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Confessions of a Bookseller
Par Shaun Bythell. 2019
A funny memoir of a year in the life of a Scottish used bookseller as he stays afloat while managing…
staff, customers, and life in the village of Wigtown.Inside a Georgian townhouse on the Wigtown highroad, jammed with more than 100,000 books and a portly cat named Captain, Shaun Bythell manages the daily ups and downs of running Scotland’s largest used bookshop with a sharp eye and even sharper wit. His account of one year behind the counter is something no book lover should miss.Shaun drives to distant houses to buy private libraries, meditates on the nature of independent bookstores (“There really does seem to be a serendipity about bookshops, not just with finding books you never knew existed, or that you’ve been searching for, but with people too.”), and, of course, finds books for himself because he’s a reader, too.The next best thing to visiting your favorite bookstore (shop cat not included), Confessions of a Bookseller is a warm and welcome memoir of a life in books. It’s for any reader looking for the kind of friend you meet in a bookstore.Praise for Shaun Bythell and Confessions of a Bookseller“Something of Bythell’s curmudgeonly charm may be glimpsed in the slogan he scribbles on his shop’s blackboard: “Avoid social interaction: always carry a book.” —The Washington Post“Bythell’s wicked pen and keen eye for the absurd recall what comic Ricky Gervais might say if he ran a bookshop.” —The Wall Street Journal“Irascibly droll and sometimes elegiac, this is an engaging account of bookstore life from the vanishing front lines of the brick-and-mortar retail industry. Bighearted, sobering, and humane.” —Kirkus Reviews“Amusing and often cantankerous stories [that] bibliophiles will delight in, and occasionally wince at.” —Publishers WeeklyWho Goes There: Travels Through Strangest Britain In Search Of The Doctor
Par Nick Griffiths. 2009
The author of Dalek I Loved You charts his travels through England and Wales tracking down locations used in Doctor Who,…
both classic and new. Being an odd kind of show, Doctor Who&’s locations too are odd. This is no glamorous trip. Dungeness Nuclear Power Station, anyone? A flooded china clay pit in Cornwall? As he travels, so Nick Griffiths discovers another side to his well-trodden country, which is no less evocative. Then he goes to the pub. As in his previous memoir Dalek I Loved You, the travel writing is backed up by Nick&’s childhood reminiscences and contemporary musings. A companion website offers photographs from the trip, a Google map of the locations, and details of the nearest pub. In this innovative way, readers are invited to follow in his footsteps. Who Goes There isn&’t just for Who fans, it&’s a very funny book for anyone who fancies a trip off the beaten path. Praise for Dalek I Loved You &“A very funny book for anyone who grew up wearing Tom Baker underpants. I know I did.&”—David Tennant &“An unadulterated nostalgia-fest written with fun, wit and love.&”—Doctor Who Magazine &“He conjures up just how mind-blowing it was for an ordinary suburban kid to be transported to a realm of danger and rampant sci-fi imaginings.&”—Financial Times &“If I am getting carried away, it is the fault of Griffiths&’s awfully charming memoir of boyhood and Doctor Who, with its deft evocations of eight-year-old invincibility and embarrassing school discos as well as arguments about Cybermen vs Autons or Jon Pertwee vs Tom Baker. Griffiths&’s chatty, self-deprecating style is disarming.&”—The GuardianArmoured Guardsman: A War Diary, June 1944–April 1945
Par Robert Boscowan. 2010
&“A rare treat: a well-written account of what it was like to serve as a junior rank in the Brigade…
of Guards during the Second World War.&” —The Guards Magazine The outbreak of World War II brought many changes to Britain&’s Brigade of Guards. The dress-parade units had always maintained a full combat capacity and made a relatively easy transition into a new unit, the Guards Armoured Division. The Guards landed in Normandy on 26 June 1944 and steadily fought their way across northern Europe. Robert Boscawen was a tank commander in the 1st Coldstream Guards and had four tanks shot from under him. On the fourth occasion he was badly wounded and burned, making a difficult postwar recovery. The years after the war, however, also brought both business and political success, culminating in a twenty-three-year career in Parliament. Boscawen&’s account of Britain&’s elite at war is based on his wartime diaries. &“Tells the author&’s story in a most readable yet matter-of-fact way. It is one of the finest accounts of armoured warfare that I have ever read and I have no hesitation in recommending it to anyone who has not.&” —Tank Regiment MagazineThe third volume of the former Israeli prime minister&’s journals from the nation&’s early years.My Struggle for Peace is a…
