Newsletter: August 1, 2003

Book Review

2003-8/August 1, 2003

NOTES:

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AVE SHUTISTS:

Greetings from The Land of Enchantment:

UK2003

This from HREM Steph Gallagher:

Dear Friends:
UK2003 may seem like an event in the dim and distant past, however activities surrounding it are still taking place. Richard Michalak is working hard on producing an event photo album, which will be distributed to all attendees when it is ready. Jack Calaway is continuing his work as the UK2003 Electronics Wizard by having tapes of all the talks duplicated. As soon as that task is finished, and we have a firm price on costs and availability, I will let everyone know. Once we have sets, UK Shutist Alison Jenner has offered to organise transcribing them all, so in time full texts of tapes will also be available on the Web.
I have written an event report, which has been posted onto the web. In fact, the whole gatherings section of the web has been updated. Full details can be found at:
http://www.nevilshute.org/gatherings.php.
I am tying up the last strands of finances for the event. When they are completed I will also add a financial overview to the web site. One final thing I will do is seek feedback from conference attendees. Surveys, you either love them or hate them, but everyone will be given the opportunity to provide some feedback on UK2003, to help with planning future conferences.
All that remains to say is that I thoroughly enjoyed organising UK2003 and especially cherish meeting so many devoted Shute fanatics. If anyone out there is contemplating organising US2005, all I can say is "Go for it!" I can give you lots of encouragement, advice, tips and hints!
Kindest regards,
Steph

NOTES/UPDATES:

I (Dan Telfair) have it on best authority that the Photo Albums, courtesy of Foundation Historian and Photographer/Cinematographer Extraordinary Richard Michalak, are on the way. Richard will bulk mail those going to Shutists in the UK and US to Steph and to me, respectively. We will handle distribution in our respective countries, and will get them mailed out to everyone as soon as they are received. In any event, all who attended UK2003 should have their copies within the next two weeks, all free of charge!!

Also, Jack Calaway has informed me that the tape sets of the UK2003 presentations are on the way to me. The sets cost approximately $41 to produce. To that, we must add postage, packaging, etc. Rather than trying to anticipate individual postage, we will charge $45 for each set mailed to an address in the US and £33 for each set mailed to an address in the UK. Other locations will be charged at actual cost.

Anyone desiring a set of the tapes (especially all who raised their hands at UK2003), should respond by e-mail to both Steph and me (so we won't have to be constantly comparing notes.) as soon as practical. Then send a cheque/check for the correct amount to either Steph Gallagher or Dan Telfair as appropriate.

Steph Gallagher
24 The Ridgeway, Codicote,
Hertfordshire, SG4 8YP
UK

Dan Telfair
808 Tramway Lane NE
Albuquerque, NM 87122
USA

Based on the show of hands at UK2003, and on other known requirements, Jack made 20 sets of the tapes. When those are gone, there are no more, so please get your order in early. Orders will be accepted through September I, 2003, or when all sets are gone, whichever occurs first.

There may be a slight delay in deliveries to UK addresses, since I must first bulk mail the correct number of sets to Steph, before she can distribute them to UK residents. Please be patient though. Once you have placed an e-mail order, and your order has been acknowledged, you are assured one of the tape sets.

THE FOUNDATION

The Foundation Board of Directors is happy to announce the addition of two new members to the Board. Steph Gallagher has agreed to be the UK representative on the Board, and Richard Michalak has agreed to be the representative from OZ. Suggested titles for their positions are (for Steph) Her Majesty's Representative for Nevil Shute Norway Activities in the United Kingdoms, and (for Richard), Keeper of the Keys at Her Majesty's Former Penal Colony. Suggestions for alternative titles are welcome so long as they remain in keeping with the required dignity of the positions.

In addition to respective duties in their homelands, it is hoped that both will step forward and volunteer to take over some of the duties currently borne by Webmeister Jack Calaway and by yours truly. It is not that I do not enjoy spending several hours each day answering letters, doing research and accomplishing other Nevil Shute-related duties. It is just a matter of wanting to share the pleasure with others.

SCHOLARSHIPS

We have received another very generous donation from one of our Board members, which has allowed us to fund another year of the Nevil Shute Norway Excellence in Aviation Scholarships. Last year, a single $1,500 scholarship went to an aspiring commercial pilot in Australia. This year, we will be awarding two scholarships, one for a commercial pilot and one for an aircraft mechanic/ground engineer. No decisions have yet been made as to where the scholarships will be awarded. We will keep you informed on further developments.

WEB SITE

Webmeister Jack Calaway has been especially busy this month. A cursory check of the What's New Section and other appropriately referenced sections on the Web Site will reveal the following July additions:

Nevil Shute's Engineering - John Anderson's UK2003 paper.
A Boy called Ne Ne Nevil - A children's short story based on the life of Nevil Shute by John B. Wilcox.
A new Engineering Section, with four articles of interest to the engineers among us
A New Web Links Section with links to a number of sites of potential interest to Shutists. (The Web Site already has 1,804 links scattered throughout other sections and pages.)
Steph Gallagher's full report on UK2003.
A Shutist's Guide to the Portsmouth area by Gerard Martin, our guide at UK2003.
The Nevil Shute Norway crossword puzzle, first presented at UK2003.
An updated Favorite Books Score Card.
A new review of On The Beach by Russian Shutist Nikolay Fedorov.

