Julian Baggini
Should you Judge this Book by its Cover?

Read by Tom Lawrence
Another rapid-fire selection of short, stimulating and entertaining capsules of philosophy from the master of the genre. This time Baggini applies his philosophical scalpel to famous sayings, proverbs and pieces of homespun wisdom. Should you really do as the Romans do when in Rome and practice what you preach? Is the grass always in fact greener on the other side of the fence, and is there ever smoke without fire? Is beauty always in the eye of the beholder and is it actually better to be safe than sorry? Baggini’s approach is as witty and deeply thought provoking as ever.

'The aim of this book is to make proverbs and other familiar sayings speak their wisdom afresh, and to clear away some of the mistaken ideas they can give rise to' – Julian Baggini

Greg Milner
Perfecting Sound Forever

Read by William Hope
From our CD collections and iPods bursting with MP3s to the hallowed vinyl of DJs, recordings are the most common way we experience music. Yet their ubiquity has deafened us to how our understanding of music is shaped by the processes that create them. Perfecting Sound Forever tells the story of recorded music from Thomas Edison’s claim, in 1915, that he could perfectly capture the sound of a live performance, to the digital tools used today which create the illusion of performances that never were. Along the way, Greg Milner introduces the innovators, musicians, and producers – from Les Paul to Phil Spector to Neil Young – who have affected the way we hear our favourite songs.

'Fascinating . . . a rich blend of commerce, ideology, technology and creativity' – Sunday Times

Michael Scott
From Democrats to Kings

Read by the author
Athens, 404 BC. The democratic city-state has been ravaged by a long and bloody war with neighbouring Sparta. Less than 100 years later, a large part of the known world has come under the control of an absolute monarch, a master of self-publicity and a model for despots for millennia to come: Alexander the Great. Michael Scott explores the dramatic and little-known story of how the ancient world was turned on its head from democratic Athens to King Alexander the Great in this superb example of popular history writing. From Democrats to Kings also gives us a fresh take on the similar challenges we face today in the 21st century, a world in which many democracies – old and new – fight for survival.

'It's admirable of Michael Scott to shine a light on the forgotten 4th century, and he's engaging about the culture that bloomed as Athens faded' – Daily Mail

Stephen E. Ambrose
Band of Brothers

Read by Tim Jerome
As good a rifle company as any in the world, Easy Company, 506th Airborne Division, US Army, kept getting the tough assignments – responsible for everything from parachuting into France early on D-Day morning to the capture of Hitler's Eagle's Nest at Berchtesgaden. Band of Brothers tells of the men in this brave unit who fought, went hungry, froze, and died, a company that took 150 percent casualties and considered the Purple Heart a badge of office. Drawing on hours of interviews with survivors as well as the soldiers' journals and letters, Stephen Ambrose recounts the stories, often in the men's own words, of these American heroes.

'A first-class explanation of what crack infantry troops are like. Addicts of military history will relish its finely detailed account'– San Francisco Chronicle