The chant of ‘Azadi!’ – Urdu for ‘Freedom!’ – is the slogan of the freedom struggle in Kashmir against what Kashmiris see as the Indian Occupation. Ironically, it also became the chant of millions on the streets of India against the project of Hindu Nationalism. Even as Arundhati Roy began to ask what lay between these two calls for Freedom – a chasm or a bridge? – the streets fell silent. Not only in India, but all over the world. The Coronavirus brought with it another, more terrible understanding of Azadi, making a nonsense of international borders, incarcerating whole populations, & bringing the modern world to a halt like nothing else ever could. In this series of electrifying essays, Arundhati Roy challenges us to reflect on the meaning of freedom in a world of growing authoritarianism.

The chant of ‘Azadi!’ – Urdu for ‘Freedom!’ – is the slogan of the freedom struggle in Kashmir against what Kashmiris see as the Indian Occupation. Ironically, it also became the chant of millions on the streets of India against the project of Hindu Nationalism. Even as Arundhati Roy began to ask what lay between these two calls for Freedom – a chasm or a bridge? – the streets fell silent. Not only in India, but all over the world. The Coronavirus brought with it another, more terrible understanding of Azadi, making a nonsense of international borders, incarcerating whole populations, & bringing the modern world to a halt like nothing else ever could. In this series of electrifying essays, Arundhati Roy challenges us to reflect on the meaning of freedom in a world of growing authoritarianism.

The essays include meditations on language, public as well as private, and on the role of fiction and alternative imaginations…

In the Notting Hill of the early 70s we rediscover Moses Aloetta, last seen twenty years before in Selvon’s masterpiece, The Lonely Londoners. In the fifties, Moses was a reluctant “welfare officer” for new arrivals from the islands, grumbling as he helped people find their feet in the Mother Country. Now he’s installed as the tin-pot monarch of a tumble-down terraced house in Shepherd’s Bush.

In the Notting Hill of the early 70s we rediscover Moses Aloetta, last seen twenty years before in Selvon’s masterpiece, The Lonely Londoners. In the fifties, Moses was a reluctant “welfare officer” for new arrivals from the islands, grumbling as he helped people find their feet in the Mother Country. Now he’s installed as the tin-pot monarch of a tumble-down terraced house in Shepherd’s Bush.

There is something of the shipwrecked mariner about Moses, washed up on a cold and lonely shore, making do with…

Join TV biological anthropologist Professor Alice Roberts on a fascinating non-fiction journey to discover the secrets of our past, in this dramatic retelling of our human journey for children aged 7+ years. Adults who love Who Do You Think You Are? will enjoy reading and sharing this book with young ones. Reach back through time and shake hands with your ancestors.

Join TV biological anthropologist Professor Alice Roberts on a fascinating non-fiction journey to discover the secrets of our past, in this dramatic retelling of our human journey for children aged 7+ years. Adults who love Who Do You Think You Are? will enjoy reading and sharing this book with young ones. Reach back through time and shake hands with your ancestors.

Discover who we are, where we come from and even what it means to be human as you follow the…

Illuminating her inner journey growing up mixed-race in Britain, Esua Jane Goldsmith’s unique memoir exposes the isolation & ambiguities that often come with being ‘an only’. Raised in 1950s South London & Norfolk with a white, working-class family, Esua’s education in racial politics was immediate & personal. From Britain & Scandinavia to Italy and Tanzania, she tackled inequality wherever she saw it, establishing an inspiring legacy in the Women’s lib & Black Power movements.

Illuminating her inner journey growing up mixed-race in Britain, Esua Jane Goldsmith’s unique memoir exposes the isolation & ambiguities that often come with being ‘an only’. Raised in 1950s South London & Norfolk with a white, working-class family, Esua’s education in racial politics was immediate & personal. From Britain & Scandinavia to Italy and Tanzania, she tackled inequality wherever she saw it, establishing an inspiring legacy in the Women’s lib & Black Power movements.

Plagued by questions of her heritage and the inability to locate all pieces of herself, she embarks on a journey…

Soon come, pre-order here. Woods play an important and recurring role in horror, fantasy, the gothic & the weird. They are places in which strange things happen, where you often can’t see where you are or what is around you. Supernatural creatures thrive in the thickets. Trees reach into underworlds of earth, myth & magic. Forests are full of ghosts. In this new collection, immerse yourself in the whispering voices between the branches in Wistman’s Wood on Dartmoor, witness an inexplicable death in Yorkshire’s Strid Wood & prepare yourself for an encounter with malignant pagan powers in the dark of the New Forest.

Soon come, pre-order here. Woods play an important and recurring role in horror, fantasy, the gothic & the weird. They are places in which strange things happen, where you often can’t see where you are or what is around you. Supernatural creatures thrive in the thickets. Trees reach into underworlds of earth, myth & magic. Forests are full of ghosts. In this new collection, immerse yourself in the whispering voices between the branches in Wistman’s Wood on Dartmoor, witness an inexplicable death in Yorkshire’s Strid Wood & prepare yourself for an encounter with malignant pagan powers in the dark of the New Forest.