BOOK CROSSING

Last month, we mentioned Bookcrossings: www.bookcrossing.com. I encourage everyone to check this site out. The idea behind the organization is to share books by leaving them laying about somewhere another person is likely to find them. Book Crossing cover stickies, book plates, and book marks are available to be placed in the books you leave lying about. They explain that the book is not lost; but deliberately left there in the hopes that it will be enjoyed by another reader. Those who leave the books, and those who find them, are encouraged to visit the Book Crossing Web Site and leave a message concerning the book, where it was found, readers' comments, etc. What a great way to share Nevil Shute with the world!

I have released ten books into the wild this month, nine by Nevil Shute, and one by Jack Higgins. It beats dusting them off in the book shelves every month, and may actually bring a few more aficionados to the fold.

FOUNDATION FUNDING

Donations to the Nevil Shute Norway Foundation, either through the PayPal button on the web site home page, or through foundation@nevilshute.org are always appreciated. Also, anyone interested in leaving a bequest to the Nevil Shute Norway Foundation is encouraged to contact the Foundation Secretary at letters@nevilshute.org.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Note: Letters to the Editor are published, complete with the name, e-address and location of the writer, unless the writer specifically asks that this information not be published. We like to list letter writers' locations, just to give our readers some idea of the areas of the world covered by the Web Site and Newsletter. When writing, please include name and country/state/region.

More from in Russia:

Dear Dan
Thanks for the books of Nevil Shute - I received them today. That was very kind of you! I have some new ideas: I would like to write a note about war and human psychology in the novels of Shute. Also I would like to perform The Chronicle of the Short war - Third World war in the "On the Beach" - on the basis of data from the novel and forecast of possible development nuclear war, if it is interesting for you.
Faithfully yours
Nikolay Fedorov

This from near Portsmouth:

The Nevil Shute timeline contains the following entry:
1939 May: Shute joins Sir Dennistoun Burney and Sydney Hansel on an Admiralty Gliding Torpedo Project.
You may like to know that Mr. Hansel is alive and well, aged 99, and living in the USA.
I have recently been in contact with him because he designed, built and lived in the house which I have owned for the past 34 years. He told me that visitors to my house included Nevil Shute, Sir Charles Dennistoun Burney, Amy Johnson and Group Captain John Alexander Kent.
Bob Martin

From in Toronto:

Re: Edgar Westbury and the Shute site. I don't believe that Edgar Westbury was ever Editor of the Model Engineer. But he certainly wrote a column for many years.
Peter Trounce

From in the UK

Dear Dan
After much hunting in secondhand bookshops, I recently completed a set of Shute paperbacks. Now, with bookshelves already creaking, I've decided to part with my collection of Shute hardbacks. There are about 20 books (15 titles, a few with two different editions), and before offering them to the trade I wondered if there's an enthusiast out there, perhaps a new collector, who might welcome the opportunity to boost his or her own collection. If possible, I would prefer to sell as one lot, in which case I would consider offers well below the total value (as suggested by abe.com).
I would be happy to send a list, which includes an indication of condition, to interested parties. Geography may be significant for UK Shutists, so please note that I live in Nottinghamshire, though will soon be moving to the s outheast.
Thanks, Dan. Keep up the good work!
Christopher

From in the Netherlands:

Dear Nevil Shute admirers:
I have quite a number of books written by Nevil Shute. I like to read all of them, but I prefer to read them in Dutch. Could you send me a list of the titles that have been translated into Dutch?
Your site is wonderful! Thanks for your effort
With kind regards
Floris Timmer

Note: We referred Mr. Timmer to A. P. Watt for information on Dutch editions. However, I am sure he would welcome input from any of our readers who might have first hand knowledge of Shute editions in Dutch.

From in Kingsport, TN:

In case others might be interested: I found a source for new copies of A Town Like Alice video (Masterpiece Theatre / Helen Morse / Bryan Brown) - the version on 3 standard-play VHS cassettes - through an Amazon.com affiliate (Videoattic) for $39.99 + shipping ($2.49). It was sealed with no evidence of wear on the box so that it does appear to be new. This tape was copyright 1997 by Anchor Bay Entertainment. My only adverse comment is that some of the scenes appear to me to be very slightly faded so that I wonder if the video was made in 1997 from film that had faded slightly. (However, it is impossible to remember what the original looked like 22 years ago.) I checked with Videoattic and they do have a few more copies available. You can get these through Amazon.com - you have to check several of the affiliate entries to find the right one (new / Videoattic / $39.99 / "Brand New and Factory Sealed, 3 Tape SP version"). If you want to contact Videoattick, their Email address is: videoattic@videoattic.com.

Note: This is good news, as all our known sources for the ATLA tapes have dried up.

That's it for this month folks. Please keep those e-cards and e-letters coming.

Regards from The Land Of Enchantment,

Dan