MAVIS'S SHOE
by Sue Reid Sexton
Description
About this novel:
Mavis’s Shoe is the dramatic and moving story of Lenny Gillespie, a young girl who lives through the bombing of her town during WW2. Feisty and resolute by nature and not given to suffering fools gladly, it is left to Lenny to search for her mother and beloved sister Mavis who she loses in the mayhem of survival.
This is a strong character-driven novel about the trauma of war and its effect on the family. In this passionate well-told tale of Lenny’s extraordinary courage and determination in the face of danger, the reader can expect a wide range of emotions: fear, grief and anger as well as courage, laughter and joy. Lenny confronts the things she most fears, the things she saw during the bombing and that no-one should ever see. She pleads with adults to help her and tries to behave the way she ought, but finally in frustration is forced to return to the disaster area alone, leading to the book’s dramatic conclusion.
This novel is an ideal resource for teachers, set as it is in wartime during one of the most tragic events in Scotland’s history. Viewing the horror of the Clydebank Blitz from the unique perspective of a child allows for plenty of exploration around the subject of war. Written to present the universal experience of being bombed, it has relevance to the historical past but also to current world conflicts.
Entirely historically accurate, it also paints a realistic picture of the home front of the time.
Mavis’s Shoe is ideal for both young adults and adults of all ages.
A teacher’s pack for the book is available from the Scottish Book Trust.
The Clydebank Blitz:
On the nights of 13 and 14 March 1941, the shipbuilding town of Clydebank suffered the worst destruction and loss of civilian life in all of Scotland during the Second World War when over 4,000 German bombs were dropped on the town. During the bombing raids most of Clydebank was destroyed (only 7 houses remained undamaged out of 12,000) and more than 500 people died (many estimate this number to be much higher), while over 600 were seriously injured and many more maimed by blast debris.
More Information
Rights Information
Rights sold to Brazil (Bertrand Brasil);
Holland (Mozaiek, Boekencentrum).
Marketing Information
Mavis’s Shoe was a Waterstone’s Book of the Year.
Featured on STV news; STV; Edinburgh International Book Festival;Aye Write!; Waterstone’s Glasgow; The Daily Record; The Herald; The Sunday Post; The Scots Magazine; The Courier.
Sue Reid Sexton is the author of Rue End Street, the sequel to Mavis’s Shoe, and Writing on the Road – Campervan Love and the Joy of Solitude.
Author Biography
About the author:
Glasgow writer Sue Reid Sexton has worked with war veterans and people exposed to trauma. Her extensive research has enabled her to give an authentic and harrowing account of Lenny’s experiences during and after the Clydebank Blitz. Since the publication of Mavis’s Shoe, Sue has written a mini-dramatisation of her novel which ihas been performed for live audiences. Mavis’s Shoealso inspired an imaginative art exhibition at the Ironbbratz Studio in Glasgow.Participating artists were asked to submit a work that reflected the content ofthe novel and the resulting works used a variety of mediums to capture the horror of the Clydebank Blitz and the drama of Lenny’s experiences. Sue has appeared on both television and radio to talk about her book and her writing.
‘Sue Reid Sexton doesn’t flinch from giving her readers a gritty and sometimes heart-rending account of the trials confronting her young heroine … This isultimately a story of courage and survival as well as a highly readable and vivid account of one of Scotland’s worst wartime disasters.’
Esther Reid, The Scots Magazine
Copyright Information
© 2011 Sue Reid Sexton
Geddes & Grosset / The Gresham Publishing Company Limited
View all titlesBibliographic Information
- Publisher/Imprint The Gresham Publishing Company Limited / Waverley Books
- Publication Date March 2011
- Orginal LanguageEnglish
- ISBN/Identifier 9781849341059
- Publication Country or regionUnited Kingdom
- FormatPaperback
- Pages432
- ReadershipTeenage/Young Adult
- Publish StatusPublished
- EditionOriginal
- Copyright Year2011
- Page size193 x 124
- IllustrationCover : Images Radnor Park, Clydebank, Dumbarton Road, Clydebank tenement and Singer tower are courtesy Clydebank Library; Carbeth hut community is courtesy Sue Reid Sexton; other images by Andreas Gradin, Mazzzur and Freddy Eliasson are courtesy of Shutterstock.
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