Frank Wingate Livres

Increasingly confrontational political protest is building up to a deadly climax in the humid night of the city, while Jack Wilson is drowning his sorrows in drink. His idealistic brother, meanwhile, gets caught up in the passion of the movement. A restless dreamer and newly married, Jack has moved to a bustling Asian metropolis in search of life's purpose. The marriage doesn't survive, and Jack soon finds himself with a job he hates and an alcohol-fuelled lifestyle. His brother, Doug, conscientious and with a clear sense of direction, follows to teach English at a local university. Deeply engaged in politics and social justice, he gets involved in the students' fight for democracy - except he doesn't expect things to take the turn they do. In the background the brothers' family back home has been gradually disintegrating, as tragedy, infidelity and ageing take their toll. Now the brothers have to make decisions that will determine their futures.

The collection features twelve enchanting stories centered around Herman the Hedgehog and his family, who embark on remarkable adventures in a quiet wood. Each tale corresponds to a different month of the year, introducing various animal characters like Badger, Rabbit, and Owl, all of whom communicate in English—except for the unfriendly dogs and a limited-speaking Frog. Created from bedtime storytelling sessions between a father and his imaginative daughter, these tales invite parents to engage with their children by reading aloud and using distinct voices for each character.

This book tells the story of expatriate life in the final years of the UK's last Asian colony, and the meeting of cultures, West with East. For Frank Wingate, who was an expatriate in Hong Kong for more than twenty years, an adventure planned to last two years turned into a lengthy love affair. Both socially and professionally, Hong Kong proved a stimulating and rewarding experience. In this series of reflections, Frank looks back on the humour, frustrations and serious aspects of life in the territory. Nicknamed "Poxy Chicken" by his first class of Chinese students, making a pun of his name transliterated into Cantonese, he recounts some amusing stories, others less amusing, comments on food, language and sex, and on darker moments, such as the Tiananmen Square massacre.

This is mainly a memoir, describing the author's early years growing up in the 1950s in the unspectacular, but pretty, North Hertfordshire village of St Ippolyts, which was named after the patron saint for horses - Saint Hippolytus. Describing his family background and daily life in a village council house, he re-captures not only the social and economic background, but also the spirit and thinking, as well as the prejudices of the time. It is, in addition, a history, putting the village in its historical context - since its settlement in the 11th century - by means of short commentaries from throughout the centuries. These highlight certain episodes in the village's past. For example, explaining who St Hippolytus was or describing the visits of Henry VIII and John Bunyan. The book was first prompted by the author's 26-year-old daughter's amazement and amusement at the way people lived. What? You didn't even have a telephone in the house? You only had a bath once a week? As well as the baby boomer generation, the book should also appeal to a younger set who are curious about the lives and times of their parents and grandparents.