Book Reviews

Batting for the Poor, a biography of David Sheppard by Andrew Bradstock

This is a great read for a certain type of person, someone with an interest in cricket, the best of Christianity and the place of the church in society. If none of those things interest you, you might be better off reading a different book or, who knows, you might still enjoy the read. You also have to be of a certain age to remember David Sheppard, one time batsman for England and bishop, first of Woolwich and later Liverpool but I’m getting ahead of myself.

David Sheppard was born in 1929 into a ‘privileged’ background, grew up in Sussex and from age 9 was sent to Northcliffe House, a private school in Bognor Regis where his interest in cricket first began to show. At 13 he moved on to Sherborne School where, he later reflected, he was “programmed to achieve”, which he duly did, passing both School Certificate (now GCSEs) and Advance Level School Certificate (A levels) in ‘Classics’ and won a scholarship to Trinity Hall, Cambridge, to read Classics. Alongside all this academic success, Shepherd also displayed significant skill not only at cricket, but also music, in particular, singing and piano, but it was cricket that really held his heart and where he put his energies. Sheppard’s family background was thoroughly Christian, mostly in the ‘mainstream Anglican’ church-going way that so many of the English were and some still are though one of his uncles belonged to the Plymouth Brethren and had been a medical missionary in China and, at the time of his going up to Cambridge, Sheppard’s faith was still that same inherited cultural Christianity.
While at Cambridge, two things changed for the young Sheppard. First his involvement in cricket as he began to play, not only for his university side but also at county level for Sussex and secondly when he had a ‘life changing conversion experience’ during an evangelistic mission organized by the university’s
Christian Union, leading him to what he described as a ‘personal knowledge of Jesus Christ’. Now his life took on a two-track shape as he pursued his cricket, playing not only for Sussex but also by now for England and his vision for his future also was transformed as he began to feel a call to ordained ministry in
the Church of England. After Trinity Hall he began to play less cricket (though he did subsequently tour overseas with England) and went to Ridley Hall, where he also met his wife-to-be, Grace, to train for ordination. He was ordained in St Paul’s cathedral in September 1955 and moved to Islington ‘serve his
title’ and his two years of living and working in inner-city London ‘profoundly challenged his ideas about leadership, evangelism and mission and set the agenda for the rest of his career’.
From Islington he moved to Canning Town, establishing the Mayflower Centre with club room, swimming pool, playground, an accommodation block and a chapel. Sheppard’s aims, as he surrounded himself with a team of ‘like-thinking’ colleagues, were to help develop an indigenous church in the district with staff and leadership drawn from the community, something which would characterize all his future involvements.
This is getting too long so, in short, Sheppard went on to be Bishop of Woolwich where, again, he insisted on living in a working-class district and followed his principles of building an indigenous church using local working-class church members wherever possible. From Woolwich he was appointed Bishop of Liverpool,
where he still clung to those ideals but also formed a strong bond of friendship with the Roman Catholic Archbishop, George Andrew Beck and Beck’s successor Derek Worlock, working with these on many issues faced by the Liverpool community. Through it all, together they campaigned tirelessly for the working
people of Liverpool, often bringing them into conflict with the then, conservative government. Sheppard also was keen to pursue a multifaith agenda and was happy to engage with and learn from leaders of other faiths.
David Sheppard died in March 2005.

Phil

All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque

This is the story of nineteen year old Paul Bäumer, the narrator, who enlists in the German army during World War 1 straight from leaving school along with his classmates. They are full of youthful enthusiasm but their belief in the world is shattered by their experiences of the
brutal reality of the trenches.
During the novel, Paul comes to realise that young men of the same generation but different uniforms are meaninglessly pitted against each other. Often, they were engaged in a life or death struggle with another human being with whom they have no issue. In this passage, he is musing to his comrades ‘we are all ordinary people aren’t we ? And in France, the majority are workers, too, or tradesmen or clerks. Why on earth should a French locksmith or shoemaker want to attack us ? Nobody asked them any more than they did us – it’s just the governments’.
This classic novel not only describes in vivid detail the soldiers’ physical and mental trauma, but shows the tragic detachment from civilian life felt by many upon returning home. Even though they escaped with their lives, they were still destroyed by the war. There is no glorification of war here – just an understanding of how terrible war truly is – a nightmare of death and destruction. It makes you understand what a lottery it was whether you survived or died as seen in this passage ‘I was playing cards in a dugout; after a bit I got up and went to go and talk to some men I knew in another dugout. When I got back, there was
nothing left of the first one, a direct hit from a heavy shell had flattened it. It is simply a matter of chance whether I am hit or whether I go on living.
This book was written in 1928 and a new version of the film was released last year. It is translated from the original German and although it is nearly 100 years old, it still has tremendous relevance today and I honestly believe that everyone should read this book

Chris D

The Mad Women’s Ball by Victoria Mas
This is a short novel and is beautifully translated from the original French. The story is fictional but the setting really existed. The setting is the Salpêtrière asylum in Paris in1885. Professor Charcot gives displays of hypnotism on women who have been deemed mad or hysterical. But the truth is much more complicated – for these women are often simply inconvenient, unwanted wives or strong-willed daughters. It was such a terrible fate for strong independent women who were helpless in the repressive male-dominated society of the time. It’s truly horrifying to read about how men had that level of control – simply label your wife or daughter as having “hysteria” and they are locked up never to trouble you again.
The author describes likeable characters who are inside the asylum, each with their own story to tell and as a modern-day reader you can see that these women were not mentally ill – they were suffering the effects of grief, PTSD, depression and so on. 
Once a year a grand ball is held at the hospital and the Parisian elite are invited – for them, the Mad Women’s Ball is the highlight of the social season; for the women themselves, it is a rare moment of hope.
Eugenie is a 19 year old young woman who finds herself incarcerated in this asylum. Her father, having deemed her to be deranged, delivers her to the facility, with the help of her brother. I do not wish to spoil the story for anyone who has not read this book so I shall not give away any more of the plot – you will have to read it for yourself. Suffice it to say that the conclusion does contain a surprise.
This is a disturbing but fascinating read and I would recommend it to anyone who wants to try something a little different.

Chris D

All of these books and many more are available to borrow now at Blackfen Community Library. Come along, sit and have a read at our community hub and enjoy a fresh coffee from Rooted Coffee House, our in house coffee shop.

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