Signed Books

Many admired authors visit Stanfords to sign their latest books, which means we always have an exciting collection of autographed copies available - from big names such as Bill Bryson, Michael Palin, Ranulph Fiennes, David Attenborough and Ewan McGregor, to up-and-coming new writers. So if you’re looking for books with that extra special touch, keep an eye on this page for the update on signed copies…

• See all our Travel Writing and Other Literature.

Much of Peter Ackroyd 's work has been concerned with the life and past of London but here, as a culmination, is his definitive account of the city. For him it is a living organism, with its own laws of growth and change, so London is a biography rather than a history. It differs from other histories, too, in the range and diversity of its contents.

London - The Biography
£14.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

“Thames: Sacred River”, is about the river from source to sea. It covers history from prehistoric times to present; the flora and fauna of the river; paintings and photographs inspired by the Thames; its geology, smells and colour; its literature, laws and landscapes; its magic and myths; its architecture, trade and weather. Peter Ackroyd has a genius for digging out the most surprising and entertaining details, and for writing about them in the most magisterial prose.

Thames: Sacred River
£25.00 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

In “Go Slow England”, Alastair Sawday embraces an appreciation of good food and artisan producers, of craftsmanship and community, landscape and history. This superbly produced book features wonderful places to accommodate your stay, all illustrated with wonderful photographs.

Go Slow England
£19.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Photographers and writers Steve Watkins and Clare Jones draw on their years of international travel experience in selecting 30 of the world's most inspiring and beautiful walks. Their choices include a wide range of locations, from urban walking tours along Boston's Freedom Trail and the stunning temples of Kyoto, to the open countryside of the Yellowstone National Park in the USA and Peru's Inca Trail.

Unforgettable Walks to take before you die
£18.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

In “Adventures in Architecture”, BBC TV's Dan Cruickshank tells the story of architecture in all its diversity, looking at 40 buildings that have impressed, astonished or delighted us or changed our perception of the world. He reveals how truly great buildings function, wherein material and purpose connect to all other parts of life - showing how architecture is the richest and most complex of man's artistic endeavours.

Adventures in Architecture
£20.00 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

In "The Wild Places" by Robert Macfarlane, the author embarks on a series of beautifully described journeys in the remaining wildernesses of Britain and Ireland. The result is both an intellectual and a physical journey, with the author travelling in time as well as space. Guided by monks, questers, scientists, philosophers, poets and artists, both living and dead, he explores our changing ideas of the wild.

The Wild Places
£18.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Ed Glinert ’s “London’s Dead” unearths some of the capital's most gruesome and intriguing stories; from famous and infamous people to unsung heroes and victims, well-known resting places to undignified graves and a delicious variety of sticky ends...

London's Dead
£12.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

As seen on BBC TV, in his greatest challenge yet, intrepid author and explorer Simon Reeve sets out on a unique journey to track the Tropic of Capricorn around the globe. Travelling through Africa, Australia and South America, Simon discovers spectacular landscapes, exotic wildlife, strange rituals and desperate poverty. For the Tropic of Capricorn crosses some of the wildest and most extraordinary parts of our planet.

Tropic of Capricorn
£17.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

International travel writers and photographers Steve Watkins and Clare Jones draw on their years of experience and select 30 of their personal favourite adventures of a lifetime. The recommendations range from riding the Okavango Delta in Botswana, to travelling among the Patagonian fjords in Chile or in a horse-drawn caravan through county Wicklow, Ireland.

Unforgettable Journeys to Take Before You Die
£18.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Michael Palin sets off to discover the half of Europe that until recently has been largely out of bounds. Shown in BBC TV documentaries, the famed travel writer and comedian explores 20 eastern European countries, encountering painful pasts and exciting prospects. New Europe, vintage Palin.

Read our Michael Palin interview.

New Europe
£20.00 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

In order to discover the ‘real’ past of France, it is not only necessary to go back in time, but also to go at a slower pace than modern life generally allows. Graham Robb 's book is of genuine interest, continually redefining what we thought we knew about the history of France, with an assured, analytical, good-humoured and sympathetic understanding of the subject.

The Discovery of France
£18.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Sir Ranulph Fiennes is often described as the world’s greatest living explorer, and “Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know” shows that as his life story stands, this is no exaggeration. From his early military career to his many expeditions, his life of extraordinary achievement has been characterised by courage, determination against all odds and a rebellious streak.

Read our interview with Ranulph Fiennes.

Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know
£20.00 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

For his BBC TV series “Cooking in the Danger Zone”, award-winning food writer Stefan Gates has travelled the world to investigate how people cook, eat and survive in extreme conditions. He drank radioactive wine with babushkas in Chernobyl, ate fat-tailed sheep with Taliban warlords in Afghanistan, yak’s penis with Chinese Communists, and rotting walrus with the Inuit of the Canadian Arctic.

In the Danger Zone
£15.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Bryson hangs up his walking boots and other travelling paraphernalia to instead study, well, everything. He’s driven by simple questions and an enquiring mind. He doesn’t want so much as to know what is at the centre of the earth, or how heavy the planet is, but rather how it is we do know the answers to such questions.

A Short History of Nearly Everything
£9.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Bill Bryson takes a look back at his childhood, a seemingly idyllic time in 1950s Des Moines, Iowa. It was a time when America was growing up, when they discovered that after WWII they had $26 billion worth of factories that weren’t there before and that they had $140 billion in war bonds and savings waiting to be spent.

The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid
£7.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

International travel writers and photographers Steve Watkins and Clare Jones draw on their years of experience and select 40 of their personal favourite adventures of a lifetime. The recommendations range from tracking spirit bears on Princess Royal Island, Canada to sailing down the Nile on a felucca in Egypt.

Unforgettable Things to Do Before You Die
£18.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Fran Sandham 's “Traversa" is a part travelogue, part history and awe-inspiring account of his grit, determination and sheer obsession with Africa. Walking 3,000 miles from the Skeleton Coast to the Indian Ocean, Sandham was inspired by the great explorers, leaving behind the daily grind to undertake an extraordinary adventure.

Traversa
£16.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Jill Dudley has written plays and short stories for radio. She then ran a dairy farm with her husband. When they retired from farming they travelled around Greece and a number of her travel articles have appeared in the national newspapers. “Ye Gods!” is the result of these journeys. A light and humorous read of her travels around Greece, touching on the myths and legends of the old gods.

Ye Gods!
£7.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

“Aveyron, A Bridge to French Arcadia” is the captivating story, by Thirza Vallois, of a once destitute corner of France that is now singled out for its idyllic quality of life. Until recently, Aveyron was France at its most rural, sealed off from the rest of the country by a rugged terrain, anchored firmly in its disctinctive identity and traditions - today the Aveyron is a dynamic area of astonishing contrasts.

Aveyron, A Bridge To French Arcadia
£14.99 In stock: usually dispatched within 48 hours

Check our Events page for upcoming book signings with more great authors…

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