My Dear, I wanted to tell you…about our library BOOK OF THE YEAR AWARD
Looking forward, and looking back…

Greetings, Dear Readers – and welcome to 2013!



But let’s use time’s arrow to cast our minds back, shall we?...

Back to last year, when we invited you to nominate your best books of 2012…and, as Jim Bowen – host of the popular ITV darts-themed quiz show Bullseye – so often said “What a lot we got!”

More than 200 nominations, suggestions and reviews, in fact - a splendid selection, and you can still see our 2012 Top 12 here.



Based on your choices and reviews, a panel of judges came up with a top 3, and – with the Olympics still fresh in their fertile minds – awarded them gold, silver and bronze medals…(All three winners, interestingly, with a historical theme…)



In third place, we’ve The Stranger’s Child by Alan Hollinghurst - a sweeping, lushly sensuous tale of upper class England from 1913 to the present day: “One of those books you can’t put down, but don’t want to finish because it’s so good. A treat from start to finish”…



In second place, try The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller – already an Orange Prize winner, it’s a retelling of the Trojan War story, full of love, war, gods, and heroic deeds…“I loved this book…it’s a tale from the Classical World but made into a fresh and vibrant love story – wonderful!”…



But our winner, and your Book of the Year is My Dear, I wanted to tell you by Louisa Young – a wonderful novel set during the First World War…

A letter, two lovers, a terrible lie… In war, truth is only the first casualty…Moving between Ypres, London, Paris, (and even Sidcup Hospital), My Dear I Wanted to Tell You is a deeply affecting, moving and brilliant novel of love and war, and how they affect those left behind as well as those who fight…

Here’s what you told us: “I loved this book… The story of soldiers at the front and their communications with their loved ones... You almost feel as though you’re at the front yourself as the descriptions are so vivid.”


“An interesting story but all based on truth about World war 1. It’s also of particular interest because of the involvement of our local Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup and the surgeons who worked there and did so much to pioneer plastic surgery as we know it today.
A brilliant book!”

“A wonderful book to discover for me

... Nothing too slushy but a brilliant and sad story beautifully written…

A real treasure”

And we’ve also heard from the author Louisa Young herself, who says “I am so pleased to hear that ‘My Dear’ has been chosen as your Book of the Year. For a writer, being chosen by readers, librarians, and book groups is the best kind of accolade. And, here’s an idea – perhaps I could visit your library sometime in 2013 to give a book reading?...

Thank you again”

Thanks, Louise – we’ll look forward to that…

So, there we have it, dear readers…Some great books from the past which you can look forward to reading in the future…Or, to paraphrase Jim Bowen once again: “Apart from darts My dears, you can’t beat a bit of booky!”



Happy 2013 everyone, and good reading.



TTFN

Season’s Greetings, Blog-followers – and welcome to our traditional Yuletide and Advent catablog; it’s got links to open, an astonishing assortment of pop-ups, and some cracking novelties….        

Have a look...

Sing along, if you like...                                                         

Enjoy!...

Ready?...

Here we go, then...

Good King Wenceslas look'd out,

On the Feast of Stephen;

When the snow lay round about,

Deep, and crisp, and even:

Brightly shone the moon that night,

Though the frost was cruel,

When a poor man came in sight,

Gath'ring winter fuel.

2. "Hither page and stand by me,

If thou know'st it, telling,

Yonder peasant, who is he?

Where and what his dwelling?"

"Sire, he lives a good league hence.

Underneath the mountain;

Right against the forest fence,

By Saint Agnes' fountain."

3. "Bring me flesh, and bring me wine,

Bring me pine-logs hither:

Thou and I will see him dine,

When we bear them thither."

Page and monarch forth they went,

Forth they went together;

Through the rude winds wild lament,

And the bitter weather.

4. "Sire, the night is darker now,

And the wind blows stronger;

Fails my heart, I know now how,

I can go no longer."

"Mark my footsteps, good my page:

Tread thou in them boldly;

Thou shalt find the winter's rage

Freeze thy blood less coldly."

5. In his master's steps he trod,

Where the snow lay dinted;

Heat was in the very s*d

Which the saint had printed.

Therefore, Christian men, be sure,

Wealth or rank possessing,

Ye who now will bless the poor,

Shall yourselves find blessing.


And so, dear readers, all that remains is for me - on behalf of the Blogbrary Editorial Elf Board, Rudolph and our Reindeer Research Team, and all the Bex-L Pixies – to wish everyone a very happy, peaceful, and joyous Christmas….

TTFN

Stuck for Christmas gifts for stocking fillers?...


Never fear! ~ For this year, Bexley’s Local Studies Centre have it all sewn up…

“Dear Father Christmas…

This year, instead of just sweets and chocolates in my Christmas stocking, what we really, really, really want are Bexley Local History publications…





You know, things like books, maps, publications, cards and stuff…”

 

“Ho, ho, ho!

Then you’re in luck, my young friends; for this year, the team of jolly Elves at Bexley’s Local Studies Centre are arranging a very special Christmas Sale of all their finest produce…

It’s on Thursday 13th December at the Central Library in Bexleyheath between 11.00am and 4.00pm, and I’m assured that there will be lots to choose from, with many marvellous bargains to be had…

Ho, ho, ho, and TTFN!”                                             

You are cordially invited to…

Pictured: Crayford Library, circa 1956 (photo c Bexley Local Studies and Archives Centre)

~ AN INVITATION ~

Bexley Libraries request the pleasure of your company to join us at the commencement of the new Crayford Library at any time from the 17th November onwards.

