‘Fills my heart with so much joy' Niall Harbison, bestselling author of Hope 'In a dark time, a daily dose of hope’ Jojo Moyes How do you welcome someone new into your heart and home? A week before Christmas, newly retired BBC journalist Rory Cellan-Jones receives a special delivery that will change his life. This is the story of rescue dog #SophieFromRomania. In January 2022, the Cellan-Jones-Coyle family said goodbye to their beloved elderly Collie cross, Cabbage. She and Rory had become inseparable during daily pandemic walks, which alleviated his Parkinson’s symptoms. After a grief-stricken year, Rory and his wife Diane come across a listing for ‘a kind girl who loves everybody and is just looking for her forever home’. Bright-eyed, big-eared and trembling, Sophie arrives in London on 17 December 2022. Rory holds the Romanian rescue in his arms, excited for their first walk together – but the road ahead will be a long one . . . This book follows the real journey of Sophie’s adoption – from her battles with anxiety, to the joys of play and her first time outside – as Rory and Diane work with expert dog trainer Si to win Sophie’s trust and navigate Rory’s Parkinson’s disease. This is a moving story of love, kindness and a lot of patience, paying tribute to rescue dogs and their tender community. The ultimate Christmas gift for dog-lovers!

Longlisted for the 2019 Women’s Prize, this poignant, lyrical novel is set in 1970s Romania during Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu’s regime—and depicts childhood, marriage, family, and identity in the face of extreme obstacles. Alina yearns for freedom. She and her husband Liviu are teachers in their twenties, living under the repressive regime of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu in the Socialist Republic of Romania in the 1970s. But after her brother-in-law defects, Alina and Liviu fall under suspicion and surveillance, and their lives are suddenly turned upside down—just like the glasses in her superstitious Aunt Theresa's house that are used to ward off evil spirits. But Alina's evil spirits are more corporeal: a suffocating, manipulative mother; a student who accuses her; and a menacing Secret Services agent who makes one-too-many visits. As the couple continues to be harassed, their marriage soon deteriorates. With the government watching—and most likely listening— escape seems impossible . . . until Alina’s mystical aunt proposes a surprising solution to reduce her problems to a manageable size. Weaving elements of magic realism, Romanian folklore, and Kafkaesque paranoia into a gritty and moving depiction of one woman's struggle for personal and political freedom, Bottled Goods is written in short bursts of “flash fiction” and explores universal themes of empowerment, liberty, family, and loyalty.

The inside story of how tech became personal, and pernicious, from the BBC's technology correspondent

Julia Gelardi's Born to Rule is an historical tour de force that weaves together the powerful and moving stories of the five royal granddaughters of Queen Victoria. These five women were all married to reigning European monarchs during the early part of the 20th century, and it was their reaction to the First World War that shaped the fate of a continent and the future of the modern world. Here are the stories of Alexandra, whose enduring love story, controversial faith in Rasputin, and tragic end have become the stuff of legend; Marie, the flamboyant and eccentric queen who battled her way through a life of intrigues and was also the mother of two Balkan queens and of the scandalous Carol II of Romania; Victoria Eugenie, Spain's very English queen who, like Alexandra, introduced hemophilia into her husband's family-with devastating consequences for her marriage; Maud, King Edward VII's daughter, who was independent Norway's reluctant queen; and Sophie, Kaiser Wilhelm II's much maligned sister, daughter of an Emperor and herself the mother of no less than three kings and a queen, who ended her days in bitter exile. Born to Rule evokes a world of luxury, wealth, and power in a bygone era, while also recounting the ordeals suffered by a unique group of royal women who at times faced poverty, exile, and death. Praised in their lifetimes for their legendary beauty, many of these women were also lauded-and reviled-for their political influence. Using never before published letters, memoirs, diplomatic documents, secondary sources, and interviews with descendents of the subjects, Julia Gelardi's Born to Rule is an astonishing and memorable work of popular history.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor shares her experiences, insights and reflections on men, music and motherhood. Sophie Ellis-Bextor's kitchen discos became a source of much needed escapism, catharsis and sequined joy for a swathe of the population during lockdown. From knackered mothers and fed up fathers, to cooped up partiers with nowhere to go, Sophie's gloriously chaotic Friday kitchen performances have cheered and revived us. Now Sophie is bringing that same mixture of down to earth candour and optimistic sparkle to her first book. Part memoir, part musings, Sophie will write about the conjuring act of adulthood and motherhood and how her experience of working while raising her five sons has given her the inescapable lesson of how to navigate life in the face of failure and imperfection. Covering relationships, good enough parenting, the importance of delusion and dancing, Sophie writes about the things that take on greater importance as life becomes more complicated. From the non negotiables (solitude, music, glitter) to the unimportant (clean hair, deadlines, appropriate behaviour), this is a book about learning from our experiences and not being afraid to smash a few plates for the sake of what we actually need want and value.

