Böcker av Claire Cock-Starkey

A fascinating miscellany of the stories behind our weights and measures. How long is an ell? How big is the largest champagne bottle? How do you measure the heat of a chili pepper? Why is the depth of water measured in fathoms? And what, exactly, is a cubit? The Curious History of Weights & Measures tells the story of how we have come to quantify the world around us. Looking at everything from carats, pecks, and pennyweights, to firkins, baker's dozens, and modern science-based standards such as kilograms and kilometers, this book considers both what sparked the creation of measures and why there were so many efforts to usher in standardization. Full of handy conversion charts and beautiful illustrations, The Curious History of Weights & Measures is a treasure trove of fun facts and intriguing stories about the calculations we use every day.

The Lore of the Land is a treasury of fascinating tales and ancient wisdom, unearthing the folklore of the world's wildest places.

Lore of the Wild delves into traditional nature folklore from around the world, revealing the influence of trees, plants, insects, birds, animals and weather on daily life.

This book casts a well-deserved spot-light on punctuation marks, mathematical symbols and glyphs; stalwarts of typography whose handy knack for summing up a command or concept in simple shorthand marshals our sentences, clarifies a calculation or adds some much-needed emotion to our online interactions.

Bursting with quirky facts, intriguing statistics, lists and legendary curators, this is the perfect gift for all those who love to visit museums and galleries.

Encompassing eponyms from medicine, botany, invention, science, fashion, food and literature, this book uncovers the intriguing tales of discovery, mythology, innovation and infamy behind the eponyms we use every day. The perfect addition to any wordsmith's bookshelf.

What can be found in the Vatican's Secret Archive? How many books did Charles Darwin's library aboard the Beagle hold? Which library is home to a colony of bats?Packed with unusual facts and statistics, this is the perfect volume for library enthusiasts, bibliophiles and readers everywhere.

Ever wondered how ink is made? Or what is the bestselling book of all time? Or which are the oldest known books in the world?The ideal gift for every bibliophile, 'The Book Lovers' Miscellany' is full of fun facts, potted histories and curious lists, perfect for dipping into and sharing.

Through a combination of lists, statistics and bitesize nuggets of information, 'Bodleianalia' reveals many of the quirks of fate, eccentric characters and remarkable events which have contributed to the making of this renowned institution. The perfect book for trivia-lovers and bibliophiles.