Year Published
Categories
QueenSpark Books Archive - Free Full Text Books
A unique searchable archive of the books published by QueenSpark Books up until 2010. Free to view and full text this collection features voices that tell the story of Brighton and Hove, across the 20th Century, in their own words. The majority of these titles are now out-of-print.
You can buy those still in-print, and newer titles, with this link.
A Working Man - A Century of Hove Memories
Author(s): Ernie Mason
Published: 1998
One winter in the 1980s, Ernie Mason was at a loose end, so he bought a notebook and began to write his autobiography. This story encapsulates a working-class man's journey through life over the course of the twentieth century, documenting the many changes that took place in the local environment and in social conditions. Born in 1906, Ernie lived all his life in Hove, except for a short period spent in the Navy during the war years. His childhood was spent in a neighbourhood that was full of market gardens, orchards and fields. Ernie recalls vivid memories of growing up, of his working life and finally of retirement after sixty years of work, having begun his working life at the tender age of eleven. The narrative not only provides a unique personal history, but also depicts a largely forgotten way of life in a bygone era.Bangla Brighton - Voices from the Bangladeshi community in Brighton
Author(s): Members of the Bengali community
Published: 2006
Poetic and passionate, lively and lyrical, Bangla Brighton is a series of moving true life accounts of life on the South coast by Brighton and Hove"s Bangladeshi community. At times heartbreaking, but always full of hope, these stories offer the reader a glimpse into a fascinating culture. As intriguing as it is informative, Bangla Brighton gives one of the lesser heard voices in our community a chance to be heard. I have visited many, many areas, many places but finally Brighton gave me a little bit of my village life. In this sense it is my village.On the Writing Trail - Short stories by QueenSpark writers
Author(s): Leila Abrahams, Ethel Akhurst, Margory Batchelor, Shirley Beckett, Sylvia Calvert, Valerie Croft, Stevie English, Valerie Goble, Margaret Howell, Keith Kennedy, Susie Mehmed, Robert J Miles, Nick Osmond, Violet Pumphrey, Sam Royce, Claire Shelton-Jones, John Tatum, Arthur Thickett, P B Thomas
Published: 1999
This diverse anthology of short stories is a rare excursion for QueenSpark into publishing fiction. The stories explore childhood themes from an adult perspective, often in a quirky and original style. The content is entertaining, with a clear sense of humour evident throughout. The book recognises that writing fiction is part of a personal, subjective process and the stories in this collection reflect the individual experiences, ideas and inspirations of each of the writers. Through the writing process, it has allowed people who might not otherwise have classified themselves as authors to see their creativity find an outlet through the publication of this work.Rare book
Pebble on the Beach
Author(s): Tony Diamond
Published: 2006
"Back in the 1950s and 60s what the man in the white coat said, stood ....." Pebble on the Beach is the true story of one boy's ability to survive. Growing up in Brighton, England, Tony was subjected to a childhood of physical and mental abuse - including electric shock treatment at the age of ten - abandoned by his family at fifteen, and sent to Australia to fend for himself. Unable to settle, wandering from place to place, he plotted his return to England, but an ill-fated attempt to stow away led to imprisonment in New Zealand and his eventual deportation. Having visited four continents, survived four brushes with death and a journey of 30,000 miles, he arrived back in England profoundly changed – but were things at home any different?To be a Farmer’s Boy
Author(s): George Noakes
Published: 1977
This tells of George Noakes's childhood and early adult working life before he married Daisy, author of The Town Beehive and The Faded Rainbow, in 1934. George reminisces about his childhood farm memories and forays to the local shops and surrounding areas; for example, when he visited the local bakers, he always knew that a sugar bun would be given to him. When he was old enough to be trusted outside, he ventured everywhere. In short, he had an idyllic childhood, in an era where children had much more freedom to roam "without today's safety worries" and he progressed from a boy into a happy adolescent and adult.Hard Work and No Consideration - 51 Years as a Carpenter-Joiner 1917-1968
Author(s): Albert Paul
Published: 1981
This is the sequel to Poverty, Hardship but Happiness. Brightonian, Albert Paul, left school at the tender age of fourteen and began work as a carpenter, rising from the position of apprentice to that of master craftsman. Albert remained in his job throughout his life, in an era when people usually continued to work for one employer throughout their working lives. This second book vividly describes how he supported his family during his working life as a carpenter/joiner in Brighton from 1917 to 1968. His hard work and commitment throughout his career, which lasted fifty-one years, is an example to us all. This book was written in 1975, one year before the author died.The Church round the Corner - St. Anne’s, Kemp Town
Author(s): Maurice Packham
Published: 2000
This intelligently written book examines the social and religious history of St. Anne's Church, which was located in the heart of Brighton. Maurice Packman, the author, was a choirboy at St. Anne's in the 1930s and he takes a gently humorous look at the community of his fellow worshippers. The church has been demolished, but memories of the trials and tribulations of its parishioners live on through the eyes of the author.We’re Not All Rothschilds! - The extraordinary lives of some ordinary Jews
Author(s): Leila Abrahams
Published: 1994
This explores the interesting and unusual lives of some of Brighton's Jews in the twentieth century. Through a series of interviews with a cross-section of the Jewish community and two local Rabbis, Leila Abrahams shows that Jews are just as "ordinary" as any other section of society. A strong sense of their capacity to survive adversity in often extreme circumstances, is a theme that can be found throughout the book. On the part of some of the older Jews, there is nostalgia for the past, for a closely-knit family life and the comfort of familiar religious rituals and customs. As for the younger members of the community, they reflect the changing values of society over time in their search for a Jewish identity that involves integration without assimilation.The Faith Project
Author(s): Sudanese Coptic, Muslim and Progressive Jewish communities
Published: 2006
The Faith Project used oral history and video work to help members of the Sudanese Coptic, Muslim and Progressive Jewish communities to collate a history of how and why the followers of these faiths arrived in Brighton and the traditions and customs that they brought with them. Project extracts are featured in this book which focuses on the positive contribution that the faiths have made to the common heritage of Brighton and Hove.Moulsecoomb Memories - Growing up in North Moulsecoomb in the thirties and forties
Author(s): Sheila Winter
Published: 1998
This personal history features the growth of the community of North Moulsecoomb. These are the reminiscences of Sheila Winter, who was born, raised and married in the community, and who narrates the story of her life during the years between 1929 and 1950. Through her eyes, the reader learns of the pleasures of childhood, despite the hardships and restrictions brought about by the Second World War. Sheila shares with the reader her personal hopes, fears, struggles and achievements as she describes her life's progression. Above all, the resilience of the human spirit shines through this honest and reflective account of one woman's life history.