Today we have the fortune to feature a favourite author of mine, Lally Brown, in the 2020 Authors Showcase. I have read two of her books: High & Dry in the BVI and The Volcano, Montserrat and Me. They are both thoroughly enjoyable memoirs. I have included the links to my 5* reviews of them at the bottom of this post.

You can read Lally's contribution Haitian Boat People, which she has written especially for this showcase, by clicking here.

Lally Brown

Born and bred in Yorkshire, England, Lally embraced the Swinging Sixties with naïve enthusiasm. As a teenager in search of adventure she trekked overland to war-torn Israel, working on a small kibbutz driving a tractor and picking oranges to earn her keep. She managed to hitch-hike around the country staying in Haifa, Jerusalem and Acre. This amazing, and occasionally dangerous experience, was the spark that ignited her lifelong love of adventure and travel.

Lally has lost count of the number of homes she has had over the years but says her most memorable are those on remote St. Helena Island where ex-Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was imprisoned and where he died; Montserrat in the Caribbean when the volcano erupted, Turks and Caicos Islands and the British Virgin Islands.

Now, in her twilight years, Lally is writing about her adventurous life using the journals she kept at the time. Her books prove that truth can indeed be far stranger than fiction, with erupting volcanoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, evacuations, abduction, drug smugglers, people smugglers, armed robbery, hangings, stowaways, bribery, corruption, political intrigues, riots, and much, much, more.
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​Lally Brown’s books:

Links to Amazon reviews by Robert Fear

​​High & Dry in the BVI
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/RU37OVFA66J8O/ 

The Volcano, Montserrat and Me
 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/R1A4XJBZSM9PZ3/

Our featured story today in the 2020 Authors Showcase is the second from James Robertson this year. Although shorter than the guidelines, I wanted to share it anyway because of its interesting content and accompanying photos.

Enjoy reading James' contribution Every Culture’s Cuisine at Brick Lane Food Market by clicking here.

It is always fantastic to welcome newcomers to Fred's Blog and today it is a real pleasure to feature Ronni Robinson in the 2020 Authors Showcase.

You can read her inspirational true story Life Changing Moments by clicking here.

If you have been thinking of contributing a story to this year's showcase, then please don't forget that entries will not be accepted after the deadline of September 30th. You can find a reminder of the guidelines here.

Ronni Robinson is a writer and indoor cycling instructor in the suburbs of Eastern Pennsylvania, where she lives with her husband in their newly minted empty nest, as both kids are off to college.

Ronni has been freelance writing since freshman year in college (a long time ago) and has appeared in aSweatLife, Ravishly, The Temper, 50 Shades of Aging, Healthy Women,  The Philadelphia Inquirer, the Courier-Post, The New Brunswick Home News, and Parents Express magazine.

Ronni’s passion is helping others who are struggling with eating disorders. She lives on Instagram, but you can also find her on the Facebook page “Overcoming Food Nonsense,” where she serves as an administrator. She also does public speaking about eating disorders and emotionally abusive relationships.

She has competed in dozens of triathlons, including three IRONMAN triathlons and four half distance IRONMAN triathlons. When not writing or perched in front of her laptop, you can find Ronni in the gym. Out of the Pantry is Ronni’s first book, but hopefully not her last.

You can read more of Ronni’s writing on her website https://www.ronnirobinson.com/ or buy Out of the Pantry: A Disordered Eating Journey here: https://bit.ly/3b2fayU.

As we approach the last couple of weeks of the 2020 Authors Showcase, it is a privilege to feature this sixth contribution from Ronald Mackay. That is one for each month! Thank you so much for your tremendous support Ronald - it is hugely appreciated.

You can read and enjoy Ronald's latest story O’er the Bridge that Spans the River by clicking here.

Ronald Mackay 

Ronald, his elder sister Viviana and his younger brother Euan, all attended the Morgan Academy in Dundee in the 1940s and 1950s. In those days, a school demanded a great deal of pupils, their parents and the teachers. All pulled together, knowing that it was in everybody’s best interests to do so.
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This brief true story is a way of Ronald offering thanks to the teachers at the Morgan Academy, to his fellow-pupils who like him did their best to take advantage of the demanding education that was provided, and to his mother for having the wisdom to encourage her children to take school seriously and to always show the teachers the respect they so rightly deserved.

Vivian (sister) and Ronald (brother and author)
visiting the Morgan Academy in 1998
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Author  Bio

Canadian born Captain Denis Dextraze started traveling internationally at age 18 when he hitchhiked around Europe during the summer break.  After graduating from two U.S. universities, he specialized in international high-tech marketing which took him around the world.  He retired early to enjoy sailing his 45 ft. ketch.  Between his career and his port-o-calls on Aventura, he visited more than 80 countries.

“Once upon a time in Cuba” is being written so that an interesting two years capsule of Cuban history, starting in May of 1998, will not be lost forever. All events reported in this book really happened no matter how ludicrous, illogical or incredible they appear.
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These years were times of changes and uncertainty for the Cuban authorities. They wanted our money but did not want us because we were “contaminating” the communist indoctrination of their controlled population. We were living interesting times, sharing the docks in Marina Hemingway with an array of adventurers not representing any normal and organized society in the world.  They ranged from millionaires, drug smugglers, Hells Angels members, pedophiles, smugglers, tough Vietnam vets, world class sailors, escaped refugees.  We were pioneers living interesting times and loving it!

