Abacus Publishing Imprint - Little, Brown Book Group

In 2013 Abacus will celebrate forty years of publishing, with the reissue of 18 of our classic books with new introductions by the authors. They include a wonderfully diverse range of books - from Douglas Coupland's Generation X to Iain Banks' The Wasp Factory and from Tom Holland's Rubicon to Alexander McCall Smith's The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency.

We were saddened to learn of the passing away of Eric Hobsbawm, one of the leading historians of the 20th century, earlier today at the age of 95.

Read the first chapter of the latest book in Alexander McCall Smith's Sunday Philosophy Club series. The victim of an important art theft appeals to Isabel Dalhousie, Edinburgh philosopher and sleuth, for help.

A landmark book about genocide from the prize-winning author who brought us the explosive Number 1 international bestseller Hitler's Willing ExecutionersDaniel Jonah Goldhagen brings us now an original and important study of genocide that reconceives its very nature. He does so not by examining a series of genocides but by exploring the nature of mass killing itself. Our failure to clearly describe, explain, and understand the mechanisms of genocide has made it difficult to prevent, and this book will change that.

Through exhaustive research, he brilliantly lays out the roots and motivations of mass slaughter, exploring such questions as: Why do genocides occur? What makes people willing to slaughter others? Based on his thoroughgoing reconceptualization of genocide, Goldhagen proposes novel, sensible, and effective measures to put an end to this scourge of humanity, which is worse, even, than war.** 'What no one can deny him is the range and depth of his knowledge or the courage involved in many of his judgements . . . his book is masterful** 'Impressive, scholarly and thoroughly unsettling** 'Disturbing and impassioned . . .A powerful and affecting study of man's inhumanity to man (and woman and child)** 'Worse Than War makes a compelling and brave argument that our world must heed if we are to see sanity restored . . . Magnificent [and] inspiringUntil deciding to devote himself full-time to writing, Daniel Jonah Goldhagen taught political science for many years at Harvard University. He is also the the prize-winning author of Hitler's Willing Executioners and A Moral Reckoning and contributes to major newspapers and magazines around the worldLong-awaited, path-breaking book on genocideWORSE THAN WAR is the basis for a feature length documentary of the same name that was produced in the United States and internationallyHITLER'S WILLING EXECUTIONERS has sold over 120,000 copies with LB and Abacus

Alexander McCall Smith may be known as a fantastic author, but it turns out that writing is not his only talent: he is also a bassoonist! Join him for an incredible evening in Glasgow with the Really Terrible Orchestra.

* Inspired by a real house, an amazing modernist symbol, Simon Mawer has written his best novel yet, a story guaranteed to dazzle and intrigue the readerCool. Balanced. Modern. The precisions of science, the wild variance of lust, the catharsis of confession and the fear of failure - these are things that happen in the Glass Room.

High on a Czechoslovak hill, the Landauer House shines as a wonder of steel and glass and onyx built specially for newlyweds Viktor and Liesel Landauer, a Jew married to a gentile. But the radiant honesty of 1930 that the house, with its unique Glass Room, seems to engender quickly tarnishes as the storm clouds of WW2 gather, and eventually the family must flee, accompanied by Viktor's lover and her child.

But the house's story is far from over, and as it passes from hand to hand, from Czech to Russian, both the best and the worst of the history of Eastern Europe becomes somehow embodied and perhaps emboldened within the beautiful and austere surfaces and planes so carefully designed, until events become full-circle.** 'THE GLASS ROOM is a fiction of many remarkable qualities . . . Mawer's control of his themes of language, desire, memory and the power of place is extraordinary - as haunting and mysterious as the effect of sunlight on the wall of golden onyx that survives all the convulsions by which his characters are engulfed** '[THE GLASS ROOM'S] poetic success is to remind us of two great gilt-edged ironies: that whatever is held to be the height of modernity is already en route to the museum, and that even "cold" art is the embodiment of its maker's passion - one that can** 'Mawer creates a passionately detailed portrait of individuals struggling to snatch order and happiness from frightening, irrational times . . . THE GLASS ROOM achieves a rare feat of being truly enjoyable to read.** 'Love triangles litter Mawer's story. They bear witness to his great talent for grasping the non-linear nature of desire.Simon Mawer was born in 1948 in England, and spent his childhood there, in Cyprus and in Malta. He has lived with his wife in Italy for more than 20 years, and he teaches at the English School in Rome.Shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2009Mawer's control of his themes of language, desire, memory and the power of place is extraordinary - as haunting and mysterious as the effect of sunlight on the wall of golden onyx' Jane Shilling, DAILY TELEGRAPH23,000 HBs sold gross (13,000 bookscan)

The first authoritative book on the most formidable fighting forces of WWIIJune 1940: As Britain's soldiers limped home from Dunkirk, a maverick Army officer was already devising a bold plan to hit back at the enemy. His idea was to revolutionise military thinking and change the face of warfare for ever.

Relying as much on stealth and guile as on courage and stamina, the Commandos brought to the battlefield the skills of the guerrilla. Trained by an unconventional band of experts, and led by a big-game hunter, a film star, a Highland chief and an eccentric wielding a bow and arrow, they became the spearhead of the Allied drive for victory.

Weaving together official documents, new research and veterans' own accounts, Commando reveals for the first time the exhilarating full story of WWII's most formidable fighting force.James Owen is a historian and the author of Nuremberg: Evil on Trial, The Voice of War (with Guy Walters), A Serpent in Eden and Danger UXB. He writes frequently for newspapers and contributes to television and radio programmes. He lives in London.Compare to Ben McIntyre, whose bestselling books include Operation Mincemeat.

* A publishing sensation: a stunning novel based on the author's dramatic and extraordinary true story of life on the run in the Bombay underworld
* 'A literary masterpiece ... it has the grit and pace of a thriller' DAILY TELEGRAPHA novel of high adventure, great storytelling and moral purpose, based on an extraordinary true story of eight years in the Bombay underworld.

'In the early 80s, Gregory David Roberts, an armed robber and heroin addict, escaped from an Australian prison to India, where he lived in a Bombay slum. There, he established a free health clinic and also joined the mafia, working as a money launderer, forger and street soldier. He found time to learn Hindi and Marathi, fall in love, and spend time being worked over in an Indian jail. Then, in case anyone thought he was slacking, he acted in Bollywood and fought with the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan . . . Amazingly, Roberts wrote Shantaram three times after prison guards trashed the first two versions. It's a profound tribute to his willpower . . . At once a high-kicking, eye-gouging adventure, a love saga and a savage yet tenderly lyrical fugitive vision.' Time OutA literary masterpiece ... at once erudite and intimate, reflective and funny ... it has the grit and pace of a thrillerPowerful and original ... a remarkable achievementExtraordinarily vivid ... a gigantic, jaw-dropping, grittily authentic sagaA publishing phenomenonGregory David Roberts was born in Melbourne in 1952. After surviving the events dealt with in Shantaram, he was captured in Germany in 1990 and eventually extradited to Australia. On completing his prison sentence, he established a small multi-media company and is now a full-time writer. He is currently working on The Mountain Shadow, a sequel to Shantaram, being the continuing adventures of Lin, Karla and all the other characters still standing at the end of Shantaram, and with a host of new characters and locations in Europe and West Asia.The literary phenomenon and international bestsellerWe have sold 900,000 copies

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