Veronika Jordan's Blog, page 35

Ten Days In Gaza – Photographs by Giuseppe Aquili, Anthony Dawton and Jim McFarlane Manipulations by Dia al-Azzawi

The photographs in this book were taken in February 2010, a year after the Israeli action ‘Operation Cast Lead’.

Published by Hood Hood Books
Format: Hardcover
Retail price: 40 GBP
ISBN: 978-1-3999-7794-4
Size: 230mm x260mm
Extent: 240pp
Publication Date: 14th March 2024
PR contact: gracepilkingtonpublicity@gmail.com

Forward by Mr Khaled Dawas
Chairman, Al Quds Foundation for Medical Schools in Palestine
Director of GI Surgery, Honorary Associate Professor,
University College London Hospitals

“Ten Days in Gaza is a timeless project, a beautiful album of photographs taken in 2010 by Giuseppe Aquili, Anthony Dawton and Jim McFarlane, reflecting the harshness of contemporary Gazan reality. It mirrors recurrent displacements and bombardments and decades of silence and neglect. Destruction is all around, and sadness is etched on the faces of many. Yet, beauty and hope are everywhere. Read beyond those anguished expressions and you will sense the resourcefulness, determination and resilience of the Palestinian people. Gaza’s wealth of history and culture is often forgotten. The strip of land that straddles the Afro-Eurasian crossroads has long been a melting pot as numerous conquerors and civilisations walked through its fertile land and anchored at its shores. It is a 4000-year-old city on the shore of the Mediterranean, created by the Canaanites and once part of Ancient Egypt, Babylon, Ancient Greece and the Persian and Roman Empires. Alexander the Great besieged it; Amr ibn al-’As conquered it for the Muslim Arabs; Napoleon overran it; the Ottomans relinquished it to the rising British tide in the First World War.

“There are historic places of worship for Muslims, Christians and Jews alike, who have prayed at the Omari Mosque, the Church of St Porphyrius and the ancient synagogue in Gaza over the centuries. These striking photos of children’s faces reveal genes from the Levant, Africa, Europe and the tribes of Arabia. Today, Gazan children, the heirs of these civilisations and empires, are tragically trapped by concrete and water under a sky that, time and time again, rains explosives.

“Gaza’s history is not that of poverty and grey concrete breeze blocks but that of a thriving coastal city in a fertile plain which grew olives, citrus fruits and flowers, to match the best. The stunning city panels in the beautiful large Byzantine mosaic floor, discovered in Umm al-Rasas in Jordan and dated to 785, show Gaza amongst the celebrated cities in the region including Alexandria, Jerusalem, Neapolis (Nablus), Caesarea and Philadelphia (Amman). The streams at the foothills of Al-Khalil (Hebron) in the West Bank and the springs in the Naqab (Negev) Hills are the tributaries of the Wadi Gaza river.

“In 1948, tens of thousands of Palestinian families displaced by the creation of Israel walked south along the coast and took refuge in the Gaza Strip. Families of the farmers (fallaheen), landowners, fisherman (sayyadeen), civil administrators (idariyeen) and other professionals, suddenly made destitute during the Nakba, walked from Yafa, Al-Majdal and Asqalan and many other towns and villages. The locals embraced them just north of Gaza City: suddenly another ingredient was added to Gaza’s demographic mix.

“Today, the Wadi Gaza river flows no more, diverted by Israel. But today’s Gazans – including descendants of those 1948 refugees from historic Palestine – are capable engineers, teachers, nurses and doctors aspiring to compete as self-made professionals. As proud as they are ambitious, they have already spread across the world, plying their trades. The healthcare workers who returned to stay in Gaza have become globally famous in recent months for their remarkable resourcefulness, steadfastness, and extraordinary courage in the face of unfathomable adversity.

“I am delighted to be Chairman of FQMS, Al Quds Foundation for Medical Schools in Palestine, which is a British-based charity furthering medical education for Palestine. FQMS was established in 1997 to support the then fledgling medical school at Al-Quds University on the outskirts of Jerusalem, and later extended its work to the medical schools in Gaza and Nablus. The most talented school leavers want to become healers and serve their people. It is the mission of FQMS to help make that possible and it makes us proud that medical graduates of all Palestinian medical schools have shown their calibre against international standards.

