Johnny Come Home Jake Arnott (Sceptre, £7.99) Set against the meteoric rise of glam rock, this is a portrait of an era when free love and flower power gave way to the anarchy and bombs of the 1970s. The slightly awkward writing style takes a bit of getting used to, but the explosive plot makes up for it. A charismatic anarchist called O'Connell commits suicide, leaving his artist boyfriend, Pearson, and fellow activist, Nina, in shock. Sweet Thing, a streetwise yet vulnerable rent boy, moves Into the spare room of their 1970s' London squat. Pearson is caught under the youngster's spell, and so is tortured rock star Johnny Chrome, on the brink of oblivion and convinced that Sweet Thing is the only thing that can bring him back. As Sweet Thing is drawn further into Johnny's obsession, Pearson and Nina discover more about O'Connell.

Speaking for England David Faber (Pocket Books, £9.99) oJohn Amery, son of Conservative MP and minister Leo, was a troubled child who grew into a difficult and tortured adult. His skewed sense of patriotism lead him not just to a series of broadcasts on behalf of the Germans during the Second World War, but also to an attempt to recruit a Legion of St George to take up arms against the Russians. He was eventually executed after being convicted of treason. This book looks at the contrast between his life and that of his brother Julian, who also went into politics after a glittering period at Oxford, and his father, who had been instrumental in bringing about Chamberlain's downfall after the Munich crisis, not least in his famous exhortation in the House of Commons to "Speak for England!" Faber has constructed an interesting account of the story, but it remains a mystery why the brothers turned out so different.

12 Books That Changed The World Melvyn Bragg (Hodder, £8.99) Bragg argues that his 12 books have shaped, coloured and determined our physical, social, political, sexual, economic, religious and imaginative lives. His more unusual choices include the first rule book of the Football Association and the patent specification for Arkwright's spinning machine.