remarkable political document offering insights into the complex workings of the young Israeli political system, set against the backdrop of the disintegration of the country&’s fragile armistice with the Arab states. Replete with Moshe Sharett&’s candid comments on Israel&’s first-generation leaders and world statesmen of the day, the diary also tells the dramatic human story of a political career cut short—the removal of an unusually sensitive, dedicated, and talented public servant. My Struggle for Peace is, above all, an intimate record of the decline of Sharett&’s moderate approach and the rise of more &“activist-militant&” trends in Israeli society, culminating in the Suez/Sinai war of 1956. The diary challenges the popular narrative that Israel&’s confrontation with its neighbors was unavoidable by offering daily evidence of Sharett&’s statesmanship, moderation, diplomacy, and concern for Israel&’s place in international affairs. This is the third volume in the 3-volume English abridgement of Sharett&’s Yoman Ishi [Personal diary] (Ma&’ariv, 1978) maintains the integrity, flavor, and impact of the 8-volume Hebrew original and includes additional documentary material that was not accessible at the time. The volumes are also available to purchase as a set or individually.&“The editors . . . vastly improved on the Hebrew version by adding Sharett&’s speeches, reports, cabinet minutes, and other sources to the text. . . . These additions makes this work so important and welcome by all who aspire to understand the foreign and defense policies of Israel in its first decade.&” —Israel Studies ReviewThe Case of Stephen Downing: The Worst Miscarriage of Justice in British History
Par Stephen Downing. 2020
The memoir of a man wrongfully convicted of murder and his 27 years spent in the U.K. prison system until…
his conviction was overturned.On September 12, 1973, seventeen-year-old, naïve gardener Stephen Downing returned from his lunch break to discover the badly beaten, unconscious, thirty-two-year-old Wendy Sewell lying on the footpath of Bakewell Cemetery close to Catcliff Wood and the consecrated chapel where she had been attacked. Stephen ran to the nearby workmen’s building, and in the meantime Wendy’s attacker returned and dragged her body to a second location where she was subsequently found soon after.Despite having learning difficulties, Downing was immediately taken into custody, questioned at length without a solicitor, and eventually signed a false confession statement. Wendy died some two days later from her injuries. Following a very biased, three-day trial during February, 1974, Downing was found guilty by a jury, convicted, and sentenced to what was eventually a full life sentence.Just eight months later during October, 1974, there followed an appeal with fresh evidence from an eye witness who saw Wendy Sewell alive after Downing left the cemetery for lunch. However, the prosecution trashed this evidence, and the appeal failed.In the years following Downing’s incarceration, he was moved from prison to prison, continuing to maintain his innocence—and in doing so, jeopardizing any chance of parole, as he was “In Denial of Murder”—until eventually his plight reached journalist Don Hale. Hale’s tireless efforts led to an appeal in which Downing was released after some twenty-seven years, the longest miscarriage of justice in the United Kingdom’s legal history.The Sterling Redemption: Twenty-Five Years to Clear My Name
Par James Edmiston, Lawrence Kormornick. 2012
The fight against a false accusation in the Arms-to-Iraq affair. &“A searing expose of one of the most shameful and…