Menu: a wide selection of books to suit all tastes and ages, magazines and newspapers, public network computers and internet access; Storytimes, Chaterbooks and Toddlertime sessions; Reading group meetings and the Friends of Crayford Library; Events and Activities to follow: Coffee will be served on the first Tuesday of each month.

And, for those of you who have not visited a Bexley Library for some considerable length of time -  kindly note -

Jacket and tie NOT required.

Carriages (By rail, or autobus services 96,428 or 492) daily.

No need to RSVP – all are very welcome!

TTFN

BIOGRAPHIES IN BEXLEY...
I spy ...with my little eye ... some biographies beginning with ... B


A brace of Bexley bookish thoughts occurred to me recently, dear readers (no small feat for – as you’ll appreciate – we chaps tend not to be able to think of more than one item at a time…)


Thought A) was that we've got a splendid collection of biographies about the Obamas, so now would be a good time to revisit them...
For, without any hint of political bias, nothing becomes so obsolete so rapidly as a biography of a recently defeated overseas politician - and, while we've got various books about Romney (Marsh) we've nothing about Romney (Mitt)...

Thought B) popped up shortly afterwards, whilst my extensive research team were gathering material regarding our library collection of new biographies - and, "my! - what a lot we've got!"...There are certainly some absolute corkers popping up on the catalogue, and - as one of my colleagues perceptively pointed out - lots of the best ones are about B's...

Well, this called for an investigation, without a doubt...And yes - how right they were. Here are some of their top biographical tips...(Sadly, they failed to fully complete the task, and you'll need to uncover the actual B's yourself, so please try...)

One brave B perished in a heroic Antarctic quest - (but did you know, he went to school in Sidcup?)

Another crafty  B also had some Bexley links: a close pal of our own William Morris, he was the greatest artist of his age...
  And then there's  a colleague of our own Len Goodman - but this one's a saucy Italian B

Or how about a feline, ginger B?...

Or some Tudor B's?

Or perhaps your tastes are more musical? Then here's a classic B, or - my own personal favourite "Get it on" and "Ride a white swan" - a groovy B

So - to sum up, dear readers  - we've lots of biographies beginning with 'B'...we've got biographies about the Obamas...but, obviously, if you want even more new biographies to get your (ahem) mitts on, then just try these: ACDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

TTFN

Trees please...
(Or, ashes to ashes?...)

If you go down to the woods today, dear readers, (as the popular song reminds us) you’re sure of a big surprise…


For, rather than cuddly teddy bears or ruggedly autumnal picnics, you’ll probably find an unpleasant case of Chalara fraxinea – ughhh



Do you share my woodland worries and ash-anxieties, dear readers? The news is certainly troubling about the state of our beloved ash tree population – apparently 90 % of Denmark’s ashes have this dreadful disease , and now it’s spreading here…

Ash trees are one of our unsung heroes in the countryside, not showy, not spectacular, just grand… As dear old Rudyard reminded us “Of all the trees that grow so fair, Old England to adorn, Greater are none beneath the Sun, Than Oak, and Ash, and Thorn”…and now they might be gorn (He didn’t actually write the last bit, obviously, as Mr. Kipling did make exceedingly good poems…)

So, is there any good news to be had?...Well, a little: Bexley are involved in the Trees to Treasure scheme, which will benefit local communities…

And Bexley Libraries (naturally) has some splendid tree-themed reading available at many (ahem) branches…root them out and leaf through them. (Try Wildwood by Roger Deakin – a very fine book).

So, there we have it, dear readers – now, how to conclude?...Perhaps, in this November week of Remembrance we should recall the words of the poet Alfred J Kilmer (who died in the Great War in 1918):

“I think that I shall never see

A poem lovely as a tree”…

“Poems are made by fools like me

But only God can make a tree”.

TTFN.

The strange case of Napoleon Bonaparte, his grave, and the Bexleyheath laundry link…

 Bonjour, cher readers!

This week, the Blogbrarian goes to Napoleonic France, the icy Russian steppe, a windblown St Helena in the mid Atlantic, and …er… Pincott Road in Bexleyheath.



Let’s start at the beginning: a gentleman asked our excellent Local Studies and Archives Centre if – since it was 200 years since Napoleon’s disastrous retreat from Moscow (think 1812 overture and all that) – Bexley had any local links to mark the occasion…



Well, those bright young things at Local Studies discovered that, whilst we don’t have any Napoleonic remains as such (Martello Towers, prison ships or military barracks and such like), what we did have was a …laundry!



Intrigued? … Well, it’s complicated, but the Bexleyheath and District Laundry in Pincott Road was linked to the Torbett family, who, in Napoleonic times owned land on St Helena – the tiny island where the defeated Emperor was exiled, and died in 1821…

As Napoleon’s tomb became THE place to visit on St Helena (which, unsurprisingly, held few other attractions for the passing tourist) the Torbetts were awarded government contracts for public access to the site; they also sold tourist trinkets, food, and “cool mountain spring water” and reaped the financial rewards.



Back in London, the story is that the Torbetts wisely invested their wealth in a Bexleyheath laundry business (and christened one of their family members ‘Reginald Napoleon Torbett’). How splendid!



So there you have it…Bexley’s first and grandest laundry business owes everything to Napoleon’s windswept tomb. And not a lot of people know that!



Meanwhile, if you want to learn more about Napoleon’s sad, lonely life of exile, then try Julia Blackburn’s splendid book.

And if you want to learn more about Bexleyheath’s first laundry (or anything else historical) then you know where to come. BLSAC



And here my story ends…A sad but true story, a grave story, but – at least – a clean story.

Au revoir, for now.