I need you to be Harold
and other stories
Preview short story collection
Many thanks to the first readers to comment …
‘I thoroughly recommend this book. It is such a delight to read. Each story is a treasure that you just have to savour’ – Jane King
‘Quite delightful, and as with the Wittenham Clumps book, I shall be recommending it to all’ – Franklyn Roberts
‘The endings were masterly … I will be re-reading and recommending the book to others without doubt. Each story is worth a philosophy or sociology group discussion in its own right!’ – Charles Boundy
Landmark in Time
The World of the Wittenham Clumps
Starting out from the well-loved Oxfordshire landmark of the Wittenham Clumps, Landmark in Time tells the stories within view of these two small hills – stories that take us from the Antarctic to the Western Front, from the rise of the Red Kite to the future of the Chiltern beech woods. Along the way, we come across a quiet village rectory that helped bring about the American Revolution, a peaceful farmhouse that gave us some of the greatest literature of war, a 1960s council estate with a glamorous past, a building housing temperatures greater than the centre of the sun, and a local Manor House that became the stage for one of the most celebrated literary love affairs of the twentieth century.
‘For all who delight in the stories our landscape has to offer’
In the final chapter, Landmark in Time shows us all England’s history from the Wittenham Clumps – from the Iron Age hill fort to the Harwell Science Campus.
Available to order here, I hope Landmark in Time may add to the interest and enjoyment of others who walk the Wittenham Clumps and all who delight in the stories our landscape has to offer.
Preview Landmark in Time contents pages
Readers write …
David Gentleman, Dorchester
What a fascinating, generous treasure-trove of history and stories … all connecting back to the Clumps. Brimming with intriguing revelations linking famous names (and infamous antics) and historically pivotal events and decisions to the very ground here under our feet. Often thought-provoking, occasionally a gentle call to conscience, in lucidly elegant prose and even – in one particularly touching instance – poetry, I devoured it. The view from the Clumps from now on will be so much richer in detail, definition and colour – what a gift to the locality.Oscar O’Connor, Dorchester
Not only are the stories fascinating, the manner in which they are told is wonderfully light, witty and conversational.Chris Charlesworth, Cholsey
The only book that has held my full attention in years.Catherine Cook, Cray’s Pond
Such a lovely idea to use the landmark as a departure point for such diverse stories. Really thought-provoking and enjoyable.Sue Haines, Aylesbury
I’m absolutely loving this book. So much learning, so lightly worn. A real pleasure to read.Sally Worsley, Wallingford
An inspirational journey of keen observation and research and one I don’t want to end.
I need you to be Harold
and other stories
Fifteen short stories takes the reader from a mansion in New England to a slum in Colombo, from a crypt in Assisi to a billiards hall in the North of England, from the parched sunlight of the Sahel to the dimly lit bar of a London hotel, and from a picnic on the Berkshire Downs to a confrontation on the streets of Manhattan. Along the way, we meet a cast of characters that includes George Bernard Shaw, an Antarctic explorer, a pensioner caught up in a protest, a stand-in boyfriend, a couple whose romantic anniversary goes wrong, a middle-aged woman reconciled to being ordinary and a young man convinced he is special.
‘What makes a good short story? Writing that is a pleasure to read, characters you care about, and a story that makes you want to know what happens’
Includes Sahel, winner of the Royal Society of Literature V S Pritchett Memorial Prize and the stories shortlisted for the Bridport and H G Wells short story awards.
Preview short story collection
Out now in paperback . . .
“A great story and very moving. It was that rare book which makes you feel sad when you finish it because the process of reading it has been so enjoyable.” – Fionnuala McCredie Q.C.
The Kennedy Moment is also available in hardback and ebook formats.
Select Myriad logo to buy direct from the publisher with special shipping charge of £2.50 to anywhere in the world
Or from Amazon UK or Amazon USA
And as an audiobook from Audible.co.uk, narrated by Adam Sims, Audiobook Narrator of the Year, 2017
Listen to an excerpt from audiobook of The Kennedy Moment