New non-fiction for June

Europe's internal borders have rarely been 'natural'; they have more often been created by accident or force. Successive powers have redrawn the map of our continent, with varying degrees of success: the fingerprints of Napoleon, Alexander I, Castlereagh, Napoleon III and Bismarck are all there, but the present shape of Europe is mostly the work of the Allies in 1919 and Stalin in 1945. In this book, writer and political historian Lewis Baston journeys along and across key borders from west to east Europe, to explore their history. He explores how places and people heal from the scars, physical and psychological, left by a Europe of ethnic cleansing and barbed wire fences.

This is what our future looks like: in the next decade, AI will be able to convince us that it's human. During the 2030s, it will become 'superintelligent', vastly outstripping our capabilities by almost every measure. By 2045, it will be possible to connect our brains with these AIs using invisibly small nanotechnologies. Our minds and theirs will merge, expanding our consciousness more profoundly than we can fully comprehend, unlocking possibilities we can barely imagine. This is the singularity. Ray Kurzweil is a renowned oracle of technology. Dozens of his predictions about the internet and AI that were made decades ago are now being borne out. He sees further because of his first-hand knowledge of the machines, some of which he helped invent, and his deep understanding of the science behind them. In this visionary book, he shares his thinking in a way that everyone can grasp.

This is a story about a piano and its most prodigious player - how it, along with him, survived. When her father died, singer songwriter Roxanne de Bastion inherited a piano she knew had been in her family for over a hundred years. But it is only when she finds a cassette recording of her grandfather, Stephen, playing one of his compositions, the true and almost unbelievable history of the piano, this man and her family begins to unravel. Stephen was a man who enjoyed great fame, a man who suffered the horrors of concentration camps in WWII, a man who ultimately survives - along with his piano. By piecing together his cassette recordings, unpublished memoirs, letters and documents, Roxanne sings out her grandfather's story of music and hope, lost and found, and explores the power of what can echo down through generations.

'Pinch of Nom Air Fryer' is the much-anticipated first air fryer book from the UK's bestselling food brand. This is everything you love about Nom - fuss-free, comforting recipes that work every time - for one of the most time-saving and energy-efficient items in our kitchen.

An allotment. A health-giving, heart-filling miniature kingdom of carrots, courgettes and callaloo. A microcosm for our societies at large as people claim their ‘patch’ and guard it protectively, but also of welcoming arms, gifted gluts and new recipes from overseas. This Allotment brings together thirteen brilliant contemporary writers in a glorious celebration of these entirely unique spaces: plots that mean so much more than the soil upon which they sit.

This memoir from Blondie's Chris Stein, is a quintessentially New York story of the golden age of the East Village and the makings of international superstars, with a foreword by Debbie Harry. At its heart, 'Under A Rock' is a love story. The codependent bond between Chris Stein and Debbie Harry carried Blondie through their many tribulations: terribly misogynistic music scenes, greasy record execs, bitter band mates, gruelling schedules, and hard drug abuse abound, and Chris lays it all bare with blunt sincerity and humour. Ultimately, Chris and Debbie broke up, but their bond never dissipated; they remain the closest of friends, and continue to tour and promote their various projects together to this day.

We regard gardens as our personal dominions, where we can create whatever worlds we desire. But they are also occupied by myriads of other organisms, all with their own lives to lead. The conflict between these two power bases, Richard Mabey suggests, is a microcosm of what is happening in the larger world. In this provocative book, rooted in the daily dramas of his own Norfolk garden, Mabey offers a different scenario, where nature becomes an equal partner, a 'gardener' itself. Against a background of disordered seasons he watches his 'accidental' garden reorganising itself.

How much do you need to be happy? 'You'll be pregnant and drinking cider outside Tesco by the age of 16.' By age 17, Charlotte Bradman was pregnant. By 30, with a dysfunctional relationship falling apart, her house was repossessed. Shedding her possessions and stripping back life to the basics, Charlotte used the last of her savings to buy a campervan - a creaky, old van with no loo or onboard water. It was the best thing she ever did. Come along on this moving ride as Charlotte finds true stability and security, learning that all she needs is a recharging van battery, a dry bed, and an unspoilt sea view. Self-confessional, observational and darkly humorous, this is an engrossing and inspirational story of resilience and fortitude.

'Every Contact Leaves a Trace' is a gripping look at crime scenes - dead bodies, blood spatter, murder weapons - and how a forensics specialist keeps it together as she does her job.