Passage Across the Mersey
Page 29
Readers of Twopence to Cross the Mersey and its sequels can’t fail to be impressed by Helen’s determination, persistence and hard work in the face of poverty, war and grief. But those characteristics did not disappear when Lime Street at Two ended.
My mother was basically very healthy, in part because despite the turmoils of her teenage years she was well-nourished as a young child. She had immense endurance and the will to push herself through fatigue and hardship. At times there was no goal other than survival, but that iron will helped to ensure that she did indeed survive.
In her twenties she applied that appetite for hard work to her career in business and then after her marriage she did everything possible to help my father (and later me) to be successful in our careers. It is not surprising that she had the discipline and stamina to write book after book.
If success comes from a combination of talent and hard work, Helen’s was no exception. I can attest to the stacks of books she read – and they were serious books – as both general background and specific research. Her files had extensive notes sketching out descriptions of her characters and timelines. No detail escaped her; she took great care, for example, in matching a character’s manner of speaking to their social standing and class. If probed, she could describe any of her characters in detail.
Each book required hard thought and reflection over an extended period of time, and her experimentation sometimes failed. Twopence was started in a different form and scrapped after several chapters, for example. Substantial rewriting, a minimum of three complete drafts, and painstaking fact-checking were all completed before she even considered submission to a publisher. The disappointment of rejection often followed but in the end only one of her manuscripts remained unpublished, a well-researched but somewhat incongruous story of the police force in a Canadian town.
All her books, except Most Precious Employee, remain in print to this day. This is no mean feat!
Her four volumes of memoir were successful in their own right, but they also had a wider impact in publishing as a whole. According to her obituaries in both the Guardian and the Daily Telegraph, her honest style of writing, devoid of self-pity, spawned a new type of ‘gritty, working-class memoir’ which became very popular in the 1970s and 80s and which still sells strongly today.
With her experience and knowledge in business, Helen always made sure she understood her contracts, and she knew the importance of promoting her work, whether at gatherings in tiny libraries in Northern Saskatchewan or large bookstores in London. She was aware of herself as a public figure and, while she did turn down some requests, she graciously accepted most. Her most frequent complaint was being kept so busy at events that everyone else got to eat except her!
In some ways writing is a solitary profession, with long hours spent alone at the typewriter or computer, but Helen knew that her success also depended on her relationships with her agent, publishers, booksellers, librarians, the media, readers and potential readers. While the sparks flew a few times with editors or critics – for example, of The Latchkey Kid – Helen respected the role of each of these participants in the book world. She tried to understand their needs as well as her own and was pragmatic in striving to meet both. She was warm and appreciative of the people she dealt with and scrupulous in responding to fan letters.
In return she engendered respect herself. She told a representative of the Writers’ Union of Canada who was organizing a regional meeting:
One thing which interested me on your agenda, was the proposed discussion of the treatment of women writers. I have been writing from the early 1960s and I honestly can say that I have never felt that, as a woman, I was being discriminated against. I have had both men and women as editors and publishers – and as critics – and have no complaints against any of them. It may be that I have received good treatment because I am an experienced businesswoman and, simply, will not tolerate being patronized.
Reflecting the era in which she was raised, she was very sensitive to the way others perceived her relationships with men. Nevertheless, in addition to two fiancés and a husband, and a close relationship with her brothers, she had a lot of interaction with men at work and at various times in her life had male friends. In her later years, she developed several strong friendships with sophisticated men in both England and Canada. This extensive interaction with men further widened the perspective of her writing.
My mother was far more intelligent than she was ever prepared to admit and this intelligence enabled her to bring all these skills together to be the successful writer that she was. She was rightly proud of her professional accomplishments.
In her personal life too, her judgement, perseverance and dedication paid off. In each other, my mum and dad found their soulmates and together left an enduring legacy of love.
Helen wrote a postscript for By the Waters of Liverpool, the last paragraph of which reads as follows.
