Martin Booth (7 September 1944 – 12 February 2004) was an English novelist and poet. He also worked as a teacher and screenwriter, and was the founder of the Sceptre Press.
Martin Booth
Born
(1944-09-07)7 September 1944 Lancashire, England, United Kingdom
Died
12 February 2004(2004-02-12) (aged 59) Stoodleigh, Devon, England, United Kingdom
Martin Booth was born in Lancashire England,[citation needed] the son of Joyce and Ken Booth, the latter of which was a Royal Navy civil servant.[1] Martin has said that his parents had a difficult marriage, as his father was stern, pompous, and humourless, while his mother was adventurous, witty, and sociable.[1] The family moved to Hong Kong in May 1952, where his father was stationed for a three-year tour as a grocery supplier to the British Navy.[1][2] In his memoir “Gweilo: A memoir of a Hong Kong Childhood” Booth recalls that the streets of Hong Kong were safe, and he would explore the city alone as a child.[1] He encountered things he was unfamiliar with: dogs hung in a butcher shop, an impoverished family living in a packing crate, and a Russian refugee who claimed to be the missing Russian princess Anastasia.[1] People would touch his blond hair for good luck.[1] He and his mother also learned Cantonese.[2] He attended Kowloon Junior School, the Peak School, then King George V School, and left in 1964.
From 1965 to 1968 he attended Trent Park College of Education in Cockfosters, North London, part of what is now Middlesex University. His main subject was science, and he obtained the Certificate of Education.
In 1974 Booth was Poetry Editor of Fuller d'Arch Smith, founded by Timothy d'Arch Smith and Jean Overton Fuller. He had recently bought a house in Knotting in North Bedfordshire, and was instrumental in finding Fuller a house in Wymington which also became the registered office of the company.[4]
Booth first made his name as a poet and as a publisher by producing elegant volumes by British and American poets, including slim volumes of work by Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes. His own books of verse include The Knotting Sequence (1977), featuring the character Cnot who founded the hamlet Knotting.[5] The book was named for the village in which Booth was living at the time.[citation needed] The book features a series of lyrics in which he seeks links between the present and the Saxon past, and the man called Knot who gave his name to the village. Booth also accumulated a library of contemporary verse, which allowed him to produce anthologies and lectures.
In the late 1970s Booth turned mainly to writing fiction. His first successful novel, Hiroshima Joe, was published in 1985. The book is based on what he heard from a man he met as a boy in Hong Kong and contains passages set in that city during the Second World War.
Booth was a veteran traveller who retained an enthusiasm for flying, also expressed in his poems, such as "Kent Says" and In Killing the Moscs. His interest in observing and studying wildlife resulted in a book about Jim Corbett, a big-game hunter and expert on man-eating tigers.
Many of Booth's works were linked to the British imperial past in China, Hong Kong and Central Asia. Booth was also fond of the United States, where he had many poet friends, and of Italy, which features in many of his later poems and in his novel A Very Private Gentleman (1990). These interests form a thread through his later novels, travel books and biographies.
Booth's novel Industry of Souls was shortlisted for the 1998 Booker Prize.
