British Essays

For years, New York Times bestselling author Dolly Alderton has been sharing her wisdom, warmth, and wit with the diverse universe of fans who have turned to her “Dear Dolly” column seeking guidance on a host of life problems. Dolly has thoughtfully answered questions ranging from the painfully—and sometimes hilariously—relatable to the occasionally bizarre. They include breakups and body issues, families, relationships platonic and romantic, dating, divorce, the pleasures and pitfalls of social media, sex, loneliness, longing, love and everything in between.

Stuart Parker is a fresh and unclassifiable voice on the Canadian scene, who brings great learning, a distinctive perspective, and a vigorous prose style to every topic he touches. He is always worth reading, even when you disagree. - Jack Cunningham, Trinity College, University of Toronto British Columbians are notorious for electing the politicians we deserve rather than those we need. Fittingly, Parker's unblemished record of life-long political defeat should endear him to us all as one of the bravest, most principled and insightful political representatives we never had. His insights ...

"Joe Giampaolo has written the most helpful and informative guide to the Gothic genre. The Reader's Companion to the Gothic Genre is written in clear and understandable language, providing the student of literature and the faithful reader of Gothic novels with a guide to understanding the genre's origin and the elements that place a novel in this genre." ~ Readers' Favorite This essay is the third installment in the Reader's Companion collection and it is a brief analysis of the Gothic genre in British literature from its origins in the middle of the 18th century to the ghost stories and ...

Every cheese tells a story. Whether it's a fresh young goat's cheese or a big, beefy 18-month-old Cheddar, each variety holds the history of the people who first made it, from the builders of Stonehenge to medieval monks, from the Stilton-makers of the 18th century to the factory cheesemakers of the Second World War. Cheesemonger Ned Palmer takes us on a delicious journey across Britain and Ireland and through time to uncover the histories of beloved old favourites like Cheddar and Wensleydale and fresh innovations like the Irish Cashel Blue or the rambunctious Renegade Monk.

Having had occasion to look around for “something to read,” with long and short pieces that would not prove too deeply engaging, Leonard Wibberley—author of The Mouse that Roared as well as over 100 other novels—curated a personal selection of such choices from his writings. They are both published and unpublished works by this thoughtful and humorous man. Read all at once if one is so inclined, or savored in smaller samples, they offer selections to fit almost any mood. There is Prevarication Jones for a bit of humor, Concerning the Divinity for some personal philosophy, The ...

This collection of humorous short essays combines affection for the timeless values of community life in an English village with a nostalgia for aspects that are quietly slipping away. Easy to dip into, this light-hearted volume provides entertaining reading for anyone interested in modern English rural community life, wherever they live. Written between 1991 and 2015, most of these essays first appeared in the Hawkesbury Parish News, the community newspaper for Hawkesbury Upton, the Cotswold village in which Debbie Young has lived for the last 25 years. Very active in village life, she is ...

This collection of humorous columns for a rural parish magazine reflects life all year round in a small English village in the beautiful Cotswolds countryside where the author has lived since 1991. Easy to dip into, this light-hearted volume provides entertaining reading for anyone interested in modern rural community life and the real-life equivalent of the fictional village of Wendlebury Barrow, the parish that is the setting for Debbie Young's fiction books. It is the sequel to All Part of the Charm, a collection of nostalgic essays and parish magazine columns. Debbie Young also writes...

This volume supplements my original four-book essay collection. Whereas the first collection spans a sixteen-year period and showcases substantial shifts in my political opinions, this collection spans a little over a year. That year, however, was very eventful. Between April 2024 and June 2025, I resided in Dar Es Salaam, Nanaimo, Burnaby, Chilliwack and Victoria. I participated in the 2024 BC election campaign and played a part in the massive political realignment that continues to unfold in BC, working for the BC Conservative Party’s internal polling firm, caucus research department ...

Affectionately dubbed "the Jewel in the Crown of the Tetbury Advertiser" by its ever-patient editor, Debbie Young has been a regular columnist for this award-winning community magazine since 2010. In its ten issues per year, she shares her homespun philosophy and wry English humour with its loyal readers. This collection brings together her columns from 2010-2015, charting history in the making as it affects local residents, and giving her whimsical perspective on the wider world from the heart of the Cotswolds.