“We at FQMS are proud of being part of this inspiring project. It is but a small part of the story of an ancient land, short-changed by its contemporary fate. We wish to cultivate the pride and ambition that the photographers have so skilfully and compassionately captured in this album, against a merciless setting.

“Ten days in Gaza is hardly long enough but cherish your stay.”

My Thoughts

I loved NotLondon and Edge Of Hope. The photos are so powerful and Ten Days in Gaza is no different. The photographers manage to capture the soul of the place, mostly through the eyes of the children. My favourite is probably the one seen through the rear window of a car, with a piece of fabric hanging down that resembles a noose.

The photographs “mirror recurrent displacements and bombardments and decades of silence and neglect. Destruction is all around, and sadness is etched on the faces of many. Yet, beauty and hope are everywhere.” They show how the children can rise above adversity.

But fourteen years later and nothing has changed. ‘As of 29 February, the Gaza Health Ministry reports that at least 30,000 Palestinians (including over 10,000 minors) have been killed, over 70,000 injured, and 10,000 are missing under rubble, totaling over 110,000 casualties since the war began, which is about 5% of Gaza’s 2.3 million population.’

As ever, children are the innocent victims of a war which they don’t understand. But then, neither do I, or millions like me. There’s no excuse.

Many thanks to Grace Pilkington Publicity @GracePublicity for inviting me to give an unbiased review of Ten Days in Gaza.

About the people involved in the project

Dia Al-Azzawi
Dia al-Azzawi was born in 1939 and achieved a degree in archaeology at Baghdad University (1958–62), at the same time as a diploma from the Institute of Fine Arts in Baghdad (1959–64). Azzawi worked as an archaeologist and museum curator, and also exhibited his work publicly from 1964 onwards, becoming a central figure in the development of modernist art in the Arab world. He was a member of several art movements and wrote the iconic Towards a New Vision manifesto in 1969; as secretary of the Iraqi Artists’ Society, he established the pioneering al-Wasiti Festival in 1972.

In 1976, Azzawi moved to London and continued to forge ties with artists across the Arab world, curating numerous exhibitions at the Iraqi Cultural Centre that travelled to the region. His work became deeply influenced by world politics and especially injustice in the Arab World, publicising and supporting the Palestinian cause and that of the Iraqi people. Long influenced by storytelling, particularly from Iraq, Azzawi uses Ancient Mesopotamian and ethnographic imagery, often intertwined with text from modern Arabic literature. Since 1991, he has predominantly painted Iraq in black-and-white, as opposed to his usual bright colours, in a series called Land of Darkness.

Although primarily known as a painter and draughtsman, Azzawi works in a huge variety of media, ranging from graphic design to monumental sculpture and both two and three dimensional printing. Approximately a quarter of his artist’s books were the focus of Painting Poetry, a recent solo exhibition at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford (December 2022–June 2023).

Giuseppe Aquili
Giuseppe Aquili was born in 1974 in Ancona, Italy. He studied photography at the Experimental Design Centre in Ancona where he was influenced by the Marché photographer Mario Giacomelli and Pep Bonet as well as the artists Egon Schiele and Alberto Giacometti. He worked in Italy for several years before coming to England in 1999 where he has involved in photographic projects in Oman, Awwlbania and Nigeria as well as in the UK. Photographs from a UNICEF and Al Madad Foundation project in Niger were selected to show at the 2009 Sony World Photographic Awards, in Cannes, as well as on a UN calendar later that year.

In 2010 Aquili went to Gaza for Save the Children to photograph children who had been affected by conflict. Images from the project formed part of The Children of Gaza Exhibition in 2011 and now appear in this book. Since then, Aquili has returned to his home country to pursue a career outside photography.

Anthony Dawton and Jim McFarlane
Anthony Dawton is an award winning commercial photographer. His work has been published in The Guardian, The Independent and he was the house photographer for the iconic arts magazine Funoon Arabia. Dawton was one of six photographers to be featured in the Australian CCP exhibition that toured South East Asia in 2010. He has been a contributing photographer to the Silent Witnesses book series: Kashmir’s Children, The Silent Witnesses of the Earthquake and Desert Faces, The Silent Witnesses of the Niger Children.

In September 2021 his book, NotLondon was published (click on link for more information), the result of nearly two years spent talking to and photographing the homeless on the streets of London. Dawton has also lectured in London on photography.

