The One Penny Orange Mystery by Morris Ackerman

I was intrigued with I saw this book , and reminded of happy memories of 40 years ago when my Grandfather put a 1p British stamp into a matchbox and told me to see if I could find any others amongst a pile of envelopes.

The book made it's way across the Atlantic and I was fairly impatient to start reading. I did early this week and finished it a day or so ago.

There was a real sense of innocence about this book. The storyline and the characters and I knew within a page or two that I was going to enjoy it.

The character names are great, a play on the world of stamp collecting, which all starts when an British Official who spent many years working for the Government, first in India then in Mauritius fleas the start of an uprising taking with him a set of old historical papers.

The character, which has the wonderful name of Major Edward Postmark returns to Mauritius after some years to the house which he owns to sell up before returning to England. He sorts through his belongings in the house and comes across the pile of papers he recalls fleeing the embassy with years before. Amongst the papers is the One Penny Orange Stamp which is the catalyst of the whole mystery.

What follows through the rest of the pages is the valuation and then eventual sale of the stamp alas it is not without its problems. The author introduces readers to a series of characters, the stamp authenticator, stamp dealer, security agents and rather enthusiastic stamp collectors. Also thrown into the mix is a few red herrings. All of these individuals wish to own a valuable stamp, and some are prepared to regardless of the stakes.

The mystery structure was a good one, I certainly did not solve the who done it before the end of the book. This was a great book, with a strong storyline and none of the violence that perhaps might have wielded into the pages. It was a gentle page turner and it is this gentleness that had an innocence about it which I enjoyed.

This has potential for the start of a series, perhaps involving a Two Pence Stamp, but we will have to wait and see, but I do hope so. I loved this book and is certainly one of the favourites for the year.

The book which I do recommend is available from Amazon US, UK and Book Depository

Disclaimer - I was provided with a copy of this book by the author in exchange for an honest review.

Postcard Friendship Friday - From Wales 1970 to Cornwall 2011.....

Last weekend I spent an hour or two catching up on a small pile of newspapers, having a read. I like to ponder over the amusing articles that I might find. Here is one that I thought would make an interesting submission for Postcard Friendly Friday.

Published in the Western Morning News 19 August 2011

Hopefully the article can be read, but a brief synopsis is, the postcard was posted in North Wales on 17 April 1970 and was addressed to Mr & Mrs Keat of Butts Cottage Blisland which is in North Cornwall. The postcard was delivered to the current owners on August 4th, 2011. The senders of the postcard were JR & PG Rowe who resided in Whitecross, of which there are two in Cornwall. Interesting, Royal Mail suggested that it had not been in the postal system for 40 odd years,but......

Submitted as part of Postcard Friendship Friday hosted by The Best Hearts are Crunchy

Simple Pleasures - Happy Memories & Sharing them!

When I was about 3 years old, I remember being given a penny UK stamp in a matchbox by my Grandfather.  After then, every time the postman visited with a stamped letter I was given the stamp which I added to the matchbox. I still have those original stamps, mixed in, to what became a childhood collection that I actually still have. Every now and again I pull them out and contemplate selling them, but something stops me. Perhaps it is the link to my childhood and happy memories of my Grandfather.

So, I was delighted to recently find a weekly meme called Sunday Stamps whereby, I might share a stamp or two before I seriously think about parting with my childhood collection for someone else to enjoy.

Then a sudden thought occurred to me. In Australia, I have a cousin with two children, and perhaps they would like the stamps and albums. I dropped my cousin an email and I was delighted, actually, it is my simple pleasure for this week, that her children would like my collection, that can be joined to their Mum's childhood collection. Therefore I plan to share over the coming months as part of that meme my collection then package them ready for my trip next year, where the collection will be place in the hands of their owners, for them to enjoy.

So, in essence, my simple pleasure is that I have had many years of enjoyment from the collection, built on a beautiful memory of my Grandfather and I will get to pass on that memory and treasure to two very special young people. What could be more of a pleasure than that?

Here is my very favourite photo of my Grandfather, the person responsible for starting the hobby in the first place. This is taken during the Second World War, when he was stationed in West Africa.

Simple Pleasures is hosted by A Collection of This & That

Weekend Cooking - Foods & Stamps

Over the last few weeks I have been taking part in a weekly meme called Sunday Stamps. It all started as I contemplated what to do with my childhood stamp collection. I am digressing slightly, but I am sure I will be forgiven? So, I pondered and then made the decision to pass them onto my Cousins children in Australia when I visit next year. I shall use the weekly meme to share and enjoy my collection before passing it on to another generation of my family to enjoy.

As a result of the weekly meme I stop by other blogs to see what they have written about; and that is the link to weekend cooking comes in! I visited the blog called My World of Stamps and saw the fasciating set of Malaysian stamps depicting traditional foods. This was also the theme on another blog, hosted by Ian and called Ian's Collection where the focus is the secret code which features in the mirror stamps. Have a look at the great and imaginative stamps and foods in the Traditional Festive Food post of 2010.

I tried to remember if there had been a UK set of stamps depicting foods and I can not recall any. A quick Google didn't reveal any either.

I wonder what food subjects I would reflect on stamps if I had the choice? Would I focus on foods typically thought of as "British or English foods", would I focus on foods that I particularly like or that had special memories or meanings to me? Would the focus be on perhaps regional foods? I guess the possibilities are endless. What would you choose?

Remember these?

Picture from Wikipedia

I remember my Grandmother, in the 1970s visiting the Co-Op store in Guildford and collecting the stamps. I am fairly sure that if I look in the loft there is an incomplete book of the stamps. I am guessing they were saved and then handed over for either special items or perhaps for Christmas groceries. These are perhaps the forerunner for the points systems operated by Tesco and Sainsbury's supermarkets here in the UK.

Recycling Stamps for Charity

Guide Dogs for the Blind
P O Box 130
SLOUGH
Berks
SL1 4PU

OR

Post Pals
PO Box 278
Leatherhead
Surrey
KT23 4WN

OR

Handicap International UK
Waterman House
101-107 Chertsey Road
Woking
Surrey
GU21 5BW