{"title":"Ken Smith","description":"\u003cp\u003eKen Smith's works offer a compelling blend of introspection and wit, inviting readers to explore personal journeys and unique perspectives. With titles such as \u003cem\u003eThe Way of the Hermit\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eWaltzing at the Doomsday Ball\u003c\/em\u003e, his writing navigates the delicate balance between biography and reflective memoir.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRooted in both personal experience and broader cultural insight, Ken Smith's books serve as thoughtful companions for those interested in life’s complexities and the art of storytelling. His contributions enrich the \u003cstrong\u003eBiography \u0026amp; Memoir\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eEducation \u0026amp; Reference\u003c\/strong\u003e categories with a distinctive voice marked by clarity and depth.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"waltzing-at-the-doomsday-ball-the-best-of-joe-bageant-by-joe-bageant-9781921844515","title":"Waltzing at the Doomsday Ball: The best of Joe Bageant","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 2004, at the age of 58, writer Joe Bageant sensed that the internet could give him editorial freedom. Without having to deal with gatekeepers, he began writing about what he was really thinking, and started submitting his essays to left-of-centre websites. Joe’s essays soon gained a wide following for his forceful style, his sense of humour, and his willingness to discuss the American white underclass, a taboo topic for the mainstream media.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eJoe called himself a 'redneck socialist', and he initially thought most of his readers would be very much like himself—working class from the southern section of the USA. So he was pleasantly surprised when the emails started filling his in-box. There were indeed many letters from men about Joe's age who had also escaped rural poverty.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut there were also emails from younger men and women readers, from affluent people who agreed that the political and economic system needed an overhaul, from readers in dozens of countries expressing thanks for an alternative view of American life, from working-class Americans in all parts of the country, and more than a few from elderly women who wrote to Joe to say that they respected and appreciated his writing, but 'please don't use so much profanity'.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eJoe Bageant died in March 2011 at the age of 64, having published 89 essays online. The 25 essays presented in \u003ci\u003eWaltzing at the Doomsday Ball\u003c\/i\u003e have been selected by Ken Smith, who managed Joe's website and disseminated his work to the wider media and to Joe's dedicated fans and followers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46355259359468,"sku":"9781921844515","price":36.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/6856273482872.jpg?v=1744303951"},{"product_id":"the-way-of-the-hermit-by-ken-smith-9781035009824","title":"The Way of the Hermit","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eA Thoreauvian account of solitary life in the Scottish Highlands . . . delightful\u003c\/em\u003e - Kirkus Reviews\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eKen Smith's advice for staying alive in inclement conditions could equally be applied to achieving hard-won dreams\u003c\/em\u003e - Geographical\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eKen Smith comes across as a thoughtful, resourceful and above all humane man . . . inspiring\u003c\/em\u003e - BBC Countryfile Magazine\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003chr\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCould you leave behind the bustle of modern society and spend your days immersed in nature? In \u003cem\u003eThe Way of the Hermit\u003c\/em\u003e, seventy-four-year-old Ken Smith recounts a life he has chosen to spend alone with the wilderness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eKen Smith has spent the past four decades in the Scottish Highlands. He lives alone, with no electricity or running water. His home is a log cabin nestled near Loch Treig, known as 'the lonely loch', where he lives off the land: he fishes for his supper, chops his own wood, and even brews his own tipple. He is, in the truest sense of the word, a hermit.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor the first time, Ken shares the story of his life. From his working-class origins in Derbyshire, to the formative years he spent travelling in the Yukon and finally how he came to be the Hermit of Loch Treig. Looking back through decades of diary entries, Ken reflects upon the reasons he turned his back on society, the vulnerability of old age and the awe and wonder of a life lived in nature. \u003cem\u003eThe Way of the Hermit\u003c\/em\u003e is a humorous, transcendent and life-affirming memoir.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Macmillan Publishers New Zealand Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48244770636012,"sku":"9781035009824","price":27.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781035009824-the-way-of-the-hermit-1.jpg?v=1788012247"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/ken-smith.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}