Speaks Volumes
Volume 9 September 2017 1 Speaks Volumes Volume 9 September 2017
Welcome to the ninth edi on of Speaks Volumes...
Dear Members We hope you are all enjoying the summer and are having the chance to catch up on plenty of reading. Throughout the summer, we have been working to develop an events programme for the autumn that we hope will appeal to members and new visitors. Key events to men on include our annual contribu on to Heritage Open Days which will run from the 7th to 10th September, and ‘Out of Hours’ a series of immersive theatre performances in partnership with local theatre company ‘A Quiet Word’ and Leeds City Council. These will take place from the 5th and 6th October. In conjunc on with the Big Bookend fes val, we will be welcoming our member Frances Brody who will be launching and reading from her new book ‘Death in the Stars’ on the 7th October. On the 13th Octo‐ ber the Library will welcome Caryl Phillips, our newly elected Patron, along with Glyn Maxwell and Im ‐ az Dharker for an evening of poetry to remember David Oluwale. The event organised with the Re‐ member Oluwale Trust and in associa on with Leeds University will feature an evening of poetry and readings from three of the country’s leading poets and mark what is hopefully the first of many visits for Carl Hu on Caryl to the Library as our patron. Details of all these events, including mings and admission prices (where applicable) can be found both on our website and within the Library. We are an cipa ng further events to be scheduled alongside our ongoing Film Club which takes place on the first Sat‐ urday and third Wednesday of each month. This commitment to working collabora vely is extended beyond just our events programme. Over the last two months Librarian Jane Riley has been leading tours for the staff of Leeds Central Library. This month we are playing host to a tour of Yorkshire and Humberside regional branch members from the Chartered Ins tute of Librarians and Informa on Professionals (CILIP) and we are also being visited by our increasing number of friends from the Independent Library Associa on who are keen to share ideas with us in terms of good prac ce. As we approach our 250th year we will keep members informed on the other events and partner projects that we have planned which will include working the Milim Fes val, Bri sh Library, Leeds Central Library, many of our colleagues in the Independent Li‐ braries Associa on and cultural organisa ons and ins tu ons ein th city. We hope that over the coming year you all have the me and opportunity to check out one or more of these projects. Best wishes
Staff: President : Dr. Kevin Grady
Chief Execu ve : Carl Hu on Patron : Caryl Phillips
Librarian : Jane Riley Trustees:
Assistant Librarians : Anna Goodridge and Helen Chair : Mar n Staniforth Holdsworth Deputy Chair: Stuart Rawnsley Library Assistants : Nichola Holmes Treasurer : Chris Holmes and Aidan Thackray Chair of Books : Michael Meadowcro Administrator : Sarah West Chair of House : Chris Webster Finance Officer : Liz Jones Chair of Research : Stuart Rawnsley IT/Communica ons Officer : Claire Buckley Chair of Staffing : Richard Hainsworth
Caretaker/Cleaner : Phillip Robinson Chair of Outreach & Development : Simone Iva s
Consultant Bookbinder: Brian Cole of The Castle Other Trustees : Bruce Buchan, Elizabeth Minkin, Bindery Chris ne Stead, Philip Walker 2 Speaks Volumes Volume 9 September 2017
News & Trivia
Heritage Open Days – 7th to 10th Light Night – 5th and 6th October
September We are taking part in both nights of this year’s Light Night. ‘Out of Hours’ is a series of immersive theatre We’re open to the public for Heritage performances in partnership with local theatre compa‐ th Open Days from Thursday 7 to Sunday ny A Quiet Word and Leeds City Council . Performances 10th September. Please spread the word will be free, and repeated throughout each evening . to anyone you know is interested. We Library ghost, Vincent Sternberg will appear in a séance hope they’ll be a hive of ac vity on those for part of the performance. More details will be avail‐ days. The public can look round the library and have a able in the coming weeks. cuppa. On the Saturday and Sunday, the Thoresby Society are showing off their maps of Leeds illustra ng how it has changed over me. If you’re interested call in during these mes: Remembering Oluwale Visit the Leeds Library – Thursday and Friday 10.00‐17.00 and Saturday and Sunday 10.00‐14.00 On 13th October, our new Old Leeds in Maps – Saturday and Sunday 10.00‐14.00 Patron and award‐winning playwright, author and essay‐ ist, Caryl Phillips, performs as part of an event to remember David Oluwale. The event is being organised with the Lost and found amnesty Remembering Oluwale Trust Caryl Phillips and in associa on with Leeds We have amassed some items of lost property and University. Remembering Oluwale will see Caryl joined have a few locker keys missing. We’d be very grateful if in an evening of poetry and readings by Im az Dharker you could please check to see if you may have any of who performed last year as part of The Haun ng Pro‐ our keys. We are missing numbers 5, 6, 25 & 29. ject and Glyn Maxwell whose volumes of poetry in‐ clude The Breakage, Hide Now, and Pluto. Secondly, we have a box of lost property and wondered David Oluwale arrived in Hull as a stowaway from his if any of these may belong to you?: na ve Nigeria in September 1949. He served 28 days in Burgundy and teal telescopic umbrella Leeds Prison for his breach of mari me regula‐ Jack Wolfskin black fleecy scarf ons. Twenty years later, in May 1969, he was pulled out of the River Aire, at Knostrop in Leeds, where he Black kni ed beany hat had drowned. David had spent ten of the sixteen years Sight Sta on reading glasses with horn‐rimmed between 1953 and 1969 in High Royds Psychiatric Hos‐ arms in a brown so case. pital; for the other six years he lived rough on the We will hold onto these items un l the end of the year streets of Leeds. In November 1971, two Leeds police and dispose of them then if nobody comes forward. officers were acqui ed of the manslaughter of David Oluwale, but were imprisoned for assaul ng him.
