Category Archives: livesinprint

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The Memoirs of Eva Gillies
An Interpreter at Large

cover The Memoirs of Eva Gillies
Eva Gillies (née Krapf) was a wonderful story-teller. She would entrance friends with tales of growing up in Argentina, of speaking four languages and devouring books – leading on to her vivid memories of Oxford life as a student in the late 1940s and eventually as a free-lance interpreter based in Geneva. She became truly a citizen of the world, as a professional conference interpreter in such key places as Hanoi after the French-Vietnam War, Lagos in newly-independent Nigeria and Warsaw at the height of the Cold War. She then returned to Oxford in 1962 to study social anthropology at Evans-Pritchard’s Institute. She was widowed shortly after her first marriage to Hasan Askari, but carried on with research of her own in West Africa and with a spell of teaching in the University of London. She then married Mick Gillies and settled with him in the Sussex village of Hamsey, whence they migrated seasonally to West Africa for his specialist studies of mosquitos. Eva continued her own writing and translating in Hamsey – and, especially, continued to entertain visitors from far and wide. After she lost Mick, friends encouraged her to write up her memoirs, and we are now proud to present the result – a tribute to her life and to the extraordinary range of personal encounters that shaped it.
Published: 1st Jan 2014
Paperback: 235 pages
Price: £12.99
ISBN: 9-781909-644137

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Visit Amazon.co.uk Edited by Wendy James,
Emeritus Professor
of Social Anthropology,
University of Oxford.

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An Interpreter at Large →

Front Page, livesinprint

Compiled by Butterworth’s father with a contribution from Vaughan Williams.
Wayne Smith

9781909644632 George Butterworth, a close friend of Vaughan Williams, composed some of the most enchanting and acclaimed English music of his time. He was killed during the battle of the Somme as dawn broke on the 5th August, 1916. Owing to the severity of the fighting his body was buried where he lay, the site marked by a simple wooden cross never to be rediscovered. Consequently his name occurs among the 73,357 listed on the Thiepval ‘Memorial to the Missing’. For his actions during the last few weeks of his life, George was awarded two Military Crosses and put forward for a third. In 1918 his father, Alexander Kaye Butterworth, privately published a ‘Memorial Volume’ for family and friends, of which only a handful of copies are known to have survived. It consists of a collection of tributes and letters of appreciation (including a moving contribution from Vaughan Williams) that he had received, alongside reviews of George’s music and concerts.
Published:15th June 2015
Paperback:150 pages
Price:£10
ISBN:9-781909-644632
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The main part of the book consists of George’s own ‘War Diary and Letters’ – a document of historic importance publicly available here for the very first time. This anniversary edition has been produced to mark the centenary of George Butterworth’s death and as a tribute to all of those whose place of rest remains unknown. For them, his ‘Banks of Green Willow’ has become an unofficial anthem.

livesinprint

The Best Years
Tony Best

9781911175056 This is the story of Tony Best, musician and entertainer, told in his own words. Tony’s extraordinary and often joyful career spanned over six decades and took many turns in all manner of unexpected directions. He describes how he went with the flow and followed whichever road life took him; how he spent his school days and teenage years and how he completed fourteen years service in the RAF – and how he left the service and lived in North Wales for eight years, eventually becoming a full-time musician and entertainer, finally settling in Shrewsbury and taking the stage name Tony Best.
Published:1st March 2016
Hardback:210 pages
Price:£12.99
ISBN:9-781911-175056

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From there on, ever the entertainer, Tony relates his travels all over the UK and Europe and his adventures in the music business on the road with gusto, all wrapped up with a host of highly amusing and interesting anecdotes and unusual experiences demonstrating, among other things, his amazing memory for detail and his skill in telling the story of what has been a wonderful career.
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livesinprint, nonfiction, travel