Now I live in western Canada with my dear Professor and our son. As I write, it is the beginning of 1981, and I have trunks full of letters, a much, much, happier collection [than those received from her fiancé, Eddie]. Pictures of Fiona’s and Avril’s beautiful weddings, and those of the boys – what funny hats we wore; snaps of a dozen or more nephews and nieces; letters from my publishers accepting the manuscripts of Twopence to Cross the Mersey and Minerva’s Stepchild [later retitled Liverpool Miss], in which I described the sufferings of our family when we first came to Liverpool; lovely letters from my kind Indian in-laws. And my husband’s long letters written to me from India before I went there and others from time to time when he has been away from me for a few days. How much I owe him for making my life anew. We came out to this wealthy country so that he could continue his research, and here was born our son.
My cup runneth over.
Chronology of Helen Forrester’s Life
1848 Paternal grandmother, Elizabeth, born
1894 Father, Paul Huband, born
Mother, Lavinia, born
1914 Paul joins the army, aged 19
1918 Paul marries Lavinia; goes to fight in Russia
1919 Helen born in Hoylake, Cheshire on 6 June
1920s Hubands live in Ludlow, Bromfield, Ross-on-Wye, and Nottingham
1920 Brother, Alan, born
1921 Future husband, Avadh, born in Barabanki, India (near Lucknow)
1922 Sister, Fiona, born
1924 Brother, Brian, born
1927 Brother, Tony, born
1928 Sister, Avril, born
Father has heart attack
1929 Stock markets crash triggering the Great Depression
1930 Edward born
Father goes bankrupt and loses job
1931 Father moves family to Liverpool
1933 Helen attends school for six weeks until her 14th birthday
1934–35 Completes First Year Commercial Course at Granby Junior Evening Institute, Liverpool
1936–39 Helen studies shorthand, English and commercial correspondence, arithmetic and accounts, and German at the Oulton Senior Evening Institute, Liverpool
1934–41 Employed at Liverpool Personal Services Society, starting as office girl and ending as assistant district head, Bootle, Liverpool
1939 England and France declare war on Germany
1940 First fiancé, Harry, dies at sea
1941–45 Employed at the Petroleum Board, which managed wartime distribution of petroleum; starting as shorthand typist and ending as secretary to the manager of Texas Oil Company
1944 Second fiancé, Eddie, killed at the Battle of Caen, France
1945 Second World War ends
1945–47 Employed at Broadcast Relay Service as secretary
1947–50 Employed at Metal Box Company. Positions included secretary, female staff supervisor and customer liaison officer
1947 Avadh comes to Bristol, then Liverpool, to complete his PhD in Physics
1949 Meets Avadh in March
Avadh leaves for India in De
cember
1950 Travels to India in April/May
Adopts Hinduism and an Indian name
Helen and Avadh are married 24 May
1950–52 Ahmedabad
Avadh works at Physical Research Laboratory
1952–3 Edinburgh. Employed at Scottish Agricultural Industries
1953–55 Ottawa
Writes her first novel
1955 Edmonton
Avadh works at University of Alberta
1955 Son, Robert, is born, Edmonton
1959 Alien There Is None (later called Thursday’s Child)
Summer spent on Merseyside
1963–64 Avadh on sabbatical leave at University of Liverpool. The family live in West Kirby, Cheshire.
1964 Helen’s father passes away
1971 The Latchkey Kid
1972 Helen’s mother passes away
1974 Twopence to Cross the Mersey
1976 Most Precious Employee
1979 Minerva’s Stepchild (later Liverpool Miss) and Liverpool Daisy
1979–80 Avadh on sabbatical leave at Oxford University
1981 Robert marries Dianne
By the Waters of Liverpool
1983 During a publicity tour in May sales of the three memoirs reach 2,000 books per hour
1984 Avadh passes away
Three Women of Liverpool
1985 Grandson, Stephen, is born.
Lime Street at Two
1987 The Moneylenders of Shahpur
Yes, Mama
1988 Granddaughter, Lauren, is born.
Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Liverpool
Seven-city publicity tour across Canada
1990 The Lemon Tree
1993 Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Alberta
The Liverpool Basque
1994 Twopence to Cross the Mersey, The Musical premieres
1995 Becomes a Canadian citizen
1996 Mourning Doves
1999 Madame Barbara
2003 A Cuppa Tea and an Aspirin
2011 Helen passes away 24 November
Picture Section
Elizabeth Ann Huband, Helen’s grandmother, wearing her widow’s cap.
Helen, aged 6, with her doll.
