The Parliamentary sketch writer and theatre critic for the Daily Mail loves gossip as well as hymn-singing and cricket. His target is the plotters and schemers, the "technocrats who dehumanise our country's institutions". Western capitalism's élites are bemused - Brexit, Trump and maybe more eruptions to follow. Hillary Clinton calls the ingrates 'A basket of deplorables'; Tony Blair thought voters too thick to understand the question. Wigged judges stared down their legalistic noses at the pongy populace. Those people who know best, those snooterati with their faux-liberal ways are the Patronising Bastards. Their downfall is largely of their own making - their Sybaritic excesses, an obsession with political correctness, the prolonged rape of reason and rite. You find these show-ponies not just in politics and the old institutions, but also in high fashion, football, clean-eating foodies and where celebritydom hires PR smoothies to massage reputations and mislead, distort and twist. Political columnist Quentin Letts identifies these condescending creeps and their networks, their methods and their dubious morals and kebabs them like mutton. He is juicy on Richard Branson, Emma Thompson, Stephen Fry, Dan and Jon Snow, Sadiq Khan, Michael Eavis, Bono, Fiona Millar, Shami Chakrabarti, Nicholas Serota, Jean-Claude Juncker and his chapters include Boaty McVolteface, Cordon Bleuh, Harmful Harriet, Corporate Balls, Dismal Dons, and Top 100 Patronising Bastards. Shockingly hilarious. Fun images too (page 44), 305pp.

The most comprehensive and authoritative account available of the rapid ascendancy of the Incas, their politics, economics, religion, architecture, art and technology, and their subsequent downfall. The Incas emerged in the 14th century to build one of the largest empires of the ancient world. At its zenith Tawantinsuyu - 'The Fourfold Domain' - extended northwards from the Inca capital of Cusco along the spine of the Andes to embrace parts of modern Peru and Ecuador, and southwards into Bolivia, Chile and Argentina. The authors look in detail at Cusco and four parts of the empire, following the vast road system to explore not just famous sites such as Machu Picchu, but all the major regional settlements on and off the Inca Trail. The concluding chapter is devoted to the arrival of the Spaniards, the assassination of the Inca ruler Atawallpa, and the final years of the rebellious, neo-Inca state of the tropical forests of Vilcabamba. They look at weavers, smiths and potters, the sun, moon and the oracles, religion and ideology, herds, metals and mountains of sacrifice, finely fitted stonework to superbly engineered mountain terraces, stunning textiles to brilliant metalworking gold, silver and bronze. The Inca achievement is fully celebrated in this ideal Thames & Hudson softback. 189 illustrations, 49 in colour. 256pp.

Ivor Gurney - 'Alan Gravill plays them with poetic insight and I hope that other pianists will widen their repertoire to include them.' Gramophone. 1. Prelude in F sharp, 2. Prelude in D flat, 3. Prelude in A minor, 4. Prelude in D flat, 5. Prelude in C minor, 6. Prelude in C, 7. Prelude in F sharp, 8. Prelude in F sharp, 9. Prelude in D, 10. Nocturne in B, 11. Nocturne in A flat, 12. Revery, 13. To E.M.H. - a birthday present from Ivor, 14. A Picture Edward Elgar's, 15. Concert Allegro, 16. Skizze, 17. In Smyrna, 18. Adieu Herbert Howells, three pieces Opus 14 played by Jeremy Filsell, 19. Rhapsody, 20. Jackanapes, 21. Procession. Total running time 76.55. CD.