Travels of a Hard-Rock Mining Engineer
Martin Stoakes

TOAHRM_Cover Travels of a Hard-Rock Mining Engineer is a chronicle of the travels and experiences of a hard-rock mining engineer during the last half of the 20th century. It gives a vivid and an instructive insight into the generally little known subject of hard-rock mining, often in remote locations. Various mining projects are described in detail and provide a fascinating insight into the complexities of mine design and evaluation. Martin Stoakes worked on 125 mining projects in thirty-seven different countries over a forty-four year period. His graphic account of the sometimes nerve-racking conditions and locales that he experienced includes encounters with Shining Path guerrilla fighters in Peru, MNLF Islamic fundamentalists in the Philippines and the RPF guerrillas in Rwanda/Uganda. Hard rock mining was never for the faint-hearted.
Published:1st Feb 2015
Paperback:638 pages
Price:£25.00
ISBN:9-781909-644441

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Murderous fighters notwithstanding, the author's passion for narrow-boating, walking, cycling and his love of dogs give a tranquil balance and, from the early 1980s, there is a touching account of the trials and tribulations of first fostering, then adopting and raising a son into his family.

fiction, Front Page, livesinprint

Historical murder based on the true story of Brighton Artist Henry Havelock Cornell
Lauren Staton

9781911175100
Secrets haunt the streets of Brighton town; creativity flutters, like a moth in a lamplight; love disappears without explanation.
The torment of a man breeds hatred and mistrust from all who know him. No one is helping him and no one wants to. He writes his confession from the edge of sanity then hides his notes between his paintings where they remain until they are discovered over sixty years later
When murder is just enough to push you to the brink of insanity, the perfect place to keep you silent is the asylum. But when death approaches, the truth has nothing to lose as it emerges from the darkness of time.
Published:1st April 2016
Paperback:316 pages
Price:£13.99
ISBN:9-781911-175100

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A historical novel based on the true story of Brighton Artist Henry Havelock Cornell, following the discovery of notes he had written prior to him being admitted into a mental asylum. The story, which starts in Brighton England at the turn of the twentieth century, takes us to prewar London in 1939 where our main character Harry gets involved with a blackmailing and forgery gang. Murders are committed and a string of lies are told twisting the story into a tale that has been held secret and hidden away - until now.
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history, livesinprint

Faithful of Days
Clare Abbott

9781909644342 In spite of failing all three sea trials, in late 1853 the SS San Francisco set off on her maiden voyage. She was carrying a US Army regiment from New York to California by way of Cape Horn and was heavily overloaded. Two days out, she had the misfortune to run into the worst storm of the century. Her engines failed and then an enormous wave swept over the decks, taking with it about 140 souls, the lifeboats and all the auxiliary sails, leaving her completely disabled. Two ships found the SS San Francisco but sailed away and a third managed to rescue about a hundred people before the storm tore the two vessels apart. Then cholera struck. All that stood between the survivors and almost certain death was Scotsman Robert Crighton, Captain of the Three Bells.
Published:1st Oct 2014
Paperback:235 pages
Price:£12.99
ISBN:9-781909-644342

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His ship had also been badly battered by the storm, but he stayed beside the stricken vessel for four days, risking the lives of everyone on board his own ship and jettisoning most of his own cargo. Using chalked boards held up by the crew, he sent the San Francisco a message later immortalised by Walt Whitman, ?Be of good cheer, we will stand by you?. Eventually, and with the help of another ship, all were rescued. Robert, to his great surprise, became an overnight hero - in America. What happened on his return to Scotland was another matter. With meticulous research and using contemporary documents, Clare Abbott has pieced together Robert’s fascinating life, the life of a Victorian sea captain who sailed the world in the great age of Empire. It is a story of outstanding courage and love but also of greed, betrayal and hypocrisy.


Reviews...

Sally Gordon-Boyd
"Clare Abbott has written a thrilling account of my great grandfather Robert's heroic rescue of the SS San Francisco when he was captain of the Three Bells. Her meticulous research has enabled her to chart the course of many of his remarkable exploits in a long career as master mariner and shipping agent, together with little known details of his family background.
The broad sweep of her narrative, with howls of hurricanes in the rigging, bring vividly to life this inspiring story which I had hitherto only vaguely known about as something to be proud of.
Robert Crighton's first born son (also Robert) became Deputy Chairman of Harland and Wolff, shipbuilders. His eldest daughter was my mother, Gladys. I was aware of the family shipping connection very early as a schoolboy, when I had two long voyages in the mid 1930s on a Royal Mail steamship to the Eastern Mediterranean and West Africa, on each occasion with a different captain. I particularly remember that each of them managed to run a happy ship with exceptional kindness and consideration - I like to think this had become part of a tradition started by enlightened seafarers like Captain Robert Crighton, a quality he had that the author highlights in her book. I am most grateful to Clare Abbott for wanting to tell this extraordinary tale of my famous relative and for the immense trouble she has taken to establish the true facts. Douglas Gordon Boyd November 2014"