cynical prosecutions of modern times.&” —The Guardian This is the untold true story of James Edmiston who suffered an extraordinary miscarriage of justice in 1983 when senior officials blocked vital witnesses coming to his trial which led to a personal tragedy; a broken marriage, and the loss of a business. The book explains how he was wrongly charged with alleged illegal exports to Iraq, and then took on the establishment against seemingly impossible odds for twenty-five years, to establish his innocence and to win record compensation from the British government in a truly remarkable case. Divorced and bankrupted, he is now rebuilding a shattered life, nearly thirty years later. This extraordinary story is a fascinating insight into government and the abuse of power and is based on many original sources including the Scott Report and Judgment of the Court of Appeal (criminal). The co-author, Lawrence Kormornick, is a Solicitor-Advocate (civil) who has represented Edmiston and several other victims of the Arms-to-Iraq prosecution scandal against the government and has a unique insight into these cases. Packed with ironies, twists of fate, and many unanswered questions it is a compelling read for anyone interested in political intrigue and abuse of power, miscarriage of justice, and learning about how an individual took on the state and won. &“A true story of alleged skulduggery and, possibly, criminal acts in the form of perverting the course of justice by the authorities and it should be bedside reading for everybody who believes in the rule of law.&” —The Law Society GazetteCalling Dr. Laura: A Graphic Memoir
Par Nicole J. Georges. 2012
The acclaimed debut graphic memoir by the author of Fetch: &“a beautiful and innovative portrait&” of young adulthood and confronting family…
secrets (NPR). When Nicole Georges was two years old, her mother told her that her father was dead. When she was twenty-three, a psychic told her he was alive. Her half-sister, saddled with guilt, admits that the psychic is right and that the whole family has conspired to keep him a secret. Sent into a tailspin about her identity, Nicole turns to radio talk-show host Dr. Laura Schlessinger for advice. Packed cover-to-cover with heartfelt and disarming black-and-white illustrations, Calling Dr. Laura tells the story of what happens to you when you are raised in a family of secrets, and what happens to your brain—and heart—when you learn the truth from an unlikely source. Part coming-of-age and part coming-out story, Calling Dr. Laura is &“a tragicomic graphic memoir with a stunning indie aesthetic&” (Bookslut).Winged Scalpel: A Surgeon at the Frontline of Disaster
Par Richard Villar. 2012
An ex-SAS surgeon&’s gripping memoir of trying to save lives in disaster areas and war zones around the globe. …
In this fast-paced narrative, ex-SAS surgeon Richard Villar provides a very personal insight into the difficulties, dangers, and occasional virtual impossibility of providing medical aid to disaster areas and war zones. He shares his remarkable experiences in the aftermath of three major earthquakes Kashmir (2005), Java (2006), and Haiti (2010) as well as in the 2011 Libyan civil war, in a no-holds-barred introduction to a world most will never experience. He describes what happens on the ground before a full aid program swings into action. Arriving in a stricken area with the infrastructure destroyed, his small, dedicated team can take nothing for granted; water, power, shelter, and the rule of law are likely to be nonexistent and disease and shortages of food and water ever present. They meet challenges that the rest of us can only imagine and are under intense pressure to help, comfort, and sustain overwhelming numbers of traumatized men, women, and children whose worlds have been turned upside down. Winged Scalpel is not only a riveting read but highly instructional and informative. From his own point of view, the author&’s experiences prove that you can take a man out of the SAS, but you cannot take the SAS out of the man.A Brief History of Oversharing: One Ginger's Anthology of Humiliation
Par Shawn Hitchins. 2017
From the author of The Light Streamed Beneath, a collection of hilarious and heartfelt autobiographical essays about accepting our quirks &…
