Bloomsbury Academic US Spring 2026 Key Titles

BLOOMSBURY ACADEMIC

KEY TITLES

SPRING 2026

June 25, 2026

Hardcover • 256 Pages • 6 x 9 13 b&w photos 9798216278351

US $32 00 • CAN $46 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Rowdy Girl Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher

Renee King-Sonnen

With raw honesty and vulnerability, Rowdy Girl illuminates the realities of animal agriculture through tracing the author ’s journey from a poor upbringing to life as the wife of a Texas cattle rancher. Unable to reconcile the cruel realities of her husband Tommy’s business, Renee King-Sonnen begins to question some of society’s most basic assumptions about the animals we eat and the food systems we uphold These questions spark a profound transformation and a determination to save the very cattle her husband’s livelihood depends on

The couple’s opposing worldviews lead to escalating conflict, pushing their marriage to the brink Seeking support, King-Sonnen connects with online vegan communities and launches a secret Facebook diary, The Vegan Journal of a Cattle Rancher ’s Wife With a growing following, she rallies support for an ambitious plan: buy Tommy’s herd, take over the ranch, and transform it into an animal sanctuary The suspense peaks in December 2014, when Tommy agrees to sell her the cattle for $30,000 if she can raise the funds before they’re sent to slaughter

More than a memoir, Rowdy Girl is a story of spiritual awakening and ethical transformation It reveals the shared ground between ranchers and vegans a commitment to compassion, tradition, and sustainability while challenging the foundations of animal agriculture Through her deeply personal journey, King-Sonnen invites readers to consider their own relationship with animals, the food they eat, and the possibility of living with greater compassion

Renee King-Sonnen is the founder and executive director of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary (RGS), a non-profit company that provides sanctuary to farm animals at risk of being slaughtered and promotes an ethical vegan lifestyle RGS is changing the world for farmed animals through its Rancher Advocacy Program, an educational program that inspires ranchers to consider alternatives to animal farming, and Families Choosing Compassion, a program that offers a compassionate alternative to Future Farmers of America and 4-H Most recently, Renee has been the subject of a documentary, Rowdy Girl.

June 11, 2026

Hardcover • 336 Pages • 6 x 9

1 bw illus

9798765123959

US $25 00 • CAN $36 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Hot Type

The Magnificent Machine that Gave Birth to Mass Media

and Drove Mark Twain Mad

Jeff Jarvis

Hot Type is the epic story of the magnificent 19th-century machine that rendered Gutenberg’s movable type obsolete and opened the portal to the long century of mass media The Linotype mechanized the 400-year-old process of setting type one laborious letter at a time, and thus ignited an explosion of newspaper, book, and magazine empires.

This is a tale populated with wondrous characters: tragic inventors, malign media moguls, hand-typesetters called the Swifts who turned their craft into a spectator sport, and authors and journalists who chronicled the turmoil of their time, their every word molded into metal type by what some viewed as a thinking machine The Linotype helped to transform Mark Twain into the premier literary celebrity of his time, but it also cost him his fortune – as well as his sense of humor and optimism

The era of the Linotype was a bridge between Twain’s Gilded Age with its tycoons of steam, steel, and wire and today’s Gilded Age with its barons of bits and AI Its history provides an opportunity to reflect on how technology changes culture just as new technologies – the internet and artificial intelligence –manufacture their endless streams of words today

Jeff Jarvis holds the Leonard Tow Chair in Journalism Innovation and directs the TowKnight Center for Entrepreneurial Journalism at the City University of New York's Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism He was the creator and founding managing editor of Entertainment Weekly, TV critic for TV Guide and People, Sunday editor of the New York Daily News, a media columnist for The Guardian, and president and creative director of Advance net He blogs at Buzzmachine com, cohosts the podcast This Week in Google, and is the author of six books, including The Gutenberg Parenthesis (Bloomsbury, 2023), and Magazine (2023) in Bloomsbury's Object Lessons Series

May 28, 2026

Hardcover • 192 Pages • 6 x 9 5 b&w images

9798216275893

US $27 00 • CAN $39 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Poverty Abolitionists

Faith, Activism, and Hope for Difficult Times

David Beckmann

Poverty is not inevitable. In fact, we have already made historic progress in reducing it both globally and in the United States In Poverty Abolitionists, economist, pastor, and activist David Beckmann shows that with collective will, effective strategy, and renewed moral vision, we can virtually eliminate poverty in our generation

Drawing on decades of leadership at the World Bank and as president of Bread for the World, Beckmann distills five essential insights and ten strategies to reinvigorate the fight against hunger and deprivation He highlights data that proves poverty is solvable, confronts the big political setback that has reversed progress, and calls for a new poverty abolition movement similar in scale and determination to the movement that ended enslavement

At the heart of this book is hope: hope grounded in evidence, history, and the countless efforts of communities and advocates who continue to push for justice Beckmann insists that the movement to abolish poverty is not only political but also spiritual He invites people of faith, seekers, and skeptics alike to deepen their solidarity with those in need and with a threatened planet

With a foreword by travel writer Rick Steves, Poverty Abolitionists offers both a practical roadmap and a stirring moral challenge--it is a clarion call to action for activists, policy makers, and ordinary citizens who care about the future of humanity and who seek to build a fairer, freer, and more just world

David Beckmann is an economist, pastor, and activist who has spent his life working to end poverty. A former World Bank economist, he served for 29 years as president of Bread for the World, where his leadership helped secure U S and global policy changes that reduced hunger worldwide Awarded the World Food Prize, Beckmann now leads the Circle of Protection, a coalition of Christian leaders advocating for programs that serve low-income people, and teaches on religion, politics, and poverty reduction

May 14, 2026

Trade Paperback • 168 Pages • 5 x 7¾

47 color illustrations

9798765141649

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95

Marvel Age of Comics Bloomsbury Academic

The Ultimates

Ted Adams

Explore the Stories Behind the Legends

The 1990s and early 2000s were a time of intense change and experimentation for Marvel Comics Out of this emerged The Ultimates a comic that would have an explosive impact on Marvel and the broader pop culture landscape

Writer Mark Millar, with artists Bryan Hitch, Andrew Currie, and Paul Neary, reimagined the classic characters that made up Marvel’s premiere super hero team, the Avengers Looking at them through a modern, post-9/11 lens, the creators treated the characters as super soldiers who reported to the US government

Illustrated with full-color art, Ted Adam’s entry in The Marvel Age of Comics takes readers through Marvel of the ‘90s: the Marvel Knights imprint, the creation of the Ultimate universe with Spider-Man and the X-Men, and finally the Ultimates themselves With its unique blend of grounded realism and over-the-top action, The Ultimates ensured that comic books and pop culture would never be the same

Ted Adams is the founder of IDW Publishing, where he was CEO and Publisher for 20 years, negotiating deals to publish Transformers, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Star Trek, and many more Under his leadership, the company won dozens of industry awards, including many Eisner and Harvey Awards He was publisher of a line of Marvel comics aimed at kids and the prestigious Artist’s Edition line, which included many classic Marvel titles Ted Adams is based out of San Diego, USA

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 160 Pages • 5 x 7¾

25 color illustrations

9798765138762

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95

Marvel Age of Comics

Bloomsbury Academic

Wolverine: Weapon X Jim

Rugg

Explore the Stories Behind the Legends

Naked, bloody, and screaming in pain - this is the Wolverine that faced readers in the story arc Weapon X This was more than just the tale of how Wolverine got his adamantium skeleton and claws Legendary creator Barry Windsor-Smith challenged fans’ expectations of super hero stories and created Marvel’s most brutal and beautiful comic

In 1991, when Weapon X was first published, Wolverine was one of Marvel’s most popular super heroes For Weapon X, creator Windsor-Smith reimagined the super hero origin story as a cyberpunk horror story A shadowy organization abducts Wolverine in order to create “the ultimate killing machine,” and we are plunged into a story of basic, animalistic survival As Wolverine endures more and more trauma, the lines between reality and consciousness disappear

Illustrated with full-color art from this legendary storyline, Jim Rugg’s entry in the Marvel Age of Comics takes a deep-dive into one of Marvel’s most experimental and singular comics, and what many consider to be the definitive Wolverine story

Jim Rugg is an Eisner and Ignatz Award winning cartoonist, designer, zinemaker, and illustrator His books include Hulk Grand Design (2022), the Street Angel series, the PLAIN Janes (2020), Octobriana 1976 (2020), Supermag (2013), and Afrodisiac (2010) He is the co-creator of YouTube’s Cartoonist Kayfabe channel His comics are part of the Smithsonian permanent collection and the National Archives and he taught visual storytelling at the School of Visual Arts and the Animation Workshop in Denmark Rugg lives and draws in Pittsburgh

June 25, 2026

Paperback • 160 Pages • 5 x 7¾ 25 color illustrations 9798765131633

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95 Marvel Age of Comics Bloomsbury Academic

Spider-Man: Miles Morales

Ytasha L Womack

Explore the Stories Behind the Legends

First introduced in 2011 by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli, Miles Morales reconceived Spider-Man as African American and Latinx, and his debut marked a new direction in the saga of a beloved character

Miles Morales as Spider-Man is a coming-of-age tale of a smart, affable teen coming into his power From his reluctance to becoming a super hero to his desire to help others, to the rocky balance between his school life and super hero responsibilities, Miles is always at the precipice of making tough decisions choices whose consequences are as weighted in his personal life as they often are for the survival of the world

Illustrated with full-color art, Ytasha L Womack’s entry in the Marvel Age of Comics looks at the hugely successful reimagining of one of the most popular super hero characters of all time.

Ytasha L. Womack is the author of Afrofuturism: The World of Black Sci Fi & Fantasy Culture (2013), Black Panther: A Cultural Exploration (2023), and the graphic novel Blak Kube (forthcoming 2025) She wrote and produced the Afrofuturist and science animation and immersive experience Niyah and the Multiverse currently running at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago Ytasha lectures on Afrofuturism and the imagination for audiences around the world

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 128 Pages • 5¼ x 7½

9781839029394

US $17 95 • CAN $26 50

BFI Film Classics

British Film Institute

A Hard Day's Night

Samira Ahmed

How did a film made to capture a pop phenomenon become an enduring cinematic classic? With warmth, wit and precision, Samira Ahmed reveals how the Beatles’ first film changed both the band themselves and pop music’s relationship with the screen.