Jim McFarlane is an Australian based photographer who has worked commercially for over 25 years. His expertise covers advertising and a wide range of subjects including food, dance and people. The Australian Ballet has used McFarlane extensively and he has been awarded by The Melbourne Art Director’s Club and has received the Oriental Fine Print award. McFarlane’s work is also included in the collection of the Australian National Library. McFarlane has taught photography at Victorian College of the Arts, Melbourne and Deakin University, Geelong.

Dawton and McFarlane have worked together for many years, often collaborating on projects highlighting humanitarian crises arising from conflict or natural disaster. In 2008 they (along with Guiseppe Aquili) were invited to Niger by the Al Madad Foundation and UNICEF to document the effects of severe drought.

Photographs from this project were selected to show at the 2009 Sony World Photographic Awards in Cannes. In 2010, the three photographers visited Gaza for Save the Children and photographs from that project formed part of a touring exhibition in 2011 and which are now the subject of this book.

In 2013, Dawton and McFarlane entered what was then the largest refugee camp in the world: the camp in Zaatari, Jordan. The resulting photographs and film, the Hotel Zaatari Project, toured the Middle East and UK. In October 2014 the TMCP V.VC. Vorovsky factory in Tikhoretsk, Russia, invited Dawton and McFarlane to photograph their workers. An exhibition of the images opened at the TMCP factory in February 2015 and later transferred to Moscow.

More recent projects have included the photographing and filming of the Syrian refugee camps in the Bekka Valley, Lebanon and the Palestinian camps in Beirut.

In May 2022 Dawton and McFarlane photographed the flood-prone char islands in Bogra, Bangladesh and the Rohingya camp at Cox’s Bazar. An exhibition of their photographs from the Rohingya camp is currently touring and a book, Edge of Hope: The Rohingya Refugee Camp at Cox’s Bazar, has just been published. (Click on link for more information.)

Acknowledgements
We must acknowledge and thank those who inspired, helped, supported and made possible the The Ten Days in Gaza project from the start fourteen years ago. Ahmed Muhanna, our guide and Ziad, our driver. Saleh Judellea, the English student, photographer and unofficial guide. Sharif Sirhan, photographer and artist. Ousama, Save the Children’s point man in Gaza and Jochen Sokoly of the Virginia Commonwealth University in Qatar. Closer to home we are very grateful for the professional advice from Louisa Macmillan and Liz Holmes. Above all, we wish to thank Dia al Azzawi and Faiza Alireza Mayassar, whose support and kindness made this project possible in the first place.

The publisher wishes to warmly thank As’ad AbuKhalil, Lina Al-Nashef, Sawsan Asfari, Alexandra Breton, Khaled Dawas, Sami El-Haddad, Elvira Guttierrez, Tara Kelly, Grace Pilkington and Ian Watts.

Scentsy – New Collection Product Review

I’m a huge fan of warming wax burners so I jumped at the chance to try out and review the new Wax Collection from Scentsy.

First of all I’d just like to say that I have tried a lot of different waxes but none compare with Scentsy. The range of scents, the strength and the longevity are what make them stand out. There are others out there that are cheaper but you know what they say – you get what you pay for.

Now anyone who comes to my house will know that I am obsessed with Go-Go Mango which has been discontinued for now, so I need to find a replacement. I’m hoping that one of my six samples will do the trick. So I’m looking for something that is probably orange in colour and is fairly sweet and strong.

Here goes:

SUNCASTLES: Sunny coconut brightens up tropical pistachio and sweet almond evoking memories of the beach. I adore pistachio, but this could be a bit stronger. Very nice though. I’m warming it in the living room.

PINKBERRY SANDALWOOD: Pinkberry and fresh cherry add a sweet pop tonka bean and sandalwood. This is also in the living room but at the other end. Lovely scent but again not strong enough.

COASTAL SUN FRUIT: Golden sun fruit, bright tropical berries and coastal amber bring a sense of sunshine. Now we’re talking! I can smell this over the top of the other two. I love it best so far. I’m warming this in the hall. Could be my new favourite. I need this in my life!

EVENING SKY: Light up the night with soft bergamot and rich Madagascar vanilla paving the way for midnight lily. This one I really love. The blue ones are not usually my favourite, but I love bergamot and vanilla. This is my second favourite. I’m warming it in the living room.

