Take a look at our non-fiction picks for August! Includes books on the fall of the Roman Empire, secrets of the royal butlers, and tasty Persian recipes. All of these books and more are available to borrow for free with your library card.
Domination
Alice Roberts
This is the story of the fall of an Empire – and the rise of another. Who spread Christianity, how, and why? In her quest to find the answer, Alice Roberts takes us on a gripping investigative journey. From a secluded valley in south Wales to the shores of Brittany; from the heart of the Roman Empire in a time of political turmoil to the ancient city of Corinth in the footsteps of the apostle Paul; from Alexandria in the fourth century to Constantinople. As the Roman Empire crumbled in Western Europe, a shadow of power remained, almost perfectly mapping onto its disappearing territories. And then, it continued to spread. Unearthing the archaeological clues and challenging long-established histories, Roberts tells a remarkable story about the relationship between the Roman Empire and Christianity.
I Swear: My Life With Tourette’s
John Davidson
Born in the 1970s on the Scottish Borders, John’s was ten when his tics first arrived, as if from nowhere. Previously a happy, popular, football-mad boy he was labelled disruptive, rude, and even mad. As his condition progressed, from blinks and jerks to involuntary rude and obscene shouting, John was bullied, rejected – alienated from his family and a society that had no idea what to make of him. Hospitalized and drugged for months, it was only an extraordinary and transformative friendship, and John’s dogged optimism, that turned his life around, making I Swear an inspirational story of triumph over adversity.
Through John’s eyes, we see Tourette’s not just as a medical condition, but as a lens through which we can all better understand the importance of human connection. And how essential, as well as ultimately rewarding, it can be to keep going and never give up.
Making Matters: In Search of Creative Wonders
Clare Hunter
As children, we made things: snowmen, paper boats, eccentrically costumed plays. That making fired our minds and imaginations – it altered our small worlds and shaped who we became. But as adults, it is hard to find to find the space for creativity and to remember its power. Exploring craft traditions and forms of making from across centuries and cultures, Clare Hunter encourages to engage with the world afresh. To use our hands again, to see beauty in unexpected places, to play and protest and embrace imaginative possibilities. From paper crafts to wonders made from light and snow, she searches for creative delight – making lanterns, puppets and pinhole cameras. Inspiring and fascinating, ‘Making Matters’ celebrates individual and collective creativity. It blends history, culture and politics with rich storytelling, wonderful characters and tales of remarkable objects.
Injury Time: Football in a State of Emergency
David Goldblatt
In 2014, David Goldblatt published ‘The Game of Our Lives’, an exhaustive and critically-acclaimed ‘state of the nation’ account of the UK told through the prism of football. Fast forward 10 years and Goldblatt returns with a new state of the nation book that examines British society and culture through football at perhaps the most perilous time in modern history. Split into three parts, ‘Injury Time’ explores Brexit, Covid and the ‘polycrisis’ of today (a tanking economy, European wars, political uncertainty and climate change) through the prism of football and posits the game as the most illuminating guide to the state of the nation today.
The Royal Butler
Grant Harrold
From royal expert and royal butler Grant Harrold comes an unforgettable memoir and portrait of a royal household – this revelatory new biography tells the full story of how a boy who grew up obsessed with the royals ended up at the heart of their household. The relationship between the king and his staff has always been shrouded in mystery, but in this compelling biography, one of Britain’s top royal experts reveals his story for the first time and shares insight and never-before-heard stories about his time in royal service.
Menolicious: Eat Your Way to a Better Menopause
Mariella Frostrup and Belles Berry
‘Menolicious’ is the essential cookbook for anyone navigating the challenges and changes of midlife; co-authored by two women passionate about food and feeling your best through perimenopause, menopause, and beyond. Menopause awareness campaigner Mariella Frostrup and chef and daughter of Mary Berry, Belles Berry have teamed up to provide you with a menopause survival toolkit of quick, easy, and supremely delicious recipes to ease key symptoms of the menopause. Discover over 100 easy and nutritious recipes designed to help balance hormones, boost energy levels, improve weight management, and help you embrace the freedom of a new stage of life.
Moonlight Express: Around the World by Night Train
Monisha Rajesh
The wonder of the night train: headlamps ablaze, passengers boarding after sunset and leaving before sunrise, slipping in and out of compartments unseen. For Monisha Rajesh, the singular thrill of sleeper trains inspired a new journey around the world – one filled with moonlit landscapes, cosy compartments and quirky companions.
From Austria’s Nightjet to the Caledonian Sleeper and the Santa Claus Express, Rajesh invites us on an adventure aboard the world’s most wondrous night trains. Along the way, she samples reindeer stew in Scandinavia, retraces the original route of the Orient Express, sips on pisco sours aboard the Andean Explorer, and watches the sun rise over the Potomac River on the Silver Meteor to New York.
Persiana Easy
Adele Parks
A brand new collection of inspiring recipes from the bestselling Middle Eastern chef – each carefully designed to be as easy as possible.
The hotly anticipated new collection from Sunday Times bestselling author Sabrina Ghayour, every recipe in Persiana Easy balances irresistible Middle Eastern flavours with accessible cooking. From midweek meals and traybakes to pastries and sweet treats, this collection features easy recipes to delight your family and friends, time and again.
English 
Polish 
Lithuanian 
Romanian 
Portuguese 
Bengali