In a vivid and personal exploration, she shows how this black-and-white gem, shot in a documentary style and brimming with youthful energy, captured Britain at a moment of social transformation, with a portrayal of celebrity, camaraderie and media frenzy that still resonates today Drawing on her own experience of first discovering the film as a child and going on to work in the television industry, Ahmed shines a spotlight on the craft behind its enduring appeal With insights from members of the cast and crew, including her own new interviews, Ahmed highlights A Hard Day’s Night’s class and sexual politics, and adds a delightfully original analysis of the women in the film

In these pages you will be transported to a time when four young men from Liverpool, via the mass medium of television, changed the way Britain saw itself and the way the world saw Britain, revealing how, and why, A Hard Day’s Night has become a landmark of modern cinema

Samira Ahmed is a journalist, writer, and BBC broadcaster She presents Front Row on Radio 4, Newswatch on BBC News, and regularly hosts radio documentaries In 2020, she was named British Broadcasting Press Guild's Audio Presenter of the Year Ahmed has written for The Guardian, The Independent, and other publications, and she writes a regular column for New Humanist

October 1, 2026

Trade Paperback • 152 Pages • 4¾ x 6½

9798765133477

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95

33 1/3

Bloomsbury Academic

Frank Ocean's Blonde Yousef Srour

By contextualizing the lyrics, reevaluating Ocean’s post-album release festival run, and presenting new information about the songs’ production, the book decodes the enigma that is Blonde.

Frank Ocean’s Blonde is a contemporary classic Sandwiched between Elvis Presley and the Sex Pistols at #79 on Rolling Stones’ 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list, Blonde defined a generation in the almost nine years since its release

Yet, the album is still a mystery to so many Besides a handful of interviews, a hefty 360page zine titled Boys Don’t Cry, and Tumblr posts from around the time of the album’s release, Frank Ocean has distanced himself as much as possible from the album and the conversations involving it

It is one of the seminal works in the 2010s Afrofuturism revival, which this book highlights by pointing at the role of modern technology in society, including a dialogue about its misgivings and its ability to manipulate time, memory, and emotions It spotlights the summer leading up to the album, the album’s release, a track-by-track rundown illustrating the album’s narrative, along with a discussion about its lasting cultural impact

This is a man who headlined Coachella 2023 despite releasing only ten singles and no album in the eight years prior How did he manage to maintain such a prophetic status for all those years? The answer is simple: Blonde

Yousef Srour is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer and music journalist He has a column at Passion of the Weiss titled BAY AREA TYPE BEAT, he is a frequent contributor to the Vallejo Sun and Stereogum, and his work has been featured in Variety, FADER, Pitchfork, HipHopDX and more

June 11, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 296 Pages • 6 x 9

22 color photos

9798881807313

US $36 00 • CAN $52 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Fashioning Hitchcock Stories Behind the Costumes from The Lodger to Marnie

Caroline Young

A tribute to and examination of the contributions of costume designers to Hitchcock’s illustrious film career.

With his keen artist’s eye, Alfred Hitchcock’s genius as a director lay in the visual universe he developed across a six-decade career In the many unforgettable moments from his movies, it’s the costume that enhances the storytelling; Tippi Hedren cowering from a mass of angry birds in her torn green dress, Cary Grant in a glen-check suit as he escapes a crop duster, and Kim Novak emerging from green mist in her ghost-like gray suit

In Fashioning Hitchcock, Caroline Young details Hitchcock’s relationships with his costume designers to create an identifiable aesthetic through clothing Using archival material, Young paints the full picture of the use of costume in Hitchcock’s movies, and his key relationships with designers, producers, and actors to delve into the visual language, the obsessions, and the quest for beauty that defined his six-decade career While the legendary Edith Head designed twelve of his fifty-five films, Hitchcock also worked with some of the most celebrated of costume designers But with his clear focus, from the beginning of his career Hitchcock worked hands-on to shape the style of his leading ladies, heroes and villains

For Hitchcock, clothes were a tool for suspense In North by Northwest, Eva Marie Saint’s shawl catches on brambles as she tries to escape pursuers. Tippi Hedren’s taupe shoe slips from her pocket in Marnie in her efforts to sneak out of an office after robbing the safe Young also touches on how Hitchcock set out to appeal to a female audience, revealing his leading ladies’ wants and desires as they navigated their place in the world This is an essential addition to any Hitchcock fan’s bookshelf and insightful exploration of the role of costume design in filmmaking

Caroline Young is an author from Edinburgh, Scotland, who specializes in film, fashion and popular culture Her previous works include The It Girls: Glamor, Celebrity, and Scandal, Hitchcock’s Heroines, Living with Coco Chanel, Audrey in Paris, The Fabulous Frances Farquharson: The Colourful Life of an American in the Highlands, and Crazy Old Ladies: The Story of Hag Horror, which was nominated for both a Rondo Hatton Award 2023 and the 2022 Richard Wall Memorial Award

July 9, 2026

Paperback • 160 Pages • 4 ¾ x 6 ½ 9798765135556

US $14.95

Object Lessons Bloomsbury Academic

Glasses Adam Geczy

Examines the lasting impressions eyeglasses have left on our culture as one of the most commonplace and oldest prosthetics.

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things.

Glasses are probably the most commonplace prosthetic we have and are among the oldest. But what does it mean to wear glasses? There is more to the answer than correcting vision. Glasses alter, enhance, and shield the way that we view the world, and the way the world sees us.

Everyone has encounters with glasses, passively or actively, from reading glasses to sunglasses. At times they are the main identifiers in a face (think John Lennon), and they signify extremes from nerdy and brainy to cool and sleazy. They are alternately the most mundane of things on our bodies and potentially most glamorous.

Adam Geczy explores this most pervasive and accessible accessory and shows that it is both a conduit to and a barrier between ourselves and the world outside.

Adam Geczy is Associate Professor of Visual Arts and Director of Research Education (Graduate School) in the School of Art, Communication and English, the University of Sydney, Australia.

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 160 Pages • 4¾ x 6½

9781501376634

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95

Object Lessons

Bloomsbury Academic

Fist nelle mills

Object Lessons is a series of short, beautifully designed books about the hidden lives of ordinary things

Our ability to make a fist is what distinguishes humans from every other species, including primates The fist has played a crucial role in the birth of language and appears in nearly every form of nonverbal communication We use our fist to protest oppression, give pleasure, knock on doors, give daps, and (inaccurately) measure our heart Yet the fist is also a sign of someone on the edge

This book asks what happens when we lean over the edge of what a fist can do and symbolize Fist uses historical moments and artifacts, interviews, and personal narratives to explore the fist's ambiguous and divisive nature Fist examines knuckle tattoos, the Black Power salute, Obama’s fist bumps, the Fig, and fisting, the last sexual taboo Fist uncovers what flexing our knuckles says, not just about us, but the world in which we live

nelle mills is a freelance writer and playwright based in St. Louis, USA. She is the author of Alleged Lesbian Activities (play, first produced at The Theater at St Claude, New Orleans, 2016) and Blood Charm (play, first produced at the Tisch School for the Arts, New York, 2011)

May 14, 2026

Hardcover • 264 Pages • 6 x 9 9798216368021

US $30 00 • CAN $43 95 Bloomsbury Academic

A Little More Love The Life and Legacy of Olivia Newton-John

Matthew Hild

An in-depth biography that closely examines the superstar ’s multi-faceted career, personal life, advocacy, and legacy

Olivia Newton-John was one of the biggest and most iconic global pop stars in history with estimated record sales of over 100 million and starring roles in several films, including Grease and Xanadu Her hit “Physical” was ranked by Billboard as the most popular single of the 1980s Behind all of this glitz and glamor was an extremely strong, kind, and resilient person with an unfailing, positive attitude in the face of personal tragedies and setbacks For decades, she bravely and publicly battled breast cancer while continuing her career and advocated for environmental issues, animal rights, and LGBTQ+ rights

This biography, based on extensive archival research and original interviews with many of her friends and associates, reveals the real person who was Olivia Newton-John Matthew Hild provides many never-before-shared insights into the star ’s life, including her humanitarianism and personal struggles, and dives deeply into her many famous records and lesser-known work, from her early start in Australia all the way to her last recording – a moving duet of “Jolene” with Dolly Parton

Matthew Hild is a lecturer of history at the Georgia Institute of Technology, USA He is an historian and the author of Arrow Through the Heart: The Biography of Andy Gibb (2022)

August 8, 2026

Hardback • 320 Pages • 6 x 9

9798216383994

US $32.95

Bloomsbury Academic

After Ground Zero

Everyday Americans and the Unhealed Scars of 9/11

Mike Kelly

Featuring a narrative that spans from ground zero to today, this new book from award-winning journalist Mike Kelly is the compelling account of the human impact of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the war of terror that followed.

Featuring a narrative that spans from ground zero to today, this new book from awardwinning journalist Mike Kelly is the compelling account of the human impact of the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the war of terror that followed.

Crossing Over: America During the Terror Years traces the lives of a diverse collection of Americans forced to confront the pain and mystery of the terrorism that tore apart their lives beginning on Sept. 11, 2001. Written in a narrative style by Mike Kelly, an award-winning journalist and author of three critically acclaimed non-fiction books, the narrative starts on that apocalyptic Tuesday. It continues to the present day, as more than 10,000 relatives of 9/11 victims, many of them elderly, continue to pursue a massive federal lawsuit, the largest in U.S. history, that seeks to hold Saudi Arabian officials accountable for their assistance to the 9/11 terrorists. In between, Kelly tells the stories of dozens of people impacted personally by the war on terror

Mike Kelly is a featured columnist of The Bergen Record in New Jersey, a podcast and documentary producer, and author of three critically acclaimed nonfiction books. Besides his newspaper, Kelly’s columns also appear in USA Today and across the USA Today Network of more than 200 newspapers and their websites. He has written three non-fiction books: The Bus on Jaffa Road (Lyons Press, 2014), Color Lines: The Troubled Dreams of Racial Harmony in an American Town (Morrow, 1995), and Fresh Jersey: Stories from an Altered State, a collection of his columns (Camino, 2003).

