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Author Event – John Puzey at Chandler’s Ford Library – Captive Audience – 16th August 2025

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Image Credits:  Many thanks to John Puzey for supplying the poster image. Screenshot from John’s website was taken by me, Allison Symes

AUTHOR EVENT: JOHN PUZEY –

CHANDLER’S FORD LIBRARY – 16TH AUGUST 2025

CAPTIVE AUDIENCE

 

 

Local author, John Puzey, will be at Chandler’s Ford Library on 16th August 2025 from 10.00 am.

All are welcome. John tells Chandler’s Ford Today that a big part of his new book is about life in a POW Camp. If you have letters, photos, or diaries of relatives who may have been in camps, do bring them along to when John holds his library event. Please note it should only be paperwork you bring along to this!

John (who is part of The Chameleon Theatre Company based in Ritchie Hall), will be discussing and signing his book, Captive Audience, which is published by Authors Reach Limited.

Behind the wire and the watchtowers, three prisoners of war begin their journey to fame. An adventure of escapism and escape, set against the backdrop of war-torn Italy and the lure of post war stardom.

For more information on this book, and his others, do check out John’s website at https://johnpuzey.co.uk/

 

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The Long and The Short of It – Reading

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The major joys of reading are:-

1. There is at least one form to suit everyone – short fiction, long, or anything in between, and non-fiction with its infinite variety of forms from the essay to the book.

2. There is at least one genre to suit everyone – fantasy, non-fiction (think of the wealth of topics in this alone!), historical, crime etc.

3. Reading is one of the forms of escapism I love most; the other is music. Even when reading non-fiction, you are escaping the cares of the world temporarily to find out what you need to know or to improve your knowledge of the topic you’re reading.

The worlds conjured up by short stories or the longer forms of fiction can be incredibly well depicted
The worlds conjured up by short stories or the longer forms of fiction can be incredibly well depicted. Pixabay

[Read more…] about The Long and The Short of It – Reading

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Picture Books and Other Hooks: Interview with Sally Goodden and Anne Wan

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It is a pleasure to welcome back Anne Wan to Chandler’s Ford Today and also to welcome her illustrator for her latest book, Manners Fit for the Queen, Sally Goodden. [Read more…] about Picture Books and Other Hooks: Interview with Sally Goodden and Anne Wan

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BOOK EVENT NEWS: Anne Wan / Sally Goodden – Chandler’s Ford Library

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THE QUEEN, CHANDLER’S FORD LIBRARY, ANNE WAN, AND SALLY GOODDEN

What do the above have in common?

They will be appearing in Chandler’s Ford Library on Saturday, 2nd February 2019 between 10.30 am and 12 noon.

Hang on… let’s revise that a moment. [Read more…] about BOOK EVENT NEWS: Anne Wan / Sally Goodden – Chandler’s Ford Library

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Keeping it Local – Community and Writers

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On the face of it, times have not been good recently at Fryern. Grovers the Butchers has closed as has our branch of the Nat West. I’m always sorry to see an independent firm go, some history goes with them I feel, but, to my mind, the bank branch closure is a stupid decision. It’s not as if the bank wasn’t busy! [Read more…] about Keeping it Local – Community and Writers

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How was the Book Fair for You?

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The first Chandler’s Ford Book Fair was on Saturday, 28th October 2017 between 10 am and 12 noon at the Age Concern Centre in Brownhill Road. I hope it will be the beginning of many Book Fairs here.

Many of us miss The Arcade Bookshop which had been our lovely independent book store for decades.  Those behind the Fair hoped it would provide a place for local people to browse and buy books with the bonus they were written by regional writers (and many of them local to Chandler’s Ford specifically). [Read more…] about How was the Book Fair for You?

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Sshhh – Do You Want to Know a Secret about Chandlers Ford?

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By Karen Stephen

Sshh – do you want to know a secret about Chandlers Ford?  You may not be aware that last year, we were thrilled and proud to publish a collection of short stories called “Secret Lives of Chandlers Ford” . Together with my writing chums,  Maggie, Catherine and Sally, we spent a year researching, writing and publishing our first anthology of short stories:  “Secret Lives of Chandlers Ford”. We wanted to write stories that were locally set and derived from the happenings and history of this lovely area. We also wanted to reflect Chandlers Ford modern and diverse characteristics. [Read more…] about Sshhh – Do You Want to Know a Secret about Chandlers Ford?

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What Makes a Classic Book

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Name a classic book from any genre, any period, any author. I’m willing to bet certain names and stories cropped up in your thoughts immediately. If there was an all-time list, entries would include Shakespeare, Dickens, Austen, Bronte, and Hardy. I’d be surprised if many, if not all of these authors, were not on your bookshelves somewhere. [Read more…] about What Makes a Classic Book

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The Story Shuffle Project

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One of the joys of writing for Chandler’s Ford Today is discovering projects I would not have otherwise come across. One of these was the Road to Agincourt Project which appealed to my love of all things historical.

