Bill Bryson describes himself as a reluctant traveller, but even when he stays safely in his own study at home, he can't contain his curiosity about the world around him. This book is his quest to understand everything that has happened from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization.

From the author of Notes from a Small Island and The Lost Continent comes this humorous report on his walk along the Appalachian Trail. The Trail is the longest continuous footpath in the world, and it snakes through some of the wildest and most spectacular landscapes in America.

After nearly two decades in England, Bill Bryson returned to the country of his birth. Gathered here are 18 months' worth of his Mail on Sunday columns about that strange phenomena, the American way of life, in which he brings his bemused wit to bear on one of the world's craziest countries.

Australia has more things that can kill you than anywhere else. Nevertheless, Bill Bryson journeyed to the country and promptly fell in love with it. The people are cheerful, their cities are clean, the beer is cold and the sun nearly always shines.

Examining the mother tongue, this book explores the countless varieties of English and the perils of marketing brands with names like Pschitt and Super Piss. It also contains sections on the oddities of swearing and spelling, spoonerisms and Scrabble, and a consideration of what we mean by 'good English'.

An account of one man's rediscovery of America and his search for the perfect small town. Instead he finds a continent that is doubly lost: lost to itself because it is blighted by greed, pollution, mobile homes and television; and lost to him because he has become a foreigner in his own country.

Bill Bryson shoulders his backpack, keeps a tight hold on his wallet and heads for Europe. He retraces his travels as a student twenty years earlier with caustic hilarity and his own unique brand of humour. Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Bill Bryson lived in North Yorkshire for many years. First published in 1991 by Secker & Warburg.

Some say that the first hint that Bill Bryson was not of Planet Earth came when his mother sent him to school in lime-green Capri pants. Others think it all started with his discovery, at the age of six, of a woollen jersey of rare fineness. In this memoir, he explores the ordinary kid he once was, and the curious world of 1950s America.

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move back to the USA. Before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, he took one last trip around the UK, and in this book, he turns an affectionate but laconic eye on his adopted country.

An entertaining, anecdotal look at the origins of language and ideas in the USA. Bryson explains why two bicycle repairmen from Ohio succeeded in mastering manned flight, why the assassination of President Garfield led to the invention of air conditioning, and many other improbable but true facts.

This short biography of William Shakespeare by world famous writer Bill Bryson brims with the author's inimitable wit and intelligence.

Bill Bryson goes to Kenya at the invitation of CARE International, a charity which works with local communities to eradicate poverty around the world. Travelling around the country, Bryson casts his eye on a continent new to him, and writes a diary with wry observation and curious insight.

A guide to problems of English usage and spelling. It is suitable as a companion for those who work with the written word.

Presents the harrowing story of Carolyn Jessop who suffered for the sake of her children. She tried to protect them as the cult's new leader, Warren Jeffs, started marrying girls off younger and younger. But when Carolyn discovered that her twelve-year-old daughter had spent three days at Jeffs' home, she had to take her children and flee.

* One of America's most important classics, the first and best loved volume of Maya Angelou's bestselling six-volume autobiography is reissued in a new look to coincide with the publication of Celebrations

Mitch Albom rediscovered his college professor and mentor, Morrie Schwartz, in the last months of the older man's life. Knowing he was dying, Morrie visited Mitch every Tuesday, just like in college. This is a chronicle of their time together and their final class : lessons in how to live.