June 11, 2026

Hardcover • 224 Pages • 6¼ x 9¼ 20 bw illus 9798216196471

US $36 00 • CAN $52 95 Bloomsbury Libraries Unlimited

Just Plain Filthy The Story Behind Book Banning's Trial of the Century

Anthony Aycock

With the threat to intellectual freedom increasing around the country, this book takes a look at the first ever school book ban case to be decided by the high courts, and offers insights into how we can use history to help the future

In 1975, the school board members of a small Long Island town did what they thought was a no-brainer: they ordered the removal of nine books from a high school library The books included some classics – Richard Wright's Black Boy; Desmond Morris's The Naked Ape; Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse-Five – but that didn't matter to board chair Richard Ahrens, who called the collection "anti-American, anti-Christian, anti-Semitic, and just plain filthy." Maybe he thought the town was with him Maybe he thought nobody would care He certainly didn't think he would be sued by seventeen-year-old Steven Pico or that the case would end up before the United States Supreme Court, the first and only book ban dispute ever to do so

The only one so far Recent years have seen a surge in book challenges, and it is only a matter of time before another reaches the high court Island Trees v Pico ended in a loss for the school board, but not a resounding one It left enough daylight for the current justices to reach a different conclusion What was the court's ruling? How did it come about? What was the book ban climate in the 1970s and 80s, and how did it differ from today's? Just Plain Filthy is the first book to tell the complete story of Island Trees v Pico, the flawed yet fascinating case that is the cornerstone of intellectual freedom in America. For now.

Anthony Aycock is the legislative library director at the North Carolina General Assembly He is a writer, teacher, and librarian He is a regular reviewer for Booklist and Blue Ink Review, and a frequent contributor to Medium and Information Today Aycock has also written for Slate, the Washington Post, Literary Hub, Reactor (formerly Tor com), the Missouri Review, the Gettysburg Review, Ploughshares, Creative Nonfiction, and other venues

His first book, The Accidental Law Librarian, was released in 2013 In addition, he has spent 20+ years working in government, academic, and private law libraries, as well as teaching academic and creative writing You can find him at www anthonyaycock com

May 14, 2026

Trade Paperback • 192 Pages • 6 x 9

9798765150955

US $19 95 • CAN $29 50 Black Literary and Cultural Expressions Bloomsbury Academic

Writing Black Panther

Ta-Nehisi Coates and Representation

Struggles

Howard Rambsy II

A timely look at contemporary African American creative works through the lens of Ta-Nehisi Coates's ground-breaking entry into the comic book industry

Writing Black Panther traces Ta-Nehisi Coates’s presence in comic books from 2015-2023, focusing on his contributions as the writer for Black Panther His ambitious 50-issue run of the Marvel comic coincided with ongoing and multifaceted debates concerning diversity and inclusion – what we might call representation struggles – at a key moment in the history of comics with respect to Black writers Howard Rambsy II locates Coates’s contributions at the intersection of African American literary studies and comic book studies, showing a dynamic convergence that redefines both fields and broadens the scope of Black creativity

Writing Black Panther demonstrates key aspects of Coates’s comics narratives that overlap with major themes and topics in African American literature These include the depiction of multiple Black characters, exploration of intra-racial and interracial conflicts, excavations of Black histories, displays of Afrofuturist aesthetics, and attention to cultural geography

As a prominent essayist, bestselling author, and popular comic book writer, Coates stands out as a notable gateway figure who bridges multiple genres His time as a comics writer constitutes an important, defining phase of his professional career And as this book shows, Coates’s work on Black Panther went a long way to dispelling the myth that “diversity doesn’t sell” in the comic book industry

Howard Rambsy II is Distinguished Research Professor of Literature at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, USA, where he specializes in African American fiction, poetry, and comic books. He is the author of The Black Arts Enterprise (2011) Bad Men: Creative Touchstones of Black Writers (2020) He is the creator of Remarkable Receptions, a podcast series on African American literature

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 152 Pages • 5 x 7¾ 9798765123409

US $19 95 • CAN $29 50

Genre: A 33 1/3 Series Bloomsbury Academic

Pub Rock

Mark Wilkerson

The scene that bulldozed the path from prog and glam to punk and new wave, pub rock was a short-lived phenomenon in the U K , emerging amidst the bloated landscape of prog rock and an increasingly oppressive economic outlook.

In the U K in the early ‘70s, in response to the glitz of glam and the excess of prog there emerged a DIY, back to basics scene known as pub rock: no-fuss, grass roots rock’n’roll bands playing in tight, sweaty rooms to packed throngs in the Victorian pubs of north London Pub rock was a relative flash in the pan, lasting only a handful of years, but it produced a seismic shift, bridging the gap between rock’s Baroque period and the ensuing punk and new wave scene, and crucially, restoring the visceral connection between artist and audience

Pub rock set the standard and, through artists like Brinsley Schwarz, Ducks Deluxe and Dr Feelgood, paved the way for countless acts including The Clash, the Sex Pistols and The Pretenders. Pub Rock explores the history of the genre’s evolution, and examines its significant and enduring legacy

Mark Wilkerson is the author of Who Are You: The Life of Pete Townsend (2008) and Thomas Young's War (2016), and co-author of Pearl Jam 20 (2011), which was a New York Times Bestseller and a 20-year official band retrospective, written with the band’s full cooperation

June 11, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 288 Pages • 6 x 9

40 b/w photos

9798216368687

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Pérez Prado King of

the Mambo

John Radanovich

This is the story of how Cuban music captivated the world in the 1950s, told through the life of mambo’s most famous musician, Pérez Prado

A riveting tour through rich moments in Cuban, Mexican, and American cultural history, this book captures Prado’s colorful life and surprising influence, including his famous hit “Mambo No 5 ” Not only did Prado and his contemporaries ignite an American passion for the thrilling dance music of mambo, but they also played an essential part in early R&B and rock ‘n’ roll Their influence can even be seen in much popular music of today, from Shakira and Jennifer Lopez to Karol G

Born in Cuba, Prado landed in Mexico City when music and cinema were soaring, starring in classic films of the Cine de Oro and writing for noir musicals in the 1940s and 1950s. He lived in Los Angeles for more than a decade, creating some of his most notable artistic works that earned him a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame As Cuban music rose, audiences could not resist the startling horns, percussion, and rhythms of his hits

Prado had his quirks and an extreme attraction to kitsch He regularly wore jewels, heavy gold chains, and flamboyant suits and drove a Cadillac with tiger stripe upholstery This book dives into the story and legacy of this larger-than-life figure

John Radanovich is the author of Wildman of Rhythm: The Life and Music of Benny Moré (2015) He has covered jazz, Cuban, and world music and entertainment topics for Downbeat, Offbeat, the Bergen County Record, New Orleans Times-Picayune and other newspapers and magazines

June 11, 2026

Hardcover • 256 Pages • 6 x 9 25 b/w photos; 1 b/w illustration 9798216383208

US $34 00 • CAN $49 95 Bloomsbury Academic

All Summer Long

Conversations with The Beach Boys from Surfin' to SMiLE

David Beard

This unforgettable and in-depth exploration of The Beach Boys’ incredible output during their early to peak years, from 1961 to 1967, interweaves recollections by group members, family, friends, and musical colleagues

David Beard compiles a wide range of fascinating and eye-opening conversations and original interviews with the group and integral figures in the band’s history, including Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, David Marks, Bruce Johnston, Jan Berry, Dean Torrence, Marilyn Wilson-Rutherford, Ginger Blake, and many others All Summer Long is based on over 30 years of archival interview content and provides a wealth of fresh insights into the personalities, circumstances, and decisions that shaped the music created by one of the most enduring acts in popular music history

This book covers the early transformative years of 1962 –1963 when Brian Wilson was working at breakneck speed, as well as the influences of Jan & Dean It looks at Brian and The Beach Boys’ incredible leap forward in music, the changing arc of Brian’s creativity in 1965, the triumph that was Pet Sounds, the synergistic shift with “Good Vibrations” in 1966, and the outcome of the SMiLE recordings The subjects themselves take center stage in this book, sharing their recollections which allow their emotions to be fully conveyed Love, laughter, sorrow, and joy are captured along with the history of the groundbreaking and chart-topping recordings Grab a board and get ready for the ride of your life

David Beard is Editor-in-Chief of Endless Summer Quarterly, The Beach Boys publication of record and the group’s sole officially endorsed magazine In addition to his 30+ years of researching The Beach Boys, Jan & Dean, and the music culture in the pages of ESQ, Beard compiled and edited The Beach Boys’ official tour programs and a VIP hardcover coffee table book in 2015 and 2016 In 2021, he was responsible for organizing and, along with Rob Bonfiglio, co-producing the reunion recording “Add Some Music to Your Day,” which featured Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, David Marks, and the founding member ’s children under the name California Music

May 14, 2026

Hardcover • 232 Pages • 6 x 9

9798881801250

US $34 00 • CAN $49 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Raps of Resistance

How Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole Reignited a HipHop Tradition

Jeremy C. McCool

Kendrick Lamar and J Cole blazed paths that salvaged socially conscious rap at a pivotal time in history.

Conscious rap, a subgenre of hip-hop music that engages in dialogue about social and political issues and often challenges systems of oppression, ascended with pioneers like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Public Enemy, Ice Cube, A Tribe Called Quest, and other acts at the helm But in recent decades, it lost much of its favor in pop culture and mainstream hip-hop

Jeremy C McCool and Earl Hopkins explore the evolution of the subgenre and chronicle the rise of Kendrick Lamar and J Cole The two rappers are synonymous with chart-topping hits and platinum-selling albums, but their confessional poetry and soul-stirring lyrics establish them as the two biggest names in conscious rap within the new millennia

While many new artists have abandoned the subgenre in exchange for music trends linked to instantaneous success and acclaim, Cole and Lamar have preserved the lyrical prowess and revolutionary spirit of their hip-hop forefathers They tackle issues such as drug addiction, poverty, systemic racism, and domestic violence while still appealing to mainstream audiences McCool and Hopkins provide a fascinating look into Lamar and Cole’s ascension: their humble upbringings, their past personal and musical challenges, and their eventual rise to becoming the two most prolific rap artists of their time.