PINEAPPLE & PALM: Escape to the islands, where sweet citrus and palm leaf float on the breeze over pineapple driftwood. Not my favourite. I can see there are mixed reviews on this one.

BAMBOO & RAINFALL: An exhilarating rainfall pours down over fresh bamboo and bright melon water in a tranquil moment. Again not strong enough for me. I can barely smell it or maybe that’s just me.

I’ve loved trying these out and I hope you will enjoy my review and think about trying them for yourselves. Coastal Sun Fruit is definitely my favourite, with Evening Sky coming second.

Love Scentsy! Click on the link to go to Sarah Dean’s Scentsy page on Facebook.

Crow Moon by Suzy Aspley

When the crow moon rises, the darkness is unleashed…

Martha Strangeways is struggling to find purpose in her life, after giving up her career as an investigative reporter when her young twins died in a house fire.

Overwhelmed by guilt and grief, her life changes when she stumbles across the body of a missing teenager – a tragedy that turns even more sinister when a poem about crows is discovered inked onto his back…

#CrowMoon @writer_suzy @OrendaBooks #RandomThingsTours @annecater @RandomTTours #blogtour #debut #MarthaStrangewaysInvestigation #Scotland

When another teenager goes missing in the remote landscape, Martha is drawn into the investigation, teaming up with DI Derek Summers, as malevolent rumours begin to spread and paranoia grows.

As darkness descends on the village of Strathbran, it soon becomes clear that no one is safe, including Martha…

My Review

More crows. It’s not that I have a thing about corvids, but they seem to feature in quite a few of the books I read. Poor birds, they do get a bad rap. But then I think back to ‘the crow and the duckling incident’ on a visit to Hever Castle, and maybe they deserve it.

When I first read the synopsis, I did wonder how I would manage to read this, knowing that Martha’s three-year-old twins had died in a fire. I don’t know how she manages to carry on. Maybe it’s because she has her older son Dougie to stop her from giving up.

The story begins with Dougie’s best friend Fraser going missing. At first they think he might have just stayed out all night, but after a few days the community knows there is something more sinister and search parties are out looking for him.

Martha Strangeways (love the name) is in the woods, walking her two dogs Skye and BJ. She trips and falls, knocking herself out. But just before, she sees a body and instantly she knows it’s Fraser. And someone is watching.

Martha wakes up in hospital, (the dogs are fine – just thought I’d mention that in case anyone is worried) but she soon discovers from DI Derek Summers that Fraser had a verse of poetry inscribed on his back. It’s the second verse of a four verse poem called Feannag Dhubh, a strange legend from folklore, that ‘originated in the seventeenth century during the time of the Scottish witch trials’. And it seems one of the witches was tried and executed near the house where the twins died. Martha doesn’t believe in any of this stuff, but someone obviously does. And there are references to crows and the soon to be rising Crow Moon.

Then another teenager goes missing, and Martha is drawn into the investigation. She overhears conversations involving her son, and knows that he could be next. What did Dougie, Fraser and Christie get up to at the moondial, exactly one year ago that so terrifies them now, particularly Christie.

The whole story is creepy and atmospheric, with a modern gothic feel, set in the village of Strathbran (the name means Glen of Ravens), in a remote part of Scotland. It’s just my kind of book.

Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours

About the Author

Originally from the north-east of England, former journalist Suzy Aspley has lived in Scotland for almost thirty years. She writes crime and short stories, often inspired by the strange things she sees in the landscape around her. She won Bloody Scotland’s Pitch Perfect in 2019 with the original idea for her debut novel and was shortlisted for the Capital Crime New Voices Award. In 2020, she was mentored by Jo Dickinson as part of the Hachette future bookshelf initiative. Crow Moon was also longlisted for the Caledonia Novel Award. She’s currently working on the second book in the series, and when she’s not writing, she’s either got her nose buried in a book, or is outside with her dogs
dreaming up more dark stories. She lives in Stirlingshire with her family.