flaws. Comedian Shawn Hitchins explores his irreverent nature in this debut collection of essays. Hitchins doesn&’t shy away from his failures or celebrate his mild successes—he sacrifices them for an audience&’s amusement. He roasts his younger self, the effeminate ginger-haired kid with a competitive streak. The ups and downs of being a sperm donor to a lesbian couple. Then the fiery redhead professes his love for actress Shelley Long, declares his hatred of musical theatre, and recounts a summer spent in Provincetown working as a drag queen. Nothing is sacred. His first major break-up, how his mother plotted the murder of the family cat, his difficult relationship with his father, becoming an unintentional spokesperson for all redheads, and ̶m̶a̶n̶d̶y̶ ̶m̶o̶o̶r̶e̶ many more. Blunt, awkward, emotional, ribald, this anthology of humiliation culminates in a greater understanding of love, work, and family. Like the final scene in a Murder She Wrote episode, A Brief History of Oversharing promises everyone the a-ha! moment Oprah tells us to experience. Paired with bourbon, Scottish wool, and Humpty Dumpty Party Mix, this journey is best heard through a lens of schadenfreude. Praise for A Brief History of Oversharing&“I am so glad I am not Shawn Hitchins, but I sure wish I could write like him. A Brief History of Oversharing is hilarious and heartwarming. Reading it is like sharing a warm bath with the man himself. At least I hope it&’s the bath that&’s warm.&” —Michael Urie, actor (The Good Wife, Modern Family, Ugly Betty)&“Hitchins&’s mix of raw emotion and salty hilarity works beautifully. . . . Hitchins has a gift for telling outwardly repulsive stories in a way that actually draws people in. He doesn&’t gloss over hard times, but he does counterbalance them with a self-deprecating, snarky humor that trades tears for laughter. He&’s not kidding when he says he&’s oversharing, but somehow he makes the mix of raw emotion and salty hilarity work.&” —Foreword ReviewsAppointment in Arezzo: A Friendship with Muriel Spark
Par Alan Taylor. 2017
A Scottish journalist offers rare insight into the life and mind of the renowned expat author in this &“beguiling, fascinating…
memoir&” (The Guardian, UK). In 1990, Alan Taylor traveled to Arezzo, Italy, to interview one of the greatest novelists of the 20th century. That interview evolved into a close friendship between Taylor and Muriel Spark that lasted until her death in 2006. In this intimate, anecdotal, admiring and indiscreet memoir, Taylor charts the course of Spark&’s life, revealing her as she really was. Once, Spark commented sitting over a glass of chianti at the kitchen table, that she was upset that the academic whom she had appointed her official biographer did not appear to think that she had ever cracked a joke in her life. Here, Taylor sets the record straight about this and many other things. With sources ranging from notebooks kept from his first encounter with Muriel and the hundreds of letters they exchanged over the years, this is an invaluable portrait of one of Edinburgh&’s premiere novelists.To Dakar and Back: 21 Days Across North Africa by Motorcycle
Par Lawrence Hacking. 2008
In this adventure motorsports memoir, the first Canadian motorcycle racer to complete the infamous Paris-Dakar Rally recounts his incredible journey.…
The Paris-Dakar Rally is is without question the most arduous and notorious off-road motorsports event on the planet. Since its inception in 1979, it has attracted more than three thousand adventurers from all walks of life. The men and women who have taken up the &“Dakar challenge&” have at least one thing in common: a desire to measure themselves against the desolate sands of the Sahara. In 2001, Canadian adventure racer Lawrence Hacking entered what would be the last rally on the iconic route from Paris to Dakar. In To Dakar and Back, Hacking, in collaboration with motorsport journalist Wil De Clercq, recounts the three weeks of blood, sweat, and tears that took him on that ten thousand kilometer journey in the heat of competition from the glitzy streets of the French capital through the hinterland of North Western Africa and the triumph of self-realization.Eastbound through Siberia: Observations from the Great Northern Expedition
Par Georg Wilhelm Steller. 2020
“Traveling with Steller as he botanizes his way across Siberia is part wilderness adventure, part open air museum visit, and…
a valuable historical window.” —Erika Monahan, author of The Merchants of SiberiaIn the winter of 1739, Georg Steller received word from Empress Anna of Russia that he was to embark on a secret expedition to the far reaches of Siberia as a member of the Great Northern Expedition. While searching for economic possibilities and strategic advantages, Steller was to send back descriptions of everything he saw. The Empress’s instructions were detailed, from requests for a preserved whale brain to observing the child-rearing customs of local peoples, and Steller met the task with dedication, bravery, and a good measure of humor. In the name of science, Steller and his comrades confronted horse-swallowing bogs, leaped across ice floes, and survived countless close calls in their exploration of an unforgiving environment. Not stopping at lists of fishes, birds, and mammals, Steller also details the villages and the lives of those living there, from vice-governors to prostitutes. His writings rail against government corruption and the misuse of power while describing with empathy the lives of the poor and forgotten, with special attention toward Native peoples.