Jeremy C. McCool is an Associate Professor of Digital/Global Media at West Chester University, USA He is a cultural critic and scholar whose work explores the complexities of hip-hop, social consciousness, technology, and Black identity His contributions have earned him honors such as Pittsburgh Magazine’s 40 Under 40 award and West Liberty University’s Hughes Lecturer distinction

Earl Hopkins is an award-winning arts and culture reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer As a hip-hop critic and historian, he has contributed high-profile interviews, album reviews, and rap history guides for Billboard, GRAMMY com, SPIN, and other platforms

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 208 Pages • 5 x 7¾ 9798765125854

US $19 95 • CAN $29 50

Genre: A 33 1/3 Series Bloomsbury Academic

Queercore Audrey Golden

Transatlantic knowledge of the queer underground punk scene that ultimately became queercore developed through the spirit of DIY resistance that guided earlier feminist artists as queer musicians pushed back against the homophobia and sexism that remained pervasive in hardcore punk

Queercore officially got its name in the mid-1980s when G B Jones and Bruce LaBruce named it in their revolutionary zine J D s, but the movement began years earlier with bands like Wayne County and the Electric Chairs, Nervous Gender, and Fifth Column The scene exploded into the next decade with the popularity of bands that often crossed over into the riot grrrl scene, including Tribe 8, Team Dresch, Sister George, and Huggy Bear Their revolution took the form of zine and cassette creation, which they distributed far and wide Those documents became like guidebooks for queer punks in small towns throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and Japan

This book explores queercore as a genre that was never intended to be a genre, but instead an underground resistance movement centered around punk It identifies the key players in the queercore lexicon, from musicians and filmmakers to record labels and zinemakers, and it documents their histories through original interviews and archival research Ultimately, the book guides readers through the beginnings of queercore into the present, where the legacy of this unlikely genre looms loudly for LGBTQIA+ artists and all those marginalized by the mainstream

Audrey Golden is an arts and culture writer with a focus in music, cinema, and politics based in New York, USA She is the author of I Thought I Heard You Speak: Women at Factory Records (2023) and Shouting Out Loud: Lives of the Raincoats (forthcoming 2025)

May 14, 2026

Trade Paperback • 160 Pages • 5½ x 8½ 9798765141007

US $24 95 • CAN $36 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Springsteen Fandom "A Lifetime Conversation"

Nicolas Pethes

Springsteen Fandom: "A Lifetime Conversation" explores the experience of the Bruce Springsteen musical fandom as a mutual exchange between artist and audience.

Choosing significant stops of the Springsteen and E Street Band 2023 Tour as a narrative guideline, the book presents a thorough analysis of Springsteen’s album conceptions, song lyrics, show rituals, and interviews Based on a discussion of the ever-growing Springsteen scholarship, Pethes introduces artist-fan-communication as a notion that is not based on mere illusions but rather on actual emotions and practices

For over 50 years, Bruce Springsteen has been a rock star with whom fans entertain a highly personal relationship. This is not only due to Springsteen’s charismatic stage persona but also to the aesthetic conception of his music that the book explores based on Springsteen’s own description of the relationship to his fans as a “lifetime conversation ”

Nicolas Pethes is Professor of German Literature at the University off Cologne, Germany His previous employments include visiting professorships at Stanford University, USA as well as appointments at the Universities of Hagen and Bochum, Germany He completed his dissertation on the poetics of memory in the works of Walter Benjamin in 1999 and has since published on the media history of literature, the interrelations between literature and science, critical discourse on new media technologies, and popular culture

October 1, 2026

Trade Paperback • 152 Pages • 4¾ x 6½

9798765132593

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95

33 1/3

Bloomsbury Academic

Cher's Believe

Lior Phillips

Featuring interviews with some of her well-known fans, including Ru Paul and Sean Hayes, this is a celebration of the album where Cher challenged the ageist pop industry and re-solidified herself as a force to be reckoned with.

By 1998, Cher seemed fated to fade off into the pop sunset Her time of being half of pop music’s “It couple”, of releasing chart-topping singles, of having her own TV show, in starring in box office breaking movies, was coming to an end But then Believe and a new invention called auto-tune changed everything

Pop has always been a young person’s game, especially for women, and a new dawn of that obsessive youth was in full swing in the late ‘90s But Cher ’s return to inescapability at 52 years old making her the oldest woman to reach the top of the Billboard Hot 100 was a refusal to accept that model Full of fire, cutting edge choices, and a strong advocacy for one’s self, Believe was her giant musical middle finger to all those assumptions

The album confirmed her place as a pop icon, a queer icon, a feminist icon, and reminds us that everyone should believe they can be strong enough

Lior Phillips is a South African music and culture journalist originally from Cape Town, now based in Chicago, USA She writes about music, film, art, and more for international publications, including Dazed and Confused Magazine, The Recording Academy, Variety, Billboard, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, The Quietus, NPR, The Guardian, Consequence of Sound, and GQ South Africa In addition, she is the creator, producer, and host of This Must Be the Gig, a podcast dedicated to artists’ vital memories of their first gigs and passion for live music and performance She is the author of South African Popular Music (Bloomsbury 2023)

May 14, 2026

Paperback • 136 Pages • 4¾ x 6½ 9798765133514

US $14 95 • CAN $21 95 33 1/3 Bloomsbury Academic

Violent Femmes' Violent Femmes

Nic Brown

Through rare access to the Violent Femmes and their archives, this book investigates the creation of such iconic songs as "Blister in the Sun", "Kiss Off", "Add it Up" and "Prove My Love", as well as the album's recording process.

The self-titled debut from Milwaukee post-punk acoustic trio the Violent Femmes is one of those rare albums that seems to have altered the course of popular music and influenced just about everyone who heard it while also managing to operate almost entirely outside of the mainstream Released in 1983 to little sales or attention, the band was so iconoclastic that it couldn’t even engender support from Milwaukee’s anti-establishment punk scene Over the ensuing years, though, Violent Femmes managed to exert itself as an unstoppable cultural force, ascending the college radio charts and spreading through word-of-mouth

Violent Femmes didn’t sound like anything else when it was made, and it still doesn’t sound like anything else The album somehow exists both outside of time and as one of the most evocative and enduring artifacts of the alternative ‘80’s.

Nic Brown is a writer, musician, and professor at Clemson University, USA He is the author of the memoir Bang Bang Crash (2023) as well as the novels In Every Way (2015), Doubles (2010), and Floodmarkers (2009), which was selected as an Editors' Choice by The New York Times Book Review His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Oxford American, and the Harvard Review, among many other publications

May 14, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 256

Pages • 8½ x 11¼

599 color photographs

9781540026231

US $50 00 • CAN $73 50

Music Pro Guides

Bloomsbury Academic

The Great Book of Vintage Microphones

Sylvia Massy

Grammy Award-winning music producer Sylvia Massy provides a visual tour through the fascinating world of vintage microphones with hundreds of original, full-color photographs.

Based on one of the largest collections in the world, this book is for the appreciation of the art, technology, and history of microphones, looking at the first 100 years since the original invention – from the 1870s through the 1970s Discover microphones used by major figures, including the one used by every US President since Lyndon B Johnson, the epic microphone built for King George V, and the one used by Bruce Swedien for Michael Jackson’s hits

Microphones are abundant in our modern world: dozens of different technologies, millions of different uses Sylvia Massy and Chris Johnson expertly curate hundreds of microphones, from the rare and eccentric to well-known gamechangers, and provide interesting tidbits relating to their use, history, manufacture, design, and more. This visually stunning book traces the microphone through a history that includes the Great Depression, two World Wars, and the Cold War era

Sylvia Massy has been producing, engineering, and mixing popular music for decades Renowned for her work with Tool, System of a Down, Johnny Cash, and Prince, just to name a few, Massy has received dozens of gold and platinum records, including awards for her work with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Sevendust, and Tom Petty A Grammy Awardwinner, she is also the author of Recording Unhinged: Creative and Unconventional Recording Techniques

Chris Johnson is a prize-winning writer, recording studio owner, minister, and artist He strives to live art as a 24/7 lifestyle His stunning collection of vintage microphones includes historical pieces that date back to the 1870s He is the co-author of Recording Unhinged: Creative and Unconventional Recording Techniques.

November 12, 2026

Hardcover • 208 Pages • 6 x 9 10 bw illus 9798216270096

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

The Climate We've Made Making Sense of Humankind's Future on a Warming Planet

Jonathan J. Stickel

An exploration of the scientific, philosophical, and psychological perspectives that shape how we experience climate change.

Climate change poses a serious threat to humanity and Earth as we know it Scientists have been collecting direct evidence of this for more than 60 years, yet despite the best efforts of climate scientists, activists, and policymakers to effect change, global temperatures and the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere continue to increase If climate change is truly a crisis–and it is–then why are so many people unmotivated to prevent it?

The Climate We’ve Made seeks to make sense of this by investigating the disconnect between the climate disaster predicted by scientists and societies’ understanding of the need for action to mitigate global warming; how we are certain that climate change is happening and humans are the cause; the ethical obligations that humans today have for maintaining a livable Earth for future generations; why it is so hard for humans, individually and collectively, to take action on climate change; and more Stickel does this by dividing the book into three parts: science, philosophy, and psychology

Considering the potentially massive magnitude and scope of climate change, assuredly altering human life and the entire Earth in profound ways, it is worth taking a step back and looking at climate change with a broader lens Stickel does this by offering potential paths forward for saving the planet through direct insight into the effectiveness of climatemitigating technologies, the pace at which they are being deployed, and the attitudes of society, media, and policymakers to encourage collective change by all of Earth’s inhabitants

Jonathan J Stickel, PhD, is a consultant helping startup companies to develop and deploy sustainable chemical technologies He has 20+ years of national-lab, industrial, and academic experience leading and performing R&D for carbon capture, energy sustainability, biofuels, and biopharmaceuticals He has coauthored more than 40 journal articles that report on the results of these research programs, and has given several invited presentations on climate change and renewable energy

July 23, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 264 Pages • 6 x 9 19 bw photos

9798216200697

US $40 00 • CAN $58 50 Bloomsbury Academic

100 Years of Laughter American Comedy in the Twentieth Century

Garry Berman

A comprehensive look at how comedy evolved across mediums throughout the twentieth century

Americans in the past century have laughed in good times and bad, throughout social, economic, and political upheaval, Prohibition, the Great Depression, two World Wars, the Cold War, and all that has followed Comedians have always been present to help us find relief through laughter as the uncertainty of world events threatens to disrupt our collective state of well-being

100 Years of Laughter is a celebration of American comedy throughout the entire 20th century, revisiting how audiences enjoyed comedy by its greatest practitioners in vaudeville, radio, film (silent and sound), television, and other outlets. Berman follows the history and evolution from vaudeville to the dawn of the 21st century and new millennium, looking at popular comedians from Charlie Chaplin to Lucille Ball to Jerry Seinfeld and more The narrative is enhanced with contemporaneous accounts, reviews, and comments by critics and observers, as well as with numerous insights by the comedians themselves, from each era of comedy starting with the 1900s