‘Need to Lead’ provides an invaluable reference point for senior executives or those striving towards a successful cross-border career, to understand how cultural differences impact upon leadership styles and practices. Each semester, we publish a report on our quantitative survey-based global study, alongside our review of extant in-country leadership literature, preferably written by local scholars and professionals in their native language. Moreover, we attempt to empirically validate these findings by conducting expert interviews with native specialists. This new issue of our ongoing leadership series presents country-specific analyses of culturally endorsed leadership practices and styles in the following countries or regions: Basque country, Cameroon, China PRC, Colombia, Croatia, Fiji, Kazakhstan, Panamá, Perú, Poland, Romania, Thailand and Uzbekistan. This publication contains contributions from around 124 researchers from 24 countries who participated in the Cross-Cultural Business Skills elective offered by the Part-time Academy of the Faculty of Business and Economics at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences (HvA). The following authors contributed: Aaron William, Aart Reijn, Adil Fkyerat, Ahmed Machto, Alex Basmaci, Ali Atilgan, Amber Hazebroek, Anastasija Spirovska (Анастасија Спировска), Ander Roteta Unceta-Barrenechea, Andrea Nicole Chumpitazi Vidal, Angel van Blaaderen, Annelot van Dommele, Antonina Tsanevska (Антонина Цаневска), Astrid Bons, Bart Koper, Bary Yvo, Bastiaan Rethmeier, Berber Kok, Bob Groot, Brandy Masamba, Buraçcan Cellatoğlu, Chacaya Zwaaneveld, Chanel Pinas, Chanel Bosch, Ciovanni van de Groep, Daantje Meurs, Dani Brink, Daniel Lopes Figueiredo, Daniël Emanuels, Daniëlle Verlaan, Darryl Oppong-Kyeremeh, Devon Posthouwer, Di-annah Seck, Dimas Sarkam, Eleonora Kyoseva (Елеонора Кьосева), Eliass Battoui, Enrique Beukers, Erva Semen, Esmee Wong, Floor van Empelen, Giorgio Sancipriani, Glenn Zonderop, Guido Struijvé, Hedda Smith, Ikram Ammy Driss, Iliaas Abdoelrahman, Isa van Delft, Ivo Botterweck, Iwan de la Fosse, Jairo Diaz Ballesteros, Jasmijn Roeper, Jason Achthoven, Jeroen Godee, Jessy Mitrasing, Joep van den Heuvel, Jon Villafranca Alonso, Joppe Gales, Josipa Cirkveni, Justin Imansoeradi, Kamila Izinicka, Klaudia Rubacha, Laura Marell, Liam Riethorst, Margriet Botman, Marie-Hélène Geisler, Marilène Hoekstra, Marisa Alberda, Marleen van der Lingen, Márton Belovai, Mehdi El Farhouni, Mert Can, Moaz Elrokh, Mustafa Bakhsh, Nam Doan, , Nguyễn Hoàng Hiếu, Nguyễn Thế Hoàng, Nikayla Koeiman, Noah Hofmeester, Nora Ruijpers, Owen Slaghuis, Parteek Chhibber, Raffaele Tartaglione, Ramazan Erçelik, Raquel Gomez Nunez, Rayen Jaggoe, Rida El Haddouti, Romée Caprino, Roos de Boer, Ryan Timmers, Sara Huegun Iturrioz, Saruta Wantum, Seline Leenders, Shahed Sagheer, Shaniss Nyamoto, Sheher Anwar, Sheryl Sodijana, Shiella Valmeo, Sophie Noorman, Stijn van Beugen, Tamara Ruiz del Arbol, Teun Meijer, Teun Kloosterboer, Thijn van Well, Thijs van Muiswinkel, Thimo Hoorn, Tjebbiene Botter, Tom Bernard, Tuleen Al Samkari, Umar Quta, Wanda Needham, Wessam Dowaah, Yoon Fong Chong, Zakaria Jbari, Zev van der Geest and Zhaohan Zhang (张兆涵). Editorial managers: Christopher Higgins and Sander Schroevers, bibliographic and citations editor: Aynur Doğan.