“Not only showcases Steller the botanist but also reveals him as an admirable human being with a great sense of humor who managed to keep an upbeat attitude in the most trying circumstances.” —Eckehart J. Jäger“What emerges is a remarkable window into life—both human and animal—in 18th century Siberia.” —The Birdbooker Report“Adds fascinating details to the life of Steller and his travels and discoveries just before joining Bering in Kamchatka to set sail.” —Anchorage Daily NewsTarzan, My Father
Par William Reed, W. Craig Reed, Johnny Weissmuller Jr.. 2002
The son of the Olympic swimmer who became a Hollywood star reveals the real story of his famous father&’s life.…
Johnny Weissmuller&’s name has become synonymous with Tarzan—the role he played in the 1930s and &’40s to the delight of millions. Many don&’t know that he also earned five Olympic gold medals for swimming before his renowned acting career—or that he had five marriages. This authoritative biography of the first Tarzan, written by his only son, offers an intimate look at Weissmuller&’s early life, middle years, and later decline, covering his experiences from swimming training and Olympic triumphs to failed marriages, phenomenal stardom, and a subsequent career as Jungle Jim. A sensitive yet unsentimental portrayal of the man who was Tarzan to movie fans around the world, Tarzan, My Father includes interviews with his father&’s celebrity friends and former wives, recollections of conversations with his father over the years, and family stories involving Hollywood stars such as Humphrey Bogart.The CEO of the Sofa
Par P. J. O'Rourke. 2001
Experience a year in the life of a cranky couch potato—also known as &“the funniest writer in America&” (The Wall…
Street Journal). Touching on topics from technological change to the United Nations, this is a chronicle of the day-to-day home life and frequent harangues of a New York Times–bestselling humorist. Over the course of the year, in between rants, he does occasionally leave the sofa and embark on exotic adventures—including a blind (drunk) wine tasting with Christopher Buckley, and a Motel 6 where he has twenty-eight channels and a bathroom to himself. As readers of Parliament of Whores, Give War a Chance, and his other bestsellers know, P. J. O&’Rourke takes no prisoners—though he may take a few naps. &“An entertaining and engaging read.&” —Associated Press &“A wide-angled worldview from his own living room, his salon of sarcasm. He introduces readers to his assistant, friends, family and smart-aleck babysitter . . . His vitriolic wit is couched in humor that elicits the gamut from giggles to guffaws.&” —Publishers WeeklySorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come: One Introvert's Year of Saying Yes
Par Jessica Pan. 2019
An introvert spends a year trying to live like an extrovert with hilarious results and advice for readers along the…
way.What would happen if a shy introvert lived like a gregarious extrovert for one year? If she knowingly and willingly put herself in perilous social situations that she’d normally avoid at all costs? Writer Jessica Pan intends to find out. With the help of various extrovert mentors, Jessica sets up a series of personal challenges (talk to strangers, perform stand-up comedy, host a dinner party, travel alone, make friends on the road, and much, much worse) to explore whether living like an extrovert can teach her lessons that might improve the quality of her life. Chronicling the author’s hilarious and painful year of misadventures, this book explores what happens when one introvert fights her natural tendencies, takes the plunge, and tries (and sometimes fails) to be a little bit braver.“This book is a rollicking, hilarious delight. Jessica Pan’s sense of humor as she stumbles (and sometimes triumphs) in a world of extroverts is sure to appeal to introverts everywhere. The only downside is that her book about going out and meeting new people is sure to make you stay home until you finish it.” —Jennifer Wright, author of Get Well Soon and Killer Fashion“Charming. Brave. Hilariously honest. Whether you buy this book for yourself, your favorite introvert, or the chatty friend you’re hoping to shut up for a few solid hours, you can’t go wrong with Jessica Pan’s revealing and delightful memoir.” —David Litt, New York Times–bestselling author of Thanks, ObamaButterflies on a Sea Wind: Beginning Zen