One of the most notorious and yet mysterious events of WWII was the "Blut Gegen Waren" Blood for Trucks (Goods) plot of 1944, an ultimately unsuccessful scheme hatched between SS Colonel Adolf Eichmann and the group of Hungarian Zionists known as "Va'ada", led by young Jewish businessmen Joel Brand and Rezso Katzner. While Hungary remained part of the Axis it was relatively safe for Jews and Brand and his group organised safety for some 700,000 European Jews there. However, in the Spring of 1944 as the tide was turning against Hitler, Germany invaded Hungary to prevent it deserting the Axis and Adolf Eichmann led a special SS unit to Budapest to begin the transport of thousands of Hungarian Jews to the Auschwitz-Birkenau extermination camp in southern Poland in cattle trains. The majority were gassed, then incinerated. But just as the trains were about to start, Brand and Katzner asked the SS to negotiate, a previously unthinkable scenario. Even more surprisingly, Eichmann made an astonishing offer - "a million Jews for 10,000 trucks". The trucks to be supplied by the Allies would be used solely on the Eastern front, a clear indication of how he saw events unfolding and that the non-Soviet Allies would see the post-war advantage of this. So Brand flew to Istanbul but was arrested by British police and interrogated in Cairo. Their story of the barter provoked utter incredulity, confusion and dismay amongst the highest echelons in London and Washington. And even if it were true, how, on the eve of the D-Day landings, could the Allies cope with the release of almost a million Jewish refugees? Both were arrested as German spies and immediately Eichmann and his henchmen began their murderous business, sending 12,000 men, women and children a day to their terrible fate. But was Eichmann's offer made in good faith? What was his real motivation? Hale explores Eichmann's plot and unveils murderous deceit on an unimaginable scale, and particularly how he manipulated Brand and Katzner, decent men but completely out of their depth here. Hale presents a new account of the ?Brand Mission? based on evidence in the national archives of Germany, Hungary, Britain and the United States and takes the reader through the myriad connections which makes this story so compelling and an impressive addition to Holocaust literature. 448pp, photos.

As the editor of the Review of Applied Ethics, Isabel Dalhousie does not allow herself to have enemies, until the arrival of two squabbling academics forces her to question her stance. Elsewhere in Edinburgh a little boy believes he had a previous life. Called upon to help, Isabel finds herself challenging her own views on reincarnation, the nature of grief, and crucially the positioning of lighthouses. The only thing she doesn't question is her personal life. Blissfully content with her young son and husband, Isabel embarks upon the next issue of her magazine - the Happiness issue - and discovers that happiness for most is not always what it seems. 247pp, paperback.

'We felt an urge to document what we had witnessed. If we who had experienced it, I reasoned, did not reveal the bitter truth, people simply would not believe the extent of the Nazi's evil. I wanted to share our life, the events and our struggle to survive.' Thomas Geve was born in 1929 in Germany. From 1933 onwards, he and his family felt the full force of Nazi persecution. After years of constant danger and hardship, he and his mother were arrested and transported to Auschwitz-Birkenau in June 1943. 22 months later, Thomas was liberated, and after a period of recouperation was reunited with his father in London. After completing his studies and graduating with an engineering degree, Thomas moved to Israel in July 1950, raised a family and lived peacefully in retirement. When he was liberated at the age of 15, Thomas had survived the third concentration camp where he had been separated from his mother and left to fend for himself in the men's camp of Auschwitz I at the age of 13. On his eventual release, Thomas felt compelled to capture daily life in the death camps in more than 80 profoundly moving drawings. Infamous scenarios synonymous with this dark period of history were poignantly and accurately portrayed in simplistic detail, and for years Thomas continued to raise awareness about the Holocaust. Thomas experienced illness, witnessed physical brutality and murder of many inmates, and in his illustrated diary of his life and surroundings, recounted the quotidian work routine, cruelty of the guards, and his chronic hunger. 'As the women trudged passed, they hardly bothered to lift up their heads in greeting. Dressed in rags, their hair shorn and faces worn with worry and despair, they still had sufficient energy to shuffle along the dusty roadway. I reflected that weeks ago, these same women might have strolled along the streets of Budapest clad in elegant clothes, attracting the glance of many admirers...Trying to cheer them up, we bared our shave heads, waved our blue-white caps and forced a smile.' 32 of the naïve drawings are reproduced in colour. 332pp, paperback with other illus.