Readers will discover many of comedy’s most brilliant artists of the 20th century’s earlier decades, as well as recall those who may have faded from public attention only a generation or two ago Berman also covers often-overlooked aspects of comedy history from how comedians needed to adapt their skills to advances in technology, such as silent films to “talkies” and radio comedy to the demands of television, to how the comedy world responded to major tragedies such as the Pearl Harbor attack, the JFK assassination, and 9/11, and eventually rebounded over time Finally, the book explores topics within comedy such as the most popular gags, comedy couples, the rise of sitcoms and the staying power of Saturday Night Live

Garry Berman is a pop culture and entertainment historian and freelance writer He is the author of Best of the Britcoms: From Fawlty Towers to Absolutely Fabulous, We’re Going to See the Beatles!, Perfect Fool: The Life and Career of Ed Wynn, For the First Time on Television, and The Funniest Decade: A Celebration of American Comedy in the 1930s He was also the editor of Between the Laughs He has contributed articles to British Television magazine, Nostalgia Digest magazine, Burlington County Times, History magazine, Newsweek com, and BBC com, and was a regular contributor to The Insider, a bi-monthly publication offered to PBS members Berman also writes as a freelancer for magazines and has published humorous novels and screenplays He lives in Whitehall, Pennsylvania with his wife Karen

July 23, 2026

Paperback • 208 Pages • 6¼ x 9¼ 20 b&w

9781350564176

US $25 95 • CAN $37 95 Methuen Drama

The Anatomy of Art Unlocking the Creative Process for Theatre and Dance

Alexandra Beller

The Anatomy of Art reconnects you with the creative current already moving through you A choose-your-own-adventure for performing artists, it offers 1000+ questions, frameworks, and field-tested scores that reveal options, deepen rigor, and help you trust yourself Twelve elements Time, Space, Relationship, Meaning, Environment, Process, Facts, Faith, Communication, Material, Context & Culture, and Priorities create a working map for practice and performance Built from three decades in devised dance and theater, it fits complex rooms and real lives: a ten-minute spark, a day of practice, a seasonlong arc

This is a companion for the first step and the begin-again listening to desire, doubt, and faith while calibrating environment, collaborators, and audience When the work asks for more than you can name, these pages offer discerning questions, actionable practices, and grounded companionship cultivating the courage to meet yourself, hear your voice, and make art that matters to you

With a preface by Marisa Tomei and contributions from Brenda Dixon Gottschild, Deborah Hay, Kate Hamill, Liz Lerman, Bebe Miller, and others, offering lenses on context, care, and craft

Alexandra Beller is a choreographer, director, teacher, somatics coach and Artistic Director of Alexandra Beller/Dances and Praxispace She is a Certified Movement Analyst in Laban Movement Analysis/Bartenieff Fundamentals. She has served on the faculty at Princeton University, Rutgers University and The Laban/Bartenieff Institute for Movement Studies, and she guest teaches nationally and internationally She has choreographed extensively OffBroadway and has been heavily involved in devised dance theater and regional productions

May 14, 2026

Paperback • 96 Pages • 5¼ x 7½

60 colour illus

9781805750291

US $17 95 • CAN $26 50

BFI Film Classics

British Film Institute

Easy Rider

Lee Hill

Easy Rider (1969) broke the mould of Hollywood studio production, making stars of Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson, and launching a new wave of radical and experimental American cinema. One of the key films of the late 60s, Easy Rider enshrined the ideals of the counterculture, but also foresaw their demise in the division and paranoia of a nation rocked by Watergate and the Vietnam War Few films since have captured its particular blend of innocence and cynicism, hope and despair

In his illuminating study of the film, Lee Hill explores both the circumstances surrounding its making and the social and cultural forces that found expression in it Hill argues that the role of the film’s primary screenwriter, Terry Southern, has been neglected as the exact circumstances of production, filming and editing have become lost in myth-making Drawing on archival research and first-person interviews with Southern, Hill questions some of the legends that surround Easy Rider

In his afterword to this new edition, Hill revisits the film from the perspective of a contemporary era of political strife, and traces the subsequent fortunes of its director, producer and stars Hopper, Fonda and Nicholson in a changing Hollywood

Lee Hill has written about literature, film, music, and popular culture for newspapers, magazines, and radio for more than a decade He lives in Calgary, Alberta, Canada

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 96 Pages • 5¼ x 7½ 60 colour illus

9781839027130

US $17 95 • CAN $26 50 BFI Film Classics

British Film Institute

Beau travail Corinn Columpar

Beau Travail (1998) is Claire Denis' bold, sensuous masterpiece Loosely based on Herman Melville’s Billy Budd, Sailor (1924), the film explores the complexities of desire, identity, and power within an all-male group of French Foreign Legionnaires stationed at a coastal outpost in the former colony of Djibouti, in East Africa

The film cemented Denis' position as a leading auteur and visual poet In this book, Corinn Columpar positions the film as a cinematic bid for freedom She examines its formal innovations - particularly the use of the gaze, voice, and movement - to explain how Denis produces exhilarating possibilities narratively, affectively, and ideologically, while also situating the film within the histories of art cinema and postcolonial filmmaking

Corinn Columpar is Associate Professor of Cinema Studies in the Cinema Studies Institute at the University of Toronto, Canada She is the author of Unsettling Sights: The Fourth World on Film (2010) She is co-editor of There She Goes: Feminist Filmmaking and Beyond (2009) and Mothers of Invention: Film, Media, and Caregiving Labor (2022) She has published widely on feminist film theory, embodiment and representation in journals including Camera Obscura, Quarterly Review of Film and Video, and Women Studies Quarterly

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 112 Pages • 5¼ x 7½

60 colour illus

9781839027475

US $17 95 • CAN $26 50

BFI Film Classics

British Film Institute

Velvet Goldmine Katherine Reed

It’s 1984, and investigative reporter Arthur Stuart is trying to locate Brian Slade, the glamrock superstar who staged his own death and vanished from the spotlight ten years earlier Todd Haynes’s Velvet Goldmine (1998) transforms that mystery into a vivid collage of memory, fantasy and desire, creating an alternative history of rock and a landmark of queer cinema

Velvet Goldmine divided opinion on its release, but Katherine Reed traces how the film’s fans have kept it alive through rewatches, relistens and fan fiction Reed weaves in the history of the film with close readings of its cinematic references, songs and style She reevaluates Velvet Goldmine in light of Haynes’s other films, addresses its fraught production history and its allusions to David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop, and the ways in which Haynes reshapes those figures into a new mythology

Reed also analyses Velvet Goldmine’s soundtrack, and examines legendary costume designer Sandy Powell’s role in creating blends of fantasy and reality in each character ’s wardrobe Like the film itself, this is not a linear history, but an exploration of how Velvet Goldmine teaches us to create anew

Katherine Reed is Associate Professor of Musicology at California State University, Fullerton, USA Reed’s work on popular music, musical semiotics, and film music has appeared in Popular Music & Society, Music and the Moving Image, and the Society for American Music’s Digital Lecture Series She co-edited the collection Music in Twin Peaks: Listen to the Sounds (2021)

June 11, 2026

Paperback • 96 Pages • 5¼ x 7½

60 colour illus

9781839029639

US $17 95 • CAN $26 50 BFI Film Classics

British Film Institute

Le Samouraï

Daisuke Miyao

In this compelling study, Daisuke Miyao explores Jean-Pierre Melville's cult 1967 thriller Le Samouraï, a film that unfolds in a coolly stylised Paris where the paths of a contract killer, Jef Costello (Alain Delon), and the police commissaire pursuing him (François Périer) fatally intersect

Despite its title, Le Samouraï, is not a sword-clashing tale of feudal Japan Rather, Miyao suggests that the film's philosophical framework draws on both existentialism and the samurai moral philosophy of bushido, or 'the way of the warrior', and considers how these philosophies may help explain Jef Costello's identity crisis and his concluding act of selfannihilation In a close analysis of Melville's technical and aesthetic decisions, Miyao highlights the film's use of close-ups to convey or mask emotion, the play of light and shadow, and the function of flashbacks and dream sequences in the narrative, as well as the meanings of Costello's pet bullfinch

Setting Le Samouraï within the shifting landscape of post-war French cinema, Miyao traces its dialogue with Hollywood film noir and Japanese art cinema, particularly Kurosawa's Rashomon (1950), suggesting that both genres informed and influenced Melville's filmmaking

Finally, Miyao discusses the film’s enduring legacy, from Jim Jarmusch’s Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai (1999) to Yoko M ’s 2020 novella Jef, a prequel to the film

Daisuke Miyao is the Chair of the Literature Department at UCSD and the author of Ozu and the Ethics of Indeterminacy (2026), Japonisme and the Birth of Cinema (2020), Cinema Is a Cat: A Cat Lover ’s Introduction to Film Studies (2019), The Aesthetics of Shadow: Lighting and Japanese Cinema (2013), and Sessue Hayakawa: Silent Cinema and Transnational Stardom (2007)

July 23, 2026

Trade Paperback • 240 Pages • 5½ x 8½ 9781350455924

US $26 95 • CAN $39 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Adventures Don’t Exist

Why Life is Not a Journey

Simon Gusman

Anyone would prefer an adventurous life over a mundane one wouldn’t they?

Even those of us who wouldn’t find ourselves caught up in stories of adventure at every turn – in the films we watch, the books we read, the podcasts we listen to That thirst for thrilling experiences, travels to faraway lands, or passionate love affairs is what prompts this book’s central question: is adventure really what we want? Adventures don’t Exist explores how the illusory promise of adventure has become one of the most compelling and powerful narratives in popular culture and contemporary society The notion that everything has a purpose and leads to a satisfying resolution has taken hold of every level of our society, from politics to consumer culture, but ultimately leads only to frustration and disappointment

Drawing on some of the most familiar adventures of our times, like Game of Thrones, Star Wars and the Marvel films, this book shows how adventure stories took hold of our imagination, and how those stories shape and intersect with our ideas about identity, race, gender and ability – who do we become used to seeing in the roles of hero, villain, or love interest? When we’re told that everything, even sickness, disappointment and suffering is laden with significance and meaning, how should we cope when we realise that our lives aren’t leading up to anything in particular? As narrative creatures that are always in search of a purpose or meaning, can we ever envisage a world without these adventurous illusions?

Simon Gusman is Assistant Professor of Liberal Arts & Sciences at Utrecht University, The Netherlands His authored books include Sartre on Subjectivity and Selfhood: The Self as a Thing Among Things (2020), Diep van buiten: De mens volgens Sartre (2022) and Avonturen bestaan niet (2018)

Arjen Kleinherenbrink is an Associate Professor of Metaphysics & Philosophical Anthropologyat Radboud University, The Netherlands

June 11, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 352 Pages • 6 x 9 22 bw photos

9798881842673

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Safar Finding Home, History, and Culture through Punjabi Food in the American West

Madhushree Ghosh

Blends memoir and history to explore the role of Punjabi food in fostering community and identity among South Asian refugees and immigrants.