Par Anne Rudloe. 2002
This memoir by a marine biologist &“sings the life of a beginning Zen practitioner. . . . [with] a haunting, beautiful appreciation of…
the natural world.&”(Publishers Weekly) Anne Rudloe was attracted to Zen as a college student. But it seemed premature for a twenty-one-year-old to focus on the difficulties of life when she'd hardly begun to live. Twenty-five years later, she was ready to explore the spiritual discipline that originated in Asian monasteries more than a millennium ago. Rudloe's quest is compellingly chronicled in Butterflies on a Sea Wind, which combines the rigor of formal monastic Zen practice with the challenges of integrating Zen concepts into modern daily life. Her narrative describes both the physical and mental demands of Zen retreats and how she applied what she learned there to her work as a marine biologist in Florida, as well as to the rigors of raising children and caring for an elderly grandmother. In words that intimately draw in her readers, she describes how Zen helps us look inward and use the wisdom we find there to reach out to others. During the 1990s, the number of organized Buddhist centers in this country grew more than 40 percent, from 429 to 1,062. While there are many books about Zen on the market today, few give a clear picture of what it's like to actually sit down and begin a meditation practice and then apply it to a daily life. Likewise, few books discuss the types of issues most people face every day: raising a family and earning a living. Butterflies on a Sea Wind does all this and more.Deep Venture: A Sailor's Story of Cold War Submarines
Par Gary Penley. 2012
A U.S. Navy submariner’s account of his adventurous life in service beneath the waves.Beginning on a cattle ranch in Colorado,…
this memoir follows a young sailor on his voyage around the world. After enlisting in the U.S. Navy in 1960 and completing the Nuclear Power School program, Gary Penley embarks on a series of adventures-often at risk of his life-while serving on a submarine as a power plant operator.During his seven years with the navy, Penley and his shipmates encounter several frightening situations. While on submerged patrol in the Mediterranean Sea, his submarine, the USS Hamilton, strikes a heavy object, which tears a large hole in the ballast tank and threatens to sink the submarine. Later, they ride out a ferocious storm in the Arctic Circle that nearly submerges the vessel. Another harrowing experience occurs when the sailors, while on a top-secret mission in the Mediterranean during the Six-Day War, are attacked by unknown enemy ships and barely escape unscathed.Throughout his expeditions, Penley stops in such countries as Spain, Scotland, Italy, and Japan. In this captivating memoir, he recounts the coping skills necessary to live in a confined space for extended patrols while facing constant danger—often resulting in hilarious scenarios that only wild submarine sailors could conjure. He also provides a detailed description of the submarine and explains how the machines operate. Written in a candid tone, this memoir carries the reader along for the epic ride.Praise for Deep Venture“Penley uses his naval experience and considerable talent as a storyteller to write a humorous and totally engaging account of life beneath the sea. Against a backdrop of Cold War nuclear deterrence, and the ever-present personal danger faced by submariners, he takes us down the hatch into the claustrophobic confines of his submarine and life among an odd collection of sailors willing to endure the hardship of being submerged and incommunicado for months at a time. . . . A unique and highly entertaining story.” —Michael Archer, author of A Patch of Ground: Khe Sanh Remembered“Clear and lucid writing immediately grips the reader as Penley explores the tension, fear, humor, and adventure of navy and submarine life, enriched with a realism and accuracy that is often missing from such accounts. This story deserves a place on the bookshelf of anyone who reads and admires true stories of adventure at sea.” —James Ennes, author of Assault on the LibertyThe Lengthening War: The Great War Diary of Mabel Goode
