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  The Boys of Shakespeare's School...

  Richard Pearson

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  “The story of the King Edward VI grammar school in Stratford-upon-Avon and its sacrifice in the Second World War . . . a heavy price for just one school.” —War History Online   Like the Great War generation before them, the Old Boys of King Edward VI School, Stratford-upon-Avon, (known as Shakespeare’s School) answered the Nations call to arms in 1939. Over the next six years, no less than fifty-two of these young men fought and died for their Country. This evocative and carefully researched book tells each one’s story. The author paints a picture of the character of the individual concerned, along with his family background, his contribution to the School and, most importantly, his war service and the circumstances of his death.   Some perished in lonely cockpits during the Battle of Britain and the Bombing campaign. Others fought and died at sea whether on Atlantic convoys, the Mediterranean campaign or in the Far East. The soldiers among them fell in the glare of the Western Desert fighting the Germans and Italians and in the unforgiving jungles of Burma repulsing the Japanese. In one case, death came in a German concentration camp.   Who can tell what influence the strong ethos of this small grammar school with its enduring values of decency and comradeship had played during the years of hostilities on both those who made the supreme sacrifice and others who were fortunate enough to survive? What is certain is that the example set by those former members of Shakespeare’s School whose stories are told in this book must never be forgotten by their successors.

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  When Your Hand is in the Lion’s...

  Nita Whitaker

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  WHEN YOUR HAND IS IN THE LION'S MOUTH is non-fiction told in 42 stories that is a father-daughter memoir. The love, wisdom and life lessons shared can father us all, and at 96 years young, he keeps inspiring and teaching us with his practical wisdom. Not often enough do we hear of great black fathers in our stories or media, one that goes beyond stereotype, shining a light on a devoted man who lifts and enlightens. Green is one of those men. The simplicity and complexity of the life into which he was born informed the wisdom and worldliness he would gain. Born as the second youngest of 19 children in a rural northwest Louisiana farming community, the lion of the Jim Crow South loomed large and oppressively in the 1920's. But, Green Whitaker had the beautiful gift of a family devoted to each other to guide him through. That familial devotion and grounding grew him into a man of great integrity and grit whose love melded with the faith seeds planted in his quest for a piece of the American dream. He continues to be a beloved father, uncle and friend, as well as a father figure to more than his own children, serving as a mentor and willing role model for his entire community and more. His love and nurturing gave me the confidence to pursue a career in entertainment. His example is the salve our souls need; a re-parenting from a father figure whose voice and simple wisdom can nourish and support the child within each of us. Green is the last surviving of his large family and is the portal to his family's history and legacy. It is not an academic book on parenting, but a sharing, a recollection of unpolished gems of wisdom about how to have better values, sharing the ways to be more kind, loving and honest to foster a rich life. It gives us a glimpse into the life and earned wisdom of a distinguished black father named Green, and how he shares his practical life gems with his children, his community, and especially his youngest daughter, Nita.

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  Tracing Your Ancestors Through...

  Jane Shrimpton

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  Jayne Shrimpton's complete guide to dating, analysing and understanding family photographs is essential reading and reference for anyone undertaking genealogical and local history research. Using over 150 old photographs as examples, she shows how such images can give a direct insight into the past and into the lives of the individuals who are portrayed in them. Almost every family and local historian works with photographs, but often the fascinating historical and personal information that can be gained from them is not fully understood. They are one of the most vivid and memorable ways into the past.This concise but comprehensive guide describes the various types of photograph and explains how they can be dated. It analyses what the clothes and style of dress can tell us about the people in the photographs, their circumstances and background.Sections look at photographs of special occasions  baptisms, weddings, funerals - and at photographs taken in wartime, on holiday and at work. There is advice on how to identify the individuals shown and how to find more family photographs through personal connections, archives and the internet - and how to preserve them for future generations.Jayne Shrimpton's handbook is an authoritative, accessible guide to old photographs that no family or local historian can be without.As featured in The Argus.

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  The Skies Belong to Us - Love...

  Brendan I. Koerner

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  In an America torn apart by the Vietnam War and the demise of the idealism of the sixties, airplane hijackings were astonishingly routine. Over a five-year period starting in 1968, the desperate and disillusioned seized commercial jets nearly once a week, using guns, bombs, and jars of acid. Some hijackers wished to escape to foreign lands, where they imagined being hailed as heroes; others aimed to swap hostages for sacks of cash. Their criminal exploits mesmerized the country, never more so than when the young lovers at the heart of Brendan I. Koerner's The Skies Belong to Us pulled off the longest-distance hijacking in American history.A shattered Army veteran and a mischievous party girl, Roger Holder and Cathy Kerkow commandeered Western Airlines Flight 701 as a vague protest against the war. Through a combination of savvy and dumb luck, the couple managed to flee across an ocean with a half-million dollars in ransom, a feat that made them notorious around the globe. Koerner spent four years chronicling this madcap tale, which involves a cast of characters ranging from exiled Black Panthers to African despots to French movie stars. He combed through over 4,000 declassified documents and interviewed scores of key figures in the drama-including one of the hijackers, whom Koerner discovered living in total obscurity. Yet The Skies Belong to Us is more than just an enthralling yarn about a spectacular heist and its bittersweet, decades-long aftermath. It is also a psychological portrait of America at its most turbulent and a testament to the madness that can grip a nation when politics fail.

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  Abraham Lincoln: A History...

  John Hay

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  This is the biography of Abraham Lincoln, written by two of his private secretaries. (Summary by ashleighjane)

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  Crime Classics: John Hayes His...

  Elliott Lewis

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  Mr. Hayes returns from war to his lonely wife to find her afrolic with two comely boarders. His head is shortly thereafter found by the side of the Thames...and then encapsulated in a glass jar. Warwickshire, England in the year 1785 and a lovely young lady whose married name was Catherine Hayes and whose ambition was to be a widow, this is the story of John Hayes, his head and how they were parted.

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