Society member Nigel Gossop, the speaker at the March meeting, gave an absorbing talk about the life and works of Percy F Westerman, whome he called the forgotten author.
Westerman was hugely popular in his time, writing more than 170 adventure books for boys as well as numerous short stories and serials. His writing career, which began in Portsmouth, spanned more than 50 years.
‘No boy alive will be able to peruse Mr Westerman’s pages without a quickening of the pulses,’ said Nigel, quoting from Blackie and Son’s display advertisement for ‘The Submarine Hunter’ in 1918. This could equally apply to all of his popular stories, starting in 1908 with ‘A Lad of True Grit’ and ending with his last book, ‘Mistaken Identity’ which was published in 1959, the year of his death.
His fame reached its peak in the 1930s when he was voted the most popular boys’ author in a Daily Sketch poll.
Nigel runs the Westerman Yarns which aims to promote interest in Westerman and other writers of juvenile literature. (see his weblog at westermanyarns.blogspot.com.)