The Stopping Places by Damian Le Bas
'I needed to get to the stopping places, so I needed to get on the road. It was the road where I might at last find out where I belonged.' Damian Le Bas grew up surrounded by Gypsy history. His great-grandmother would tell him stories of her childhood in the ancient Romani language; the places they worked, the ways they lived, the superstitions and lores of their people. In a bid to better understand his heritage, Damian sets out on a journey to discover the stopping places – the old encampment sites known only to Travellers. Through winter frosts and summer dawns, from horse fairs to Gypsy churches, Damian lives on the road, somewhere between the romanticised Gypsies of old, and their much-maligned descendants of today. ‘A beautiful writer who seems born to tell this fascinating story’ Amy Liptrot Winner of the Somerset Maugham Award Shortlisted for the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award Longlisted for the Wainwright Prize
Tender and intensely lyrical.. the prose is pure delight. The author breathes life into everything he sees ... To read The Stopping Places is to better understand the curious history of the Roma and how they have survived into 21st-century Britain -- Jackie Annesley * The Sunday Times *
A beautiful writer who seems born to tell this fascinating story. It's brilliantly researched, avoiding stereotype and explaining misconceptions, while showing what is vital and special about modern traveller culture -- Amy Liptrot
A fine prose style, vividly conjuring the smell of a hop pillow, the whinnying of a horse fair and the ‘wet-look hairstyles’ of the men, as well as the dead cold of a wagon in winter... An element of memoir clings to this excellent account of folk most of us don’t understand... The end of the book hints at redemption, as Le Bas comes to terms with the conflicts of his dual world. But he is too good a writer to make a meal of it -- Sara Wheeler * The Spectator *
An insight into the hidden world and culture of travelling people, written with delicacy and affection -- Ken Loach
Beautifully written and deeply affecting… While this is a beautiful, important book about Gypsy culture, it’s also a moving exploration of what it means to belong -- Clover Stroud * Daily Telegraph *
A beautiful writer who seems born to tell this fascinating story. It's brilliantly researched, avoiding stereotype and explaining misconceptions, while showing what is vital and special about modern traveller culture -- Amy Liptrot
A fine prose style, vividly conjuring the smell of a hop pillow, the whinnying of a horse fair and the ‘wet-look hairstyles’ of the men, as well as the dead cold of a wagon in winter... An element of memoir clings to this excellent account of folk most of us don’t understand... The end of the book hints at redemption, as Le Bas comes to terms with the conflicts of his dual world. But he is too good a writer to make a meal of it -- Sara Wheeler * The Spectator *
An insight into the hidden world and culture of travelling people, written with delicacy and affection -- Ken Loach
Beautifully written and deeply affecting… While this is a beautiful, important book about Gypsy culture, it’s also a moving exploration of what it means to belong -- Clover Stroud * Daily Telegraph *
Damian Le Bas is a writer, filmmaker and visual artist. His first book The Stopping Places won the Somerset Maugham Award, a Royal Society of Literature Jerwood Award, and was shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year. Damian is widely published as a journalist and poet and has taught for the Arvon foundation. A recipient of a Society of Authors Travelling Scholarship, he is a member of the European Film Academy, holds a First Class degree in Theology from the University of Oxford, and was awarded an honorary Master of Education by the University of Chichester. Besides getting in the sea he loves music, walking and spending time in the woods and hills with his family and friends. The Drowned Places is his second book.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9781784704131 |
| ISBN 10 | 178470413X |
| Title | The Stopping Places |
| Author | Damian Le Bas |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Vintage Publishing |
| Year published | 2019-05-02 |
| Number of pages | 320 |
| Prizes | Short-listed for Somerset Maugham Award 2019 (UK), Short-listed for Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards 2019 (UK), Long-listed for Jhalak Prize 2019 (UK), Long-listed for Thwaites Wainwright Prize 2019 (UK) |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |