Penguin Novacene. The Coming Age of Hyperintelligence Lovelock James

Robin Lane Fox's Travelling Heroes: Greeks and their Myths in the Epic Age of Homer proposes a new way of thinking about ancient Greeks, showing how real-life journeys shaped their mythical tales • The tales of the ancient Greeks have inspired us for thousands of years. But where did they originate? Esteemed classicist Robin Lane Fox draws on a lifetime's knowledge of the ancient world, and on his own travels, to open up the age of Homer • His acclaimed history explores how the intrepid seafarers of eighth-century Greece sailed around the Mediterranean, encountering strange new sights - volcanic mountains, vaporous springs, huge prehistoric bones - and weaving them into the myths of gods, monsters and heroes that would become the cornerstone of Western civilization: the Odyssey and the Iliad

James Lovelock's bestselling The Revenge of Gaia: Why the Earth is Fighting Back - and How we can Still Save Humanity is a dire warning against the unchecked growth of civilization • 'Despite all our efforts to retreat sustainably, we may be unable to prevent a global decline into a chaotic world ruled by brutal warlords on a devastated Earth...' • For thousands of years, humans have exploited the planet without counting the cost. Now Gaia, the living Earth, is fighting back. As the polar icecaps shrink and the global temperature rises, we approach the point of no return. Sustainable development, Lovelock argues, is no longer possible, and the only open to us may be a 'sustainable retreat'. This is the one book you must read to find out what is happening, how bad it will get - and how we can survive

The Little Book of Calm for New Mums will share advice and support on issues that new mothers face, from A for Anger, to I for Insomnia, providing an empowering pep talk for those days when new mothers need it most • Psychotherapist and mother of three, Anna Mathur, will support readers through the rollercoaster of feelings that come with being a new mum and provide expert advice based on her own professional and personal experiences. Whether you need some quick grounding, a note of compassion, or you want to untangle a feeling, flick to a page for a quick, uplifting moment of much-needed support • There are quick takeaway mantras and action tips for those tight on time, and further reading should you want to explore topics more deeply. This comprehensive A-Z covers everything from baby blues and anxiety to guilt, insomnia, stress, your inner critic and maintaining friendships

A ground-breaking book by the world-leading expert in sensory science: Freakonomics for food • Why do we consume 35% more food when eating with one more person, and 75% more when with three? • Why are 27% of drinks bought on aeroplanes tomato juice? • How are chefs and companies planning to transform our dining experiences, and what can we learn from their cutting-edge insights to make memorable meals at home? • These are just some of the ingredients of Gastrophysics, in which the pioneering Oxford professor Charles Spence shows how our senses link up in the most extraordinary ways, and reveals the importance of all the 'off-the-plate' elements of a meal: the weight of cutlery, the placing on the plate, the background music and much more. Whether dining alone or at a dinner party, on a plane or in front of the TV, he reveals how to understand what we're tasting and influence what others experience

'Sync' is a story of a dazzling kind of order in the universe, the harmony that comes from cycles in sync. The tendency to sychronize is one of the most far- reaching drives in all of nature. It extends from people to planets, from animals to atoms. In 'Sync' professor Steven Strogatz considers a range of applications - human sleep and circadian rhythms, menstrual synchrony, insect outbreaks, superconductors, lasers, secret codes, heart arrhythmias and fads - connecting all trhough an exploration of the same mathematical theme: self-organisation, or the spontaneous emergence of order out of chaos. Focused enough to present a coherent world unto themselves, Strogatz's chosen topics touch on several of the hottest directions in contemporary science

Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, dominated the eighteenth century in the same way that Napoleon dominated the start of the nineteenth. He was a force of nature, a ruthless, brilliant, charismatic military commander, a monarch of exceptional energy and talent, a gifted composer, performer, poet and philosopher, and a discerning patron of artists, architects and writers, most famously Voltaire. From the very start of his reign he was an intensely divisive figure - fascinating even to those who hated him • Tim Blanning's brilliant new biography captures Frederick's vitality, complexity and flawed genius better than any previous writer. He also recreates a remarkable era, the last flowering of the old regime that would be swept away almost immediately after Frederick's death by the French Revolution

Yang Jisheng's Tombstone is the book that broke the silence on of one of history's most terrible crimes • More people died in Mao's Great Famine than in the entire First World War, yet this story has remained largely untold, until now. Still banned in China, Tombstone draws on the author's privileged access to official and unofficial sources to uncover the full human cost of the tragedy, and create an unprecedented work of historical reckoning

The Danish word hygge is one of those beautiful words that doesn't directly translate into English, but it more or less means comfort, warmth or togetherness. Hygge is the feeling you get when you are cuddled up on a sofa with a loved one, in warm knitted socks, in front of the fire, when it is dark, cold and stormy outside. It that feeling when you are sharing good, comfort food with your closest friends, by candle light and exchanging easy conversation. It is those cold, crisp blue sky mornings when the light through your window is just right. Denmark is the happiest nation in the world and Meik puts this largely down to them living the hygge way. They focus on the small things that really matter, spend more quality time with friends and family and enjoy the good things in life

People in Japan are masters of minimal living, able to make do with less in all aspects of life, whether it's de-cluttering personal belongings or savvy seasonal cooking. But at the heart of all this is the kakeibo: the budgeting journal used to set saving goals and spend wisely • It's simple: at the beginning of each month you sit down with your kakeibo and think about how much you would like to save and what you will need to do in order to reach your goal. There is space to jot down your weekly spending and reflect on the month just gone • A kakeibo ensures helps make saving a part of your everyday life, while also giving you the opportunity to reflect and improve every month • Get a grip on your spending and start to achieve your goals, by finding ways to save for the things that really matter in your life

History is swamped by patriotic myths about the aerial combat fought between the RAF and the Luftwaffe over the summer of 1940. In his gripping history of the Battle of Britain, Len Deighton drew on a decade of research and his own wartime experiences to puncture these myths and point towards a more objective, and even more inspiring, truth

In this no holds barred account of life in the seconds before, during and after going on air, Newsnight presenter, leading journalist, and queen of the side eye Emily Maitlis gives us the insider info on what we don't get to see on-screen • Giving us the inside scoop on her interviews with everyone from Emma Thompson to Russell Brand, and Donald Trump to Tony Blair, as well as covering news stories such as President Clinton's affairs, Boris Johnson's race to PM, Grenfell, #MeToo, and that interview with Prince Andrew • Airhead is a brilliant expose of the moments that never make the news • From News Presenter of the Year and 2020 BAFTA nominee

J.R.R. Tolkien’s writings on the Second Age of Middle-earth, collected for the first time in one volume • J.R.R. Tolkien famously described the Second Age of Middle-earth as a ‘dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told’. And for many years readers would need to be content with the tantalizing glimpses of it found within the pages of The Lord of the Rings and its appendices, including the forging of the Rings of Power, the building of the Barad-dur and the rise of Sauron • It was not until Christopher Tolkien published The Silmarillion after his father’s death that a fuller story could be told. Although much of the book’s content concerned the First Age of Middle-earth, there were at its close two key works that revealed the tumultuous events concerning the rise and fall of the island of Numenor