Away With The Penguins

AS HEARD ON THE BBC RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB 'This year's Eleanor Oliphant . . . Funny, bittersweet and wholly original.' Daily Express Veronica McCreedy is about to have the journey of a lifetime . . . Veronica McCreedy lives in a mansion by the sea. She loves a nice cup of Darjeeling tea whilst watching a good wildlife documentary. And she's never seen without her ruby-red lipstick. Although these days Veronica is rarely seen by anyone because, at 85, her days are spent mostly at home, alone. She can be found either collecting litter from the beach ('people who litter the countryside should be shot'), trying to locate her glasses ('someone must have moved them') or shouting instructions to her assistant, Eileen ('Eileen, door!'). Veronica doesn't have family or friends nearby. Not that she knows about, anyway . . . And she has no idea where she's going to leave her considerable wealth when she dies. But today . . . today Veronica is going to make a decision that will change all of this. 'I love this gorgeous book. Unflinching, stubborn, funny and moving, Veronica is an unlikely heroine who will sneak in and capture your heart.' Trisha Ashley

Meet the heroine everyone's talking about . . . Fiercely resilient and impeccably dressed, Veronica McCreedy has lived an incredible 87 years. Most of them alone, in her huge house by the sea. But Veronica has recently discovered a late-life love for family and friendship, adventure and wildlife. More specifically, a love for penguins! And so when she's invited to co-present a wildlife documentary, far away in the southern hemisphere, she jumps at the chance. Even though it will put her in the spotlight, just when she thought she would soon fade into the wings. Perhaps it's never too late to shine?

"Uplifting escapism...fresh and sweet."--Washington Post Discover the charming and heartwarming debut novel which shows us that love can be found in the most unexpected places... Meet Ellie. She's perfectly happy living her quiet life with her husband, Clive. Happy to wander the English countryside and write the occasional poem that nobody will read; happy to dream of all the things she hasn't yet managed to do. Meet Dan. He thinks all he needs is the time and space to make harps in his isolated barn, deep in the countryside. He enjoys being on his own, far away from other people and - crucially - far away from any risk of surprises. But what Ellie and Dan are about to learn that sometimes, you don't find love--love finds you...

"A glorious, life-affirming story. I read it in a day. I'm going to buy it for so many people this year!" --Clare Mackintosh, New York Times bestselling author of Let Me Lie A heartwarming story about a curmudgeonly but charming old woman, her estranged grandson, and a colony of penguins that proves it's never too late to be the person you want to be...and that family is what you make it. After a disastrous first meeting with the grandson she never knew she had, eighty-four-year-old Veronica McCreedy wants to find a worthwhile cause to endow with her millions. Although she has health, wealth, and wit, Veronica has been alone for a long time, her only connection to her past a box of diaries from when she was a teenager during WWII...and a locket filled with a strand of hair from every person she has ever loved and lost. After learning about a research team studying endangered penguins in Antarctica, Veronica tells the scientists she's coming for a visit--and won't take no for an answer. Despite a discouraging first experience (a penguin attacks her favourite designer handbag), Veronica warms to the birds. She even convinces the team to rescue an orphaned baby penguin who swiftly becomes part of life at the base. Veronica's closed heart starts to open. But when she becomes ill, her grandson Patrick comes to Antarctica for one last attempt to get to know his grandmother. Together, Veronica and Patrick--and even the scientists--begin to really learn what family, love, and connection are truly all about.

'An outstanding debut. Funny and surprising' The Times Best Books for Children 2021 ‘This debut novel is a delight . . . A joy to read aloud’ Sunday Times Children’s Book of the Week

"No summary can do justice to the strange appeal of this unusual, short book, which is at once a crime novel, a comic novel and a serious political satire on contemporary Ukraine." —Anne Applebaum, The Wall Street Journal With the collapse of the Soviet Union, newly-free Ukraine is a shell-shocked land . . . In poverty-and-violence-wracked Kyiv, unemployed writer Viktor Zolotaryov leads a down-and-out life with his only friend, Misha, a penguin that he rescued when the local zoo started getting rid of animals it couldn't feed. Even more nerve-wracking for Victor: a local mobster has taken a shine to Misha and wants to borrow him for events. But Viktor thinks he’s finally caught a break when he lands a well-paying job at the Kyiv newspaper writing “living obituaries” of local dignitaries—articles to be filed for use when the time comes. The only thing is, the time always seems to come as soon as Viktor finishes writing the article. Slowly understanding that his own life may be in jeopardy, Viktor also realizes that the only thing that might be keeping him alive is his penguin.

Mr. Popper and his family have penguins in the fridge and an ice rink in the basement in this hilarious Newbery Honor book that inspired the hit movie! How many penguins in the house is too many? Mr. Popper is a humble house painter living in Stillwater who dreams of faraway places like the South Pole. When an explorer responds to his letter by sending him a penguin named Captain Cook, Mr. Popper and his family’s lives change forever. Soon one penguin becomes twelve, and the Poppers must set out on their own adventure to preserve their home. First published in 1938, Mr. Popper’s Penguins is a classic tale that has enchanted young readers for generations. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Richard and Florence Atwater including rare photos from the authors’ estate.

A "remarkable memoir" (Nature) of life with an emperor penguin colony, gorgeously illustrated with 32 pages of exclusive photography For 337 days, award-winning wildlife cameraman Lindsay McCrae intimately followed 11,000 emperor penguins amid the singular beauty of Antarctica. This is his masterful chronicle of one penguin colony’s astonishing journey of life, death, and rebirth—and of the extraordinary human experience of living amongst them in the planet’s harshest environment. A miracle occurs each winter in Antarctica. As temperatures plummet 60° below zero and the sea around the remote southern continent freezes, emperors—the largest of all penguins—begin marching up to 100 miles over solid ice to reach their breeding grounds. They are the only animals to breed in the depths of this, the worst winter on the planet; and in an unusual role reversal, the males incubate the eggs, fasting for over 100 days to ensure they introduce their chicks safely into their new frozen world. My Penguin Year recounts McCrae's remarkable adventure to the end of the Earth. He observed every aspect of a breeding emperor's life, facing the inevitable sacrifices that came with living his childhood dream, and grappling with the personal obstacles that, being over 15,000km away from the comforts of home, almost proved too much. Out of that experience, he has written an unprecedented portrait of Antarctica’s most extraordinary residents.