About Orenda Books

Orenda Books is a small independent publishing company specialising in literary fiction with a heavy emphasis on crime/thrillers, and approximately half the list in translation. They’ve been twice shortlisted for the Nick Robinson Best Newcomer Award at the IPG awards, and publisher and owner Karen Sullivan was a Bookseller Rising Star in 2016. In 2018, they were awarded a prestigious Creative Europe grant for their translated books programme. Three authors, including Agnes Ravatn, Matt Wesolowski and Amanda Jennings have been WHSmith Fresh Talent picks, and Ravatn’s The Bird Tribunal was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award, won an English PEN Translation Award, and adapted for BBC Radio Four ’s Book at Bedtime. Six titles have been short- or long-listed for the CWA Daggers. Launched in 2014 with a mission to bring more international literature to the UK market, Orenda Books publishes a host of debuts, many of which have gone on to sell millions worldwide, and looks for fresh, exciting new voices that push the genre in new directions. Bestselling authors include Ragnar Jonasson, Antti Tuomainen, Gunnar Staalesen, Michael J. Malone, Kjell Ola Dahl, Louise Beech, Johana Gustawsson, Lilja Sigurðardóttir and Sarah Stovell.

Vengeance Born by LC Son Release

Vengeance Born releases on wide distribution channels, including Amazon, Apple, Nook, Kobo, Smashwords, and more starting March 15, 2024. 

Two Dark Tales. One deliciously haunting book.

Enter the Netherworld and dive into the dark with Grim and Reaper. The resident lords of Purgia may govern the deathly dealings of the day, but faced with the matters of their heart, their worlds get turned upside down.

When an enigmatic woman begs Thelios Mirth to save her and her sister from the clutches of Hades, the Grim Lord finds himself gambling with the unexpected. His heart.

Lord Roark wants for nothing but to reap the strays and vagabonds roaming the city of Purgia, but when a ward of the High Prince seeks his help against rebel forces, he forsakes his better judgment with hopes to reap something forbidden. Love.

Vengeance Born: A Grim & Reaper Netherworld Tale is a two-act novel filled with dark fantasy, broody, ruggedly handsome mythical men, and strong love interests. Both tales are steamy, dark, no cheating, with touches of mafia and barbarian-ish charm.

Many thanks to Bookworm Book Tours for including me in the wide release blitz of Vengeance Born.

Links: 
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/3k9noW
Direct Buy: https://bit.ly/3PNR9BD (includes bonus story)
Instagram: @author_l_c_son

Mask of Deception by Karen Furk Cover Reveal

“Not only elven kings carry secrets – ancient artefacts do too.”

Fifteen-year-old storm rider Haydan has never wanted the mask of the gods or the responsibilities that accompany it, but whether he likes it or not it’s his destiny. Now he’s discovering that unless he plays to his strengths and quickly he stands no chance as the threats to him and his soul family are growing. 

Genre: Fantasy YA/Adult

Rumours have always circulated about the dangerous dark gods, but now they’re showing interest in Haydan. As King Tallin’s masquerade ball approaches, excitement builds and Haydan finds himself trapped between Tallin’s magical games, a mysterious hidden adversary in the elven king’s court and feuding dark gods who want him and the mask at any cost. 

The only way Haydan will survive is if he places his trust in his feisty chosen one and misbehaving warrior and works with them to capture the realms connected to the mask. Can he figure out the clues and start claiming realms to protect everyone he cares about before it’s too late? Or will the dark gods take him prisoner? 

Find out in Mask of Deception, the second instalment in the Mask Chronicles

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The Giveaway Girl by Chrissie Bradshaw Out Now

Joy’s world is turned upside down when she discovers she was given away as a newborn.

She runs away from her home in Australia to go in search of her birth family in Northumberland.

Genre: Saga | Romance 

Coming face-to-face with the Kelly family ignites Joy’s envy of her sister, Rose, and she plunges into a tailspin of mistakes and heartache. 

Joy’s trouble-strewn journey is set in the sixties, a time of freedom and promise. She sees that popular culture and attitudes are changing, yet she still hides the shame of being the giveaway girl. 

What will it take for her to accept the events of the past, come to understand the meaning of love and discover her true worth? 

About the Author

Chrissie Bradshaw, 2016 winner of the Romantic Novelist’s Association Elizabeth Goudge writing trophy, has written five family sagas and a Christmas novella. Her most recent novel, THE GIVEAWAY GIRL, published in March 2023, is a spin-off  of ROSE’S CHOICE and ROSE’S EVER AFTER, her heart-wrenching family saga set in the north of England. 

Her work has been compared to the late, great northern writer Catherine Cookson. “She gives this historical read a Catherine Cookson vibe, but perhaps with more of a modern attitude.” 

Chrissie lives beside the coast in a beautiful part of the country near to the Scottish/ English border and all of her novels are set in this area yet the characters have a universal appeal. Any reader who enjoys reading about families, love and relationships will enjoy her heartwarming stories of sisters who struggle with work, love and family. 

“ I have always loved match-making a book to a reader. Writing the kind of book I love to read takes this a step further.” When Chrissie is not writing or reading, you will find her walking her dog on the beach, travelling or spending time with her family and friends. She would love to hear from readers.

Author’s Website: http://www.chrissiebradshaw.com

Buy Links: www.amazon.co.uk

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Shaking Hands With Elvis by Paul Carroll

An uncaring government has legalised assisted dying, but it’s not only the terminally ill they loosen the rules for.

Anybody considered to have nothing to contribute, a drain on resources, or simply past it, is encouraged to do the decent thing and opt for an early check out.

#ShakingHandsWithElvis @paulcarrollink #RandomThingsTours @annecater @RandomTTours #blogtour #funnybook #assisteddying

Entrepreneur Callan Clay is quick to fill the market gap through Go Gently, his business offering inventive ways, including an Elvis Presley themed demise, for customers to lawfully shuffle off their mortal coils. Assisted dying is the latest must-have lifestyle choice.

But when Geraldine, Dawn, Jeffrey and Woody, each having a different reason for giving up the ghost, book appointments for their final journeys, they discover not everything at Go Gently’s state- of-the-art Charon House clinic lives up to the brochure. As the clock ticks down to their appointed hour, is it really the end of the line for the gang of four, or is there life in the old dogs yet?

My Review

I’m so stunned by this that I don’t really know where to begin. I’ve never been sure about assisted dying, but then I listen to someone like Dame Esther Rantzen talking about joining Dignitas. “The 83-year-old, who has stage four lung cancer, is campaigning for people who have physical illnesses, and a life expectancy of six months or less, to have the right to choose when they die.

“Assisted dying is illegal in England, Northern Ireland and Wales – and anyone who travels abroad with a person who ends their life could be prosecuted when they return.” – Sky News

Fair enough. It’s very sad, but I get it. Dame Esther Rantzen was a huge influence on my early life and I shall hate to see her go. However, in Shaking Hands With Elvis, we have gone way beyond that. The NHS has been disbanded (let’s hope that’s not going to happen any time soon or ever) and ‘assisted dying’ looks like a good option for anyone who is past their sell by date. But now we have the age-old questions – are they being pushed before they can jump? Does money/inheritance come into it? And is it a way to bring the population down (good for the environment is a selling point), by culling those who don’t want to be here anyway?

Put like that – the last part only – it sounds like a good idea. But it is so open to abuse, that I refer to my initial comment about being on the fence. Because in the words of Hotel California, “You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.” Once you’ve bought your ticket, it’s a one-way trip, Hit The Road Jack, Goodnight Irene, and other cliched songs.

But back to the book. It revolves around our intrepid gang of four. Geraldine is lonely, Dawn is in constant pain, Jeffery has dementia, and Woody is on a totally different path. But Callan Clay doesn’t care. He’s an entrepreneur and he just sees a business opportunity and a way to make more money. And vile secretary of state for ‘wellbeing’ (ha!) Lawrence Pestel is looking for a fast track route to Number 10. And between them, they dress it up as being given a choice blah blah.

I’m not sure how many times I gasped at some of the things that happened, or were suggested by Clay and Pestel. It’s dark humour at its best. Yes it is really funny even though it shouldn’t be.

There are so many ethical questions, which only get worse as the story progresses. And I was devastated by the ending, but I can’t say anymore. Anyone who is unsure about assisted dying should read this, though it probably won’t help you make up your mind!

Many thanks to @annecater for inviting me to be part of #RandomThingsTours

About the Author

Writing that puts the ‘stab’ into establishment.
 
Paul’s novels consistently let fly at the latest social trends in an entertaining mix of cutting observation, human drama, dark humour and compassion.  Before turning to writing Paul worked in the field of PR for many years, including campaigns for well-known brands such as Boddingtons, Heineken, Thorntons Chocolate, Chicago Town Pizza, Big D peanuts, Co-op Funerals and Manchester Airport.