The event will start at 7.30pm with doors opening at 7pm and the event is scheduled to finish at 9pm. Tickets will be £6 / £4 concessions (including Members). Tickets are available from the Library web‐ site and on Eventbrite.
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Book Review
They knew Mr Knight by Dorothy Whipple
Reviewed by Helen Holdsworth
The books of Dorothy Whipple have enjoyed a renaissance in recent years since some were re‐issued by Persephone Books. She was born in Blackburn in 1893 and started wri ng short stories for the Blackburn Weekly Telegraph’s “Children’s corner”. Her novels can be described as domes c and usually with a moral tale. In 1927 she wrote “Young Anne”, the first of 9 successful novels. Most were Book Society choice or recommenda ons. They knew Mr Knight was published in 1934 and made into a film in 1944. It is a tale of corrup on and greed in which those who aim high eventually have everything come crashing down on them and they have to suffer the consequences. It tells the story of Thomas Blake, his wife Celia and their three children Freda, Douglas and Ruth. Thomas Blake takes pride in providing for his family and has dreams of prosperity. He is also responsible for his mother, sisters and feckless brother Edward. His great wish is to buy back the family business, sold by his father. A chance mee ng with shady financier, Mr Knight enables him to do this. Gradually most of Thomas’s family are drawn into the world of Mr Knight. Freda realises her social ambi ons, Douglas goes to university, Ruth travels to France and Celia is able to buy the house she has always coveted, the house that belonged to Mr Knight. Thomas’s a en on is now focussed on making more and more money and he is drawn further into the world of specula on and credit. Celia is uneasy with Thomas’s way of making money but she loves and trusts him and the family begin to enjoy this new found prosperity. However Thomas’s bubble is about to burst. An interes ng twist in the story is the transforma on of Thomas’s brother Edward. At the start of the novel he can’t hold a job down but by the end of the book he has turned his life around, becoming a devoted husband and father and in contrast to Thomas a prosperous businessman who eventually ends up helping Thomas and his family. A compelling read.
I can also highly recommend, Someone at a distance and High Wages both in the library and both published by Persephone.
The library also has the following tles:
The closed door and other stories
They were sisters
The priory
Every good deed
Greenbanks
If you’d like to review a book for a future issue please contact Claire at the Leeds Library at [email protected]
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Book Review
Seasons in the sun : the ba le for Britain 1974‐79 by Dominic Sandbrook Reviewed by Angela Bloor 'Seasons in the Sun' is the fourth in a series of books by Dominic Sandbrook which examine the poli cal, economic, social and cultural history of Britain. The tle of the book is taken from a hit single of March 1974. The book begins in March 1974 following a General Elec on which has returned a minority Labour Government, with Harold Wilson as PM. It ends in May 1979 with the newly elected PM, Margaret Thatcher, walking towards the door of No 10 Downing Street. Sandwiched between these two events, Dominic Sandbrook provides a detailed, insigh ul and o en amusing history of Britain. Poli cs takes centre stage to some extent, but the book also covers an immense range of subjects and events, which charts the social and cultural life of the country in this period. Television, film, music, food and sport ‐ including the football World Cup compe on of 1978, where only Scotland qualified from the home na ons ‐ all feature, alongside race rela ons, Ireland, a variety of scandals, trade unionism and a series of industrial disputes which led to what became known as the Winter of Discontent. Each subject is covered with clarity, liveliness and interest, with an impressive selec on of sources underpinning the points being made. The passion Dominic Sandbrook has for the subject is obvious. Poli cal cartoons feature throughout the book and a good selec on of evoca ve black and white photographs add to its overall enjoyment. 'Seasons in the Sun' is a fascina ng read. It is a nostalgia trip for people who grew up in this period, and for those who are too young to remember the 1970s, it is a detailed descrip on of life in the not too distant past, but which is very different from the technological and social media driven world of today.