Safar: Finding Home, History, and Culture through Punjabi Food in the American West is the journey of South Asian refugees, immigrants and their children in particular, Sikhs, Jats and Muslims who moved to the southwestern states of America over centuries as farmers, truck drivers, restaurant owners and dhaba/diner stall cooks An expedition in search of the asli or real Punjabi food, Madhushree Ghosh explores how their food traveled from British India pre-partition (1947) to now, covering the different waves of Punjabi immigration to the southwest through the years as a result of war, fear, deprivation or for a better future

Interwoven in Safar is Ghosh’s own immigrant journey as a graduate student to America in 1993, her quest to find home through the food her Bengali refugee parents made which then translated to a physical journey she embarked on to visit the different Punjabi communities in California, Arizona and New Mexico The book is divided into parts, focusing on four Punjabi women, each a part of a different wave of South Asian immigrants to the American West, and the food and recipes they brought with them that connect them to their pasts Safar shares stories of displacement, discrimination, community, and hope Ghosh explores the universal question of immigrant journeys and the true meaning of home, of comfort food, and what constitutes a ‘true Punjabi’ meal. Featuring essential Punjabi recipes, this is a poignant reflection on what it means to find home and identity through food and culture as an immigrant to United States

Madhushree Ghosh is the author of the award-winning KHABAAR: An Immigrant Journey of Food, Memory, and Family (2022) Ghosh is an invited speaker at major book festivals and her work has been published in 2023 Best American Essays in Food Writing, as well as Pushcart-nominated and published in The New York Times, Vogue India, Washington Post, LA Times, The Writer, Longreads, Catapult, BOMB, Guernica, LA Review of Books, LitHub, Panorama Journal, The Rumpus, Brevity, Hippocampus Magazine, Atlas Obscura, The Chicago Quarterly Review, DAME Magazine, Le Sirenuse, Garnet News, The Surfers Journal, Del Sol Review, D&O magazine and others She is also an Oakley Hall scholar, actor, and screenwriter, and her award-winning plays have been performed at San Diego Actors Alliance festivals Ghosh is an invited author at Garnet News, as well as a science columnist at Construction Magazine, and has given TEDx talks She is a frequent speaker on "Women in Science" panels globally and hosts multiple cooking classes on making Indian food, focusing on the science and health behind those culinary treats, in San Diego In 2024, she launched KhabaarCo, a curated literary conversation and salon around food, our roots, social justice, and our words. She can be reached at @writemadhushree.

May 28, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 256

Pages • 6¼ x 9¼

9781399430807

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

The Pricing Sprint 12 Steps to Unlock the Power of Pricing

Jenny Millar

“A brilliant, step-by-step guide to aligning price with customer behaviour ” Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman, Ogilvy Group

Have you ever felt that your business is leaving money on the table? Discounting under pressure, hesitant to raise prices, or struggling to articulate your value?

If so, you’re not alone

Jenny Millar and Ann Padley have seen companies lose out on millions Not because their product is wrong or their costs are too high, but because they’ve misjudged something far more complex: what people value

In 12 actionable steps, The Pricing Sprint transforms pricing from a ‘guessing game’ and a ‘black box’ into a collaborative and inspiring conversation about value and growth; it fuels a repeatable, evidence-driven process to design, test, and optimize pricing

Packed with practical tools and case studies, you’ll discover a new approach to pricing that’s as grounded in human behaviour as it is in commercial insight The result? Pricing strategies that are customer-focused, market-aligned, and designed for growth – and a team that is engaged and ready to implement them

This is more than a book on pricing. It’s a masterclass in shaping a sustainable commercial strategy that aligns with your values, builds customer loyalty and delivers exceptional business results.

Jenny Millar is the Founder and CEO of Untapped Pricing A former eBay executive, she leads high-stakes pricing transformations and advises boards, investors, and CEOs on value strategy and commercial growth

Ann Padley is a Senior Partner at Untapped Pricing A strategist and educator, she brings deep expertise in human-centered design and advises scaleups and Fortune 500 organizations on how to embed customer insight and behavioural science into pricing strategy

August 6, 2026

Hardcover • 240 Pages • 6¼ x 9¼ 9781350597792

US $27 00 • CAN $39 50 Bloomsbury Academic

The Refugee Advantage Building enterprise in the face of adversity

Dalton T. Sirmans

Over 120 million people are forcibly displaced across the world Among them are over 42 million refugees, people compelled to leave both their homes and their home nations. Whilst commonly misconceived as a burden, refugees are more enterprising than the rest of the population, with statistics showing that 13% of refugees entering the US become entrepreneurs, versus just 9% of native-born Americans.

The Refugee Advantage reveals how those who have been forced to start again are reshaping the business landscape around the world – for the better.

What defines a refugee, in spirit and substance? What are the qualities and characteristics of those who have fled their native lands, under threat of death and persecution, to start a new life? What do leaders and investors need to know in order to facilitate better business decisions and increased social sensibility?

Intent on changing perceptions and redirecting misunderstandings, The Refugee Advantage offers a research-based yet personal insight, challenging misconceptions surrounding refugees by showcasing them as the accomplished business owners and community contributors they truly are

From smart investment to entrepreneurial spirit, Dalton T Sirmans’ guidance empowers business owners, HR professionals and readers alike to make informed decisions around hiring, investing, partnerships and more with increased understanding and awareness

Dalton T Sirmans is the founder of the Sirmans Global Impact Foundation, a philanthropic platform dedicated to reframing refugees and forcibly displaced people as economic contributors through investment, research, and storytelling He is also the co-founder and senior partner of Amplio Ventures and Amplio Partners, which provide seed capital and impact investment to businesses focused on stabilizing refugee communities in the United States and internationally

Previously, Dalton was the co-founder and CEO of MainStreet Technologies (MST), a financial technology company acquired in 2018. Earlier in his career, he worked in journalism and media with publications including The Valdosta Daily Times, Community Newspapers, Inc (CNI), Camden County Tribune, and American Lawyer Media

Dalton completed a Master of Liberal Arts in International Relations at Harvard in early 2025, where his studies focused on refugees, forced displacement, and migration. His work sits at the intersection of entrepreneurship, investment, and humanitarian innovation, with a particular emphasis on moving beyond traditional aid models toward durable, market-based solutions

May 14, 2026

Hardcover • 240 Pages • 6¼ x 9¼

9781399430227

US $35 00 • CAN $47 00 Bloomsbury Academic

Why Start-Ups Fail

Avoiding the traps on the path to commercial success

Bernie Bulkin

A shocking 90% of start-ups fail Many of these failures are preventable, but you need to understand the causes and how to avoid them – both as an entrepreneur and an investor

From technology to the market, from leadership to money, there are numerous reasons why your start-up will fail Bernie Bulkin – who has been at both sides of the investment table –guides you through the six major reasons why start-ups fail, and how to avoid them

Instead of accepting failure as inevitable, this book breaks down the main reasons why start-ups fail and how to turn them on their head Whether you’re a founder or an investor, if you’re going to put in the time, money, and effort to ensure a company succeeds, you should go in with your eyes open Bernie’s common-sense approach offers the experience of a venture capitalist who has been there and done that

Leadership at all levels makes a difference Using real-life examples, and applying behavioural economics to venture decision-making, Why Start-Ups Fail spotlights what founders most often lack, and shares the who, how, and why of making a start-up succeed and avoiding the traps blocking your path to commercial success

Dr Bernard J Bulkin OBE has worked in venture capital for 21 years, investing in both Silicon Valley and in London, as well as being an Angel investor He has also founded, led and invested in some companies that have failed! He is an Emeritus Professorial Fellow of the University of Cambridge and has been a Vice President of the Energy Institute He has served on numerous company boards, from start-ups to large public companies His radio series, Environment on the Edge, was broadcast on Voice America and he has contributed to the Huffington Post and Guardian Business

May 14, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 272 Pages • 6 x 9 15 color photos

9798881842413

US $38 00 • CAN $55 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Power, Grit and Glamour

The Women Behind Halston

Tamara Sturtz-Filby

An intimate look at the Halstonettes the women who inspired legendary fashion designer Halston

One of the greatest fashion designers of all time, Halston defined and dominated the 1970s He was America's first fashion superstar, a groundbreaking craftsman and a pioneering businessman who also exuded glamour, wit and charm More important than the milliondollar success and the movie-star status though was the powerhouse of incredible women that he surrounded himself with This is the untold story of those women

Power, Grit and Glamour: The Women Behind Halston highlights the entourage of women who not only worked with, accompanied, and supported Halston at every turn, but were fiercely loyal and loved him deeply. Beginning with Eleanor Lambert, the ‘Godmother of Fashion,’ Tamara Sturtz-Filby charts the rise of Halston from every socialite's hatmaker to creating his own named label, introducing readers to the women who guided him every step of the way to fame and stardom He had loyal friendships with Liza Minnelli and Elizabeth Taylor His close confidantes included “Halstonettes” Elsa Peretti and Chris Royer, as well as models and actresses including Bianca Jagger, Marisa Berenson and Pat Ast He had invaluable relationships with Vogue editors Diana Vreeland and Grace Mirabella, and a long-term collaboration with America's doyenne of dance, Martha Graham These are just a few of the women Sturtz-Filby profiles Featuring exclusive interviews and quotes from those who worked with and knew Halston, as well as fifteen color photographs that visually transport the reader into Halston’s world, this is the story of fashion’s formidable women, without whom there would be no 'Halston'

Tamara Sturtz-Filby has been a journalist for over 30 years specializing in fashion and women’s lifestyle She is the author of Behind The Gloss, The Story of the Diamond, Little Book of Tiffany & Co and Little Book of Cartier She lives in the United Kingdom

June 25, 2026

Hardcover • 288 Pages • 6 x 9 14 b&w images 9798216279006

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Forgiveness at Ground Zero

A Journey of Service, Loss, and Redemption after 9/11

Lyndon Harris

On the morning after September 11, 2001, Rev Lyndon Harris pushed through smoke and ash toward St Paul’s Chapel, just blocks from the World Trade Center He expected ruin Instead, the historic chapel stood scarred but intact and soon became a sanctuary for exhausted, grieving recovery workers at Ground Zero

