ROYD HOUSE

An imprint of Royd Press

Under the Apple Boughs - Dr James Walsh & Vanessa Rosenthal

James Walsh grew up in Barrowford and after becoming in succession a committed Young Conservative and a Communist, ended up as the very popular Deputy Registrar of Leeds University. This book consists of his memoirs punctuated by his widow Vanessa's moving accounts of her bereavement and life without Jim.

"James Walsh's life was transformed by his grammar school in a way denied to his parents' generation. He became a first-generation university student at Leeds University, got a first class degree, joined the Conservative Party and then the Communist Party (and eventually became the university's registrar). Under the Apple Boughs is a classic account of a northern working class boyhood in the 1940s, interspersed with his widow Vanessa Rosenthal's searingly honest letters telling of her anguish and despair after his death. Two moving human documents within one cover." - Brian MacArthur, Literary Editor, Daily Telegraph.

Available from Vanessa Rosenthal via The Book Case

ISBN: 978-1-907197-02-4, £9.99
  

The Unfortunate Philanthropists - Chris Aspin

Published by Helmshore Local History Society in association with Royd Press

Though Ireland embraced the mechanised cotton trade with great enthusiasm during the 1780s, it did so in ways that were often strikingly different from those found in England. The largest ventures were started with the aim of helping the poor and received government support, but in spite of the large investments, the philanthropists soon found themselves on the road to disappointment and disaster. Their stories form the core of Chris Aspin’s study, which also describes the other Irish mills that used the water-frame to spin fine cotton. The book is a sequel to The Water-Spinners (2003), the author’s account of the mills that used the water-frame in the north of England.

Chris Aspin, a retired journalist, was a co-founder of the Helmshore Local History Society in 1953 and remains the Hon. Secretary. He has written widely on local, Lancashire and textile history as well as publishing several volumes of light verse.
Available from Helmshore Local History Society, 4 East Street, Helmshore, Rossendale, BB4 4JT

ISBN: 978-0-906881-21-7


Fanny Eliza Johnson: A Thoroughly Modern Victorian Headmistress,
Bolton High School for Girls 1888-1893 - Veronica Millington

A story of the founding of Bolton High School for Girls and one of its early Headmistresses at a time of great social change. It includes many quotations from Miss Johnson's logbook detailing complaints and visits from parents. (£6.99)

Orders should be sent to Bolton School: please send a cheque for £7.99, which includes postage, to Mrs L Frew, Librarian, Bolton School Girls’ Division, Chorley New Road, Bolton BL1 4PB.

For further information telephone 01204 840201 or email: lfrew@girls.bolton.sch.uk

ISBN: 978-0-9556204-8-5


Growing Up in Sowerby ... and more by Jean Illingworth

The ancient hilltop village of Sowerby with its fine Georgian church can be seen for miles around. Jean Illingworth's engaging history weaves her own memories with the recollections of others in her local community to reveal a rich and detailed picture of the life and character of this "very special" place. Many old photographs and illustrations. (£9.99)

"Congratulations on doing such an important job!" - Sir Ernest Hall

"Brings Sowerby to life, and I love the photos" - Austin Mitchell, MP

ISBN: 978-0-9556204-7-8

JUST FOR FUN - COMIC VERSE FROM CHRIS ASPIN

The Jingle Book (£4.95)
A new book of nonsense verse! The poems deal with, among other things, a ban on comic socks, a boy arrested for throwing a sausage, post-smoking-ban ashtrays, palindromes, anagrams and much more, including a short story about the Devil's visit to Rochdale. There's also a specially written poem about Liszt's breakfast at Hebden Bridge's White Lion pub on December 15th, 1840.
ISBN: 978-0-9556204-5-4



A Load of New Rubbish (£4.99)

New from our own Royd House and Rossendale-based historian Chris Aspin, light-hearted verse reflecting on the absurdities of modern life, with a Grand Opera included! The cover picture was done by Book Case member of staff Simon Manfield.

ISBN: 978-0-9556204-9-2

Albert, the Lion and the Monkey (£4.99)
Albert finally gets the better of the lion, Simple Simon dispenses wisdom, and other strange happenings abound! The cover cartoon was especially drawn by Dick Graham, ex-editorial cartoonist for the Manchester Evening News.

ISBN: 978-1-907197-017

The Owl and the Pussycat (£4.99)
"New Light on an Old Legend". Nothing’s to be taken for granted in this latest collection of offbeat verse and prose from Chris Aspin. Well-known poems take an unexpected turn, great figures of history are pithily portrayed in verse, weird and wonderful things happen to assorted animals, while there are strange goings on in the world of the KGB. Meanwhile Simple Simon continues to outwit cleverer folk!
ISBN: 978-1-907197-03-1