Features
Book Conserva on
By Brian Cole The ravages of me, pollu on and poor quality binding materials has meant that the conserva on of the Library’s wonderful collec on of books is a constant challenge. In the past, a programme of rebinding and restora on has been undertaken by external contractors. Having a bookbinder permanently on site has allowed a more focused approach to conserva on and this has been further augmented by the addi on of three trainees, Faye Ineson, Nathan Ramsden (library members) and Will Poulter from Leeds Central Library who are enthusias cally learning the cra of hand bookbinding in return for helping make inroads into the mountain of books requiring remedial work. In addi on, all three trainees are now enrolled for the City and Guilds bookbinding qualifica on. Voca onal training in bookbinding used to be available at the London L‐R Nathan Ramsden and Brian Cole. College of Prin ng which ran both degree and HND courses but as these have lapsed, the only formal training in bookbinding available has been on Art related courses which concentrate more on book design rather than cra book construc on. In the last two years, Shepherd’s Bookbinding of London has resurrected the City and Guilds qualifica on with Levels One and Two in place and with two further levels to be put in place over the next two years providing a comprehensive course covering every aspect of bookbinding and restora on. Having a trained team of qualified book conservators will be of enormous benefit to the Leeds Library and we should gradually see the dilapidated volumes disappearing from the shelves to reappear in beau ful, func onal bindings.
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Features How Shelagh Flynn came into my life
By Phil O’Hare
Shelagh Flynn is the author of “Sweets on a Sunday” a most amazing and unique memoir of the me she and her three siblings spent in the Headingley Orphanage on Cliffe Road in Leeds.
I didn’t even know there had been an orphanage there. It was set up in 1859 and closed in 1959. Shelagh, Tony, Pat and Joyce Flynn were there in the late ‘40s and the ‘50s. When it closed, the buildings were sold and the money invested to produce a regular income which is given each year as grants to various children’s chari es by the Headingley Orphanage Founda on. Last year I was asked to be a Trustee to this charity and said I would do so only if I could see the archives, social history being one of my interests. This was agreed and the archives brought round to me. However I was disappointed, as Id ha expected the Orphanage archives but got the Charity archives instead which were singularly uninteres ng un l I came across a jewel – a le er from Shelagh Leeds author, Sheelagh Flynn Flynn.
She explained in her le er that she and her three siblings had recently asked to see their Social Servicesd files an everyone had told Shelagh that their story was so interes ng that she should write a book. She did. Her le er was asking for a grant to help publish it privately. This was turned down as it didn’t fulfil the charity’s criteria. I became curious and decided to find out if she ever did publish it. She had and I found it on Amazon and bought a copy. It arrived one Saturday morning and I started to read it at 6.00pm. At 12.30am I decided I just had to go to bed; it was so fascina ng I couldn’t put it down. I finished it the next day. Then….I wondered if Shelagh was s ll alive, s ll living at the address on the le er. So I wrote to her at that address, explaining how much her book had meant to me. A few days later the phone rang…..it was Shelagh. Was I thrilled! We have since met up, get on famously and having found out that “Sweets on a Sunday” is in our library and I took her there recently to sign it. I’ll never forget her astonishment at seeing it on the shelves, even more so that people had taken it out to read. The staff were marvellous with Shelagh and have suggested that she gives us a talk on her experiences in The Headingley Orphanage where they only ever got “Sweets on a Sunday”. This will hopefully take place later this year or early in 2018. Author Shelagh Flynn
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Features
Meet our longest serving member… Miss Judith Pickard
By Claire Buckley On 2ndSeptember it is 65 years since Miss Judith Pickard became a member of the Leeds Library. Judith recalls post‐war Leeds as a polluted industrial city. Building was restricted to building licences and only six houses could be built at a me. She recounted that the biggest change in Leeds was the bringing in of the Clean Air Act in 1956. If you worked in Leeds there would be soot in your bath a er bathing and around the hems of your clothing. Since the Leeds Library was founded in 1768 un l the early 1990s you had to buy a share to become a member. The Library was limited to five hundred shares and you had to wait un l someone died or gave up their share to join. In 1952 Miss Pickard was working at a solicitor’s firm and knew of many colleagues who were members but didn’t visit. There was kudos in having a share at the Leeds Library. She had visited with a colleague a few mes to sneak a read of Vogue magazine. Reminiscing about the Leeds Library Miss Pickard said ‘I didn’t know you could join as a young person’. She wasn’t aware of there being many female members Judith Pickard—courtesy of at the me either. She said ‘there was always a lady si ng at the counter in the Georgina Westbrook foyer and one person at the main counter’. Miss Pickard recounted how Albert Walker was a member of staff at the me. Mr Walker no ced Judith had visited a few mes and suggested that she join. Frank Beckwith was the Librarian from 1937 un l 1969. She said he was rarely seen and a formidable figure in the library, ‘I was terrified of him.’