Par Michael Goode. 2016
The First World War was an event so important, so catalytic, so transformative that it still hangs in the public…
memory and still compels the Historians pen. It was a conflict which, by the end of the struggle, had created a world unfamiliar to the one in existence before it and brought levels of destruction and loss all too unimaginable to the generation of minds which created it. Despite this, we still find it hard to picture what it was like to live through this war. Right from its start, Mabel Goode realised that the First World War would be the biggest event to take place in her lifetime. Knowing this, she took to recording it, taking us day by day through what living in wartime Britain was like. The diary shows us how the war came to the Home Front, from enrolment, rationing, the collapse of domestic service and growth of war work, to Zeppelin attacks over Yorkshire, and the ever mounting casualty lists. Above all else, Mabels diary captures a growing disillusionment with a lengthening war, as the costs and the sacrifices mount. Starting with great excitement and expecting a short struggle, the entries gradually give way to a more critical tone, and eventually to total disengagement. The blank pages marked for 1917 and 1918 are almost as informative as the fearful excitement captured at the onset of that tremendous conflict. This is a strong narrative of the war, easy to read, mixing news with personal feelings and events (often revealing gap between official news and reality). Also included are several poems written by Mabel and a love story in the appendix, giving a complete insight into the life of the diarist. Of note is the fact that Mabel and her brothers (the main serving protagonists in the diary) lived in Germany for some time, meaning they could all speak German and knew 'the enemy nation' as many Britons did not.We Keep a Light
Par Evelyn Richardson. 2005
In this classic memoir of life in rural Nova Scotia, a woman recounts her family&’s experiences running a lighthouse station…
on their own island. In We Keep A Light, Evelyn M. Richardson describes how she and her husband bought tiny Bon Portage Island and built a happy life there for themselves and their three children. On an isolated lighthouse station off the southern tip of Nova Scotia, the Richardsons shared the responsibilities and pleasures of island living, from carrying water and collecting firewood to making preserves and studying at home. The close-knit family didn&’t mind their isolation. Instead, they found delight in the variety and beauty of island life. We Keep A Light is much more than a memoir. It is an exquisitely written, engrossing record of family life set against a glowing lighthouse, the enduring shores of Nova Scotia, and the ever-changing sea.John Keats: Poetry, Life & Landscapes
Par Suzie Grogan. 2021
“This is a celebratory meld of memoir, biography and travelogue, intensely personal and all the better for it.” —Eleanor Fitzsimons,…
author of Wilde’s WomenJohn Keats is one of Britain’s best-known and most-loved poets. Despite dying in Rome in 1821, at the age of just twenty-five, his poems continue to inspire generations who reinterpret and reinvent the ways in which we consume his work.Apart from his long association with Hampstead, North London, he has not previously been known as a poet of ‘place’ in the way we associate Wordsworth with the Lake District, for example, and for many years readers considered Keats’s work remote from political and social context. Yet Keats was acutely aware of and influenced by his surroundings: Hampstead; Guy’s Hospital in London where he trained as a doctor; Teignmouth where he nursed his brother Tom; a walking tour of the Lake District and Scotland; the Isle of Wight; the area around Chichester and in Winchester, where his last great ode, “To Autumn,” was composed.Suzie Grogan takes the reader on a journey through Keats’s life and landscapes, introducing us to his best and most influential work. Utilizing primary sources such as Keats’s letters to friends and family and the very latest biographical and academic work, it offers an accessible way to see Keats through the lens of the places he visited and aims to spark a lasting interest in the real Keats—the poet and the man.“Warm and worthwhile observations on how places as varied as the Lake District and the Isle of Wight shaped Keats’s verse.” —Camden New Journal