scribe publications australia (130 results)

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A lively and passionate defence of reasoned debate. Everyone has taken and given offence; anyone who claims otherwise is lying or uniquely tolerant. Yet in recent years, offence has become a form of political currency. Politicians and religious leaders have mastered the art of indignation to motivate their supporters or deflect attention, and the news cycle has become dominated by reports on these tiny tempests. In this provocative account, Richard King explores how the politics of offence is poisoning public debate. Weve ushered in a new mood of censoriousness and self-righteousness, in which hurt feelings are paraded like union banners. Yet King contends that freedom of speech is meaningless without the freedom to offend, and the claim to be offended should be the beginning of the argument, not the end of it. Politeness is a noble quality, and decorum will always have its place. But when respect comes at the cost of honest criticism, its time for us to think again. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A Sunday Times bestseller Our gut is as important as our brain or heart, yet we know very little about how it works and many of us are too embarrassed to ask questions. In Gut, Giulia Enders breaks this taboo, revealing the latest science on how much our digestive system has to offer. From our miraculous gut bacteria - which can play a part in obesity, allergies, depression and even Alzheimer's - to the best position to poo, this entertaining and informative health handbook shows that we can all benefit from getting to know the wondrous world of our inner workings. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. What comfort can an agnostic give people who are suffering or dying? Looking for more meaning in his work, Johannes Klabbers gave up a tenured academic position to spend his days caring for the sick and dying. He trained as a secular pastoral carer in a cancer hospital, and from the patients there he learned how simply talking and listening can provide comfort: from chatting about the football to discussing lifes meaning and how one prepares for death. I Am Hereis a frank, moving, and sometimes funny record of his encounters. It gives an unforgettable insight into the variety of ways people cope with suffering, and suggests how we can support them through caring, through conversation, and by acknowledging that although we may not be able to answer all of lifes questions, we can face them together. From one of the saddest places comes this powerful affirmation of our capacity for humane care. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A Pulitzer Prizewinning reporters riveting account of the transformation of the CIA and Americas special operations forces into man-hunting and killing machines. The most momentous change in American warfare over the past decade has taken place away from the battlefields of Afghanistan and Iraq, in the corners of the world where large armies cant go. The Way of the Knife tells the previously untold story of that shadow war: a campaign that has blurred the lines between soldiers and spies and lowered the bar for waging war across the globe. America has pursued its enemies with killer drones and special operations troops; trained privateers for assassination missions and used them to set up clandestine spying networks; and relied on mercurial dictators, untrustworthy foreign intelligence services, and proxy armies. Mark Mazzetti tracks an astonishing cast of characters on the ground in the shadow war, from the chain-smoking Pentagon official running an off-the-books spy operation to the CIA contractor imprisoned in Lahore after going off the leash. At the heart of the book is the story of two proud rival entities, the CIA and the American military, elbowing each other for supremacy. Sometimes, as with the raid that killed Osama bin Laden, their efforts have been perfectly coordinated. Other times, including the failed operations disclosed here for the first time, they have not. For better or worse, their struggles will define American national security in the years to come. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The bestselling author of Girl Waits With Gun returns with another adventure featuring the feisty, unforgettable Kopp sisters. In 1915, lady cops were not expected to chase down fugitives on the streets of New York City. But Constance Kopp never did what anyone expected. After besting (and arresting) a ruthless silk factory owner and his gang of thugs, Constance Kopp has earned her place as the nations first female deputy sheriff. Shes proven that she cant be deterred, evaded, or outrun. But when a con man escapes from jail on her watch, she must find him before he disappears completely, and she ends up right back where she started unemployed. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Soft cover. Condition: Good. No Jacket. Ex-Library with usual treatments. Book is gently used with only minor wear. Tightly bound copy with clean interior having no markings, writing, underlining, or highlighting in margins or text block. Inv. # 3931.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A powerful contemporary retelling ofHeart of Darkness. One rainy night in Australia, Marlouws sister phones with the request that he fetch her son from that bloody country. AndMarlouw, with his club foot and hardened spirit, believes it is his fate to carry out this instruction. Drenched in sweat after an ominous flight, his exodus takes him through a South Africa where poverty is rife,infrastructure has collapsed, AIDshas become widespread, and corruption reigns. He is told:the whites whove stayed on, staybecause theyre not able toleave. Yet still he journeys deeper into the unknown past the suffering massesalongside the road to the outer darkness of the rural areas. There are rumours that Koert is on the old family farm, now in the possession of the family's former workers. That there, guarded andisolated, he has built himself a powerful empire as the King of Meat. Here, on Ouplaas, at the end of Marlouws terrible journey,the heart of terror is cut open. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Everything we know about dieting and weight loss is wrong. In the UK, almost two-thirds of adults are overweight. We think we know the answer: cut calories; eat less. We conclude that being fat is a failure of willpower, perhaps supplemented by a quirk of genetics. Yet research shows that losing weight by willpower alone is almost guaranteed to fail in the long run. In fact, there is no evidence that dieting improves long-term health, and some that suggests yo-yo dieting is more dangerous than being overweight. Combining deep research and brutal candour about her own experience as a yo-yo dieter, neuroscientist Sandra Aamodt explains the science of the obesity epidemic, including new findings about gut bacteria, why bariatric surgery works (it has more to do with your brain than your stomach), and what a real alternative to dieting and weight cycling might look like. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The past century has witnessed a revolution. Less than a hundred years ago, the average Western life expectancy was 40; now it is 80. And there is no end in sight: the first person who will reach 135 has already been born. Its the most radical change in our society since industrialisation, and naturally it raises many questions. What do longer life spans mean for the way we organise our societies? How can people best prepare themselves for living considerably longer? Does it help to eat less, or to take hormones, vitamins, or minerals? And what can we learn from old people who remain full of vitality, despite illness and infirmity? Growing Older without Feeling Old is the definitive book on a key issue for the 21st century, written by one of the worlds leading experts in geriatric medicine. Combining medical, biological, economic, and sociological insights, Rudi Westendorp explores the causes of the ageing revolution and explains how we can greet it with confidence and enjoy leading longer, healthier, and more productive lives than ever before. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award, and shortlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction Love is a bygone idea, centuries-worn. There are things we can go without, and love is among them; bread and a warm hearth are not. In September 1870 a train leaves Manchester bound for London. On board is Lizzie Burns, a poor worker from the Irish slums, embarking on the journey that will change her forever. Sitting in the first-class carriage beside her lover, the wealthy mill-owner Frederick Engels, the vision of a life of peace and comfort takes shape before her eyes. But as Lizzie soon learns 'the world doesn't happen how you think it will. The secret is to soften to it, and to take its blows.'. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. From the New York Times best-selling author of The Drunken Botanist comes an enthralling novel based on the forgotten, true story of one of the US's first female deputy sheriffs. Constance Kopp doesnt quite fit the mould. She towers over most men, has no interest in marriage or domestic affairs, and has been isolated from the world since a family secret sent her and her sisters from the city to the country fifteen years before. When a powerful, ruthless factory owner runs down their buggy, a dispute over damages turns into a war of bricks, bullets, and threats as he unleashes his gang on their farm. The sheriff enlists her help, and it turns out that Constance has a knack for outwitting (and disarming) the criminal element, which might just take her back out into the world and onto a new path in life. Through Amy Stewarts exuberant storytelling, Constance Kopp catapults from a forgotten historical anecdote to an unforgettable historical-fiction heroine an outsized woman not only ahead of her time, but sometimes even ahead of ours. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize 2017 A mans eye is accommodative, like his heart. Samuel Brownes wife has left him suddenly after three years of marriage. She invites him to go and live a better life without me. He must start again, and alone. And so it is that Sam finds himself deep in the English countryside in a cold but characterful old house, remote and encircled by hills, in the employment and company of an older, wiser man, a man as fond of mystery as he is of enlightenment. What is the purpose of the seemingly hopeless task set for Sam in the houses ancient library? What is the secret of the unused room? And where does a life lose its way or gain its meaning? The combe is home to a truth born of fraud, a building made of light, and a family wrecked by recklessness: loss and love reverberate around the house and around the novel, providing pleasure, pain and purpose. Combe Hall is a house designed to honour and to enthral. And this very fine debut novel does exactly the same. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A UK edition of the just-released four-step Paleo diet program that offers optimal nutrition for a lifetime of health. Suffering from chronic illnesses, and unable to get satisfactory treatments for their conditions from doctors, the husband-and-wife scientific team of Paul and Shou-Ching Jaminet decided that they had to take a personal interest in health and nutrition. After embarking on five years of rigorous research, what they found changed their lives and the lives of thousands of their readers. In Perfect Health Diet, the Jaminets explain how anyone can regain health and lose weight by optimising nutrition, detoxifying their diet, and supporting healthy immune functions. They show how toxic, nutrient-poor diets sabotage health, and how, on a healthy diet, diseases often spontaneously resolve. But they dont just tell you what foods to eat to make you healthier and weight loss easier: they show you why with a clear, balanced, and scientifically proven plan. Already an international sensation, Perfect Health Diet will change the way you eat and feel forever. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A World Book Night book. A New York Timesbestselling book about the extraordinary abilities of mans best friend. When Cat Warren adopted Solo, an unruly German shepherd puppy, she soon began to wonder what shed let herself in for. Solos boundless energy was what made him loveable but it also made him exhausting, and difficult to train. Then she struck upon an idea: what Solo needed was something to do. Like many dogs, Solo was destined to work: using his nose to help the police locate missing people. In this lively, accessible book, Warren details Solos journey from troublesome pup to expert cadaver dog, and explores the fascinating hidden world of animals that do essential work and the handlers who train them. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. As a psychologist specialising in court assessments, David Roland often saw the toughest, most heartbreaking cases. The emotional trauma had begun to take its toll and then the global financial crisis hit, leaving his family facing financial ruin. So when he found himself in a local emergency ward with little idea of where he was or how he got there, doctors wondered if he had had a nervous breakdown if the strain of treating individuals with mental-health problems had become too much. Eventually they discovered the truth: David had suffered a stroke, which had resulted in brain injury. He faced two choices: give up or get his brain working again. Drawing on the principles of neuroplasticity, David set about re-wiring his brain. Embarking on a search that brought him into contact with doctors, neuroscientists, yoga teachers, musicians, and a Buddhist nun, he found the tools to restore his sense of self: psychotherapy, exercise, music, mindfulness, and meditation. How I Rescued My Brain is the story of Davids neurological difficulties and his remarkable cognitive recovery. It is also an account of a journey to emotional health and wellbeing. In the tradition of Marc Lewiss Memoirs of an Addicted Brain and Jill Bolte Taylors My Stroke of Insight, this is an amazing tale of one mans resilience, and his determination to overcome one of the most frightening situations imaginable the fear that he had lost his mind, and might not get it back. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. In May 2006, armed only with a small rucksack and a staff, Tony Kevin, an overweight, sedentary, 63-year-old former diplomat, set off on an eight-week trek across Spain. But this was not just a very long walk it was a pilgrimage. Tony followed the Camino Mozarabe and the Via de la Plata, two of the many pilgrim trails that crisscross Spain and Portugal and that all lead to a single destination. Every day towards noon, hundreds of hot, tired, and dusty pilgrims stream into Santiago Cathedral for the daily Pilgrims Mass. What, in our busy, materialistic 21st century, is this apparently anachronistic phenomenon all about? What drives tens of thousands of people of all nationalities and creeds to make long, exhausting walks across the cold mountains and hot tablelands of Spain, to take part finally in a medieval Christian liturgy of spiritual renewal and reconciliation with God? Walking the Camino beautifully captures the flavour of this epic journey, and is filled with fascinating observations and anecdotes about contemporary Spain. It is also a profound personal meditation on the nature of modern life. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A highly decorated veteran agent recounts his incredible undercover career, and reveals the shocking links between narcotics trafficking and terrorism. What exactly is undercover? From a law-enforcement perspective, its the art of skillfully eliciting incriminating statements. Edward Follis mastered this dark art over the course of his distinguished 27 years with the USs Drug Enforcement Administration, where he bought bags of coke in a red Corvette, negotiated multi-million-dollar deals on board private jets, and developed covert relationships with men who were not only international drug-traffickers, but in some cases operatives for Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, and the Mexican federation of cartels. Spanning five continents and filled with harrowing stories about the worlds most ruthless drug lords and terrorist networks, Folliss memoir reads like a thriller. Yet every word is true, and every story is documented. The first and only insiders account of the confluence between narco-trafficking and terrorist organisations, The Dark Art is an electrifying page-turner. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. A border town on the steppe. A small group of emaciated and feral refugees appears out of nowhere, spreading fear and panic in the town. When police commissioner Pontus Beg orders their arrest, evidence of a murder is found in their luggage. As he begins to unravel the history of their hellish journey, it becomes increasingly intertwined with the search for his own origins that he has embarked upon. Now he becomes the groups inquisitor and, finally, something like their saviour. Begs likeability as a character and his dry-eyed musings considering the nature of religion keep the reader pinned to the page from the start. At the same time, the apocalyptic atmosphere of the groups exodus across the steppes becomes increasingly vivid and laden with meaning as the novel proceeds, in seeming synchronicity with the development of Begs character. With a rare blend of humour and wisdom, Tommy Wieringa links mans dark nature with the question of who we are and whether redemption is possible. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The phrase survival of the fittest conjures an image of the most cutthroat individuals rising to the top. But Stefan Klein, author of the international bestseller The Science of Happiness, makes the startling assertion that the key to achieving lasting personal and societal success lies in helping others. Klein argues that altruism is in fact our defining characteristic: natural selection favoured those early humans who cooperated in groups. With their survival more assured, our altruistic ancestors were free to devote brainpower to developing intelligence, language, and culture our very humanity. As Klein puts it, We humans became first the friendliest and then the most intelligent apes. To build his persuasive case for how altruistic behaviour made us human and why it pays to get along Klein brings together an extraordinary array of material: current research on genetics and the brain, economics, social psychology, behavioural and anthropological experiments, history, and modern culture. Ultimately, his groundbreaking findings lead him to a vexing question: if were really hard-wired to act for one anothers benefit, why arent we all getting along? Klein believes weve learned to mistrust our generous instincts because success is so often attributed to selfish ambition. In Survival of the Nicest, he invites us to rethink what it means to be the fittest as he shows how caring for others can protect us from loneliness and depression, make us happier and healthier, reward us economically, and even extend our lives. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Have you read (or stumbled into) one too many irrational online debates? Ali Almossawi certainly had, so he wrote An Illustrated Book of Bad Arguments! This handy guide is here to bring the internet age a much needed dose of old-school logic (really old-school, a la Aristotle). Here are cogent explanations of the straw man fallacy, the slippery slope argument, the ad hominem attack, and other common attempts at reasoning that fall short plus a beautifully drawn menagerie of animals who (adorably) commit every logical faux pas. Rabbit thinks a strange light in the sky must be a UFO because no one can prove otherwise (the appeal to ignorance). And Lion doesnt believe that gas emissions harm the planet because, if that were true, he wouldnt like the result (the argument from consequences). Once you learn to recognise these abuses of reason, they start to crop up everywhere from parliamentary debate to YouTube comments which makes this geek-chic book a must for anyone in the habit of holding opinions. Its the antidote to fuzzy thinking, with furry animals! The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Hardcover. Condition: Fine. No edition or number line stated. Illustrated boards with no dust jacket issued. Not remaindered or library withdrawn. Clean, bright & tight. No corner bumps, creases, tears or stains. Shipped padded in a box with tracking number provided on domestic shipping.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Everyone froze a sudden, electric, brutal, paralysing tension pierced their souls while one of the doctors unwrapped the baby on the bed. In this multi-award-winning autobiographical novel, Cristovao Tezza struggles with a phantom shame when his son, Felipe, is born with Down syndrome. From the initial shock of diagnosis, to a new world of hospitals and therapy, Tezza delicately threads the story of his sons life with his own. Felipe, who lives in an eternal present, becomes a remarkable young man, but Tezza yearns for a normal existence that is always out of reach. He must force himself to come to terms with his own limitations an internal war that has raged for decades. With compelling insight and honesty, Tezza takes us deep into his mind as he challenges his understanding of family, fatherhood, and love. The Eternal Son is an unforgettable masterpiece by one of Brazils finest novelists. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Soft cover. Condition: New. No Jacket. Updated and Revised. N/none, pb, 167pp. Perfect bound, color illustrated, stiff paper wraps with yellow and white colored text on upper and black and rust colored text on uncreased spine. Interior pages clean, unmarked. Binding is tight.

Softcover. Condition: Fine. 8vo.

Soft cover. Condition: Very Good. Pages are bright and clean, binding is tight. The top right corner of the book is slight bent.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. Like every other superhero, Wonder Woman has a secret identity. Unlike every other superhero, she also has a secret history. Drawing from an astonishing trove of documents, including never-before-seen private papers, Harvard historian and New Yorker staff writer Jill Lepore reveals the fascinating family story that sparked the invention of the most popular female superhero of all time. Delving into the life of Wonder Womans eccentric creator, psychologist William Moulton Marston, Lepore uncovers her feminist origins: from the warrior princesses of the Amazon, to suffragists including Emmeline Pankhurst, and the women Marston shared his life with his wife and his mistress. The Secret History of Wonder Woman is at once a riveting work of pop-culture history, and a crucial insight into the struggle for womens rights in the twentieth century and the troubled place of feminism today. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.

Paperback. Condition: Very Good. The book has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting. The spine remains undamaged.