For every copy of the paperback version sold on the Troubador website, the author will donate £1.50 to Macmillan Cancer Support ** All copies that are pre-ordered in the UK before 1pm on 18th December will be delivered in time for Christmas ** The Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in 2012 was celebrated as the greatest ceremony ever. It won over critics and the general public, and made the nation proud. Now you can discover exactly how the incredible spectacle was put together, and transformed into what the world saw on the night. The Pandemonium segment of the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games was met with disbelief and awe, and has been widely acclaimed as the most spectacular part of the show. Making Pandemoniumdescribes the entire rehearsal process of the volunteers from a performer’s perspective. Nadeem Masood was one of the volunteers lucky enough to perform on the night. In this book, he takes the reader through the application process, the auditions, and every single rehearsal that led up to the final show. He describes first-hand the highs and the lows, the commitments and sacrifices, working with Danny Boyle and everything that the volunteers were put through. Interspersed with accounts of the preparations that were taken, Masood also touches on the Games Maker experience, giving readers an insight into the entire process that led to volunteers being granted the rare privilege of hosting the Olympic Games. Making Pandemonium will give readers a whole new perspective of the greatest Olympic Games that the world has ever seen. This book will identify with readers interested in sports, memoirs and Olympic history, as well as those who enjoyed watching the ceremony itself.

The Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Games in 2012 was largely celebrated as the greatest ceremony ever. It won over critics and the general public, and made a nation proud. This book describes the entire rehearsal process of the volunteers, told from a performer's perspective, for what most agreed was the most spectacular part of the show.

A ruthless Russian tycoon lures biologists Nell and Geoffrey to his underground metropolis, where they are confronted by a vicious menagerie of biological horrors that are rising up to consume the world.

Seifer Tombchewer, a peasant boy living in the macabre Darkling Realm, proves his worth when he is forced to impersonate the missing Prince Talon Pandemonium as diplomat, warrior, and Lord Defender of the Realm.

“Michele Raffin has made an important contribution to saving endangered birds, and her book is a fascinating and rarely seen glimpse behind the scenes. The joy she gets from her close relationships with these amazing animals and her outsized commitment to them comes through loud and clear in this engaging and joyful book.” —Dominick Dorsa, Curator of Birds, San Francisco Zoo Each morning at first light, Michele Raffin awakens to the bewitching music that heralds another day at Pandemonium Aviaries—a symphony that swells from the most vocal of over 350 avian throats representing over 40 species. “It knocks me out, every day,” she admits. Pandemonium Aviaries is a conservation organization dedicated to saving and breeding birds at the edge of extinction, including some of the largest populations of rare species in the world. And their behavior is even more fascinating than their glorious plumage or their songs. They fall in love, they mourn, they rejoice, they sacrifice, they have a sense of humor, they feel jealous, they invent, plot, cope, and sometimes they murder each other. As Raffin says, “They teach us volumes about the interrelationships of humans and animals.” Their stories make up the heart of this book. There’s Sweetie, a tiny quail with an outsize personality; the inspiring Oscar, a Lady Gouldian finch who can’t fly but finds a way to reach the highest perches of his aviary to roost. The ecstatic reunion of a disabled Victoria crowned pigeon, Wing, and her brother, Coffee, is as wondrous as the silent kinship that develops between Amadeus, a one-legged turaco, and an autistic young visitor. Ultimately, The Birds of Pandemonium is about one woman’s crusade to save precious lives, bird by bird, and offers insights into how following a passion can transform not only oneself but also the world. “Delightful . . . full of wonderful accounts of bird behavior, demonstrating caring, learning, sociability, adaptability, and a will to live. Its appeal is ageless, her descriptions riveting, and her devotion to the birds remarkable.” —Joanna Burger, author of The Parrot Who Owns Me: The Story of a Relationship “A remarkable book. Reading about the birds of Pandemonium will make you laugh and cry; it will make you see more clearly the need to take care of our planet; and it will confirm that one person with a passion can make a difference.” —Jeff Corwin, nature conservationist and host, Animal Planet “The Birds of Pandemonium touched me deeply . . . This book is about reconnecting with the nature of birds, and the nature of ourselves.” —Jon Young, author of What the Robin Knows

It is a world like our own in every respect . . . save one. In the 1950s, random acts of possession begin to occur. Ordinary men, women, and children are the targets of entities that seem to spring from the depths of the collective unconscious, pop-cultural avatars some call demons. There’s the Truth, implacable avenger of falsehood. The Captain, brave and self-sacrificing soldier. The Little Angel, whose kiss brings death, whether desired or not. And a string of others, ranging from the bizarre to the benign to the horrific. As a boy, Del Pierce is possessed by the Hellion, an entity whose mischief-making can be deadly. With the help of Del’s family and a caring psychiatrist, the demon is exorcised . . . or is it? Years later, following a car accident, the Hellion is back, trapped inside Del’s head and clamoring to get out. Del’s quest for help leads him to Valis, an entity possessing the science fiction writer formerly known as Philip K. Dick; to Mother Mariette, a nun who inspires decidedly unchaste feelings; and to the Human League, a secret society devoted to the extermination of demons. All believe that Del holds the key to the plague of possession–and its solution. But for Del, the cure may be worse than the disease. “Look out, Lethem! Daryl Gregory mixes pop culture and pathos, flavoring it with Philip K. Dick. Pandemonium possesses every quality you want in a great novel, and the good news is it’s only his debut.” –Charles Coleman Finlay, Hugo and Nebula Award-nominated author of The Prodigal Troll

Demanding a radical epidemiology in the face of the lethal failures of capitalism.