I’m proud to have made a very small contribution to Call to Arms, an anthology to be published on 1 November by Manifold Press, a small British publisher of same-sex fiction.
From the blurb: ‘Seventeen stories, thirteen authors, a second war. Once again Manifold Press’s writers explore the lives of LGBTQ+ people and their war-time experience in cities, towns and countryside across the world.’
I was approached by Heloise Mezen, the anthology editor, to read Jay Lewis Taylor’s story ‘An Affirming Flame’, which is set in Germany in 1938. She asked me to check the incidental German phrases and read for sensitivity of the Jewish characters. I found that the occasional use of German gave atmosphere to the story without being intrusive. As for Jay’s portrayal of the characters, I could see no need for adjustment; they were beautifully drawn and the story was a pleasure to read.
I’m looking forward to seeing the book in print. I love books of short stories and they are a wonderful resource to share with my students of English.
Details of the book are here: