Tag: memoir

#BlogTour #BookReview Lucky Jack by S. Bavey

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Lucky JackWelcome to today’s stop on the blog tour for Lucky Jack by S. Bavey. My thanks to Rachel at Rachel’s Random Resources for inviting me to take part in the tour and for my digital review copy. Do check out the posts by my tour buddies for today, Els at B for Bookreview and Gina at Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers.

WinThere’s also a (US only) giveaway with a chance to win a signed copy of Lucky Jack. Enter via Rafflecopter here.

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Lucky JackAbout the Book

“One of the perils of being a sniper during the First World War was the likelihood of a grenade going off right next to you and burying you alive.”

Meet Jack Rogers. Born in 1894, he once locked eyes with Queen Victoria and was one of the first travellers on London’s ‘Tube’. An early car owner, he had many escapades on his days out to Brighton, including a time when his brakes failed and he had to drive through central London without them!

His skills as an entertainer earned him popularity throughout his life, and kept him out of the deadly mines while a prisoner during the First World War. At the tender age of 103 Jack earned the title of ‘The World’s Oldest Columnist’ as he began dictating his life’s exploits to a reporter from the local newspaper.

Format: Paperback (225 pages)              Publisher: josephtailor
Publication date: 19th November 2021 Genre: Memoir

Find Lucky Jack on Goodreads

Purchase links
Amazon UK
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My Review

In Lucky Jack, the author has used family memories and published anecdotes from her grandfather’s time as ‘The World’s Oldest Columnist’ for his local newspaper to construct a first person account of his life.

In the first section of the book Jack recalls childhood scrapes, mischievous pranks, family holidays and days out, as well as occasions when he was the witness to significant events such as the opening of the London underground. Later he reflects on events such as acquiring his first car, his marriage and the birth of his son. The threads that run through Jack’s life are family, hard work and a sense of fun.

However I’m sure I won’t be alone in finding the sections of the book in which he recalls his experiences during the First World War to be the most powerful. (I believe an expanded version could have made a book in itself.) Like many of the other young men who signed up, he had no idea what was awaiting him in France. ‘Waiting to go over the top was a terrible, gut-wrenching feeling.’ Somehow he survives being buried by debris from an explosion and endures unimaginably harsh treatment during his time as a prisoner-of-war. ‘The hunger and weakness we experienced as prisoners is like nothing else I have ever had to endure in all of my long life.’ He describes some terrible experiences but with a remarkable degree of equanimity, perhaps due to the passage of time or because of his positive approach to life.  Nevertheless it’s clear the memories of those events, and of the comrades who didn’t make it back, stayed with him forever.

Lucky Jack is a remarkable account of a long life well-lived. Although Jack describes himself as having been ‘blessed with good luck’, I’d say that it’s his fortitude, determination and cheeky sense of humour that shines through. You can view many photographs of Jack and his family, including those in the book, on the author’s website.

In three words: Fascinating, honest, uplifting

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Author_pic Sue BaveyAbout the Author

Sue Bavey is an English mum of two living in Massachussetts since 2003 with her husband, kids, a cat named Midnight, a bunny named Nutmeg, a leopard gecko named Ziggy Stardust and occasional frogs and salamanders. Lucky Jack is her grandfather, Henry John Rogers’ biography.

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#BookReview Devorgilla Days by Kathleen Hart @tworoadsbooks

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Devorgilla DaysAbout the Book

Nine years ago, Kathleen Hart was diagnosed with breast cancer. Further complications led to a protracted recovery and months spent in hospital, where Kathleen had to learn how to walk again. While recuperating, she came across a small, whitewashed cottage for sale in Wigtown, Scotland. Driving hundreds of miles on nothing more than a few photographs and an inkling, she bought it that very same day, and named it Devorgilla after the formidable 13th century Scottish princess.

Heartwarming and deeply moving, Devorgilla Days is an inspiring tale of one woman’s remarkable journey, a celebration of community, and a call-to-arms for anyone who has ever dreamt of starting over.

Format: Paperback (352 pages)    Publisher: Two Roads
Publication date: 14th April 2022 Genre: Nonfiction, Memoir

Find Devorgilla Days on Goodreads

Purchase links
Bookshop.org
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Hive | Amazon UK
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My Review

Resilience is the word that springs to mind when reading about Kathleen Hart’s long and arduous recovery from life-threatening illness, a process that was not without its setbacks.  Devorgilla Days charts her decision to leave her old life behind (a surprisingly glamorous one, we learn) and move to Wigtown, known as Scotland’s book capital. A town with twelve bookshops – how fantastic is that? The rather dilapidated cottage she renovates she names Devorgilla after a 13th century Scottish princess whose independence of spirit Kathleen emulates in spades.

The author writes of her surprise at the generosity of the local people and how readily they welcome her into the community. It’s the sort of place where people leave fresh lobsters at your door, bring you a hot drink at the beach on a cold day or check up on you if they haven’t seen you for a few days.  However, I think Kathleen underplays her own willingness to throw herself into the life of the town, chatting to people she meets in the street and embracing the various social activities Wigtown has to offer. ‘Have a go’ becomes her motto and so we see her taking art and tai chi classes, joining ‘Knit and Natter’ sessions in the village hall, attempting to learn Scottish country dancing (even if she describes her efforts as those of ‘a geriatric elephant’), attending pub quiz nights and, eventually, taking a course in beekeeping.

Central to her new life though – and an essential part of her physical and mental recovery- is her daily swim in the sea. One of the lovely features of the book is the chapters in which Kathleen relates details of her daily swim and the wildlife she encounters – everything from ‘belligerent gulls’ to ‘a bedraggled skein of geese’ to jellyfish (the latter with rather unfortunate results). Although she lives alone, it’s by choice; a conscious decision to focus on what’s important to her and to prioritise her own wellbeing. As she observes, ‘I’m learning to be my own best friend.’  The cottage itself, which she gradually fills with furniture from the Aladdin’s cave which is the community shop, she describes as her sanctuary, ‘a hug of a place where I feel comfortable and safe’.

Devorgilla Days is an unflinchingly honest account of recovering from the trauma of serious illness. It’s also a wonderfully uplifting book about the power of the human spirit, the role of nature in our health and wellbeing, and the importance of community.

My thanks to Xanthe Rendall at John Murray Press for my review copy.

In three words: Truthful, moving, inspiring

Try something similar: Where the Hornbeam Grows by Beth Lynch

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Kathleen HartAbout the Author

Kathleen Hart was educated at a convent school in Cheshire before experimenting with various occupations, from air hostess to antiques dealer, but her favourite so far is author. She does her best writing in Devorgilla Cottage, where she keeps bees, swims in the sea and every day encourage thousands of her PoshPedlar Instagram followers to ‘make room for the magic’. (Photo: Twitter profile)

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