Selling things to people they didn’t realise they needed is at the heart of many of Paul’s books, often with unanticipated consequences for the latest get-rich-quick merchant eager to turn a quick buck at somebody else’s expense.

Born and brought up in Leeds, Paul has a degree in English Language and English Literature from the University of Manchester. Paul lives in Altrincham, Greater Manchester.
 
A marketing gamekeeper-turned-poacher, Paul is to be found peering behind the curtains of ‘the next big thing’ when he’s not writing.
 
Shaking Hands with Elvis (2024) is Paul Carroll’s fifth novel, following Don’t Ask (2021), Trouble Brewing (2017), Written Off (2016) and A Matter of Life.

Leaving Fatherland by Matt Graydon Cover Reveal

Oskar Bachmann always imagined that giving his first lecture would be the defining moment of his life.

It was, but not in the way he expected… Growing up a misfit in Nazi Germany, a victim of his father’s beatings, Oskar’s love of books is a constant comfort in a world turned upside-down by violence. As a student, as a pilot in the brutal Luftwaffe during the Second World War, in an unhappy marriage to an English bride, he finds himself returning over and over to the circumstances of his childhood.

Genre: Historical fiction
Pages: 376
Publisher: Cranthorpe Millner Publishers

What was the source and cause of his father’s abuse? Could there have been more to it than he had once believed? Little did Oskar know that his first lecture at the University of Tübingen would ultimately lead to the end of a lifetime of searching… and finally reveal the figure who had been controlling his life from a distance.

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Daughters of Warsaw by Maria Frances

An emotional and inspiring World War Two time-slip novel of danger and courage. This is a story inspired by true events and stories of Irena Sendler and the women of the Polish Żegota.

It’s the worst time in humanity and yet there is still light in the darkness…

X (Twitter) #DaughtersofWarsaw #MariaFrances @KellyALacey @lovebookstours 
Instagram @julietconlin @avonbooksuk @lovebookstours 

1942, Warsaw

Young Zofia finds herself leading a double life when she is enlisted to help the fearless Irena Sendler save hundreds of Jewish children from the Warsaw Ghetto.

Every night, Zofia risks her life to shepherd the children to safety. But when the worst happens, she is forced to make her riskiest journey yet to keep Irena’s mission alive.

Now, Seattle

After yet another miscarriage, heartbroken Lizzie returns to the comfort of her childhood home, where she stumbles upon a hidden photograph of her great-grandmother among a mysterious group of people.

On a quest to discover more, Lizzie uncovers a buried past darker and more dangerous than she could ever have imagined…

A sweeping and heartbreaking story of two remarkable women, generations apart, each finding courage when all hope is gone. Perfect for fans of The Midwife of Auschwitz and The Woman Outside the Walls.

My Review

In 1978 I accompanied my father to Poland to visit his family. He hadn’t returned since 1939, when he joined the Polish infantry at the age of 16 and was captured by the Russians and sent to a prisoner-of-war camp north of Siberia. When we arrived, one of his older half-sisters had died four hours before we got there and another was in nursing home suffering with dementia. No, she didn’t have any good days, unlike Magda in the book. During our visit staying in a small town quite close to Wroclaw (I got very excited when Zofia goes there), my father had a reunion with his nephew and his best friend from school. They reminisced, and laughed and drank a lot of brandy (not vodka), and got very drunk and cried. I mention this, because there is a scene where Lizzie finds a missing relative and they drink vodka and celebrate and I was immediately reminded of that night with my dad in Poland.

In fact so many times during the book I was reminded of my family connections. We did actually visit Warsaw and I kept thinking ‘we went there’, but we didn’t visit the site of the Jewish ghetto, because my father wasn’t Jewish (my mother was – but that’s a whole other story).

I finished reading the book at 1.15 in the morning and it’s now 1.30 am and I am writing this before I forget. I feel such a connection with my heritage and my Polish family, just like Lizzie. She can’t speak Polish, neither can I, because my mother spoke Romanian and they never conversed in any other language than English. I guess that’s what it was like for Lizzie after Magda emigrated to America and was not part of a Polish community. It just dies out. More important to speak the local lingo for school, work etc.