Miss Pickard supported the purchase of the stair li as she saw people struggle with the stairs and she knew of a man who had lost his mobility and could no longer use the library. At the me the commi ee were opposed to it. She was involved with Access for the Disabled in Leeds and so had influence over the decision. Judith has also been involved with music throughout her life. She was choir mistress at St. Edmunds at Cli on and St. Nicholas’ at Gipton and is involved with the music at Leeds Cathedral. She remembered the pianist John Lill performing a recital at the Leeds Library in the 1980s. An avid reader, Judith said ‘I have always found me to read and visit the library’. She started the reading group at the Leeds Club which is s ll going.
Judith feels that Leeds has never paid tribute to the Leeds Library and the asset that it is. ‘I’ve brought people in to visit who have never heard of it. It’s like a secret’. Miss Pickard brought in her share cer ficate which was dealt with by Dibb Lupton Solicitors located on Bu s Court and who charged five shillings for it. She also had the Trustee Michael Meadowcro with Judith Pickard. receipts for the share purchase and for her first year’s subscrip on which was one guinea.
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Features
Meet our longest serving member… Miss Judith Pickard (con nued)
‘I’ve seen staff come and go over the years. They’ve always been wonderful, especially the present staff. Nothing has ever been too much trouble for them’.
On 1st September Leeds Library Trustee, Michael Meadowcro , presented Miss Pickard with a card and gi while Judith brought in a sumptuous gateau to share with the staff. We’re very grateful to Miss Pickard for all her years as a supporter of the library and would like to wish her eall th very best for the future.
Le : Judith Pickard’s original share cer ficate
Right: Judith’s receipt for her first year of membership.
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Events : Summer 2017
Please note: Unless otherwise stated, the events are free and are bookable through our website. Please check for an up to date list here: h ps://www.theleedslibrary.org.uk/events/
Death in the stacks...
Award‐winning Leeds author, Frances Brody, is launching her latest book as part of Leeds Big Bookend on Saturday 7th October at 12pm at the Leeds Library. Death in the Stars is the ninth novel from her popular Kate Shackleton mysteries. Frances will read from and discuss her book before taking audience ques ons and signing copies of Death in the Stars.
In June, 1927, eclipse fever grips the na on. The Astronomer Royal sets up his observa on post in the grounds of Giggleswick School Chapel. Special trains bring several hundred thousand eclipse chasers to Yorkshire. Beloved singing star Selina Fellini, back in her home town performing at Leeds City Varie es Music Hall, asks trusted sleuth Kate Shackleton to accompany her to Giggleswick, to join the viewing party.
Comedian Billy Moffa is with Kate and Selina to witness the eclipse, and then he disappears. When Billy is found dead in the chapel grounds, Kate digs deeper. She soon learns that during the past year two other members of the theatre troupe died in “accidents”. With the help of Jim Sykes and Mrs Sugden, Kate sets about inves ga ng the deaths – and whether there is a murderer in the company. Tickets are free but places must be reserved in advance. To reserve your place please visit Eventbrite.com and search for ‘Leeds Big Bookend’. For venue enquiries please call the Leeds Library on 0113 245 3071.
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