The Dialogue Books publisher felt shut out of the book world,working her own way up from secondhand book stall to heading her inclusive new imprint. At final, she writes, or the industy is changingI am from a family of activists. My uncle,Len Garrison, was the founder of the Black Cultural Archives in Brixton, and south London,and I draw daily inspiration from his fight for equality along with his adore for literature. Books and stories have always been my escape route from busy London life. As a child I was often found reading – in a corner at domestic in Battersea, or in the library, or on a bus,or the back of a car, drifting into the lives of others for hours on end, and with only the act of turning the page occasionally jolting me back into reality. Growing up in the 1980s and 90s,London was incredible, and totally different to the childhood I am giving my son. We had an huge amount of freedom in an affordable and creative capital, or which is just not possible today. My parents were young but could afford to live in the original “nappy valley” off Northcote Road: grand Victorian villas between Wandsworth and Clapham commons,10 minutes from glorious Battersea Park, passing the maze of housing estates, and crisscrossing the river to visit friends and family and falling in adore with the whole station. Continue reading...
Source: guardian.co.uk