There were tears in my eyes at the end, for those we lost, for the inhumanity of it all, and for those we found again after so many years. Daughters of Warsaw is heartbreakingly sad at times, but there is also so much courage and hope in the face of adversity. Zofia is an inspirational hero, helping her friend Irena Sendler to bring hundreds – maybe thousands – of Jewish children out of the ghetto, where they would either die of disease or starvation, or perish with their parents in Treblinka concentration camp.

This book has had a profound effect on me. It reminded me that I am a daughter of Poland (if not actually Warsaw) and without people like Zofia and Irena, my family would not be free.

Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #DaughtersOfWarsawBlogTour.

About the Author

Maria Frances was born in London and grew up in the UK and Germany. She holds an MA in Creative Writing from Lancaster University and a PhD in Psychology from the University of Durham. She works as a writer and translator and lives with her husband and four children in Berlin. She is the author of five novels which she writes under her real name, Juliet Conlin. Her first German-language novel is also publishing in 2023. Daughters of Warsaw is her first book with Avon.

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Memory Road by Sarah Edghill

Lily is taking her elderly mother on a road trip around the UK, revisiting places which meant a lot to her.

It’s challenging because Moira can no longer be described as ‘a bit forgetful’; she has started singing Abba songs in public and talking to imaginary friends, and last week she tried to rip off her clothes in Poundland. 

Genre: Romance | Contemporary | Humour
Publisher: Bloodhound Books

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Lily is worried and embarrassed by her mother’s behaviour but, despite the recent dementia diagnosis, Moira is happy – albeit in a sweary sort of way – and insists the journey will help her write a memoir. As they clatter across the country in an ancient VW campervan, they’re intending to celebrate the past. But a chance encounter for Lily, means this road trip may also be about building a new future.

My Review

Three main characters, three generations of the same family, all living in Brighton. Firstly we have Moira, aged 79, strong-willed, feisty, but a bit frail and suffering the first symptoms of dementia. Sometimes she’s completely lucid, at others she can’t remember things she’s done that morning. She swears – a lot – and does odd things like dancing in the aisles at Asda or going for a walk without her shoes. But she wants to go on a road trip and has the full support of her doctor. It will do her good and she also wants to write a book about her life.

Then we have Lily, mid-forties, everyone’s doormat, from her mother and her ex-husband Nick, to her daughter Eleanor. Lily doesn’t really want to take her mother on this road trip, but she soon rolls over, and off they go in her rusty old VW campervan.

Finally we have Eleanor, high-flying lawyer, who always seems to be shouting at someone on the phone. She argues with Lily and with granny Moira. She thinks the road trip is a ludicrous idea, and even worse, she doesn’t think Lily is capable of looking after her own mother. So horror of horrors, she decides to join them part way through and bring them home.

In spite of the sadness of Moira’s dementia, it’s a feel-good book about family, friendship, love and hope. We meet a lot of people along the way including Oliver from Moira’s past life, the hilarious owners of the guest house in Keswick and a surprising love interest for Lily, who really deserves it. Because Lily has always just been the conduit in everyone else’s life and maybe she deserves her own happiness, as she points out at one point.

My only teeny weeny criticism is that the campervan should definitely have had a name, like Susan Calman’s Helen in her TV series Grand Days Out. I’m told Breadloaf is a popular moniker in some places, but I’m just going to call it something really simple like Wilma The Wandering Wombat.

Many thanks to @lovebookstours for inviting me to be part of the #MemoryRoad blog tour.

About the Author

“I am the author of three published novels, the most recent of which is THE BAD WIFE. Like my previous two novels, A THOUSAND TINY DISAPPOINTMENTS and HIS OTHER WOMAN, this is a domestic drama, touching on issues which affect families and showing how the characters deal with crises that threaten to derail their lives.

“In 2024 I have three more novels being published by Bloodhound Books, the first of which will be Memory Road, which will be available from 1st March.

“Before turning to fiction, I worked as a journalist for many years, and during my career I interviewed hundreds of people with stories to tell. Listening to their experiences gave me a fascinating insight into humanity in all its guises: what makes people tick and how they react to whatever life throws at them. I aim to write books that suck the reader in: plots that keep you turning the pages and characters who work their way inside your head. The sort of books where you have to read just one more chapter before you turn off the bedside light at night.

I live in Gloucestershire with my husband, three (almost grown-up now) children and far too many animals. If you’d like to find out more about me and my writing, please visit my website – www.sarahedghill.com.”

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