Reviews: Springfield Road Revisited & The Madonna Secret

My latest book reviews on Goodreads:

Springfield Road: A Poet’s Childhood Revisited by Salena Godden

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I absolutely adored this book. I think the author was born just a couple of months before I made my own appearance into the world so it took me right back to my own childhood in 1970s Britain. The detail and nuance of this particular time is very well evoked with many references that had me squealing 'ohh, I remember that' or 'yes that happened to me too' - favourite music, TV programmes, playground games etc. are recollected viscerally.

There are extremely sad and depressing elements to the story and these are told with clarity and grace. The realities of life for anyone who felt different from the norm in any way as a child, and the often horrifying difficulties that resulted, are not swept under the carpet in this memoir, but exposed deliberately, with sensitivity and without denying the deep disappointment that Life and the decisions made by people around us, can enact upon us.. continue reading.. 

The Madonna Secret by Sophie Strand
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

So much to love in Sophie Strand's The Madonna Secret. Here is the story you've been yearning for, the missing pieces to a confusing, bedraggled, ancient jigsaw which though it will always remain incomplete, can now, thanks to Sophie and other writers like her, at least give a sense of clarity if not a conclusion.

I listened to the audiobook version which is narrated by Sophie herself and so beautifully captures the feeling of living, loving and being in that potent time, of Miriam / Mary's passions, desires, fears, anguish, love and joy, of her deep knowing and connection to the land around her, the ecology, wildlife and memories of the women who came before and those yet to come.. continue reading.

My 2nd story published on @Vocal_Creators is for a competition with @FiskarsAmericas competition. 

A Stitch In Time is a short story about family, belonging, escape and the legacies passed from one generation to the next. It revolves around one of my favourite crafts - sewing.

"..The fabric was snipped into shape with the orange handled, adult-only scissors whilst loose threads were cut away with the large blue zig-zag pair cleverly designed to inhibit fraying or straying. All bad habits are removed at the base, prevented from developing into worse ones because we all know that one bad thing leads to another.."

If you enjoy it, please 'like' it and feel free to share.

Thanks for reading x

A Harmless Lullaby

I can’t get out of bed she says,
I’m scared of Mannequin.

Mannequin sighs from ‘neath red wool hat
which Daddy placed on top
to hide the two neck bolts
that sometimes look like eyes.

At night-time whilst she sleeps soft
Mannequin comes to life
her fixed form glows
under moon enchanted,
bends and dips,
her one leg glides
‘cross bedroom floor,
bags sway like arms
in time to starry chorus
a constellation of notes work fire on dark skies
as Mannequin’s song sings soft -


‘Sleep soundly little one
There is no need to fear me
When this night is done dear one
Those night dreams will prove only
Flights of pure fancy little one
An imaginative journey
And when the moon is gone dear one
You’ll think nothing of me
A tall, silent mannequin
Single leg and no real arms
But I will watch over you little one
And keep you safe from harm.’

#VSS365 #VSSPoem 7thFeb2020