This edition also includes notes on the real locations and folklore which inspired these deliciously sinister stories. New release available…

Coming soon, pre-order here. ‘Unofficial’ Britain is made up of the places that are often left behind. This is a journey into the forgotten spaces that really tell the modern story of our island. There is a Britain that exists outside of the official histories and guidebooks – places that lie on the margins, left behind. This is the Britain of industrial estates, and tower blocks, of motorway service stations and haunted council houses, of roundabouts and flyovers. Places where modern life speeds past but where people and stories nevertheless collect. Places where human dramas play out: stories of love, violence, fear, boredom and artistic expression. Places of ghost sightings, first kisses, experiments with drugs, refuges for the homeless, hangouts for the outcasts.

Coming soon, pre-order here. ‘Unofficial’ Britain is made up of the places that are often left behind. This is a journey into the forgotten spaces that really tell the modern story of our island. There is a Britain that exists outside of the official histories and guidebooks – places that lie on the margins, left behind. This is the Britain of industrial estates, and tower blocks, of motorway service stations and haunted council houses, of roundabouts and flyovers. Places where modern life speeds past but where people and stories nevertheless collect. Places where human dramas play out: stories of love, violence, fear, boredom and artistic expression. Places of ghost sightings, first kisses, experiments with drugs, refuges for the homeless, hangouts for the outcasts.

Struck by the power of these stories and experiences, Gareth Rees set out to explore these spaces and the essential…

This magical translation of Eiko Kadono’s classic tale Kiki’s Delivery Service will enchant fans of the beloved Studio Ghibli film and new readers alike. Kiki is a trainee witch. On her thirteenth birthday she must follow tradition and leave home to find a new village. She knows she has to use only her powers to make a living, but Kiki’s no good at potions or spells… can she use her flying abilities to make her own way in the world? She sets out with her beloved black cat Jiji on an exciting journey, making new friends along the way.

This magical translation of Eiko Kadono’s classic tale Kiki’s Delivery Service will enchant fans of the beloved Studio Ghibli film and new readers alike. Kiki is a trainee witch. On her thirteenth birthday she must follow tradition and leave home to find a new village. She knows she has to use only her powers to make a living, but Kiki’s no good at potions or spells… can she use her flying abilities to make her own way in the world? She sets out with her beloved black cat Jiji on an exciting journey, making new friends along the way.

New hardback release available in store and online.

The Conquest of Bread is an 1892 book by the Russian anarcho-communist Peter Kropotkin. Originally written in French, it first appeared as a series of articles in the anarchist journal Le Révolté. It was first published in Paris with a preface by Élisée Reclus, who also suggested the title. Between 1892 and 1894, it was serialized in part in the London journal Freedom, of which Kropotkin was a co-founder. In the work, Kropotkin points out what he considers to be the defects of the economic systems of feudalism and capitalism and why he believes they thrive on and maintain poverty and scarcity.

The Conquest of Bread is an 1892 book by the Russian anarcho-communist Peter Kropotkin. Originally written in French, it first appeared as a series of articles in the anarchist journal Le Révolté. It was first published in Paris with a preface by Élisée Reclus, who also suggested the title. Between 1892 and 1894, it was serialized in part in the London journal Freedom, of which Kropotkin was a co-founder. In the work, Kropotkin points out what he considers to be the defects of the economic systems of feudalism and capitalism and why he believes they thrive on and maintain poverty and scarcity.

He goes on to propose a more decentralized economic system based on mutual aid and voluntary cooperation, asserting that the…

Federal Records is generally considered to be responsible for birthing Rocksteady in the 1960’s, but Jamaica’s first recording studio also had a nice little side-thing going for jazz records at the same time. New Dub Store compilation Jamaica Jazz from Federal Records: Carib Roots, Jazz, Mento, Latin, Merengue & Rhumba 1960-1968 collates some crucial cuts from the period. Features Ernest Ranglin, Count Owen & His Calypsonians, Cecil Lloyd and many more.

Federal Records is generally considered to be responsible for birthing Rocksteady in the 1960’s, but Jamaica’s first recording studio also had a nice little side-thing going for jazz records at the same time. New Dub Store compilation Jamaica Jazz from Federal Records: Carib Roots, Jazz, Mento, Latin, Merengue & Rhumba 1960-1968 collates some crucial cuts from the period. Features Ernest Ranglin, Count Owen & His Calypsonians, Cecil Lloyd and many more.

2 x vinyl LP available in store and online.

Soon come. Preorder here. Originally scheduled for release in 1966, ‘The Ska (From Jamaica)’ album remained lost for well over half a century before the ” master tape was finally discovered in the Trojan archives in 2019. Comprising a dozen top-quality tracks, the collection features numerous musical talents now widely regarded as Jamaican legends, their number including the Maytals, Ken Boothe, Clancy Eccles and Derrick Harriott.

Soon come. Preorder here. Originally scheduled for release in 1966, ‘The Ska (From Jamaica)’ album remained lost for well over half a century before the ” master tape was finally discovered in the Trojan archives in 2019. Comprising a dozen top-quality tracks, the collection features numerous musical talents now widely regarded as Jamaican legends, their number including the Maytals, Ken Boothe, Clancy Eccles and Derrick Harriott.

Originally scheduled for release in 1966, ‘The Ska (From Jamaica)’ album remained lost for well over half a century before…