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In An Unnatural History of Britain nature writer Kevin Parr travels the length and breadth of the country seeking out these rare creatures and exploring the myths and folklore which have emerged around them along the way.

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So ignited the obsession with angling that has stayed with Tony Bailey across his life and ensured he has spent seventy-five years gladly indulging his passion for angling. In this enjoyable memoir, he looks back over a life spent fishing, and considers what lights the spark that turns a human being into an angler – circumstance, social contact or genetics?

Packed with memories and peppered with useful tips and observations, this engaging book explores the full gamut of angling possibilities from the wildest stream to the most enigmatic of farm ponds, each tied to their histories and legends, each capable of providing the thrill of a lifetime or the peace and tranquillity to connect with nature and soothe the mind.

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The objects of the title include instruments used by explorers and scientists, their means of transport and representations of previously unrecorded sights and creatures. Others evidence how explorers financed expeditions, survived during them or shed light on the lives of those who awaited their return in an era before the modern communications now taken for granted. While individual objects are of their own time, they form part of a continuum of polar exploration; they also evidence networks and collaborations which bind polar explorers and scientists to each other, to other mariners and those living in or near polar regions.

The fifty objects include: • Mrs Elizabeth Cook’s ditty-box made of wood from HMS Resolution. • John Ross’s long-preserved canister of meat • A rock marker left by James Clark Ross for his best friend, ‘Frank’ Crozier • John Rae’s surveying octant • Edward Wilson’s portable paintbox • Ernest Shackleton’s ‘Farthest South’ sledging-compass • A samurai sword • Matthew Henson’s North Pole expedition fur suit • Roald Amundsen’s fjord-side refuge • HMS Erebus’s long-silent bell

Some objects remain in polar regions, others are in public spaces, museums, archives and galleries all over the world. They and the stories relating to them are illustrated with almost 150 images, some rarely or not previously published.

A History of Polar Exploration in 50 Objects is Anne Strathie’s fourth book on polar regions and is the culmination of approaching fifteen years of research and travel in polar regions and in Britain and other countries lying between the two extremes.

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Here is a collection of traditional folk tales from the coasts and seas of England. Lisa Schneidau retells the old stories with a contemporary twist: dragons and monsters, sailor heroes and ghost ships, mermaids and shapeshifters. Immerse yourself in these salty sea stories, and learn about England’s heritage, magic and relationship to the mysterious ocean world that surrounds us.

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The book tells how Celsius’ study, travels and relationships at the peak of the European Enlightenment helped him to unlock fundamental mysteries of the natural world, and how his life offers vital lessons for now and the future. He was a mercurial thinker who ran out of time, but his discoveries, philosophy and personality still point a hopeful way forward.

Best remembered for inventing the Centigrade scale, Celsius’ name now frames humanity’s future in the international targets to limit average global temperature increases to no more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. As our world faces this life-or-death struggle, there’s much we can learn from Celsius. If we will listen.

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