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We live our lives through reflections, see our guilt mirrored in glass eyes and shatter into tiny pieces impossible to glue back together. But we try. I tried. The death of my mother made me question love, suicide, life, death and sanity. On the way, I studied words in my own personal hell before realising that above everything else, I failed her. And so, I end my inferno with an answer to a question none of us are brave enough to ask… …broken will always be broken. |
£12.99 (+ £2 postage) |
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Broken will always be Broken
The Hungry Crow
James S M Parker
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The Hungry Crow Through poetry and a mid-section collection of short stories, James S M Parker attempts to make sense of broken relationships, unrequited love and the absolute loneliness life has now brought him. Harsh, uncompromising and as always, honest, The Hungry Crow speaks from the heart, weeps from the soul and revels in something lost never to be found again. |
£7.99 (+ £2 postage) Available from Amazon |
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Policeman’s Prose
Tim Grace
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Policeman's Prose Tim Grace This is a collection of poems written over the last forty-five years: from childhood memories to life in Cyprus as a teenager in the 1970’s, to policing in London during the 1980s and 1990s and time with Customs and Excise. Tim is still in law enforcement. His current role is as an investigator with The Illegal Money Lending Team. He writes about mums and dads and daughters and discusses the question what is love? Homelessness is close to his heart, as the poem about the YMCA and The Tramp illustrates. Then there are his beloved pets, Captain and Brenda, both immortalised in verse. The author shares his raw emotions about Depression and thoughts of suicide and talks about tragedies such as Dunblane and the Twin Tower attacks. |
£4.99 (+ £2 P&P) Available from Amazon |
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In 2011 he reconnected with his childhood sweetheart Michelle and they married. They moved in together in 2013 when Tim moved to Birmingham where they currently live. He has one son and two married daughters, two sons-in-law, three granddaughters and a grandson on his way. |
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Self isolation
Self isolation and writing sound almost like a tautology but writers are among the most gregarious of creatures. A couple of hours intense concentration then down the pub or the cafe or some other location where we can meet people. Perhaps the solution, now that a solitary life is imposed on us, is to have two books on the go, one a novel or some such very creative endeavour and another that depends more on research and organisation of the material. Here at YouCaxton we’ll be happy to offer advice and support.
Words to be performed from under a table by the last of us
James S M Parker
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Then, we felt a heat and hell closing in. Soon there will be the realisation that broken will always be broken. But now, we follow the writer, the observer and the lost mind through the various stages of one man’s life using poetry, sketches, short stories and observations. A writer, an observer, a lost mind. A journey inside, outside and beyond the musings of one man. |
£7.99 (+ £2 postage) |
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Charles Waterton – Creator of the First Nature Reserve
Barbara Phipps
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Born in 1782, Charles Waterton was the eldest child of Thomas and Anne Waterton, of Walton Hall in the West Riding of Yorkshire. Based on extensive research, Barbara Phipps's fascinating, fictionalised biography show us an intelligent, and fearless man, one gifted with humour and strongly held opinions. His early love of nature, especially of birds, meant he was often in trouble as a tree-climbing, bird-nesting boy. He travelled extensively, seeking to show others all he had observed by publishing his notes and preserving specimens. His method of taxidermy has never been bettered. He survived yellow fever and malaria, earthquakes and shipwreck, and many accidents both at home and abroad. By building a wall around his parkland, and banning the gun, he created a sanctuary for all creatures with the exception of the fox and the rat, having a particular dislike of the latter. His book, ‘Wanderings in South America, the North-West of the United States and the Antilles,’ has never been out of print. |
£15.00 (+ £3 postage) Available from Amazon | ||||||||
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Waterton can justifiably be given credit for creating the first nature reserve. It is a concept that has spread, not just around Britain, but also right across the world. Bill Oddie |