For close to a year Harris led an extraordinary, volunteer-driven ministry that provided food, rest, prayer, and human connection to those laboring day and night on “the Pile ” St Paul’s became known worldwide as “the little chapel that stood,” a symbol of hope amid devastation

But when the chapel closed in 2002, Harris’s own life unraveled Years of conflict and resistance within his church left him overwhelmed by anger, resentment, and a desire for retribution He ultimately lost his faith, left New York, and entered a long, private struggle with grief and disillusionment

This book is not only a firsthand account of one of 9/11’s most enduring symbols, but a deeply personal story of what happens after the cameras leave Harris traces his journey from idealistic small-town priest to Ground Zero leader, through spiritual collapse, and finally toward an unexpected healing grounded in forgiveness

Drawing on pioneering research developed with Stanford psychologist Dr Frederic Luskin, cofounder of the Forgiveness Project, Harris explores forgiveness not as “forgive and forget,” but as a rigorous, transformative practice essential for recovery after trauma His story speaks to first responders, faith leaders, and anyone carrying unresolved pain offering rare insight into the emotional cost of service, the limits of institutional faith, and the resilience required to truly move forward

Lyndon Harris, a former Episcopal priest, began his journey to forgiveness at the foot of the South Tower of the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11, 2001 He is a forgiveness coach, workshop leader, global speaker, and community healer He is the coauthor, with Frederic Luskin, of The Forgive for Good Recovery Workbook and is directing Forgiving Communities of the Carolinas, a forgiveness initiative in Charleston, South Carolina

September 3, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 208

Pages • 5½ x 8½ 9798216370666

US $34 00 • CAN $49 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Myth-Made Machines The Stories Behind Artificial Intelligence

Dave Bradley

A fascinating exploration of how our understanding of artificial intelligence has evolved across centuries as depicted through the stories and media we create

Humans have always dreamed of creating intelligent life From the earliest legends of Talos to the droids of Star Wars, artificial beings stalk our culture Today, we routinely interact with computers, and AI is a buzzword that dominates headlines and raises record-breaking Silicon Valley investment As the power and influence of machines continue to grow, it’s time to examine our relationship with computers and machine life based on 3,000 years of stories

Myth-Made Machines: The Stories Behind Artificial Intelligence explores humanity’s complex relationship with artificial intelligence through the lens of our cultural imagination. From ancient myths of automata to today’s disruptive technologies, this book traces AI’s evolution in our collective consciousness The narrative weaves through centuries of literature, film, and philosophical thought, examining what people believe about the machines that will assist or perhaps replace them Organized historically, it explores how Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, and contemporary works like The Matrix and Black Mirror have shaped our hopes and fears about machine intelligence, even as we embrace the likes of ChatGPT in the workplace

Vero and Bradley highlight how science fiction has reflected and influenced real-world AI development and how our cultural depictions align with current technological trends or diverge from them As we stand on the brink of an AI revolution, Kelly Vero and Dave Bradley critically examine where we’ve been through the lens of prose, poetry, philosophy, and film and invite readers to contemplate the possibilities and challenges that lie ahead Blending cultural analysis, literary criticism, and technological insight, Myth-Made Machines is a fascinating read for anyone curious about the interplay between technology and culture

Dave Bradley has worked in the media for nearly 30 years as a magazine and online journalist, writer, editor, and event host and as a senior manager and consultant He has written and edited newsstand publications including PC Format, Planet PC, Microsoft Windows: The Official Magazine, SFX, Total Film, Comic Heroes, and more, and has written and published for online publications, including GamesRadar+, Pocket Gamer, PC Games Insider, Crime Fiction Lover, and more Bradley is also an experienced commentator on video games, home computing, technology, science fiction, literature, film and TV sectors as well as a regular host at conferences and ‘fireside chat’ live interviewer, especially about AI and mobile games He is a contributor to DK Eyewitness’ The Screen Traveller ’s Guide and an occasional short fiction author (e g , Best of British Science Fiction 2018)

Kelly Vero has worked in video games and technology for 30 years, from programming to senior management, working on titles including Tomb Raider, Halo series, Transformers series, and Subway Surfers Additionally, she has worked for 10 years in blockchain/NFT/crypto. She is actively developing the metaverse for clients worldwide (she is the first female tech lead on a children’s metaverse) Vero has been an international keynote speaker and leading gamification and metaverse thought leader, led gamification of femtech, fashion, and digital transformation projects (LVMH, NAK3D, Massican), is regularly

May 14, 2026

Hardcover • 272 Pages • 6 x 9

2 b&w illustrations 9798216383475

US $32 00 • CAN $46 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Erecting the Pulpit Muscular Christianity from Teddy Roosevelt to Donald Trump

Amy Laura Hall

Erecting the Pulpit examines a powerful yet overlooked form of Christian Nationalism one that fuses faith, masculinity, capitalism, and political power under the guise of moral leadership Beginning with Theodore Roosevelt’s “Muscular Christianity” and tracing the conceit of faithful and fit male leadership through figures like Billy Graham and cultural institutions like National Prayer Breakfasts and modern mega-churches, and flourishing under the administration of Donald Trump, Erecting the Pulpit reveals how religious rhetoric has been wielded to sanctify power and divide communities

Drawing on her firsthand experiences and years of conversations with participants from Cowboy Churches to NASCAR chaplaincies and storefront churches with folding chairs to meetings with the parachurch group Young Life theologian Amy Laura Hall examines the cultural and political forces that have made evangelicalism “ambient” while consolidating wealth and influence At a time when politicians are expected to pray in public and religious themes shape public policy, Erecting the Pulpit offers a vivid, incisive exploration of how religious expressions of faith in the United States have been strategically repackaged to sustain political and economic hierarchies and keep women subservient to men

Amy Laura Hall is associate professor of Christian ethics and gender, sexuality, and women’s studies at Duke University, where she has taught since 1999 She is the author of four books, including Conceiving Parenthood: American Protestantism and the Spirit of Reproduction (2007) and Laughing at the Devil: Seeing the World with Julian of Norwich (2018). A noted authority in American Religious History, Hall has also contributed provocative essays on Protestantism and politics to Religion Dispatches and Religion News Service

July 23, 2026

Trade Paperback • 176 Pages • 5½ x 8½

15 b/w images

9798216383062

US $21 95 • CAN $32 50 Bloomsbury Academic

The First Days of College 12 Decisions That Change Everything

Steven L. VanderStaay

Each year, two million high school graduates begin college Yet only about half graduate in four years Nearly 4 in 10 leave without a degree altogether

It doesn't have to be this way

What most distinguishes students who succeed from those who don't are habits, mindsets, and strategies that any student can learn This book is your guide to putting them into practice beginning with the first days of college

Unique among college guides, The First Days of College:

- Focuses on the first days of college a critical window when effective habits and mindsets form most readily.

- Anchors each chapter in a specific decision students must make

- Teaches the strategies successful students actually use

- Tackles hard truths about student debt, dropout risks, and campus safety issues like alcohol-related accidents and sexual assault

- Addresses the concerns of new students making friends, managing money, study strategies, and whether college is "worth it "

- Provides a practical "Playbook" of activities to immediately apply each chapter's concepts

- Connects academic effort to personal purpose helping students root their work in their values, aspirations, and who and what they most care about

- Combines research on learning with insights from those who work most closely with new students.

Steve VanderStaay is a teaching and learning specialist at Western Washington University, where he teaches courses in literature, linguistics, and teaching methods His publications include documentary studies as well as research on reading, culturally responsive instruction, college success, and teaching for social justice

As Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education, Steve oversaw Western’s academic firstyear programs and student success initiatives for more than 12 years. His research and teaching has been recognized with grants and awards from the National Science Foundation, the National Academy of Education, and his university He has taught new college students for more than 30 years

June 11, 2026

Hardcover • 296 Pages • 5½ x 8½

3 bw images, 4 tables 9798765161968

US $32 00 • CAN $46 95 Bloomsbury Academic

The Parenting Paradox Loving Our Children by Giving Them Space to Grow

Jenny Brown

Parenting is a paradox: to truly love our children, we must also give them the space to grow.

Many devoted parents instinctively step in to protect and guide their children yet struggle knowing when to step back While “helicopter parenting” is widely discouraged, parents are often left without clear, practical alternatives

In The Parenting Paradox: Loving Our Children by Giving Them Space to Grow, Dr Jenny Brown offers a new perspective--not about loving less, but about shifting the anxious energy that often comes with deep parental care to a more constructive type of love Dr Brown sheds light on the cultural forces shaping today’s intensive parenting, revealing how wellmeaning advice can often undermine a parent’s growth and confidence Through real-life experiences and professional insights, she challenges the message that constant intervention is necessary for a child to flourish and instead provides a thoughtful, lasting approach to fostering independence

Rather than offering a quick fix or the latest parenting trend, The Parenting Paradox provides a sustainable path forward Dr Brown helps parents navigate their own fears while giving their children space to build confidence and resilience And in creating that space, parents also grow, gaining clarity in their role so they can become the loving leaders they aspire to be.

Jenny Brown, PhD, has worked in child and family mental health for the past four decades She is regularly sought out as a thought leader in children’s mental health through her research, writings, social media, and speaking platforms Dr Brown developed The Parent Hope Project that provides psychoeducation for parents and training for professionals to use a unique intervention method for parents with a struggling child Dr Brown is also the author of Growing Yourself Up: How to Bring Your Best to All of Life’s Relationships She lives in New South Wales, Australia

August 6, 2026

Hardcover • 264 Pages • 5½ x 8½

2 bw images

9798216377030

US $28 00 • CAN $40 95 Bloomsbury Academic

My Child Has an Eating Disorder An Essential Guide for Parents of Kids, Teens, and Adults

Alli Spotts-De Lazzer

A vitally important guide to supporting a loved one with an eating disorder

If you just discovered that your child (of any age) has an eating disorder, time is critical Eating disorders can prove fatal and don’t discriminate For parents and caregivers, the situation can be overwhelming because misinformation is everywhere, and most doctors lack the specialized training needed to guide them

That’s where My Child Has an Eating Disorder comes in This clear, expert-packed resource helps parents quickly understand the situation, ask the right questions, and take effective steps toward their child’s recovery without wasting precious time searching for reliable answers Written by Alli Spotts-De Lazzer, an esteemed Certified Eating Disorders Specialist and licensed therapist, and Jenny Mullaney, a live-in Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach, both with personal experiences of recovery, this book covers common concerns, misconceptions and myths, treatment options and obstacles, and realistic expectations for healing

Incorporating advice from other leading experts along with relevant research and featuring the lived experiences of other parents, caregivers, and kids who have been through the recovery journey My Child Has an Eating Disorder offers the practical, concrete information and strategies parents and caregivers need, giving them the confidence to navigate the challenging path to recovery with love and hope.

