East London at Dawn Photo book by Anthony Epes

East London at Dawn Photo book by Anthony Epes 2One of Frost’s favourite photographers, Anthony Epes, had released a stunning photo book. We highly recommend you get your hands on a copy.

For over a decade photographer Anthony Epes has shot many of the world’s iconic cities at their most peaceful time, dawn. This month marks the publication of a collection of his photographs from one of his most explored haunts, East London.

 

East London at Dawn  is a collection of images showing the city, for the most part, empty and devoid of its usual flood of people. Of those who are awake, most are working, preparing the city for the day before the streets are inundated by the crowds. The subject therefore becomes the city itself, absorbed in the light of sunrise.

The light of a sunrise comes in many forms: the play of light dancing over street art on an ancient crumbling wall on a summer’s morning; a dark stormy daybreak as it wakes over one of the many industrial estates; the wintery midnight-blue sky filled already with the glow of lights from the skyscrapers and cars cramming the streets on the race to work.

East London at Dawn Photo book by Anthony Epes 3East London at Dawn Photo book by Anthony Epes

Anthony connects us to the atmosphere of sunrise in the city and takes us on a unique exploration of the places in East London that fascinate him. From the stark brutalist architecture of the Balfour Tower, to the misty banks of the Thames with Canary Wharf rising up in the background, to the vibrant edgy street art that appears and disappears at random, to the imprint of new communities, foods and cultures that make up this ever-changing part of London.

Anthony’s interpretation of the city at first light is a spectacular and engaging journey through this special part of London as we see it in its transition.

Accompanying the photos, evocative quotes about the area will reveal the experiences of people who are regularly up at this time.

East London at Dawn Photo book by Anthony Epes 5

East London at Dawn is inspired by Anthony’s previous books and exhibitions on Cities at Dawn, including Paris, Venice and Istanbul. In this collection he has captured the rejuvenating energy and beauty of sunrise as well as the ever changing atmosphere of the streets of East London, the layers of history and mix of cultures, as well as the few people who are up at sunrise.

East London at Dawn has been published in association with Leman Locke, and is available exclusively at the hotel and via anthonyepes.com

Book details

Limited edition of 1,000

£35

Hardcover, cloth-bound, embossed cover

80 pages

Words by Diana Bird

About Anthony Epes

Anthony Epes is a fine art photographer whose work has featured in BBC World, CNN Photo, French Photo, Hyper Allergic, Time Out, Atlas Obscura, BBC London, The Telegraph and many other publications.

He has published four photo books, including London at Dawn and Paris at Dawn, and is currently preparing to launch further installments shot in Venice, Havana and Istanbul.

Anthony grew up in California and has been based in London since 2000.

About Locke

Locke is a design-led aparthotel for those who want to challenge the status quo, and experience the unique and authentic. Designed for travellers for whom a bed and shower in a shoebox isn’t enough, Locke immerses you in its neighbourhood’s culture through spaces that connect you to a community of like-minded locals and travellers.

–         168 studios and suites at Leman Locke, London

–         72 studios and suites at Eden Locke, Edinburgh (opening June 2017)

15 Leman St, Whitechapel, London E1 8EN

http://www.lockeliving.com/

Shipyard Girls at War By Nancy Revell Book Review

shipyard girls book

Published 23rd March 2017 Arrow

Paperback Original, £5.99 Also available as an eBook

Arrow have a speciality in publishing these sweeping historical novels. It is easy to see why the genre is so popular in general, but also why Nancy Revell’s books are so popular. Researched within an inch of its life; the novel is enjoyably entertaining. A perfect way to spend hours, wrapped up in the characters lives. This is the second book in The Shipyard Girls saga and it is not only just as good as the first, but a perfect continuation. Recommended reading.