Does my life look like that of Jesus, and if not, how do I get there? These two powerful questions set the tone for everything you are about to read from Cris and members of his church at All Hallows, Bow, in East London. The book is insightfully built round the idea that followers of Jesus should consider themselves as enrolled apprentices learning the ways of Jesus. Each reflection is rooted in Scripture and as you engage in the reflective exercises, answer questions and wrestle with God in prayer, the aim is that you will experience the Spirit's work in a new way. Do your strengths lie in your hands, in contributing, creating and leading? In your heart in loving, appreciating and belonging? In your head in knowing, thinking and understanding? Though our individual passions and strengths vary, Jesus invites each of us to grow in all areas of discipleship. The 40 daily readings which include Bible passages, reflections, exercises and prayer will help you step-by-step towards becoming more like Jesus. Day 8 is entitled Soul Food. Day 14 Satnavs and Road Maps. Day 18 Rock Bottom. Day 20 Standing on the Shoulders of Jesus. Day 24 A Bigger World. Day 37 Representing Jesus. An SPCK paperback, 168pp. Line art.

Financial magician, flamboyant politician, minister in both World Wars, press baron, serial philanderer, Winston Churchill's boon companion in the dark days of 1940-41 and in his later years, Max Beaverbrook was without doubt one of the most colourful characters of the first half of the 20th century. Born and brought up in the Scottish Presbyterian vastness of north-east Canada, he escaped to make his fortune in Canadian financial markets. By 1910 when he emigrated to Britain at the age of 31, Beaverbrook was already a multimillionaire. With a seat in the House of Commons and then a peerage, he came to know all the senior figures in both British and Canadian politics. In acquiring the Daily Express, he not only built it into a news empire, but used its considerable influence to campaign for his own pet causes. Charles Williams covers not only Beaverbrook's journalistic and political career, but also his at times questionable financial dealings, his wide circle of friends and his many relationships with women. Above all it is a story of 80 years of entrepreneurism, political dogfights, wars, sex and grand living, of fame, fortune and influence. Lady Diana Cooper once described Beaverbrook as 'this strange attractive gnome with an odour of genius about him.' 566 pages with reasonable quality but numerous and interesting black and white illus.

A nostalgic selection of colour images, most of which are previously unseen, featuring fighter, bomber, transport and training aircraft in British Military or Ministry service during the 1960s. The decade saw the heyday of many of Britain's iconic post-war aircraft such as the long-serving Hawker Hunter and the English Electric Canberra which spent its entire active career as a test aircraft principally with the A&AEE whose motif is displayed on the fin. VX181 last flew in June 1969 when it was flown to RAF Pershore, Worcestershire, for use in a ground training role. Both aircraft remained in frontline service with major air forces through the 50s and 60s. Derived from its fighter predecessors as an advanced trainer for the RAF, the de Havilland Vampire T.11 brought about a revolution in flying training and survived into service into the 1960s. Pictured is the XD542 'H' which served with the Central Gunnery School and then with the Fighter Weapons School serving at Leconfield Yorkshire then Driffield in 1957. Equally the Vickers Valetta was required to supplement then replace the ubiquitous Dakota within the RAF. Due to its principal role as a humble transport, it has been largely overlooked - until now. With a superb commentary, comprehensive captions accompany the photographs to explain the various types in full detail. Serial numbers, units and aircraft histories are all covered, and four-view artwork derived from specific photographs is also included and hundreds of colour photographs. 96 bog glossy pages, softback.

Among the 20 cards to cut out and keep feature the cat, badger, eagle, horse, bear, blackbird, bee, hawk and stag. The internationally acclaimed expert on Celtic tradition John Matthews has written hundreds of books on the Arthurian legends, tarot, folklore and mythology and we were thrilled to discover this book on the bargain market. He explains ancient stories of shamanic helpers and how to access their wisdom, tales of animal tricksters, boasters and heroes all dwell here, amidst the dazzling universe of Celtic lore. Play the drumming music, using the weblink included in the book, and allow yourself to be safely carried on a wave of sound to experience your own shamanic journey. In this gentle trance you can seek out your own Totem Animal, while the accompanying cards will help you choose animal helpers for particular situations. Ask for guidance on life issues, self-empowerment, and paths to healing. Some of the names of the nine classic Celtic stories included are The Crane of Moy Leana, The Hawk of Achil and Cormac and the Wolves. Personalise your journey through the hands of an expert. Fully illustrated softback, 160pp.