Summersdale Publishers Ltd: 447 books

"Qué es esto? Qué es esto? Es cocaína!" I couldn't speak a word of Spanish but I understood the word 'cocaína' and knew that I was in a lot of trouble. I should have been paralysed with fear but it didn't seem real. I was only twenty-three.' In 1997, English holidaymaker...

Marathons make you miserable, but they also give you the most unlikely and the most indescribable pleasures. It’s a world that I love – a world unlocked when you dress up in lycra, put plasters on your nipples and run 26.2 miles in the company of upwards of 30,000 complete strangers. Phil Hewitt,...

Child: Dad, I’m hungry Dad: Hello hungry, I’m Dad! Celebrate the sense of humour that’s so bad it’s great with this ultimate collection of dad jokes. From cheesy one-liners to puns so terrible that they should probably be illegal, this book has it all – it’s sure to make you laugh and cry.

‘We were aware of a dreamlike quality to our trip. There was something far-fetched about it, something out of this world.’ Austerity might be getting everyone else down, but Steve is waving his worries goodbye on another of his light-hearted trips around the picturesque English waterways. This...

"With a glint in his eye, Rob turns and asks me if I want to ‘touch his furry puma’. We are only hours into the trip and things have already taken a sinister turn. Thankfully, it turns out he is referring to the little embossed logo on his new shirt. " Fuelled by a degree of midlife...

‘Watch out for men with too much wooden jewellery, Amy. I know what you’re like… you’ll let them sucker you in with their yoga chat but essentially, they’re unwashed… and you don’t want to put your face anywhere near an unwashed penis, let me tell you.’ Carol, receptionist Having...

"Mr Fernando led me into a dark room that was lined with book-cases and smelled of leather and damp. The polished, concrete floor of the library was covered with white jasmine flowers that had blown through the windows during the storm. He began to select from the shelves a collection of disintegrating...

"… one of the best ways to get to know a country is to take yourself to the less touristy, less obvious destinations. And let’s face it: things don’t get much less touristy than Slough…" As staff travel writer on The Times since 1997, Tom Chesshyre had visited over 80 countries...

• Magic, the miniature pony who helped a woman speak again after three years of silence • Stubby, the stray dog who braved the front line with soldiers in World War One • Moko, the bottlenose dolphin who guided a mother whale and her calf back out to sea No matter how cute...

She’s the most well-known woman on the planet, but while many of us know of her love of animals, her taste in fashion and her attendances at Royal Ascot, there is a wealth of information beyond this about our Queen. Did you know for example that she was the first monarch to circumnavigate...

I loved football. I played in the morning and in the afternoon. Even when I went to bed with my wife I was training. DIEGO MARADONA The natural state of the football fan is bitter disappointment, no matter what the score. NICK HORNBY When the final whistle blows and you’ve finished...

This inspiring collection gathers together Winston Churchill's wisest and wittiest quotations. Quotable Churchill showcases his finest hour and is sure to delight all lovers of this great British statesman's rousing and compelling way with words.

• In which year did the first televised football match take place? • What were the first shin pads made out of? • Who held the shortest ever managerial position, at a record-breaking ten minutes? From the humble beginnings of Notts County football club in 1862 to the technical...

The right-hand point at Jeffreys Bay is one of the surfing world’s most exciting finds, and from the age of twelve it had been my life’s purpose to surf there. J-Bay, South Africa – the fantasy, the almost mythical waves every surfer dreams of riding once in their lifetime.' But Tom wouldn’t...