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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.
Daring Hearts - Lesbian and Gay Lives of 50's and 60's Brighton
Author(s): Peter Dennis, Beccie Mannall, Linda Pointings
Published: 1992
This is a collection of life stories of people who are members of the gay and lesbian community in the Brighton area. The book is based on taped interviews with forty lesbian and gay men who spoke openly about their lives in and around Brighton. In the fifties and sixties the town enjoyed a national reputation as a haven for gay people and it was viewed as a relatively tolerant place for people to visit and live. Lesbians and gay men came from all over Britain for holidays and to settle down. Brighton was considered a type of ‘Eldorado', a promised land, and this tradition remains today, where its thriving gay community is one of the largest in the country, outside London.Blighty Brighton - Photographs and memories of Brighton in the First World War
Author(s): Various
Published: 1991
Sadly out of print, this book (produced in collaboration with the Lewis Cohen Urban Studies Centre), is all about memories of Brighton during the First World War. Through an examination of ephemera such as posters, photographs, pictures, songs and personal recollections, it portrays a collective memory of the city. Photographs are central to this work; for example Brighton Museum, Preston Manor and Brighton Reference Library are all featured pictorially. This book provides a valuable and important source of local history - a must for all those passionate about the city and its historical roots!Moulsecoomb Days - Learning and Teaching on a Brighton Council Estate 1922-1947
Author(s): Ruby Dunn
Published: 1990
The subject of Moulsecoomb Days is the establishment of a Brighton Council Estate. The book traces the creation of a community in a 'garden suburb' which didn't have a school or a church when it was originally conceived. In the social aftermath of the Great War, Lloyd George's government devised the first serious public house-building programme. Built in a beautiful downland valley, this was an early realisation of the Liberal policy of providing 'homes fit for heroes'. However, whilst it represented a great improvement for the residents, neither the vision nor the reality was as picturesque as this catchphrase suggested. Today, the estate is considered to be rather run-down and neglected - forgotten in the mists of time, as empty promises often are.Oh! What a Lovely Pier
Author(s): Daphne Mitchell
Published: 1996
Working on the West Pier from 1956 to 1970, Daphne Mitchell's story evokes the atmosphere of the seaside in bygone times. Daphne recalls seaside shows that featured acts, such as the Great Omani, floating by on a bed of nails. She describes scenes with dolphins basking in the sea and aerial displays by the Red Arrows; all things that made the West Pier - the pier of piers.' During the season, it was so hectic that Daphne comments 'you didn't know whether to laugh or cry'. In this account, the life of the West Pier is vividly brought to life for the modern reader, who today can only view a ghostly wreck that echoes to the seabirds' sad songs. The subject is of particular relevance in view of the current debates that are taking place over the future of the West Pier.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.Brighton behind the Front - Photographs and memories of the Second World War
Author(s): Various
Published: 1991(reprinted Oct-08)
First published in 1990, Brighton behind the Front was originally produced in collaboration with the now defunct Lewis Cohen Urban Studies Centre, in the same series as Backyard Brighton and Back Street Brighton. It brings together a collection of Brighton wartime reminiscences and documents how ordinary people were affected by the war. This was a challenging time in British history, giving rise to moving accounts of individual lives set against a society undergoing profound changes. Using personal recollections, contemporary photographs, letters, a logbook and diaries, Brighton behind the Front vividly portrays what it was like to live in this south coast town during the Second World War.Live and Learn - A life and struggle for progress
Author(s): Les Moss
Published: 1979
In this book, Les Moss tells of his lifelong struggle in search of progress, and his personal triumph over adversity. Also documented is the eventful daily and working lives of both himself and his family. Examples of the struggles experienced by Les's family are shown in the tale of how his grandfather's Northampton shoe manufacturing company was driven out of business by the advent of mass production and how his father, who played the flute in the Camden Music Halls in London, could no longer work when mass entertainment became prevalent. In turn, Les's own craft as a centre-lathe turner became largely displaced during his lifetime. This fascinating life history also describes one man's involvement in trade unionism and provides a picture of political activism in London and Brighton from the 1920s onward.The Other Side of the Counter - The Life of a Shop Girl 1925-1945
Author(s): Marjorie Gardiner
Published: 1985
This autobiography looks at the working life of milliner, Marjorie Gardiner, from 1925 to 1945, including an account of her working life during the Second World War. Marjorie's story is told in a lively and evocative manner, and describes her experiences as a shop assistant working in a Brighton hat shop, where she met all manner of elite customers. Those were the days when women were particularly fashion-conscious and there was a huge variety of different types of hat styles available. This first-hand account provides a fascinating insight into shop life during the first part of the twentieth century.The Sudden Change in My Life
Author(s): Gary Irwin
Published: 1995
This is a powerfully honest account of one man's triumph against the odds. Gary Irwin survived major surgery to remove a brain tumour. In this book, he takes the reader on a journey that charts the progress of his illness, including the invasive and traumatic surgery that he underwent. He documents the long process of initial diagnosis, treatment and eventual recuperation. This first-hand account is narrated from the patient's subjective point of view as opposed to a medical perspective and is a fascinating and compelling read.The Children’s Millennium Diary Anthology - Our present to the Future
Author(s): Brighton school children from Balfour Infants, Balfour Junior, Bevendean Primary, Downs Junior, Downs Park, Elm Grove Primary, Fairlight Primary, Middle Street Primary, Oathall Community College, Patcham Junior, St Andrew’s CE Primary, St Luke’s Infants, St Luke’s Junior, St Martin’s CE Primary, St Mary’s RC Primary, Saltdean Primary, West Hove Infants, Whitehawk Primary, Woodingdean Primary
Published: 2001
This anthology presents a child's-eye view of the year 2000. It includes drawings and words that reflect the perspectives and views of children, aged between five and eleven. The book was compiled from one-week diaries, written over the course of the Millenium Year, by four hundred school children in the Brighton and Hove area. There is a parent and teacher guide included in the book, which will enable the diary concept to be expanded and continued in schools and at home, and which provides points for discussion and for further development. The book is written in a format much like a scrapbook, and it offers an insight into the thoughts, crazes, hobbies, habits and humour of the contemporary young mind.