 

The second book in the compelling saga series The Shipyard Girls Perfect for fans of Donna Douglas and Ellie Dean
1941: It takes strength to work on the docks, but the war demands all hands on deck and the women are doing their best to fill the gap.
Rosie is flourishing in her role as head-welder while still keeping her double life a secret. But a dashing detective is forcing Rosie to choose between love and her duty.
Gloria is hiding her own little secret – one that if found out, could not only threaten her job, but her life.
The shipyards are proving tougher than Polly ever imagined, while she waits for her man to return home safely.
Join the shipyard girls as they journey through the hardships of life, love and war.
About the author:
Nancy Revell is a writer and journalist under another name, and has worked for many national newspapers, providing them with hard-hitting news stories and in-depth features. She has also worked for just about every woman’s magazine, writing amazing and inspirational true life stories.
Nancy has recently relocated back to her home town of Sunderland, Tyne & Wear, with her husband Paul and their English Bull Mastiff, Rosie. They live a short walk from the beautiful, award-winning beaches of Roker and Seaburn, within a mile of where The Shipyard Girls series is set. The subject is close to Nancy’s heart as she comes from a long line of shipbuilders, who were well-known in the area.

Some interesting facts:

* During research for The Shipyard Girls, writer and journalist Amanda Revell Walton found that the remarkable women who did some of the most dangerous work in both the First and Second World War have now died with little recognition or praise for the work they did and the conditions they encountered.
* During World War Two seven hundred women worked in the Sunderland shipyards carrying out dangerous and backbreaking jobs, previously only been deemed suitable for men, such as welding, riveting, burning and rivet catching, as well as general labouring, operating cranes, and painting.
* The conditions in which the women laboured were harsh and hazardous, with scant regard paid to health and safety. They also had to contend with constant air strikes by Hitler’s Luftwaffe, and many of the women workers would do so with the added worry that their children were in another part of the town.
* The yards in the ‘Biggest Shipbuilding Town in the World’ produced a quarter of Britain’s merchant shipping at the time, causing it to become one of the most heavily bombed towns during the war.
* It is believed that without the shipyards, the country would have been forced to surrender, as the cargo vessels being built were essential for the transportation of vital food, fuel and minerals, as well as taking troops to wherever they were needed in the fight against the Axis alliance of Germany, Italy and Japan.

 

Global heroes battling censorship announced in Index Freedom of Expression Awards shortlist

index on censorship

  • Judges include actor Noma Dumezweni; former Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown

  • Sixteen courageous individuals and organisations who fight for freedom of expression in every part of the world.

 

A Zimbabwean pastor who was arrested by authorities last week for his #ThisFlag campaign, an Iranian Kurdish journalist covering his life as an interned Australian asylum seeker, one of China’s most notorious political cartoonists, and an imprisoned Russian human rights activist are among those shortlisted for the 2017 Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards.

Drawn from more than 400 crowdsourced nominations, the shortlist celebrates artists, writers, journalists and campaigners overcoming censorship and fighting for freedom of expression against immense obstacles. Many of the 16 shortlisted nominees are regularly targeted by authorities or by criminal and extremist groups for their work: some face regular death threats, others criminal prosecution or exile.

“The creativity and bravery of the shortlist nominees in challenging restrictions on freedom of expression reminds us that a small act — from a picture to a poem — can have a big impact. Our nominees have faced severe penalties for standing up for their beliefs. These awards recognise their courage and commitment to free speech,” said Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of campaigning nonprofit Index on Censorship.

Awards are offered in four categories: arts, campaigning, digital activism and journalism.

Nominees include Pastor Evan Mawarire whose frustration with Zimbabwe’s government led him to the #ThisFlag campaign; Behrouz Boochani, an Iranian Kurdish journalist who documents the life of indefinitely-interned Australian asylum seekers in Papua New Guinea; China’s Wang Liming, better known as Rebel Pepper, a political cartoonist who lampoons the country’s leaders; Ildar Dadin, an imprisoned Russian opposition activist, who became the first person convicted under the country’s public assembly law; Daptar, a Dagestani initiative tackling women’s issues like female genital mutilation that are rarely discussed publicly in the country; and Serbia’s Crime and Corruption Reporting Network (KRIK), which was founded by a group of journalists to combat pervasive corruption and organised crime.

Other nominees include Hungary’s Two-tail Dog Party, a group of satirists who parody the country’s political discourse; Honduran LGBT rights organisation Arcoiris, which has had six activists murdered in the past year for providing support to the LGBT community and lobbying the country’s government; Luaty Beirão, a rapper from Angola, who uses his music to unmask the country’s political corruption; and Maldives Independent, a website involved in revealing endemic corruption at the highest levels in the country despite repeated intimidation.

Judges for this year’s awards, now in its 17th year, are Harry Potter actor Noma Dumezweni, Hillsborough lawyer Caiolfhionn Gallagher, former Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown, designer Anab Jain and music producer Stephen Budd.

Dumezweni, who plays Hermione in the stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, was shortlisted earlier this year for an Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Actress. Speaking about the importance of the Index Awards she said: “Freedom of expression is essential to help challenge our perception of the world”.

Winners, who will be announced at a gala ceremony in London on 19 April, become Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Awards Fellows and are given support for their work, including training in areas such as advocacy and communications.

“The GreatFire team works anonymously and independently but after we were awarded a fellowship from Index it felt like we had real world colleagues. Index helped us make improvements to our overall operations, consulted with us on strategy and were always there for us, through the good times and the pain,” Charlie Smith of GreatFire, 2016 Freedom of Expression Awards Digital Activism Fellow.

This year, the Freedom of Expression Awards are being supported by sponsors including SAGE Publishing, Google, Vodafone, media partner CNN, VICE News, Doughty Street Chambers, Psiphon and Gorkana. Illustrations of the nominees were created by Sebastián Bravo Guerrero.

  • The winners will be announced at a ceremony at The Unicorn Theatre, London, on 19 April.

 

WE: A Manifesto for Women by Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel

WE: A Manifesto for Women by Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel

WE: A Manifesto for Women immediately caught my eye. As a proud feminist I am always on the lookout to support other feminists and find out about movements. I jumped at the chance to review this book and starting reading it soon after it arrived. My first thought was that it has lots of good quotes, which I love, and my second was the bravery of Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel. It is so honest and beautiful.

This book is needed as 2017 has been a regression of women’s rights and we need to stick together more than ever. We also need to work towards our own happiness. Not everything in the book is for me; I hate being told to meditate for example, but I found the entire book just so full of truth and helpfulness. Even the parts that I thought weren’t meant for me made me think.

I highly recommend this excellent book. It makes you laugh and it makes you happy. It also lets you know you are not alone. Women have to start speaking the truth about their lives and standing up to the things that oppress us. During an appearance on This Morning Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel were subjected to sexist comments on Twitter and – surprise surprise- The Daily Mail because they were not smiling. Welcome to 2017 people. I believe The Daily Mail headline which was targeted at Gillian Anderson had “miserable bitch” in the title. And that is why we need WE: A Manifesto for Women. Join in now. 

 

 

In their new book, Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel bring us a rallying cry for women to join together and create a female-led revolution. WE shows us simply how, one woman at a time, we can bring about positive change.

 

WE: A Manifesto for Women by Gillian Anderson and Jennifer Nadel

 

‘Imagine a sisterhood – across all creeds and cultures. An unspoken agreement that we, as women, will support and encourage one another. That we will remember we don’t know what struggles each of us may be facing elsewhere in our lives and so we will assume that each of us is doing our best…’

 

So begins WE: an inspiring, empowering and provocative manifesto for change. Change which we can all effect, one woman at a time. Change which provides a crucial and timely antidote to the ‘have-it-all’ Superwoman culture and instead focusses on what will make each and every one of us happier and more free. Change which provides an answer to the nagging sense of ‘is that it?’ that almost all of us can succumb to when we wake in the dead of night.
Written by actress Gillian Anderson and journalist Jennifer Nadel – two friends who for the last decade have stumbled along together, learning, failing, crying, laughing and trying again – WE is a not a theoretical treatise but instead a rallying cry to create a life that has greater meaning and purpose. Combining tools which are practical, psychological and spiritual, it is both a process and a vision for a more fulfilling way of living. And a truly inspiring vision of a happier, more emotionally rewarding future we can all create together…

 

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Gillian Anderson is an award-winning film, television, and theatre actor and producer, writer and activist. She currently lives in London with her daughter and two sons. Jennifer Nadel is an award-winning broadcast journalist, qualified attorney, writer, and activist. American-born, she lives in London with her three sons.

 

http://www.wewomeneverywhere.org/

#wewomen

 

 

 

Lisa Jewell I Found You Book Review

i found you lisa jewell book review

I am going to start this review off by being honest: I found this book a bit scary. Not horror scary, but anticipation scary. That is the biggest compliment I can give to Lisa Jewell. She has written a novel tight on anticipation and suspense. A proper thriller book which can sit alongside Gone Girl.

It was hard to put this book down, even when I wanted to. There are numerous twists and even moments of unbearable sadness. It is a good novel and the writing is done with so much technical talent that I was in awe as a fellow writer. Tightly wound and with enough surprises to keep any reader happy; this novel works on every level. I also loved the cover. It is so lovely seeing a female writers book being marketed to both genders. I can recommend this novel but, as I said, I also found some of it sad. I don’t want to give too much away, but it also leaves you angry at some of the characters.

Recommended.

 

Everyone has secrets. What if you can’t remember yours?

Lily has only been married for three weeks. When her new husband fails to come home from work one night, she is left stranded in a new country where she knows no one.

Alice finds a man on the beach outside her house. He has no name, no jacket, no idea what he is doing there. Against her better judgement, she invites him into her home.

But who is he, and how can she trust a man who has lost his memory?

Two women, twenty years of secrets and a man who can’t remember lie at the heart of Lisa Jewell’s brilliant new novel.

Lisa Jewell had always planned to write her first book when she was fifty. In fact, she wrote it when she was twenty-seven and had just been made redundant from her job as a secretary. Inspired by Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity, a book about young people just like her who lived in London, she wrote the first three chapters of what was to become her first novel, Ralph’s Party. It went on to become the bestselling debut novel of 1998.

Thirteen bestselling novels later, she lives in London with her husband and their two daughters. Lisa writes every day in a local cafe where she can drink coffee, people-watch, and, without access to the internet, actually get some work done.

 

 

Debbie Macomber If Not For You Book Review

Debbie Macomber: If Not For You book review

If Not For You is a delightful and engaging novel. Debbie Macomber is so skilled at drawing out the characters that it is impossible to feel like you do not know them. This novel is not a standard girl-meets-boy novel. It is a novel about what happens when something unexpected throws two very different people together. The novel jumps straight into the action and has plenty of twists and turns to keep you occupied. Definitely worth a read.

 

Sometimes, just one person can change your whole world…

If not for her loving but controlling parents, Beth might never have taken charge of her life.

If not for her friend Nichole, Beth would never have met Sam Carney – a tattooed mechanic who is her conservative parents’ worst nightmare.

And if not for Sam – who witnessed a terrible accident and rushes to her aid – Beth might have never survived and fallen in love.

Yet there are skeletons in Sam’s closet that prevent him from ever trusting a woman again. Will he be able to overcome his past and fight for love?

 

Debbie Macomber is a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author and one of today’s most popular writers. In addition to fiction, Debbie has also published two bestselling cookbooks; numerous inspirational and nonfiction works; and two acclaimed children’s books. The beloved and bestselling Cedar Cove series became Hallmark Channel’s first dramatic scripted television series, Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove, which was ranked as the top program on US cable TV when it debuted in summer 2013. Hallmark has also produced many successful films based on Debbie’s bestselling Christmas novels. Debbie Macomber owns her own tea room, and a yarn store, A Good Yarn, named after the shop featured in her popular Blossom Street novels. She and her husband, Wayne, serve on the

Guideposts National Advisory Cabinet, and she is World Vision’s international spokesperson for their Knit for Kids charity initiative. A devoted grandmother, Debbie and her husband Wayne live in Port Orchard, Washington (the town on which her Cedar Cove novels are based) and winter in Florida.

 

Sterile Jets “No Gods No Loss” | Music Profile

 

Band/Artist: Sterile Jets
Location: Long Beach, California
Styles: Noise Rock, Old School Metal, Punk, Post Hardcore
Similar to/RIYL: Melvins, Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Butthole Surfers, Shellac
CD: No Gods No Loss
Release date: May 4 2017

Accolades: Toured Northern California May 2015.

Members/Instruments:
Robert Bly Moore:  Guitar / Vocals
Wm B.ILL Partnoff: Bass / Vocals
GS Bean : Drums

Production: Produced by Bil Lane and Sterile Jets

Tracklisting:

The Arsonist
Rehabilitated Truth
Go Out And Bleed
Piss On Your God
Soliloquy Of A Heartbroken Loner
Fireside Drive (first single/video)
White Satan
A Sterile Existence
Free Pork Bougie
Olive Spoil

http://sterilejets.com

Bio and About the Album:

Sterile Jets make music that doesn’t conform to a single style or genre, with lyrics that mirror the struggles the band, and their fans, confront on a daily basis. The band – singer/guitarist Robert Bly Moore, singer/bass player Wm. Partnoff and drummer GS Bean – is a true democracy. They compose and arrange every song to bring out its best elements, delving deeply into punk, post rock, jazz and metal, with stimulating side trips into rockabilly, grunge and even pop. The result is a winning combination of noise and melody, romanticism and irony, love and anger that captures the complexities of everyday American life. Those looking for music steeped in the courage, honesty and energy of punk’s primal explosion will find it in the uncompromising sounds of the Sterile Jets.

Stoner Punk, Art Punk, “Rebel Noise Rock,” call it what you will, but there is no denying that the brand of caterwauling that STERILE JETS (SJs) produces is absolutely FUCK YEAH! Formed in year nine, after the break-up of Bass’r B. ILL’s former band Dynamic Ribbon Device, B. ILL set forth to start a band that would ultimately satisfy his artistic needs. He went straight to the to the Internet (Craig’s List to be more specific), to complete his conquest. After a few revolving members, the band became the complete trio, it is now, in 2012. The lineup includes: Robert “Bly” Moore (Lead Guitar/Vocals), Wm. “B. ILL” Partnoff (Electric Bass/Vocals) and Matthew Bean… “Bean” (Trap Set). SJs self describes their unsettling sound as if Sonic Youth fucked the Velvet Underground and had an unruly Black Flag baby. Other influences for the band are Rudimentary Peni, McLusky, Ponys, Husker Du and Dead C. Also, the band has covered songs from Fang and Flipper. SJs also take influences from the literature and art scene, such as Charles Bukowski, William S Burroughs and Raymond Pettibon. Drawing from life experiences, dive bars, drug abuse and the absurd hypocrisies of civilization, SJs music has been described as original, jarring, loud, noisy and weird. The current incarnation of SJs have been gigging in Southern California for nearly a year, focusing on the Long Beach and Orange County areas. Venues the SJs rocked include Fern’s Cocktails (Long Beach), Harold’s Place (San Pedro), the defunct Puka Bar (Long Beach) and The 2010 OC Punk Rock Picnic (Irvine).

No Gods No Loss was co-produced by Sterile Jets and audio engineer Bil Lane, a close friend of the band. “We wanted the raw sound of a live show,” Moore continues. “Except for the vocals, the album was recorded over a long weekend, with everything stripped down to the basics. We spent more time writing, arranging and refining the songs this time. Bil has a ton of expertise and a laid back attitude. He gave us the freedom to make the music sound how we wanted it to sound.”

“Fireside Drive,” the album’s first single, contrasts the band’s quieter, more melodic side with their love of distortion. Melodic bass and guitar introduce Moore’s playful, seductive vocal before flipping the switch into an interlude of grinding distortion. By alternating between quiet passages and jolts of noise, the band amplifies the passionate yearning of the lyric. The song builds to a beautifully chaotic climax, complete with a few random quotes from Voltaire about the exploitation of the working class.

“Rehabilitated Truth” opens and closes with screeching feedback from Moore’s guitar. Bean’s galloping drums play variations on a fractured samba rhythm that pushes the guitar and bass in all kinds of twitchy directions. Moore’s growling half spoken vocal plunges into a maelstrom of hopelessness that reflects the agony of a dying relationship.

“Olive Spoil” is a sonic assault drenched in grimy guitar overtones, free form bass lines and out of control drumming. Its random tempo changes, unexpected bursts of silence and rapid shifts between noise and melody suggests some unholy combination of Hendrix and Motörhead. Partnoff’s rolling, bluesy bass and Bean’s rock steady drumming support Moore’s mixed down vocals on “Free Pork Bougie” before the tone shifts with a slow, roaring avalanche of earsplitting distortion. The mood swings of the music hint at the tension between the 1% and the country’s working class. “We’re dealing with job loss, expensive or non-existent education and not knowing how we’re going to pay rent,” Moore says. “The rich and powerful are just playing a game.” Beat writer Charles Bukowski inspired “Go Out and Bleed,” a slow, straight-forward, metallic rocker with grim, surrealistic lyrics and an impressive display of Moore’s guitar pyrotechnics. Partnoff’s noisy bass opens “White Satan” as Moore’s guitar provides a shower of quiet, playful arpeggios before moving into sinister, doom rock territory. With the help of Partnoff’s descending bass, Bean’s ponderous backbeat, Moore’s massive power chords and Partnoff’s harsh, snarling vocal, the song shatters the tenets of the conservative agenda.

“Our inspiration comes from what’s going on around us,” Moore says. “This record was written during a point of collective turmoil. We were grappling with chaos, the death of close friends and toxic relationships. That uncertainty comes out on the record. The songs have more anger and darkness this time around, but we don’t write with preconceived notions of what it’s going to sound like. We just do our best to give you something that’s truly us at that moment.”

Wm. Partnoff was born in the LA suburb of Whittier. He was inspired to pick up the bass by Iron Maiden’s Steve Harris. After spending years playing in bands in the San Francisco Bay Area, he moved to Long Beach in 2008. GS Bean started drumming to combat his extreme ADHD, but didn’t get serious about music until he was 19. His love for politically and socially progressive bands like England’s Subhumans profoundly influenced his life and taste in music. After finding Partnoff through Craig’s List, the duo searched for a guitar player and found Robert Moore, who’d just moved out from Indianapolis. His desire to blur boundaries and play whatever he felt, as loud as he could, clicked with the newly formed band’s vociferous, anything goes outlook.

“If you listen to our last record, and compare it to No Gods, you can hear our evolution,” Moore says. “We’ve found our voice and gelled into a tight band. We’re always working to stretch ourselves, and do something different and No God sees us exploring new time signatures, new rhythms, new lyrical ideas. We’re constantly challenging ourselves to be better.”

Frost Loves: Slydes

slydes, footwear, sandals, gold,

Frost loves Slydes – Functional and super stylish footwear for summer.

 

Spring may have just started, but the weather is getting better and summer will be here soon, dammit. So lets get excited and buy our footwear now. I have been reviewing these Slydes. They are comfy and they look fab. Founded in 2014 and launching its first collection for Spring Summer 2015, the SLYDES brand offers an exciting range of pool slides for the fashion forward. The pool slide,  once reserved for the use of sporty types and swimmers alone,   is now the ultimate footwear choice of the Summer. I tend to agree. Minimum fuss with maximum stylish. That is what we all need.

£15-£22.

http://slydes.co.uk/