During those days as it is still today, the Cuban society was segregated into two categories.  On the 0.3% upper side, the communist ruling party composed exclusively of militaries whether in uniforms or not were living in incredible luxury ironically just like their ousted predecessors of the Batista regime.  On the down side were the other 11 millions slaving Cubans living in desperate conditions.  We, as visiting foreigners, were odd-balls in this two class system.  Since we did not belong to either class, we were tolerated and generally allowed privileges that were reserved to the Cuban military elite and forbidden to the population.     dextraze@yahoo.com

It is a pleasure to feature this second contribution from Syd Blackwell in this year's Authors Showcase.

I am sure you will enjoy Syd's inspirational mixture of prose and poetry as much as I have. To read Syd's story DOG DAYS IN URUGUAY please click here.

Syd Blackwell

I was born in a little ski town that used to be a gold mining town in the mountains of southeastern British Columbia.  I also lived on the coast, on Vancouver Island, in the north, and even in northern Alberta for a decade.   I visited every province and territory in Canada, and more than 40 other countries.  I was an educator, an innkeeper, and an assisted living facilitator.  My life was rich with experiences before I left Canada less than two months before my 61st birthday.
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Uruguay, has been our home for more than a decade.  My wife and I share our home with our five dogs. Prior to 2020, we had international visitors every year. We also continued to travel, particularly in South America.  In fact, we returned from a vacation in Brazil in March, re-entering Uruguay five minutes before the borders were closed.   They have not re-opened.   We will just have to remain in our wonderful home in our adopted country for the time being.

As we move into the last month of the 2020 Authors Showcase, it is an honour to feature a second contribution from Susan Mellsopp.

Her story, My Year of Nothingness, was written at the end of last year and describes the trauma she went through after an undiagnosed heart condition caused blackouts resulting in falls which severely concussed her. As Susan explains, "I wrote it because people did not seem to understand the reality of concussion and what a long journey it involved in recovery. It’s not the quick fix in a couple of weeks promoted by the rugby world. 

You can read My Year of Nothingness by clicking here.

Susan Mellsopp is retired and lives with her now retired golden retriever guide dog Jay in Hamilton New Zealand.  Much of her life has been spent as a dairy farmer and also working as a librarian, archivist and accessible transport researcher. She runs a writers group and is constantly being challenged to write in genres other than travel and memoir. She has published two school histories and writes for a national magazine which is published monthly. Susan is a voracious reader, loves to travel, listen to classical music, cook, and enjoys learning to use modern technology.   

As the penultimate month of this years' Authors Showcase draws to a close, it is a pleasure to feature this third contribution from Robyn Boswell.

 Robyn's latest story is called Luxury Limo Surprise and you can read it by clicking here.

Robyn Boswell

I have always lived in the beautiful north of New Zealand.  For 17 years I taught in a school that was considered to be the toughest in our city. It was hard work but there were plenty of rewards along the way once you got the respect of the kids.  I was fortunate to work with very compatible colleagues and we shared many hilarious and memorable experiences together. Winning a prize in a competition draw I didn’t even know I had been entered in didn’t quite turn out as I expected. 

I am very pleased today to welcome popular author Val Poore to Fred's Blog and the 2020 Authors Showcase for the first time

You will, I am sure, enjoy Val's inspirational contribution A train journey to remember as much as I have. Click here to read her story.

Val Poore was born and raised in England but at the end of 1981, she moved to South Africa where she and her family lived for nearly twenty years. She returned to Europe in 2001 and has since been working as a freelance teacher and trainer in the Netherlands. She teaches writing skills to both business and academic students. Val shares her time between a 120-year-old barge in Rotterdam and a cottage in Zeeland, both of which seem to take an inordinate amount of time to maintain. She loves writing and as a distraction from the rigours of her teaching requirements, she writes articles for magazines as well as publishing her own books, most of which are memoirs.

Find out more on Val's Amazon page: www.amazon.co.uk/Valerie-Poore

A warm welcome back to Mike Cavanagh with his third contribution in this year's Authors Showcase.

After his previous two recollections about the horrendous fires in Australia, this one is more light-hearted and takes us back to his childhood. Enjoy reading Mike's latest story Raining Cowboys and Injuns by clicking here.

Mike Cavanagh is now in his sixties and has no idea how that happened. He lives with his wife, Julie, adult son, Dan, and two black cats in Bateman’s Bay, Australia. Mike writes various stuffs, plays guitar, composes music, is doing research on rock-wallabies, and spends way too much time playing computer games. He thought he knew who he was until a diagnosis of high-functioning autism in his sixties gave him pause to rethink who he thought he was, and how he got here. So, he wrote a memoir, then another… as you do. Info on Mike’s writing and music lurks here: https://oneofitslegs.org/home-page/
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