Helen’s father, Paul Huband. This was the photograph of him that Helen always had on show. She did not display one of her mother.
L to R. Helen’s Grandmother, Helen, Fiona and Alan on a visit to Ludlow racecourse.
Helen, 1940. This photograph was taken shortly after the news that her first fiancé , Harry, had been killed: ‘the eyes have no laughter in them because there was none in me.’
Helen around 1943 possibly in Princes Park, Liverpool.
Helen around 1943, now with some of the laughter in her eyes returned.
Helen arrives in Bombay; the grainy photo conveys the sense of anticipation.
Avadh 1949, the Lake District, near the spot he formally proposed.
Helen and Avadh, May 24th 1950, their wedding day.
Helen, laughing, at home in Ahmedabad.
Helen, cleaning lentils in their Ahmedabad flat.
Avadh, at home with his beloved pipe.
Helen and Robert, 1959, at home in Edmonton. This photo was taken on first publication of Thursday’s Child. Helen wears the traditional Indian sari.
Robert 1962, almost seven years old.
Avadh and Helen at home in Edmonton around 1982. Avadh would pass away two years later.
Helen at her desk, Edmonton 1987.
Helen with her grandchildren, Stephen and Lauren, 1993.
Helen, at the University of Liverpool, receiving her Honorary Doctor of Letters, 1988. Helen was particularly proud of this honour.
HAVE YOU READ THEM ALL?
ALL AVAILABLE NOW
This major best-selling memoir of a poverty-stricken childhood in Liverpool is one of the most harrowing but uplifting books you will ever read. When Helen Forrester’s father went bankrupt in 1930 she and her six siblings were forced into utmost poverty and slum surroundings in Depression-ridden Liverpool. Writing about her experiences later in life, Helen Forrester shed light on an almost forgotten part of life in Britain. Written with good humour and a lack of self-pity, Forrester’s memoir of these grim days is as heart-warming as it is shocking.
Click here to buy now 978-0-00-736932-4
The second volume of Helen Forrester’s powerful, painful and ultimately uplifting four-volume autobiography of her poverty-stricken childhood in Liverpool during the Depression. Written with an unflinching eye, Helen’s account of her continuing struggles against severe malnutrition and, above all, the selfish demands of her parents, is deeply shocking. But Helen’s fortitude and her ability to find humour in the most harrowing of situations make this a story of amazing courage and perseverance.
Click here to buy now 978-0-00-736931-7
Helen Forrester continues the moving story of her early poverty-stricken life with an account of her teenage years and the devastating effect of the Second World War on her hometown of Liverpool. Helen will experience at first hand the horror of the Blitz and the terrible toll that the war exacted on ordinary people. As ever, Helen faces the future with courage and determination.
Click here to buy now 978-0-00-736930-0
The fourth and final part of Helen Forrester’s bestselling autobiography continues the moving story of her early poverty-stricken life with an account of the war years in Blitz-torn Liverpool. The Second World War is affecting every part of the country and Hitler’s Luftwaffe nightly seek to wreak havoc on her home city of Liverpool. Then, tragedy is brought shockingly close to home and Helen is left reeling when she receives some terrible news. A move brings more trouble for Helen, but she is determined that she will face it, as ever, with courage and determination.
Click here to buy now 978-0-00-737385-7
About the Author
Robert Bhatia is Helen Forrester’s only child. As a boy, he lived on Merseyside for a time and attended school where he learned to dance the Twist to the music of the Beatles. Thereafter, he developed a keen interest in and appreciation for English culture and history. Trained as an economist, he became a senior civil servant in Alberta, Canada. He and his wife live in Edmonton, as do their two adult children.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank Gill Paul for bringing her outstanding editing skills to bear on the sometimes challenging raw material I had and for her patience, diligence and empathy.
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
Level 13, 201 Elizabeth Street
Sydney, NSW 2000, Australia
http://www.harpercollins.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
2 Bloor Street East – 20th Floor
Toronto, ON, M4W, 1A8, Canada
http://www.harpercollins.ca
New Zealand
HarperCollins Publishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1
Auckland, New Zealand
http://www.harpercollins.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
1 London Bridge Street
London, SE1 9GF
http://www.harpercollins.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
195 Broadway
New York, NY 10007
http://www.harpercollins.com