‘The Song of Peterloo’ by Carolyn O’Brien is set in Manchester in 1819 where the cotton mills are making the owners rich whilst the millworkers are poorly paid and working in difficult even dangerous conditions. Many of the mill workers are drawn to radicals like Henry Hunt who are agitating for reform and plans are being made for a peaceful gathering of tens of thousands … Continue reading The Song of Peterloo
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A novel of working life in contemporary Manchester Continue reading Lanyards by Neil Campbell
Local writer, Keith Warrender is the author of several books about Cheshire and Manchester and he has just produced ‘Manchester’s Lost District: Life before the Arndale’. It may seem that the Arndale Centre has been dominating the centre of Manchester forever. In fact, the shopping centre was built in the 1970s to replacing a warren of streets, squares and courts, remnants of a much older … Continue reading Manchester’s Lost District: Life before the Arndale Centre
This Automaton by David Wheldon ( Nightjar Press) is a strange fragment of a tale. The first page tells us that the manuscript of the story was found amongst the effects of a British infantryman killed in 1918. It is dated 1905 and relates an episode in the life of the boy who, we presume, would later become that unfortunate soldier. The child lives with … Continue reading The Automaton by David Wheldon
Review by Katie Frankland Set in a cold, grey, eerie Manchester, “Sirens” introduces Adrian Waits, an unfortunate Detective with a menacing past and hopeless future. His present isn’t too promising either as he is pushed into the ugly, brutal darkness of the city’s criminal underground. Assigned to work on a solo, covert mission to investigate the whereabouts of a missing politician’s daughter, he positions himself … Continue reading Sirens -Joseph Knox (Transworld Publishers)
Reveiw by Seamus Kelly What do I, as a poet, look for when reading or listening to poetry? When I read poetry, I want to be shown new perspectives, to gain new insights, to be made to pause for thought and I hope to find pleasure in the reading. After reading just six random poems from this collection I knew that it would deliver … Continue reading England -Poems From A School Edited By Kate Clanchy (Picador)
Review by Patrick Green Intimate, raw and straight talking poetry, covering a broad range of personal experiences with poetic finesse and honesty. A mysterious Manchester based poet not to be missed, James D. Fent has more than poetry to offer in relation to creativity. His last collection of poetry ‘Many Renditions of Sadness’ is an ambitious collection of forty poems that claims to cover topics … Continue reading Many Renditions of Sadness James D. Fent
Reveiw by Katie Frankland It does what it says on the cover: it’s a story about the sister of a witchfinder. There’s something quite simple, matter of fact about its title, yet quite deep and intriguing at the same time. The sister, Alice is making a reluctant but necessary move from London back to her rural beginnings in Essex. Her husband had recently died, leaving … Continue reading The Witchfinder’s sister Beth Underdown (Penguin Books)
Beautiful Chilling Tales from a poet Words by Yoko Isami Before I was involved with Altrincham Word Fest, I was really an avarage reader, just reading books that caught my eye. I had some favorite authors, but that was it. I thought that was what everyone was doing. Then I noticed my colleague was on her small mission to read books by authors from the … Continue reading Quartier Perdu Sean O’Brien (Comma Press)
Altrincham Word Fest 