Rachel the editor / Hampshire Reading Detectives

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All posts by Rachel the editor

Norfolk born and bred, I recently moved to Hampshire after living in Amsterdam for seven years. I'm an editor at a technology research firm by day and enjoy reading, cooking, history, and gardening at all other times. I will read just about anything, but current favourite authors include Christopher Fowler, Margery Allingham, and Junichiro Tanizaki. Favourite pub: The Otter in Otterbourne.

And, finally, one for Hallowe'en Find!

31 October 2009 Running a quick search for Hampshire ghosts and ghouls, I came across one of our most infamous murders -- that of "Sweet Fanny Adams" in Alton on August 24, 1867. This song commemorates the execution of her murderer later that... Read more or Comment

How did we miss this one? Find!

31 October 2009 The Forest, by Edward Rutherfurd, is set -- as one might expect -- in the New Forest, one of Hampshire's most notable landscapes. This is a saga that starts in Norman times and continues on down through the centuries, following... Read more or Comment (1 comments)

John Wyndham's Hampshire connection Find!

31 October 2009 Steep may be a small village but it has several rich literary connections. It counts among its residents not only Edward Thomas but also John Wyndham Parkes Lucas Beynon Harris (1903-1969) -- better known by his first two names, under... Read more or Comment

A Hampshire scarecrow: Worzel Gummidge Find!

20 October 2009 Perusing this excellent film map of Hampshire, I spotted that the 1979 TV adaptation of the Worzel Gummidge stories was filmed in the Hampshire villages of Stockbridge, Kings Somborne, and Braishfield. Wondering whether there was a Hampshire connection with these... Read more or Comment

Rev. Gilbert White (1720-1793) and The Natural History of Selborne Find!

30 September 2009 I wondered whether this was yet another of those "Not quite a find" books, but then considered how I knew of this work. My first introduction was as a teenaged fan of the romantic suspense novels of Mary Stewart; the... Read more or Comment

"Steep" is apt Find!

27 September 2009 If you're going to read the poems and stories of authors who are inspired by the countryside around you, they will eventually inspire you to get out into it. East Hampshire district council have, thankfully, recognized this and done all... Read more or Comment

Edward Thomas and Froxfield Find!

21 September 2009 Holidaying in Wales a couple of weeks ago, I was reminded of why I decided to take part in the Reading Detectives project. I'd watched Owen Sheers' programmes on poetry and place as part of the BBC's poetry series and... Read more or Comment (1 comments)

Hampshire songs, poems, and ditties Find!

14 September 2009 A little bit of light Googling took me to this collection of Hampshire-inspired songs and poems. Many of them are anonymous; some are very simple -- traditional schoolyard chants or labourers' doggerel; but others are touching. My favourite is "Home... Read more or Comment

William Lisle Bowles, poet Find!

31 August 2009 William Lisle Bowles (1762-1850) was a clergyman, poet, and critic -- a writer both educated in and inspired by Hampshire. Although born in Northamptonshire, he attended Winchester College and held various clerical posts in Wiltshire. He was a prolific poet,... Read more or Comment

The hunt continues

23 August 2009 I don't like to think of myself as obsessive, but I am wondering if that's true when it comes to finding Hampshire writers or writing about Hampshire or even just novels set in Hampshire. At the library on Tuesday, I... Read more or Comment

Dornford Yates' Hampshire connection Find!

16 August 2009 I've spent the afternoon driving around the New Forest -- sometimes in a dog cart but mostly in a lovely Rolls. I've watched as my companions bought a stolen caravan, put one over on a jumped-up, nouveau landowner, and thwarted... Read more or Comment

Otterbourne's Enid Blyton? Charlotte M. Yonge (1823-1901) Find!

9 August 2009 One of the great appeals of the Reading Detectives project is the impetus it's given me to explore my new home. I moved to Otterbourne 18 months ago and, while quickly getting to know the local pubs and walks, have... Read more or Comment (2 comments)

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