Norman Collins

It is 1938 and the prospect of war hangs over every London inhabitant. But the city doesn't stop. Everywhere people continue to work, drink, fall in love, fight and struggle to get on in life. At the lodging-house at No.10 Dulcimer Street, Kennington, the buttoned-up clerk Mr Josser returns home with the clock he has received as a retirement gift. The other residents include faded actress Connie; tinned food-loving Mr Puddy; widowed landlady Mrs Vizzard (whose head is turned by her new lodger, a self-styled �Professor of Spiritualism�); and flashy young mechanic Percy Boon, whose foray into stolen cars descends into something much, much worse �

London Belongs to Me

Facts of Fiction

A first-hand account of World War I by a nineteen-year-old Englishman who led a platoon into the carnage of the Battle of the Somme. While researching his excellent earlier book: Veterans of World War I, author Richard Van Emden encountered a fascinating personality of that long-ago conflict. After witnessing German naval attacks on British civilians, Norman Collins enlisted in the Seaforth Highlanders of the 51st Highland Division, even though he was under age. Collins fought at the battles of Beaumont Hamel, Arras, and Passchendaele, and was wounded several times. Collins lived to be 100 and had an unusually detailed collection of letters, documents, illustrations and photographs. Richard Van Emden has written a moving biography of a unique personality at war, and his long life after the dramatic events of his youth. “This is a harrowing tale of battle, loss and the horrors of war.” —Scotland Magazine “His collection of letters, photographs and the record of interviews as an old man are a treasure trove of information on Western Front fighting.” —British Army Review/Soldier Magazine “Enthralling memoir. These letters form the freshest part of this book, full of detail about kit and food that obsessed soldiers but which do not find a place in the history books.” —Who Do You Think You Are? “This is one of the last great first-person memoirs of the Great War. Extraordinary diary, letter collection and photos.” —Scottish Legion News

The Memiors of a Seaforth Highlander During the Great War

Last Man Standing

Richard Van Emden

Originally published: Barnsley, South Yorkshire: Leo Cooper, 2002.

Norman Collins : the Memoirs, Letters & Photographs of a Teenage Officer

This - as only Norman Collins can tell it - is the story of Stanley Pitts, a Contracts Filing Clerk in the Admiralty, a small man - small in stature, small in ambition and achievement, happy in his work and devoted to his hobby of photography. For Stan himself, his latest failure with the Civil Service Selection Board might not have mattered too much. But it mattered to his wife, Beryl. For Beryl is a social climber, mistress of the house in Kendal Terrace, Crocketts Green with its garden gnomes, its wall-to-wall carpeting, its ivory enamel kitchen fitments and its fridge full of Oven-Fresh Old Style Farm House Cornish Pasties; Beryl, mother of little Marleen with her flaxen ringlets, prospective winner of the Under-Twelves Ballroom Dancing Championship; Beryl, the South London suburban housewife in her Mexican housecoat with the Sun-God buttons. When Stan's tasteful photographic study of Hoarfrost on Wimbledon Common wins the Admiralty Division Photographic Competition on the very eve of his expected promotion, never has the future looked brighter for the inhabitants of No. 16. How then did Stan, with his pride in his job and his keen sense of duty, find his way into the dock of No. 1 Court at the Old Bailey? Why was the sentence such a savage one? What became of Beryl? And what part did Mr Cheevers, crime reporter of the Sunday Sun, play in all this? Norman Collins is a master story-teller. Its high comedy and almost unbearable suspense make it a brilliant and unforgettable novel.

The Husband's Story

It is 1938 and the prospect of war hangs over every London inhabitant. But the city doesn't stop. Everywhere people continue to work, drink, fall in love, fight and struggle to get on in life. At the lodging-house at No.10 Dulcimer Street, Kennington, the buttoned-up clerk Mr Josser returns home with the clock he has received as a retirement gift. The other residents include faded actress Connie; tinned food-loving Mr Puddy; widowed landlady Mrs Vizzard (whose head is turned by her new lodger, a self-styled 'Professor of Spiritualism'); and flashy young mechanic Percy Boon, whose foray into stolen cars descends into something much, much worse ... Includes an introduction by Ed Glinert, as well as explanatory footnotes.

Der Glanz längst vergangener Zeiten. Das Kaufhaus in der Bond Street ist nicht einfach nur ein Kaufhaus. Es ist eine Welt des Glamours, des Luxus und der schönen Waren. Und es ist eine Welt der Romantik, Ängste, Hoffnungen und Träume der vielen Angestellten des Kaufhauses. Irene, die launische Verkäuferin, sehnt sich nach einem Leben im hellen Scheinwerferlicht. Der leitende Verkäufer Mr. Bloot führt eine schreckliche zweite Ehe. Marcia, das langjährige Vorführmodel, merkt, dass ihre Schönheit schwindet. Und Eric Rammell, der gestresste Geschäftsführer, versucht dem gesellschaftlichen Leben zu entkommen, das seine Frau so unermüdlich für ihn organisiert. All diese Geschichten über ihre Arbeit, Beziehungen und die kleinen Eifersüchteleien, sind in diesem Roman über das Rammels Kaufhaus geschickt miteinander verwoben. „Das Kaufhaus am Ende der Bond Street“ wurde erstmals 1958 in England veröffentlicht, nun komplett neu übersetzt und erzählt mit einem charmanten und nostalgischen Blick vom London der Nachkriegszeit und dem Glanz vergangener Zeiten.

