Cool stuff from the selectors: time to appreciate the outdoors, music and revisit your mindset

Play it loud : instruments of rock & roll Jayson Dobney

This book was “made possible thanks to the harmonious collaboration between The Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame”. It’s a lush exploration of some of rock’s most iconic instruments and the people who played them. Our Selector particularly likes the illustration on the back cover of Steve Miller’s 1961 Gibson Les Paul Special electric guitar, painted by surfboard artist Bob Cantrell.

Still Water: The deep life of the pond John Lewis-Stenpel

This is a favourite author for the selector of our science books and she says that he is regarded as Britain’s finest nature writer. "I love his books – such a good sense of place". And what a great cover!

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Wild at Heart : Pets, People and Their Beautiful Homes Magali Elali

For those times when you just want to look at pretty pictures of pretty people, their pretty pets and their enviable homes.

The Garden Jungle : or Gardening to Save the Planet Dave Goulson
The Climate Change Garden Sally Morgan

I chose both these books because there are times when it all feels too hard, perhaps by getting out into the garden it will not only lift you mood but give you a sense that there is something that you can do to help

The Science of Fate: Why your future is more predictable than you think Hannah Critchlow

A different approach from the usual - you can change your mindset to be happier/slimmer/less anxious etc. The author puts forward a compelling case for the acknowledgement of our genes affecting our opinions, experiences and how we even chose a mate. Here is an interview with the author.