Famous Planet Earth Caves - The new series presents important caves or rock shelters in any kind of rock types all over the world. Each book focuses on a single cave presentation covering different and most important disciplines of a cave: Geology (e.g. cave genesis, sedimentology, speleothems) such as Hydrogeology (e.g. speleothems for climate reconstructions, aquifer reconstructions), Paleontology (e.g. cave bear or carnivore dens), Archeology (e.g. Palaeolithic to Medieval camp or burial sites) and modern Biology (e.g. bat caves). The books are scientific chaptered monographs, sometimes of show caves, but often of non- or difficult to access caves. The well-illustrated books are written in a mixed scientific and popular scientific way for a better understanding and larger readership, especially speleologists and natural scientists all over the world.

Few British monarchs have fit the time, the tone or the energy of an era quite the way Queen Victoria mastered her reign. From her ascension to the throne in 1837 to her death in 1901, her monarchy was one of spectacular advances in the British Empire. Political, scientific, and industrial wonders were changing the world. Britain's influence reached all corners of the earth. But there was one area that particularly intrigued the Queen. Men. Keenly aware of the opposite sex, her most trusted advisors were men. Lord Melbourne, her first prime minister, was an avuncular presence. Then her beloved husband Prince Albert took the reins until his death in 1861. In a widowhood of forty years, her ministers were a varied lot. She adored Disraeli, disliked Gladstone, and found genuine friendship with Lord Salisbury. Then there was Mr. Brown, the Scottish ghillie who she found wonderfully attractive. Later there was Abdul Karim, the Munshi, or teacher with whom she had a motherly relationship. She adored her son-in-law, Prince Henry of Battenberg, the 'sunshine of their lives' and was devastated when he died. She also loved her grandson-in-law, Prince Louis Battenberg, who was one of the executors of her will. Those years without Albert were not barren loveless years, they were not without happiness and pleasure, even if the queen herself might protest.

Only seven European monarchies remain intact today; all are constitutional monarchies. Four empires and 16 kingdoms have disappeared in Europe during the last two centuries. The Bourbon kingdom in France vanished first, in 1830; the Greek kingdom most recently, in 1973. Former sovereigns still consider themselves to be kings. Princes, dukes and counts remain, possessed of far-reaching connections to currently reigning monarchs. For some of them the path to headship of the royal houses has been complicated, taking many twists and turns. Two world wars caused the greatest attrition in monarchies. Exile has been bitter for some, happier for others, but in and out of exile the heads of royal families live well. Many are successful in business and as financiers. Many are enthusiastic followers of sports. Some manage large estates; others are still trying to regain royal properties. The chapters are arranged in the chronological order in which the kingdoms disappeared. This book profiles twenty-one heads of formerly regnant houses of Europe, set in historical perspective, and recounting varied life styles, occupations, and interests. At the end of each chapter is a chart or set of charts depicting the line of succession of the headship of the house.