarian Jewish journalist and US army soldier, to the frontline of psychological warfare - tasked with establishing a newspaper empire capable of remoulding the minds of the Germans. The philosopher Hannah Arendt returns to the country she fled to find a population gripped by a manic loquaciousness, but faces a deafening wall of silence at the mention of the Holocaust.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eAftermath \u003c\/i\u003eis a nuanced panorama of a nation undergoing monumental change. 1945 to 1955 was a raw, wild decade poised between two eras that proved decisive for Germany's future - and one starkly different to how most of us imagine it today. Featuring black and white photographs and posters from post-war Germany - some beautiful, some revelatory, some shocking - \u003ci\u003eAftermath \u003c\/i\u003eevokes an immersive portrait of a society corrupted, demoralised and freed - all at the same time.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43204048584882,"sku":"9780753557884","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9780753557884.jpg?v=1786016310"},{"product_id":"9781780600116","title":"A Place Apart","description":"A Place Apart is a remarkable geographical and psychological travelogue that rises above history, politics, theology and economics. Created by a southern Irishwoman, cycling into the mayhem of Northern Ireland in order to try and sort out her own opinions and emotions about this troubled land. 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Original Hardbacks: A Month by the Sea: Encounters in Gaza, The Island that Dared: Journeys in Cuba, Eland Classics: Wheels within Wheels, Full Tilt: From Ireland to India with a Bicycle, In Ethiopia with a Mule, Where the Indus is Young: A Winter in Baltistan, Tibetan Foothold, The Waiting Land: A Spell in Nepal, On a Shoestring to Coorg.","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":43204893311154,"sku":"9781780600116","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781780600116.jpg?v=1786034259"},{"product_id":"9781784704001","title":"Four Thousand Weeks","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eA life-changing gift of a book: What if you tried to stop doing everything, so you could finally get round to what counts?\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e**The instant \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e bestseller**\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRejecting the futile modern obsession with 'getting everything done,' \u003ci\u003eFour Thousand Weeks\u003c\/i\u003e introduces readers to tools for constructing a meaningful life by embracing rather than denying their limitations.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDrawing on the insights of both ancient and contemporary philosophers, psychologists, and spiritual teachers, Oliver Burkeman sets out to realign our relationship with time - and in doing so, to liberate us from its tyranny.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eEmbrace your limits. Change your life. Discover how to make your four thousand weeks count in 2025.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Life is finite. You don't have to fit everything in... 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The aftermath can be catastrophic.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMeeting with improbable coup plotters, intelligence officers, rebel commanders and fugitive dissidents, Dr Marcel Dirsus draws on extraordinary interviews to unpick the vulnerabilities of the world's strongmen.\u003ci\u003eHow Tyrants Fall\u003c\/i\u003e is an essential guide to decapitating tyranny, and a warning of what happens if we do.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardners","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54911799820661,"sku":"9781399809504","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0612\/7193\/3106\/files\/9781399809504_f00f47e4-5e69-4ffc-a594-66f7fe41c58a.jpg?v=1786019377"},{"product_id":"9781914314803","title":"An Opinionated Guide to Swim London","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhen it comes to swimming in the capital, we're spoilt for choice. 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