For years Richard Beard would take spontaneous holidays with his motor-cycling friend Drew. They would spend a few days walking, camping, cycling, canoeing - outdoor, manly fun - before returning to everyday life: wives, children, jobs. Then one year Drew phoned to announce a complication: he was planning to have a sex change.
SHORTLISTED FOR THE GOLDSMITHS PRIZEA charismatic cult leader is dead. Enter Gallio. But the theft of a body he's supposed to be guarding ruins his career. Gallio is called back by headquarters and ordered to track down everyone involved the first time round. How can Gallio stay ahead of the game when the game keeps changing?
WINNER OF THE PEN ACKERLEY PRIZE 2018SHORTLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE 2018SHORTLISTED FOR THE JAMES TAIT BLACK PRIZE 2018My younger brother's name is Nicholas Beard. Suddenly and inexplicably Nicholas is out of his depth and then, shockingly, so is Richard.
Birmingham is a writer's city with a long tradition of distinctive literary subcultures. Long-established novelists such as David Lodge and Jim Crace have spent most of their writing lives there, and the city continues to support and inspire a new generation of voices. Bringing together fiction from some of the city's most talented writers, The Book of Birmingham showcases and celebrates original and unusual writing, in all its forms.
What would you do, given the second chance of a lifetime?Like most men in their thirties, Lazarus has plans that don't involve dying. Life is good. Lazarus dies. Lazarus returns to life.But as Lazarus is about to find out, returning from the dead isn't easy. He thinks he wants a second chance at life, but what will he do when he gets it?
'Read this book' Alastair Campbell 'A really wonderful book' Nigella Lawson via Twitter In 1975 Richard Beard was sent away to boarding school. So were Boris Johnson and David Cameron. He didn't enjoy it. But the first and most important lesson was not to let that show. A public school education has long been accepted in Britain as a preparation for leadership, but being separated from your parents at a young age is traumatic. What sort of adult does it mould? Tackling debates about privilege head-on, Sad Little Men reveals what happens when you put a succession of men from boarding schools into positions of influence, including at 10 Downing Street, and asks the question- is this really who we want in charge? 'The most important book I've read this year' Adam Rutherford
Hinterland is a new quarterly magazine showcasing the best in creative non-fiction writing. Each issue features a stellar line-up of writing talent from around the stories by established, best-selling authors as well as a host of exciting new writers making their publishing debut. Our second issue features as its headline authors a pilgrimage across Dartmoor by Richard Beard (winner of the PEN Ackerley Prize 2018 for his memoir, The Day that went Missing ) and illustrator Dru Marland, George Szirtes ( The Photographer at Sixteen ) writes about his love for wrestling, and an interview with Costa Award-winning author Bart Van Es ( The Cutout Girl ), along with over a dozen new authors, flash fiction and regular features.