Peter Wight
I am a descendent of Alexander Crighton, Robert's brother. I met Clare, through the internet, a couple years ago as she was gathering data on our family tree and have been waiting on this book to be printed for about a year. She didn't disappoint. I read the book in 2 days. She has done a splendid amount of work assembling data and fastidiously piecing it together, even helping resolve a mystery that has eluded our family for a couple decades, which is finding out who Robert's father was. The picture painted is extraordinary and the story compelling. For any interested in maritime life during this period of history, you wont be disappointed.
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Liverpool, Kirkby and Me
David Lawler

Lawler_frontcover A touching and imaginative account of growing up in Kirkby new town in the 1950s. David Lawler's memoir describes a moment when the rustic world of the old Kirkby was in fast retreat, when pubs and 'mobile shops' had begun to clutter the landscape along with all the new homes.  'Z-cars' patrolled the area - it was a new town but the old problems remained. He describes how a group of young 'rock 'n' roll' lads sought fame and fortune and we watch the years roll by: the Cold War, Sputniks circling in space, 'rock 'n' roll' blaring from pirate radio stations.
Published:1st April 2015
Paperback:190 pages
Price:£9.99
ISBN:9-781909-644205

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David Lawler, formerly of Kirkby College of Further Education and later of Knowsley Community College spent much of his life in the Kirkby area and takes a special interest in the development of new towns and in the social implications of their establishment. David was instrumental in setting up the award-winning Acorn Venture Urban Farm at Kirkby which has special facilities for young people and adults with special needs.

Front Page, history, livesinprint

With Innocence and Hope
Mike Williams

With Innocence and Hope Cover With Innocence and Hope A unique and vivid first hand account of a young soldier, one of the millions who fought in World War I. Walter Williams, from Hodnet, volunteered at age fifteen and joined the Shropshire Light Infantry. After completing his initial training at the Shrewsbury Barracks, he passed through the notorious training camp at Etaples before being plunged into the horrors of trench warfare. He fought in some of the major battles of the war including Pachendaele, the Somme and Vimy Ridge – and was badly wounded during the final attack on the Hindenburg line when he was hit by machine-gun fire from an enemy plane. Walter's story was captured on an ancient reel-to-reel tape recorder during long conversations with his two nephews, who went on to write this remarkable story. Walter died in 1998, by which time he was one of the last veterans of World War I. Royalties from sales of the printed book bought from YouCaxton will be donated to the British Legion and Royalties from the sale of the Kindle edition are being donated to Help For Heroes
Published:1st April 2014
Paperback:274 pages
Price:£12.00
ISBN:9-781909-644229
 Amazon review... ...Having spent 24 years in the Army I thought I knew it all and seen it all, then I read this. I couldn't begin to imagine what he went through and all as a teenager. Wow. 'Simply Excellent'
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Great read
A really interesting and captivating read. I loved the honesty about life in the trenches and the effects on families at home. Very moving. If you like world war one non fiction this one is for you.
Wonderful
I highly recommended this book. I have read many WW1 books and visited more than a few of the places now infamous as killing fields that Walter experienced in the most horrendous situations. This book achieves a really good balance of accurate description and the often deadened emotional feelings which had to be engaged to get through the many challenges faced on a 24/7 basis. A most honest account written well and very well received. Thank you Mike- Well done. RIP Walter- You deserve it!
An addictive read
This is a must read, a wonderful insight into times past. To comprehend the courage and determination required by such people, to imagine what they experienced at such a young age and the contrast to what they had left behind is brought to life in this exceptional book. I highly recommend it.