Books

‘David Chang writes about a chef’s life in a way that feels completely fresh. The recipes, including those from the ginger-scallion noodles and roasted pork belly served at Noodle Bar, are almost perks; this would be a great read even without them.’
The New York Times

‘Ever since I slurped my first Momofuku ramen bowl, I knew David Chang was a special chef. Now, with this soulful memoir, David has added another feather to his cap: brilliant writer. David is a personal hero - funny, wise, humble, and self-aware. With Eat a Peach, he puts words to so many of the things we all feel, sharing generously of his own journey so we can all benefit in the process.’
Chrissy Teigen, New York Times bestselling author of Cravings

In 2004, Momofuku Noodle Bar opened in a tiny, stark space in Manhattan’s East Village. Its young chef-owner, David Chang, worked the line, serving ramen and pork buns to a mix of fellow restaurant cooks and confused diners whose idea of ramen was instant noodles in Styrofoam cups. It would have been impossible to know it at the time—and certainly Chang would have bet against himself—but he, who had failed at almost every endeavour in his life, was about to become one of the most influential chefs of his generation, driven by the question, “What if the underground could become the mainstream?”

Chang grew up the youngest son of a deeply religious Korean American family in Virginia. Graduating college aimless and depressed, he fled the States for Japan, hoping to find some sense of belonging. While teaching English in a backwater town, he experienced the highs of his first full-blown manic episode, and began to think that the cooking and sharing of food could give him both purpose and agency in his life. Full of grace, candour, grit, and humour, Eat a Peach chronicles Chang’s switchback path. He lays bare his mistakes and wonders about his extraordinary luck as he recounts the improbable series of events that led him to the top of his profession. He wrestles with his lifelong feelings of otherness and inadequacy, explores the mental illness that almost killed him, and finds hope in the shared value of deliciousness. Along the way, Chang gives us a penetrating look at restaurant life, in which he balances his deep love for the kitchen with unflinching honesty about the industry’s history of brutishness and its uncertain future.

Eat a Peach is an intimate account of the making of a chef, the story of the modern restaurant world that he helped shape, and how he discovered that success can be much harder to understand than failure.

About the Author
David Chang is the chef and owner of the Momofuku empire, with 15 locations from New York to Australia, and the creator and producer of the hit Netflix series Ugly Delicious. Chang has been named a Food & Wine Best New Chef, a GQ Man of the Year, a Rolling Stone Agent of Change, and a Bon Appetit Chef of the Year. He has taken home five James Beard Awards, including Best New Restaurant (2009, Momofuku Ko) and Outstanding Chef (2013). His game-changing and New York Times bestselling cookbook, Momofuku (Clarkson Potter, 2009) has sold nearly 200,000 copies.

Maybe, like Mitch, you lost track of this mentor as you made your way and the insights faded. Wouldn't you like to see that person again, ask the bigger questions that still haunt you?

Mitch Albom had that second chance. He rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man's life. Knowing he was dying of ALS - or motor neurone disease - Mitch visited Morrie in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to back in college. Their rekindled relationship turned into one final 'class': lessons in how to live.

TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE is a magical chronicle of their time together, through which Mitch shares Morrie's lasting gift with the world.

Broncos, Dragons, Knights, Maroons, Australia ... Darius Boyd is an NRL champion. This raw, honest and inspiring memoir takes us into the heart of his footy and private life and reveals his fight to conquer his demons and live a better life.

'A legend of the game' - Anthony Seibold
'He's a player that never lets his team down' - Billy Slater

Darius Boyd broke into the Brisbane Broncos NRL team in 2006 straight out of high school and was part of the premiership-winning team in his debut season. He'd go on to win another premiership with the Dragons in 2010, claiming the Clive Churchill Medal for man of the match and forever stamping his name as an elite champion of the game. He has played 28 State of Origins for Queensland and taken the field in 23 Tests for Australia - never playing in a losing Australian team. In 15 seasons at the top level, Darius has won nearly every honour the sport can award and is undeniably an NRL great.
But listing statistics, awards and premierships doesn't reveal the battles that Darius Boyd has faced off the field. A teenager with a troubled background, he started his career with innate footy talent but also the emotional baggage of an unknown father, the devastating loss of loved ones, and a mother who was walking a mental health tightrope herself, which as a kid he didn't understand.
As his talent shone on the field and his profile increased, Darius struggled. Hiding years of depression and unhappiness, playing footy was his escape. But no one can run from themselves forever. The horrific spinal injury to good mate and Newcastle Knights teammate Alex McKinnon was the catalyst that finally broke Darius. Realising he needed help for his anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts, he turned his back on football, checked into a mental health facility and began to mend his life and himself. Now, as he heads into retirement, Darius Boyd is sharing his story, to celebrate his triumphs on the field but, more importantly for him, revealing how to deal with depression, overcome adversity and live with mental illness. He reflects on excerpts from his private journal which charted his journey from the depths of despair to a life of gratitude. It is a heartfelt message he now takes across the NRL and into boardrooms, schools and footy clubs in a quest to keep our young men alive.
BATTLING THE BLUES is a raw, honest and inspiring memoir that takes us into the heart of an NRL champion and his fight to conquer his demons and live a better life.

The Biographic series presents an entirely new way of looking at the lives of the world's greatest thinkers and creatives. It takes the 50 defining facts, dates, thoughts, habits and achievements of each subject, and uses infographics to convey all of them in vivid snapshots. Each Biographic title is designed to be as entertaining as it is informative. Timelines not only pinpoint significant dates, but set them in the context and culture of their times. Dynamic maps locate biographical events alongside other points of interest. Character traits are illuminated by visual comparisons.

Many people know that Gabrielle 'Coco' Chanel (1883 - 1971) was a prolific French fashion designer and founder of the House of Chanel, who ruled over Parisian haute couture for almost six decades. What, perhaps, they don't know is that, she was taught to sew by nuns and started Chanel by making hats; that she lived in a suite at the Ritz Hotel, Paris, for 37 years; that, in 1935, she was recognised as the world's wealthiest woman; and that, prior to her fashion career, she worked as a singer, famously gaining the nickname 'Coco' from one of her songs.

Biographic: Coco presents a visual catwalk through her life and work, with an array of irresistible facts and figures converted into infographics to reveal the genius behind the garments.