Back along the track - Lynne O'Sullivan

"Back Along the Track" is a collection of snapshot reminiscences of growing up in Ashford, Kent in the late 50s and early 60s. Set against the backdrop of the once thriving railway works, the author travels through the highs and lows of family life in this close knit community, where joy and sorrow run parallel like the railway tracks nearby. Schooldays are revisited with innocence and charm, while at the adjacent railway works the future is being forged under hammer and spark.Tragedy strikes the family when the author's younger sister is afflicted with polio. For her boxing champion father, life becomes a harder fight than any encountered in the ring, while her mother does her best to hold it all together with love and safety pins. The past and present often merge as the local cemetery becomes the setting for play, and the journey ends with changes signalled on the horizon when childhood inevitably begins to fade. The author's simple style is engaging and characters are portrayed in fine detail, while events are recounted with sincerity, adding richness to the story. The anecdotes are accompanied by the author's own illustrations.