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Reviews... 28.6.2019 - Amazon, five star: Great Story Telling Took me back to my own childhood, a lovely read. Anyone with a love of nature will identify with Charles Waterton. 15.4.2020 - Amazon, five star: Easy Read An interesting book about a fascinating if accident prone man. The author writes through Waterton’s eyes bringing alive his adventures in an easy to read manner. |
Poor Ronnie – A Tale from the Dales
Andrew Price
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Poor Ronnie A Tale From The Dales There’s trouble brewing in the Yorkshire Dales when the natives of Richmondshire start behaving out of character. It just so happens that a local pub is trialling a new organic cider – and it’s going down a treat. Cider should make people merry but this normally docile community of Yorkshire folk finds itself in the grip of paranoia, fear, and confusion. That’s when casual boozer, Lenny Plant, discovers that the disruption is down to something far more sinister than a glass or two of an apple beverage: lying dormant in the corner of his best friend’s garage there lurks a threat to humanity deadlier than a thousand nuclear wars. The cider is almost an innocent bystander. Against his better nature, Lenny decides to take matters into his own hands, only to find himself up against the KGB, a psychotic war veteran and, perhaps worst of all - his affection for the cider. |
UK Only £9.99 (+ £2.50 postage) Number of copies: Available on Amazon Kindle eBook |
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Andrew Price was born ages ago in Saltburn by the Sea. He didn’t write for forty-nine years – much too young.
Andrew allows that, although the British are useless at most things, sport in particular, their fluency in humour is without equal.
His novels “Poor Enid” and “Poor Ronnie” are humble contributions to the cause – a manifestation of all that has inspired him. For every sentence is etched onto the hard drive with stubborn purpose, goaded by a duty of care, to celebrate, perpetuate, and create.
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Reviews... Roger Ordish, TV Producer and Director Remarkable imagination. As a retired piss artist, I laughed most at the wonderful pub scenes. Willie O'Kane Andy Price does it again! Just when you thought things in Yorkshire couldn't get any worse, along comes Lenny Plant and his cohort of assorted wasters to foil another evil plan to take over the world. The story ties in (and picks up from) where 'Poor Enid' left off, as centenarian monomaniac Art Schitthelm locks horns with Russian spies and local winos in a bid to control the entire world. In a plot that defies description, Andy deploys his wide-ranging knowledge of quantum physics, time-travel and the workings of the human alimentary canal to create a truly madcap story where nothing is as it seems. In a dim-lit world where gargantuan guzzling of alcohol truly makes a man, Lenny and co prove that it takes more than scientific know-how to take over the world, and once again our heroes win out despite the odds and without their even really trying. A tale for our times, 'Poor Ronnie' will make the reader marvel at the dexterity with which the main players face up to fate - and despite the occasional jolt to one's digestive system it has to be recommended for its raucous energy and imaginative spirit. John Vickers, Amazon Review “Intricately funny. A very enjoyable read which complements the first book. Funny, dark and twisted; you can really relate to the piss-heads in the book.” Peter Ullathorne, Amazon Review “It is always said the measure of a good book is if you cannot put it down. This one is so entertaining and funny that you always have that ‘just another chapter’ thought. |
Self-Publishing Workshop Stafford
Bob Fowke, YouCaxton’s Managing Editor, will be hosting a workshop on self-publishing in Stafford Public Library on 13th May, 7.00-9.00 pm. With him will be Shirley McLellan of Perfect Proof, our associate editor.
This will be an opportunity to learn about all aspects of self-publishing from completing your manuscript to decisions about design and layout, through to publication and the final print-ready files. There will be a series of short presentations with plenty of opportunity for questions. If you have written a book or you are in the process of writing one, do come along.
Topics to be covered:
1. Editing and why it matters. 2. Preparing the manuscript and thinking about the niche, 3. Design, layout and print-ready files, 4. Printing, publication and ISBNs, 6. Distribution through Amazon, online sales, and bookshops, 7. eBooks, 8. Pricing your book.
Free. To reserve a place please contact:
email: Stafford.library@staffordshire.gov.uk or telephone 01785 278351.