Of course, when I volunteered to write a blog for #HistFicThursdays, it was bound to be Gothic-based. All the pupils at school know now that, if they get me for English, they will be studying some Gothic Horror at some point! I have just taught my first full year of National 5, and the text I selected for the pupils’ Critical Essay (worth 20% of the overall grade) was A Warning to the Curious by the great M. R. James. There are so many fascinating things which can be said about the text: Paxton as a tragic hero; the setting of the First World War and how that is woven in throughout the text; the themes of revenge and respect for beliefs; the many examples of foreshadowing throughout… But teaching a group of teenagers to love (or, more realistically, to understand) M. R. James is not without its challenges. He writes in that wonderfully lyrical style which is key to the Gothic genre and, even for his time, he was using language which was perhaps slightly old-fashioned. Therefore, some ...
The second novel I ever finished - and still is nowhere near publishing standard! - was about two dragoons in the Crimean War. It fits in with my Family Saga through a certain Colonel Josiah Tenterchilt, but the plot really focuses on the two younger officers. It became apparent as I wrote it, that the relationship between these cavalrymen and their horses were as significant as any they shared with other people. A little research soon revealed that it was Drummer Boy, an equine part of the fateful Charge of the Light Brigade (ridden by Lt Col de Salis of the 8th Hussars), who was the first animal in the British Army to receive a war medal. How strange that it took until 1854 for these service animals to be fully recognised. Of the 700 horses involved, less than 200 returned. But this provided me with all the inspiration I needed to explore the love and appreciation between cavalrymen and their steeds, and so I began to explore the fascinating bond between man and beast. “What is the t...