Das Kaufhaus am Ende der Bond Street

Set in the early 50s in the aftermath of the war, The Bat that Flits tells the story of James Hudson, a research assistant in bacteriological warfare.On arriving in Bodmin to start work at the Government centre based deep in the moors, Hudson finds a suspicious note placed on his pillow. Setting out to discover the origin of such a letter, Hudson becomes entangled in something much more sinister than he could have imagined... Originally published by The Crime Club, this is Norman Collins' first thriller.In addition to his prowess as a novelist, Collins displays an extraordinary talent for making the blood run cold.

The Bat that Flits

The flames in the title are by no means merely symbolic: they are the real flames of an Andean volcano in wild eruption. And it is in this hot, insane world of ashes, lava and earthquake that the business mission of Harold Dunnett, the young audit clerk, comes to sudden disaster. Sent out by his firm to investigate the suspicious trading affairs of Senior Muras, Mr. Dunnett, always very careful of his professional reputation, finds himself being drawn into a human jungle quite as impenetrable as the steamy jungle that lies outside Amricante. For one thing, the Amricante politicians are all businessmen, and some of the businessmen have politicians in their pockets: there is intrigue and corruption in the air. The books of the Compania Muras are mysteriously unobtainable: confidential cables go astray: key witnesses are missing. Mr. Dunnett himself is cajoled, offered bribes, warned and finally threatened. Throughout it all, however, he remains the perfect audit clerk, aloof and immaculate, vainly cabling his employers and writing affectionate letters to the nice little fiancée whom he left at home in England. Then Senior Muras himself disappears up country and Mr. Dunnett, faithful in his purpose, goes in pursuit of him. At this point the local volcano blows its head off: all communications with the outside world are sundered. In his desperate pursuit Harold finds himself involved not only in a local war, but with Carmel Muras, the beautiful daughter of Senior Muras. Together they experience danger and disaster.

Flames Coming out of the Top

Bond Street Story brings to life the chaotic glamour, gossip and romance of the elegant Rammell's department store. This charming, nostalgic glimpse of post-war London follows the hopes, dreams and exploits of a host of memorable characters from the prodigious Bond Street establishment. Irene, the whimsical shop girl, yearns for the bright lights of the stage; senior floorwalker Mr. Bloot drifts into a disastrous second marriage; Marcia, Rammell's long-serving model, knows her beauty is waning, and Eric Rammell, the harassed Managing Director, seeks to escape the social life his wife so unremittingly organizes for him. Each of their stories of work, relationships and petty jealousies is skilfully intertwined in this irresistible tale. First published in 1958, Bond Street Story is a classic novel that still resonates today.

Bond Street Story

Gerald, a young man on the up-and-up with a good job and stylish friends, is doing rather well, even if he does say so himself. Newly married to the young and beautiful Alice, installed in their very own home in the heart of suburbia, there seems little more a man could hope for. Unfortunately, the realities of life step in to wake Gerald from this rosy bubble. Still in the throws of new love, the couple struggle to maintain their happiness as their tidy new life loses its shine. For Gerald, the pulls of his frivolous past are drawing him in, namely in the form of Celia, an old flame who is struggling to let him go. And when further financial and familial responsibilities fall onto Gerald's shoulders, he finds it harder and harder to resist. Will young love overcome these trials, and mature into something more substantial? Or will it collapse under the pressure? In this exploration of married life, we see love's adaptability and resilience in the face of adversity. Witty, dry, and endearing, Love in Our Time, first published in 1939, is still a very relatable picture of modern love.

Love in Our Time

Set in an off-the-map British Colony in Central Africa in the early 1930's, The Governor's Lady portays a host of interesting characters: young Harold Stebbs, bachelor, newly appointed to the Governor's secretariat in Amimbo; the Governor, Sir Gardnor Hackforth, already something of a Pro-consular legend in the Service, and tipped by The Times for the next Viceroyship; Mr. Frith, the passed-over Acting Chief Secretary, a rather too familiar figure at the bar in the Milner Club; Tony Henley, the A.D.C., who has ultimately to be disowned; Old Moses, the trusted Mimbo butler and key figure in the Residency; the socially irresistible Mr. Ngono; Mr. Talefwa, left-wing editor of the African Independence newspaper, War Drum; and Mr. Das, itinerant legal Counsel called in by the Defence. Then there is the Governor's Lady herself; twenty years younger than Sir Gardnor; somewhat withdrawn from Government life because of an incident that occurred before Harold Stebbs arrived; and already the subject of gossip in European, African and Asian circles alike. There is also Lady Anne's lady-in-waiting, Sybil Prosser, who has her own reasons for discretion.

Norman Collins

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