Another was when I interviewed Kate Day of Chocolate Muffin Publishing and looked at their work with children and dementia patients (amongst others) to encourage creative writing.
[Read more…] about The Story Shuffle Project

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World Book Night 2016 and the 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare

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World Book Night is on 23rd April each year, this being the date of William Shakespeare’s birth and his death.

World Book Night also links to the day of the death of Cervantes (author of Don Quixote), Spain’s literary hero, St. George’s Day and UNESCO’s Day of the Book (which I think is a fantastic title). [Read more…] about World Book Night 2016 and the 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare

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50 Things I Like about the Chandler’s Ford Area (Part 1)

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I celebrated my 50th birthday this week so thought I would see if I could find 50 things to like about the Chandler’s Ford area.

Here goes… [Read more…] about 50 Things I Like about the Chandler’s Ford Area (Part 1)

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How Have Your Reading Habits Changed?

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The natural follow up to my recent post about favourite forms of writing is about my favourite forms of reading in all its forms – non-fiction, fiction, poetry, books, magazines, e-books, newspapers.

It also takes a brief look at reading habits given it is not just a question of print media any more for sources of reading material. [Read more…] about How Have Your Reading Habits Changed?

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Writing, Blogging, Social Media…What’s Your Favourite Forms of Writing?

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What are your favourite forms of writing? Fiction? Non-fiction? Poetry?

Do you ever think when you pick up a pen or put fingers to keyboard we are all following a tradition going back thousands of years? Or appreciate how important writing, in all its forms, is for cultural reasons? Or how dangerous writing can be? [Read more…] about Writing, Blogging, Social Media…What’s Your Favourite Forms of Writing?

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Sharing the Joy of Libraries

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I love the word serendipity. It has a lovely meaning and a great sound.

This post, I think, can be thought of as being a case of serendipity.

I was planning a post about the joy of libraries for some time and then read Mike’s wonderful article from Sri Lanka about renovating the school library, which confirmed to me I should go ahead with this now. [Read more…] about Sharing the Joy of Libraries

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Journey to Sri Lanka: Creating a Local Library for 1,000 Girls

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On the main road into Kandy there is a narrow doorway leading to Dharmawickrama, a school for 1,000 girls.

My wife Brenda arranged to visit to see what a state school is like. The contrasts within were striking. The building was poorly maintained and conditions were crowded and there were few facilities, no play area, squatter toilets, builder’s rubble in some corridors. [Read more…] about Journey to Sri Lanka: Creating a Local Library for 1,000 Girls

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10 Wishes for Chandler’s Ford for 2016

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I’m not a big fan of New Year’s Resolutions. They usually mean giving up alcohol, which is not a huge problem for me as I don’t drink much, or chocolate and that is where I do run into difficulties!

However, I thought I would list some things I would love to see in 2016, all of which would benefit Chandler’s Ford and its residents.

[Read more…] about 10 Wishes for Chandler’s Ford for 2016

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Adventures of a Fantasy Author – Richard Hardie Interview Part 2

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Further to last week’s post, when Chandler’s Ford author, Richard Hardie of the Temporal Detective Agency fame, shared what signings and other events have occupied him recently, this continuation shares some of his further news as well as tips for fellow writers.
[Read more…] about Adventures of a Fantasy Author – Richard Hardie Interview Part 2

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Further Adventures of a Fantasy Author

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One of my earliest posts for Chandler’s Ford Today was an interview I conducted with local author, and fellow dog walker, Richard Hardie, who had not long released The Trouble With Swords, his second book in his Temporal Detective series and follow up to the marvellous Leap of Faith. [Read more…] about Further Adventures of a Fantasy Author

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An Interactive Local History Talk by Martin Napier

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I spent a fascinating and hugely enjoyable afternoon at Chandler’s Ford library yesterday where I attended a talk on “Growing up in Chandler’s Ford in the 50s and 60s” by local ‘lad’ Martin Napier.

Extra chairs had to be brought out to accommodate everyone. [Read more…] about An Interactive Local History Talk by Martin Napier

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Richard Hardie: “So You Want to be an Author?”

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At the Chandler’s Ford library today I attended an author talk by Richard Hardie: “So you want to be an author?”.

Richard is a Chandler’s Ford author who has written two books in the Temporal Detective Agency series – Leap of Faith and Trouble in Mind. He talked to us about being a writer and good writing tips. [Read more…] about Richard Hardie: “So You Want to be an Author?”

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