The No Asshole Rule ...

When the Harvard Business Review (HBR) asked Robert Sutton for suggestions for its annual list of ‘Breakthrough Ideas’, he told them that the best business practice he knew of was ‘the no asshole rule’. Sutton’s piece became one of the most popular articles ever to appear in the HBR. Spurred on by the fear and despair that people expressed, the tricks they used to survive with dignity in asshole-infested places, the revenge stories that made him laugh out loud and the other small wins that they celebrated against mean-spirited people, Sutton was persuaded to write The No Asshole Rule. He believes passionately that civilised workplaces are not a naive dream and they do exist, do bolster performance and that widespread contempt can be erased and replaced with mutual respect when a team or organisation is managed right.

Playing for Pizza

Playing for Pizza is a lyrical page-turner and a gasp-inducing reminder of the scope of this man’s genius with the written word. Grisham is something of a Da Vinci with words. He can blow your brains out with the power of truth or paint pictures that magically reveal the reality beneath. This is a smooth, satisfying and delightful read.

Other Colours

Other Colours is a collection of immediate relevance and timeless value, ranging from lyrical autobiography to criticism of literature and culture, from humour to political analysis, from delicate evocations of his friendship with his daughter Ruya to provocative discussions of Eastern and Western art. It also covers Pamuk’s recent, high profile, court case. My Father’s Suitcase, Pamuk’s 2006 Nobel Lecture, a brilliant illumination of what it means to be a writer, completes the selection from the figure who is now without doubt one of international literature’s most eminent and popular figures.

Blind Willow, Sleeping ...

A young man accompanies his cousin to the hospital to check an unusual hearing complaint and recalls a story of a woman put to sleep by tiny flies crawling inside her ear, a mirror appears out of nowhere and a nightwatchman is unnerved as his reflection tries to take control of him;

a couple’s relationship is unbalanced after dining exclusively on exquisite crab while on

holiday; a man follows instructions on the back of a postcard to apply for a job, but an

unknown password stands between him and his mysterious employer. In each one of these

stories, Murakami sidesteps the real and sprints for the surreal. Everyday events are transcended, leaving the reader dazzled by this master of his craft. Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman is Murakami’s most eclectic collection of stories to date, spanning five years of his writing. An introduction explains the diversity of the author’s choice.

The Reluctant ...

At a cafe table in Lahore, a Pakistani man begins the tale that has led to his fateful meeting with an uneasy American stranger... Changez is living an immigrant’s dream of America. He thrives on the energy of New York, his work at an elite firm, and his budding relationship. For a time, it seems that nothing will stand in the way of his meteoric rise to success. But in the wake of September 11, Changez finds his relationship crumbling and his

exalted status overturned. Allegiances are subsequently unearthed, proving themselves more fundamental than money, power and maybe even love.

Fiasco: The American ...

Cutting through the headlines and spin, this is the first book to give us a true picture of the reality on the ground, through the words of the people there — from commanders to intelligence officers, army doctors to ordinary soldiers. The result is an extraordinary new insight into the plight of ordinary soldiers doing nightmarish jobs, and the real nature of the fighting in Iraq.