It Happened in Clissold Park

This title was previously available on NetGalley and is now archived.
Buy on Amazon Buy on BN.com Buy on Bookshop.org
*This page contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission when you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you.
Send NetGalley books directly to your Kindle or Kindle app

1
To read on a Kindle or Kindle app, please add kindle@netgalley.com as an approved email address to receive files in your Amazon account. Click here for step-by-step instructions.
2
Also find your Kindle email address within your Amazon account, and enter it here.
Pub Date Jun 28 2024 | Archive Date Jul 05 2024
Troubador | Troubador Publishing

Talking about this book? Use #ItHappenedinClissoldPark #NetGalley. More hashtag tips!


Description

Clissold Park in North London boasts football pitches, ponds, woods, a playground, and even a deer park. But it also harbours urban cowgirls, secret love affairs, buried fortunes, match-making beagles, sentient trees ... and a strong whiff of magic.

Told over the course of a year, twelve stories intertwine to form a vibrant tapestry of modern London life. Meet laid-back Lloyd the park-keeper and his fussy side-kick Rob, star-crossed sweethearts Josh and Essen, feisty horse-lover Abimbola, and the 97 ghosts who party every Halloween with Lord Clissold…

It Happened in Clissold Park will warm your cockles, open your eyes, and rekindle your wonder at the people and places we take for granted every day.

Enjoy your visit.

Clissold Park in North London boasts football pitches, ponds, woods, a playground, and even a deer park. But it also harbours urban cowgirls, secret love affairs, buried fortunes, match-making...


A Note From the Publisher

Hugh Todd has lived in North London for over 25 years. He has had several stories published, including 1 in 300,000,000 which was shortlisted for the Winston Fletcher prize. He has enjoyed a 30-year career in advertising as an award-winning copywriter and creative director and is the co-founder of the Behind the Billboard podcast. He gets his ideas from daily walks in his local park which is where his debut novel is set.

Hugh Todd has lived in North London for over 25 years. He has had several stories published, including 1 in 300,000,000 which was shortlisted for the Winston Fletcher prize. He has enjoyed a 30-year...


Available Editions

EDITION Ebook
ISBN 9781805148784
PRICE £4.99 (GBP)

Available on NetGalley

NetGalley Shelf App (EPUB)
Send to Kindle (EPUB)
Download (EPUB)

Average rating from 12 members


Featured Reviews

Very enjoyable .
Feels like a series of short stories, but all connected by the park, and each being told on a different month of the year.
Some were charming, some a bit strange, others not quite so pleasant.
The reappearance of characters felt like bumping into old friends.
Lovely little book that I read over a few days, taking it a month at a time between other things, and ìt was always a pleasure to go back to.

Was this review helpful?

A hybrid novel/connected short story collection. This book follows twelve neighbors over the course of a year to paint a snapshot of a London neighborhood.

Was this review helpful?

I really enjoyed this book a group of neighbors connected by the park.Told through short stories the flow the unique monthly stories the people in each story was really a wonderful read.#netgalley #troubadorbooks,

Was this review helpful?

I received an ARC of this from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I needed a break from the typical novels that I read and when I came across this, I thought it would be perfect. I was right. This was such an easy, quick read. It’s a collection of stories, each chapter is a month of the year, featuring members of the community that surround Clissold Park. The stories vary from magical, quirky, tragic, surprising, and to the point. Even though a different character is featured in each story, they can be commonly seen throughout the collection.
I really enjoyed it and would have been more than happy to keep reading. Well done.

Was this review helpful?

This series of 12 stories is as charming as it is all-over the place. It focuses on Clissold Park, a real park in London, and the people who work, play and visit there. The linked stories are mostly realistic, but there are a couple of urban fantasy moments.

The main flaw is the writing is a little bit wooden at times, and there is a lot of explaining straight to the reader. There is also a strange thing where pretty much every story has alcohol being drunk, but not one person sits around staring at their phone, or even makes a phone call. Minor, but odd.
Hugh Todd shows a lot of potential as an author of charming fiction, but could do with a little more showing and a little less telling.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an e-Arc ion exchange for an honest review.

Was this review helpful?

The writing is assured and beguiling. The story unfolds in and around the magnificent Clissold Park in Stoke Newington, London. A place I know well. A haven of divinity, illuminated by diversity. An oasis of hope. The ensemble cast are characters of great subtlety and grace. Not all of them are alive. Some of them are not even human.
Told across the course of one year, the author introduces a group of disparate individuals linked by the park. In these pages the mundane minutes of every day life become magical and memorable and for some lives are irrevocably changed. There are some extraordinary set pieces - when two young boys defy their father, searching for the illicit, illegal perfume of spent fireworks - and the Hallowe'en party attended by almost one hundred ghosts, watched solely by a lonely park keeper - perceptive, thought-provoking and utterly compelling. A hauntingly beautiful book.

Was this review helpful?

A little all over the place but none the less a great collection of 12 stories set in my favourite city. Passed the time on the dull train journey to work. Will look out for more from the writer.

Was this review helpful?

This is different to my usual reads but I felt drawn to this book and the more I read the more I felt immersed into the world of the book and the rich stories of the characters.

Was this review helpful?

This was a sweet collection of intertwined stories and I loved the interconnectedness. It was a very comforting read

Was this review helpful?

Loved this book of interlinked short stories with recurring characters. Local knowledge only improved matters! An easy summer read.

Was this review helpful?

Readers who liked this book also liked: