Tower and Town, September 2014

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Editorial: Marlborough and the Literary Tradition

Marlborough and the Literary Tradition

This edition of Tower and Town is somewhat different from our normal fare. 2014 marks the fifth year of the Marlborough LitFest and we have decided to dedicate this issue to the LitFest itself.

There are fewer articles, but both 'Rocking the Boat' by Hugh de Saram (our Compiler for this month) and '4 years 4 months and 4 days' by Vet Lissy Seidel are fine examples of the skills of local writers in two completely different genres and on very distinct subject matters. Hugh poses the question whether the Christian Church needs to update its thinking when faced with the challenges of 21st century life and, if so, what are the prospects of that happening. Lissy uses her specialist experience to telling effect when recounting humorously and movingly her all too brief time of joy and grief with her rescue dog Luka.

We have given more space than usual to these two stories (and further excerpts will follow), since we feel this is entirely in line with the literary tradition of Marlborough as explained by Jan Williamson in her account of the Marlborough LitFest itself. This year promises to be a special edition of the Festival, and we are very happy to be associated with this event. We can also count ourselves lucky that this year has seen the renewal of the White Horse Bookshop. Its proactive new Manager, Angus MacLennan, writes to explain the ethos behind the newly refurbished shop.

We would very much welcome your comments on any of the stories or on the Magazine itself. But, above all, Happy Reading!

Andrew Unwin