Previous studies of the practice of footbinding in imperial China have theorized that it expressed ethnic identity or that it served an economic function. By analyzing the popularity of footbinding in different places and times, Footbinding as Fashion investigates the claim that early Qing (1644–1911) attempts by Manchu rulers to ban footbinding made it a symbol of anti-Manchu sentiment and Han identity and led to the spread of the practice throughout all levels of society. Detail...

Unlock the hidden power within you and awaken your true potential with Kundalini Awakening: Ultimate Guide To Achieve Higher Consciousness, Open Your Third Eye, and Improve Divine Psychic Abilities. This transformative guide takes you on a profound journey of spiritual discovery, energy healing, and inner mastery.Whether you're a beginner on the spiritual path or a seasoned seeker, this book offers a clear, practical roadmap to activating your dormant Kundalini ene...

Drawing on the accumulated expertise of one of the world's top leadership development organizations, this is a comprehensive and accessible guide to effective leadership practice, written in fifty-two short, to-the-point chapters.A disciplined leader is someone who identifies and focuses in on what author John Manning calls "the vital few"-that 20 percent of activities that will deliver 80 percent of the results. Manning should know. He is the President of Management Action Program...

Brought to you by Penguin.The bestselling author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time weaves ancient fables into fresh, unexpected forms and forges new unforgettable legends.The myth of the Minotaur in his labyrinth is turned into a wrenching parable of maternal love – and of the monstrosities of patriarchy.The lover of a goddess, Tithonus, is gifted eternal life but without eternal youth.Actaeon, ch...

**Brought to you by Penguin.Discover the dazzling new queer literary horror novel about chosen family and the risks it takes to become the person you want to be.**A travelling funfair of seductive troublemakers arrive in a repressed Scottish town. What could possibly go wrong?It’s the summer of ’97 and the Scottish town of Pitlaw is itching for change.Enter the Freakslaw – a travelling funfair populated by deviant queers, a contortionist wit...

Brought to you by Penguin.Booker-Prize winner Roddy Doyle’s spectacular return to his iconic character, Paula Spencer.At sixty-six, Paula Spencer – mother, grandmother, widow, addict, survivor – is finally living her life. A job at the dry cleaners she enjoys, a man – Joe – with whom she shares what she wants, friends who see her for who she is, and four grown children, now with families and petty dramas the likes of which Paula could only ...

'Thoughtful and absorbing' THE GUARDIAN'Devastating and hopeful M.A. KUZNIAR'A very special book' GARETH BROWNLESS THAN HUMAN. MORE THAN MACHINE.As the world falls apart around them, piece by piece, Abigail Fuller spends humanity's final days looking after her husband David.But that's not true, not really. Abigail isn't David's wife. She's not even human. She's a replacement, ...

‘A delight for anyone whose heart thumps at the sight of dawn, dusk and hazy light’ Nell FrizzellAt first, I didn’t find fog – fog found me.Liminal, transformative and increasingly elusive – far from a simple cloud of water droplets, fog is a state of mind. As mist drifted through a copse of trees, turning a familiar place strange and otherworldly, Laura Pashby snapped a photograph and an obsession began.Pashby hunts for fog, walks and swim...

Thomas Bradshaw and Tonie Swann are experiencing the classic symptoms of marriage in its middle years: comfortable house, happy-enough daughter and an eerie sense that life might be happening elsewhere. Then Tonie accepts a big promotion at work and Thomas agrees to become a stay-at-home dad. While Thomas is suddenly faced with the daily silence of an empty house, Tonie finds herself alive to previously unimagined possibilities. And at the head of the family, the ageing Bradshaw pa...

Brought to you by Penguin.Guide-dog Laura needed a new home. And, after listening to her owner, Jaina, talk on the radio about what would happen to her much loved guide and companion when she retired, Martin Clunes picked up the phone. He’d always been a soft touch when it came to animals. One more couldn’t hurt.Adopting Laura opened his eyes to the extraordinary care provided by assistance dogs, but also piqued his curiosity. Throughout hi...

When eighteen-year-old Michael visits the Hanbury's remote family home he is captivated by their bohemian lifestyle. Years later, when he marries the strong-willed, beautiful Rebecca, he is secretly hoping to create his own version of that free-thinking family, but after the birth of their first child, their marriage begins to flounder. The chance to escape once more to his friend's country house comes as a welcome relief, until he discovers a family changed, and his own romantic n...

**Brought to you by Penguin.The fifth book in the gothic horror phenomenon that is sweeping across Europe, with over 2 million copies sold**In Perdido, Alabama, the Caskey family have endured; some face death whilst others welcome new life. Unexpected alliances have formed, bitter conflict divides former friends. Hardened by years of experience, Miriam, now head of the family business, is relentless in her pursuit of wealth. And when she makes a surprising discovery beneath...