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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.
The Smiling Bakers
Author(s): George Grout
Published: 1992
George Grout was a member of one of Brighton's best-known family bakers. He learnt the skills and craft of baking from his father and brothers at a young age, and can attest to hard times as well as recalling many happy memories of laughter and fun. George recalls the years when he lived and worked at the bottom of Coombe Road, and his bedroom was full of paper bags, there were horses in the stable and he had to get up very early in order to get to work on time. He reminisces about his ten brothers and sisters, his strong and gentle mother and the man who was his teacher, his boss and above all his father. In a nutshell he loved his work, stating that "being one of "The Smiling Bakers" kept me going. That was the name that we called ourselves.Stories from the Nights at the Round Table
Author(s): Dawn Bartram, Margaret Bearfield, Marion Devoy, Gill Donocick, Peggy Eaton, Julie Everton, Sarah Griffiths, Clare Halstead, Ruth Lonsdale, Eve Peel, Sheila Smith, Pauline Streeton, Margaret Ward
Published: 1998
This is an anthology taken from work that was produced by the Hangleton and Brighton Women Writers' groups. The Hangleton group started meeting in July 1988 as part of the Hangleton and Knoll Community Festival. The aim of the programme was to introduce new writers and audiences to the notion of creative writing, using a variety of methods, to explore the central concerns and themes that impact on women's lives and to draw on their life experiences. For many women, it was the first time that they were able to see their work in print, and this was a positive and uplifting experience for them.Write from the Beginning - Special childhood days
Author(s): Irene Andrew, Dorothy Fuller, Gilbert Grover, Dave Huggins, Wendy Jones, Kit Keay, Lee Lacy, Kathleen Malenczak, Saviour Pirotta, Kathleen Wilson, Michael Wilson
Published: 2002
This work is the culmination of an eight-month creative writing programme that ran at QueenSpark from August 2001 to March 2002 and included two ten-week creative writing courses and four introductory sessions on writing autobiographically. Its aim was to involve new and diverse audiences and writers in the joys of creative writing. It utilised a variety of techniques and methods to explore two central themes; one of which was writing for children and the other was looking at childhood memories. This anthology contains work from the Vallance Memories Group and the Brunswick Older People"s Project and as well as being an enjoyable read, it provides a stimulus for reminiscence work, particularly with older members of the community.At the Pawnbrokers
Author(s): Lillie Morgan
Published: 1991
This is the moving story of Lillie Morgan's life as a pawnbroker during World War One, in which she paints a vivid picture of the abject poverty that could be found in Brighton at that time. Food was scarce and people often had to go to desperate lengths to find the price of a loaf of bread - simply to feed their family! Within this life history, there are many amusing anecdotes that attest to the resilience of the human spirit. Lillie told her story to her granddaughter, Jane Russell, who transcribed it, using her grandmother's own words - as much as possible.Catching Stories - Voices from the Brighton Fishing Community
Author(s): Fishermen
Published: 1996
This comprehensive account of the fishing industry documents how it has changed since the beginning of the century. At that time, fishing boats landed on the beach and the fish market was actually on the seafront. On a more personal level, Catching Stories is a living record, told in their own words, of the individuals who made up Brighton's fishing community. Their past is remembered with humour and honesty, as are the bygone traditions and lifestyles of their families. This unique and valuable document of social and oral history reveals the details of a traditional profession in an informative and enjoyable way. Listen to "hidden voices" that clamour to be heard!Our Small Corner
Author(s): Sid Manville
Published: 1994(reprinted 1994)
This autobiography is the sequel to Sid Manville's Everything Seems Smaller. It recalls memories of friends, neighbours and relatives who made up the 'small corner' of Sid's neighbourhood in Bear Road in Brighton in the Twenties and Thirties. Sid writes with much affection and humour, although he doesn't forget that this era was also a time of great hardship for working class people. His own mother and father struggled to bring up a large family at a time when it was considered fortunate to have any kind of job, no matter how poorly paid. Although times have changed, lack of employment is still a feature of many people's lives in the twenty-first century.Remember the First Time? - A Collection of Childhood Memories
Author(s): Martha Buckley, Rachael Collins, Tony Gates, Margaret Heal, Keith Jago, River Jones, Karen McMahon, Karen Monaghan, Celine West
Published: 2002
These diverse images of childhood recapture a world that was much bigger and full of the unknown than today; a place where so many territories still lay undiscovered. In brief autobiographies, eight writers share reminiscences of their childhood years of happiness and indulgence. The authors take us on a journey back to times and places where imagination was allowed to run wild and unfettered. Readers can gain insight into those bygone times of fun, fantasy and frolics, but it wasn't only halcyon days that are remembered. There were times when childhood memories invoke fear and bewilderment, and a wide spectrum of emotions is explored in the stories contained in this collection. It provides a legacy of childhood that can be enjoyed by children as well as adults, who will no doubt find echoes of their own childhood days.A Pen for all Seasons
Author(s): Ethel Akhurst, Marjory Batchelor, Sylvia Calvert, Stevie English, Valerie Goble, Dave Higgins, Susie Mehmed, Bob Miles
Published: 1997
Published in 1997, this interesting and diverse anthology is the outcome of work that was produced by members of the Hove Writers Club. It will appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds, who should enjoy this inspiring work, which reflects the creativity and freedom of expression that has emerged from the pens of its authors. Including poetry and prose, it focuses on the details of everyday life through the medium of creative writing. The enthusiasm and energy of the writers comes across vividly, and this should appeal to readers of all levels; from the academic to the pleasure seeker, as well as to audiences who are new to poetry.Shops Book - Shopkeepers and Street Traders in East Brighton 1900-1930
Author(s): Neil Griffiths
Published: 1978
Shopping plays a major part in all our lives: we are all affected by rising prices and the changes that have taken place to shops in our local areas. This book is about shopkeepers and street traders – drawing together their various experiences in East Brighton. Shops have certainly changed greatly in the last hundred years - as large firms, supermarkets and superstores have replaced the small-scale local producers and craftsmen. The reader is better able to understand these changes through reading of first-hand experiences, in this comprehensive study of a bygone era.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.