Alli Spotts-De Lazzer is an eating disorders expert and licensed therapist Her credentials include LMFT, LPCC, and CEDS-C Alli is the author of MeaningFULL: 23 Life-Changing Stories of Conquering Dieting, Weight, & Body Image Issues and a Psychology Today online column She is a frequent speaker and has served as an expert for news sources that include The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal For more information, visit www LiveYourFullStory com

Jenny Mullaney is a Certified Eating Disorder Recovery Coach, one of few worldwide who is hired to live at home with clients Serving both as a provider and family advocate, she has thousands of hours of specialized experience in her unique role Jenny sought help for her own eating disorder in 2005, which led her to a place of being fully recovered For more information, visit www recoveredispossible com

August 6, 2026

Hardcover • 280 Pages • 5½ x 8½

4 BW images, 4 tables, 30 textboxes 9798216201946

US $27 00 • CAN $39 50 Bloomsbury Academic

Ambitious Mother From Surviving to Thriving in Your Career and at Home

Anne Welsh

Women are told, “You can have it all ” You can be an incredible mom and have an incredible career at the same time. But nobody explains how to actually pull this off-until now

In Ambitious Mother, Dr Anne Welsh--a licensed psychologist and mom of four--offers a refreshing perspective for overwhelmed moms Welsh asks, “What are you truly ambitious for?” and invites readers to shed societal expectations, name what they really want, and pursue their own version of success Readers will discover:

- Why being a working mom feels so hard and what we can do to change this

- How to find their own version of ambition that fits their values

- The difference between unhealthy striving and healthy striving and how to make the switch

- The Three Ps--perfectionism, people-pleasing, and pretending--and how to shed these weights without lowering standards

- How to navigate career choices as a mom

- Inspiring stories about ambitious mothers, demonstrating that ambition comes in many forms

Motherhood will change your ambition As Welsh shares, you may discover that you are more ambitious than ever before, or ambitious in new and different ways. Ambitious Mother gives you permission to be as ambitious as you want to be Permission to set down a few balls that you no longer want to juggle--and pick up others that you do Permission to have the career and life you truly want

Dr Anne Welsh is a licensed clinical psychologist, certified executive coach, and mom of four She worked at Harvard University prior to creating her own firm, which supports ambitious women who want to thrive in motherhood and work at the same time She also provides training and coaching programming to organizations, showing employers how to make changes so that working parents can flourish Dr Welsh is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and works with clients throughout the world

May 28, 2026

Hardcover • 216 Pages • 6 x 9

10 bw photos, 6 textboxes, 39 sidebars, 1 table

9798881842598

US $30 00 • CAN $43 95 Bloomsbury Academic

A Life's Calling The Voice Behind the World's Greatest Horse Races

Tom Durkin

The riveting autobiography of iconic American sportscaster Tom Durkin

Sports have become indelibly linked to the voices that describe the action, from Al Michaels at the Olympics to baseball’s Vin Scully and basketball’s Marv Albert In horseracing, perhaps no single voice did as much to reshape, modernize, and improve the soundtrack of the sport as Tom Durkin

In A Life’s Calling: The Voice Behind the World’s Greatest Horse Races, Tom Durkin, alongside longtime turf writers Paul Volponi and Lenny Shulman, shares his fascinating story Readers will revel in his tales of life in the backwater stops of the Midwest learning horse racing among rickety grandstands and local hustlers, and of the day when he called the first Breeders’ Cup and ended up at an after-party surrounded by Frank Sinatra, Elizabeth Taylor, and Cary Grant Durkin also candidly recounts how the pressure to describe each race with flawless accuracy became too much, leading him to step away from the spotlight while still at his prime

Durkin’s life is as colorful as his description of a come-from-behinder weaving his way through horses toward a photo finish A Life’s Calling is a must-read for anyone wanting to learn more about the voice behind many of horse racing’s greatest calls

Tom Durkin is a retired American sportscaster specializing in Thoroughbred horse racing and the iconic voice of the Breeders’ Cup and Kentucky Derby. He was the race caller for NBC Sports from 1984 through 2010 and served as announcer for the New York Racing Association for over two decades He lives in New York

Paul Volponi is a bestselling author, journalist, and educator His twelve novels for young adults have received a dozen American Library Association honors and his novel Black and White was a winner of the International Reading Association Children's Book Award Volponi is also the author of multiple nonfiction books for young adults, including The Great G O A T Debate: The Best of the Best in Everything from Sports to Science, Superhero Smart: Real-World Facts behind Comic Book Characters, and SpongeBob SquarePants: The Unauthorized Fun-ography Volponi resides in New York City

Lenny Shulman is an Emmy Award-winning television and film writer He is the author of Justify: 111 Days to Triple Crown Glory; Ride of Their Lives; Head to Head; and a forthcoming biography of A P Indy He received the prestigious Walter Haight Award for lifetime achievement as a turf writer He lives in Kentucky

July 9, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 272 Pages • 6 x 9

19 bw photos

9798216201724

US $36 00 • CAN $52 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Robert Neyland The West Point Engineer Who Built Tennessee Football

Timothy D. Johnson

A celebration of coaching great Robert Neyland

Robert Neyland coached football for twenty-one seasons at the University of Tennessee and amassed a record of 173-31-12 He won seven conference titles and boasted full or partial claim to four national championships His success resulted from his stern discipline and his ability to put together the most consistently dominant defenses in the first half of the 20th century

The first biography in decades, Robert Neyland: The West Point Engineer Who Built Tennessee Football provides deep insight and first-hand accounts of Neyland’s life and incredible career Neyland was not your typical college football coach He was a graduate of West Point and veteran of both world wars who rose to the rank of brigadier general while serving in the China, Burma, India Theater in World War II During much of that time, he played a dual role as both army officer and football coach Neyland shifted seamlessly between the two professions, using lessons learned in each to influence his leadership style in the other As his players attested, Neyland ran his football program like the army

Featuring interviews with the only living former players from the Neyland era, and including new insight from the Robert R Neyland Family Papers, Robert Neyland will not only fascinate fans of University of Tennessee football, but sports and military historians, as well

Timothy D. Johnson is the Elizabeth Gentry Brown Professor of History at Lipscomb University in Nashville where he has taught since 1991 He has written articles for journals, popular magazines, and encyclopedias, and has authored or edited eight previous books Johnson has been a research fellow at the Virginia Historical Society as well as at Yale University, and has appeared on The History Channel, C-SPAN, and Public Television

May 14, 2026

Hardcover with dust jacket • 256 Pages • 6 x 9 11 bw photos

9798765189528

US $35 00 • CAN $51 50 Bloomsbury Academic

God’s Not Here, Only Devils Revelations from the Toolbox Killers

Laura Brand

The District Attorney began his opening statement with, “If you don’t know what hell is like, you’re about to find out ”

In 1979, Lawrence Bittaker and Roy Norris went on a rape and killing rampage The pliers, screwdrivers, hammers, sledgehammers, and ice picks they used on their victims became their calling card and moniker: The Toolbox Killers They were soon apprehended and convicted for their atrocities, but for decades, refused to reveal the location of their victims’ bodies More than two decades later, criminologist Laura Brand had the opportunity to interview this sadistic pair as they sat behind bars, probing the depths of their depravity right up to the days of their deaths Over this relentless six-year period, Bittaker finally gave Brand what he had withheld from law enforcement and families alike: the precise locations of two victims’ remains Brand’s investigation tore open sealed police reports, court transcripts, and witness accounts, and unearthed brutal and shocking new findings: undisclosed victims, forgotten evidence, and chilling new insights that resurrected this nightmare in unimaginable ways God’s Not Here, Only Devils is told through a powerful blend of narratives: the voices of Bittaker himself, his victims, traumatized witnesses, the tenacious lead detective, and the hardened District Attorney This book pulls the reader into a visceral retelling of the horrors that unfolded and the legacy of terror the Toolbox Killers left behind

Laura Brand is a criminologist who holds a degree in forensic psychology from Curry College The fight for justice is deeply personal for Laura; recovering missing victims, identifying John and Jane Does, and supporting victims of sexual assault and domestic violence are at the heart of her mission Over the past decade, she has spent significant time inside San Quentin’s notorious death row, interviewing some of the most dangerous criminals in the nation. She has assisted the San Francisco Cold Case Unit on the Charles Ng & Leonard Lake, David Carpenter, and Joseph Naso cases Currently, she is working with the Dennis Rader BTK Task Force Laura’s work has been featured in major outlets such as NBC, Fox News, Newsweek, The Independent, Daily Mail, LAPD Bible, Our Culture Magazine, E! News, and The Hollywood Reporter

May 14, 2026

Hardcover • 208 Pages • 6 x 9

20 BW Photos 9781538193860

US $30 00 • CAN $43 95 Bloomsbury Academic

Mysterious Creatures The Truth Behind the Legends

David Alderton

A captivating exploration of the world’s mysterious creatures

Legendary creatures capture our imagination in a way quite unlike those known with certainty to exist In Mysterious Creatures, David Alderton and Akara Heart bring readers into a shadowy, uncertain realm where myth and reality collide Their enthralling investigation unveils the tantalizing truths behind the world’s most enigmatic creatures, and how they have become etched in our minds and imaginations With meticulous research and gripping storytelling, Alderton and Heart unravel the legends of unicorns, dragons, werewolves, and more Each chapter weaves together historical accounts, eyewitness testimonies, and cultural lore, inviting readers to question what lurks just beyond the veil of the known

Dive beneath the waves to uncover the seductive secrets of mermaids Trek through misty, isolated forests in search of Bigfoot or Sasquatch Soar with the thunderbird, whose wings are said to summon storms A perfect blend of science and wonder, skepticism and belief, Mysterious Creatures breathes life into the myths that have captivated our thoughts for generations

David Alderton is well known for his books on animals, which have sold some seven million copies worldwide in more than 30 languages His titles for younger readers include Quest for New Animals and Breakfast with a Bigfoot David has also been involved in many radio and television programs about animals He lives in Sussex Akara Heart is a writer, artist, and dancer whose work has long been inspired by animals, particularly mythical ones She has previously worked with David on a variety of film and print projects involving animals. She lives in Glastonbury.