Yesterday I wrote about stuff… there is a bit of a theme going here as you might guess, and as you also might guess we’re trying to clear the decks before we have to start decking the halls etc for Christmas. There is an ongoing clearing and tidying theme – since January I have been trying to get rid of unwanted things, even loved things which I no longer, use, need, actually if I’m honest even really want.
So yesterday out went the only copy of a novel I wrote a very long time ago; there was no point in keeping it – it was pretty dreadful, although it did have quite a good narrative theme which I might use in the future. The main story is about a group of young people who meet on holiday in the south of France and then travell back to the farm in Somerset where the brother and sister in the group live with their widowed father and his brother. They arrive as the farm is flooded – I wrote this before the terrible floods of the Somerset Levels but if I ever do re-write it I can set it then and it will be more believable…
We have masses of books, masses and masses, and last week we tidied and reorganised the bookshelves downstairs (actually clearing one whole bookcase of unwanted volumes which will go to a charity book shop) and rearranging them so the book shelves looked neater… This plan sent a metaphorical chicken home to roost when my husband wanted a particular book today for his art class he is going to teach this afternoon.
“Where’s ‘Brothers in Art?'” he asked rather frantically (and as being less keen on the whole tidying thing than me, a teeniest bit irritated)
My heart did sink as I looked at the four remaining book shelves, but I remained calm and yes, I found the book which was actually called ‘Brother in Arms’…
So, while he is teaching downstairs, I will be tidying and writing upstairs… well, that’s the plan!
If you’re interested in the book which is about Paul and John Nash – Brothers in Arms: John and Paul Nash by Professor Paul Gough, with an essay by Gemma Brace:
This book explores the work of the two brothers; their family roots in London and Buckinghamshire; the difficult and dark days of their schooling; their divergent early careers and time in the trenches; the moments when they came together to share a show or studio, and also the long periods where their fortune fared so differently, Paul to achieve international recognition as a Modern artist as well as a profoundly English one, while John went quietly about his southern haunts painting the countryside, studying plants and diligently engraving dozens of illustrations.
– here is a link:
http://sansomandcompany.co.uk/shopping/brothers-in-arms-john-and-paul-nash/
Lois Elsden 