Many of us have wanted to write a life-story but have been unsure how to set about it or how to bring such a project to completion. Whether you are planning to write about your own family or research the life of a famous historical figure, this book will assist, advise and encourage you.

Writing Biography & Autobiography (Writing Handbooks)

Osborne, Brian D.

Biographies & Memoirs

A&C Black

The great River Clyde and its estuary played a central part in both the 1914 - 18 and 1939 - 45 World Wars. The major air base at Prestwick, the center for commando training at Inveraray, the terminal point for Atlantic convoys at the Tail of the Bank and of course the Gare Loch, the major British military port of the Second World War, were all of vital significance to the Allied cause. On both banks of the river, the ships that fed and protected Britain were launched - from the mighty Hood, most famous of all Britain’s warships, to the humble escort and convoy vessels which ferried supplies and men back and forth across the Atlantic. It was also the scene of human tragedy in the form of the Clydebank and Greenock blitzes. Told primarily through numerous period photographs - including those taken by Luftwaffe reconnaissance missions - and with reference to a wide variety of written sources, this book is a magnificent picture of a nation at war and the mighty river which was its lifeline.

Clyde at War

History

Armstrong, Ronald

Osborne, Brian

Europe

Birlinn

Neil Munro's reputation fluctuated wildly: an immensely successful novelist in the early years of the twentieth century, he was attacked in the 1920s by Hugh MacDiarmid for not addressing contemporary Highland issues. At his death in 1930 he was commonly referred to as the heir to Scott and Stevenson, but by the 1980s the novels that built that reputation were out of print and one incomplete edition of his Para Handy stories was all that remained available. Lacking a comprehensive anthology, readers have been unable to judge his work as a whole and have missed much of real delight and merit. That Vital Spark meets this need and presents a rich and varied selection of some of the best of Munro's light fiction, literary short stories, journalism, criticism, descriptive writing, and poetry. Also included are two very early short stories in the thriller genre and the opening chapters of his unfinished last novel, The Search. His work as novelist, poet, journalist, and critic can for the first time be properly assessed. More than seventy percent of the material in this collection is not otherwise available and over half of that seventy percent has never been presented in book form at any time. This anthology appears at a time of growing academic and public interest in Munro's work. 
 The editors have drawn on a wide variety of sources and provide full introductions to the texts and, where necessary, explanatory notes. Osborne and Armstrong edited the successful editions of Munro's Erchie, Para Handy, and Jimmy Swan anthologies, which played a significant part in the Munro revival.

That Vital Spark: The Neil Munro Anthology

Literature & Fiction

MUNRO, Neil

British & Irish

Interlink Pub Group Inc

The great River Clyde and its estuary played a central part in both the 1914 - 18 and 1939 - 45 World Wars. The major air base at Prestwick, the center for commando training at Inveraray, the terminal point for Atlantic convoys at the Tail of the Bank and of course the Gare Loch, the major British military port of the Second World War, were all of vital significance to the Allied cause. On both banks of the river, the ships that fed and protected Britain were launched - from the mighty Hood, most famous of all Britain’s warships, to the humble escort and convoy vessels which ferried supplies and men back and forth across the Atlantic. It was also the scene of human tragedy in the form of the Clydebank and Greenock blitzes. Told primarily through numerous period photographs - including those taken by Luftwaffe reconnaissance missions - and with reference to a wide variety of written sources, this book is a magnificent picture of a nation at war and the mighty river which was its lifeline.

The Clyde at War

This lavishly illustrated book explores the impact of the First and Second World Wars on the city of Glasgow, its people and its industries. The citizens of Glasgow were affected by war in a variety of ways: the topics covered are wide ranging and include the role of Volunteer Defence Forces and the Home Guard; changing patterns of employment, especially for women, in factories, munitions and nursing; the fear and devastation caused by air raids and the experience of evacuation, and of course the courage and sacrifice of Glasgow’s servicemen and women in the Army, Air Force and Navy. There is also extensive coverage of how war shaped Glasgow’s industries, in particular the importance of warship building in the Clyde shipyards, and the large–scale manufacture of artillery and munitions. Wartime also brought many new people to Glasgow: servicemen and women from occupied Europe and from across the Atlantic, as well as visiting politicians and royalty. Some of these special visits are illustrated, as are the great victory parades where thousands came together to celebrate that war was finally over. The authors have drawn on a wide variety of sources in writing this fascinating and moving book, but it is perhaps the period photographs which will impress the reader most. Many have never been published before, and they tell the story of Glasgow at war most vividly and powerfully.

Glasgow at War

Based on contemporary archive materials and personal accounts, Brian Osborne examines the human story of the Home Guard in Scotland and the impact that this remarkable organization had on society and on those that became involved with it. The Home Guard, and its forerunner the Local Defence Volunteers, was genuinely a ‘people’s army’ with its own ethos, character and political influence. At its peak nearly 2 million men were enrolled, trained and served without pay in their own time and, usually, after a full day’s work at the civilian occupation. The Home Guard played a vital part in the defense of the country from 1940-1944, but despite its significance the story of the Home Guard in Scotland has never before been fully told – from Shetland to Galloway, Scottish Home Guardsmen fulfilled a wide range of roles far beyond the popular image of the ‘Dad’s Army’ of general service infantry battalions. Horseback patrols in the Borders, armored trains, anti-aircraft gunners at factories throughout Scotland, anti-aircraft rocket batteries from Aberdeen to Greenock all saw the Home Guard actively engaged in the national struggle.

The People's Army: The Home Guard in Scotland 1940-1944

Military

The ingenious Mr. Bell: A life of Henry Bell (1767-1830), pioneer of steam navigation

Argyll Pub

Book by Osborne, Brian, Armstrong, Ronald, Osborne, Brian D.

Scotch Obsessions

Mythology & Folk Tales

Birlinn Ltd.

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Books by Osborne, Brian D.