Tag: England

The Dagenham Idol

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The Dagenham Idol
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My Dagenham Idol replica

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few years ago I received a mysterious Christmas gift from my San Francisco brother. I opened the long, narrow box to find a crudely formed human figure made of wood. It looked like something you would find in the “exotic” home décor aisle at Pier 1 or World Market, along with the carved elephants and brass Buddhas. Standing 18 inches tall the figure was armless with a disc shaped head, a rudimentary nose, and a single eye. Just above the legs a round hole was an ambiguous indicator of gender. I stared at the figure for some time wondering what on earth my brother was thinking Continue reading “The Dagenham Idol” →

Confessions of a Hedgehog Collector

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My garden hedgehog

My obsession with hedgehogs began with the gypsies. Every summer when I was a child the gypsies, in their colorfully painted caravans, made camp in a nearby field. We would creep through the trees to spy on them playing explorers encountering an exotic tribe, to use the imperial language that still lingered on in Britain long after the Empire’s sun had set. Until the coming of the gypsies my Belgian mother was all the “diversity” we had in our east of London Cockney neighborhood. The gypsies brought with them Continue reading “Confessions of a Hedgehog Collector” →

On My Bookshelf – Biggles Flies to Work

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My copy
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First edition

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found this Biggles book in a London bookshop on one of my visits home. I was surprised to see that Biggles was still popular enough to justify reprints. Perched in the cockpit of his Spitfire in goggles and helmet, silk aviator’s scarf flying, Biggles was the epitome of a thoroughly British war hero. This collection of stories about his post-war exploits with the Air Police was first published in 1963. As you can see from the images above, the early editions had far more appealing covers.

Pilot James Bigglesworth was the creation of Continue reading “On My Bookshelf – Biggles Flies to Work” →

On My Bookshelf – The Wayfarer’s Book

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My father must have bought this little book at a used bookstore because, although it lists no copyright date, it was probably published in the early 1900’s. It goes back to a time when there were no hikers or even walkers, but ramblers and wayfarers. The author belonged to a Rambling Club and wrote this guide to the sights of the English countryside for city and town dwellers who ventured into Continue reading “On My Bookshelf – The Wayfarer’s Book” →