If truth be told, I never really left Hong Kong[1]
Booth died of cancer in Devon[citation needed] in 2004, shortly after completing Gweilo, a memoir of his Hong Kong childhood written for his own children.[1]
Carpet Sahib, Title & Introduction by Martin Booth
Bibliography, Babelio
January 20, 2023
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Not to be confused with Martin Allison Booth author of The Reichenbach Problem 2013 Lion Hudson This article uses bare URLs which are uninformative and vulnerable to link rot Please consider converting them to full citations to ensure the article remains verifiable and maintains a consistent citation style Several templates and tools are available to assist in formatting such as Reflinks documentation reFill documentation and Citation bot documentation August 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Martin Booth 7 September 1944 12 February 2004 was an English novelist and poet He also worked as a teacher and screenwriter and was the founder of the Sceptre Press Martin BoothBorn 1944 09 07 7 September 1944Lancashire England United KingdomDied12 February 2004 2004 02 12 aged 59 Stoodleigh Devon England United KingdomEducationMiddlesex UniversityYears active1967 2004 Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 3 Works 3 1 Poetry 3 2 Fiction 3 3 Nonfiction 3 4 Works translated into French 4 References 5 External linksEarly life EditMartin Booth was born in Lancashire England citation needed the son of Joyce and Ken Booth the latter of which was a Royal Navy civil servant 1 Martin has said that his parents had a difficult marriage as his father was stern pompous and humourless while his mother was adventurous witty and sociable 1 The family moved to Hong Kong in May 1952 where his father was stationed for a three year tour as a grocery supplier to the British Navy 1 2 In his memoir Gweilo A memoir of a Hong Kong Childhood Booth recalls that the streets of Hong Kong were safe and he would explore the city alone as a child 1 He encountered things he was unfamiliar with dogs hung in a butcher shop an impoverished family living in a packing crate and a Russian refugee who claimed to be the missing Russian princess Anastasia 1 People would touch his blond hair for good luck 1 He and his mother also learned Cantonese 2 He attended Kowloon Junior School the Peak School then King George V School and left in 1964 From 1965 to 1968 he attended Trent Park College of Education in Cockfosters North London part of what is now Middlesex University His main subject was science and he obtained the Certificate of Education Career EditIn England Booth worked as a truck driver legal clerk wine steward and English teacher in Rushden 3 4 He also taught English at Castle School Taunton In 1974 Booth was Poetry Editor of Fuller d Arch Smith founded by Timothy d Arch Smith and Jean Overton Fuller He had recently bought a house in Knotting in North Bedfordshire and was instrumental in finding Fuller a house in Wymington which also became the registered office of the company 4 Booth first made his name as a poet and as a publisher by producing elegant volumes by British and American poets including slim volumes of work by Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes His own books of verse include The Knotting Sequence 1977 featuring the character Cnot who founded the hamlet Knotting 5 The book was named for the village in which Booth was living at the time citation needed The book features a series of lyrics in which he seeks links between the present and the Saxon past and the man called Knot who gave his name to the village Booth also accumulated a library of contemporary verse which allowed him to produce anthologies and lectures In the late 1970s Booth turned mainly to writing fiction His first successful novel Hiroshima Joe was published in 1985 The book is based on what he heard from a man he met as a boy in Hong Kong and contains passages set in that city during the Second World War Booth was a veteran traveller who retained an enthusiasm for flying also expressed in his poems such as Kent Says and In Killing the Moscs His interest in observing and studying wildlife resulted in a book about Jim Corbett a big game hunter and expert on man eating tigers Many of Booth s works were linked to the British imperial past in China Hong Kong and Central Asia Booth was also fond of the United States where he had many poet friends and of Italy which features in many of his later poems and in his novel A Very Private Gentleman 1990 These interests form a thread through his later novels travel books and biographies Booth s novel Industry of Souls was shortlisted for the 1998 Booker Prize If truth be told I never really left Hong Kong 1 Booth died of cancer in Devon citation needed in 2004 shortly after completing Gweilo a memoir of his Hong Kong childhood written for his own children 1 The 2010 film The American starring George Clooney was based on his novel A Very Private Gentleman 6 Three Booth s novels have been translated into French Gweilo Music on the Bamboo Radio and The American 7 Works EditPoetry Edit Paper Pennies and Other Poems 1967 Supplication to the Himalayas A Poem and Sketch 1968 In the Yenan Caves 1969 A Winnowing of Silence 1971 poems Pilgrims and Petitions 1971 The Crying Embers 1971 poems On the Death of Archdeacon Broix 1971 James Elroy Flecker Unpublished Poems and Drafts 1971 editor White 1971 In Her Hands 1973 poem Teller Four Poems 1973 Brevities 1974 poems Hands Twining Grasses 1974 poems Spawning the Os 1974 Yogh 1974 poems Snath 1975 Two Boys and a Girl Playing in a Churchyard 1975 poem Stalks of Jade Renderings of early Chinese erotic verse 1976 Horse and Rider a poem 1976 The Book of Cats 1977 editor with George MacBeth Extending Upon the Kingdom 1977 Folio Work in Progress Poems 1977 broadside anthology editor with John Stathatos The Knotting Sequence 1977 The Dying 1978 The Earth Man Dreams of a Turned Sod 1978 Winter s Night Knotting 1979 Decadal Ten Years of Sceptre Press 1979 Calling with Owls 1979 poems The Bad Track 1980 novel Devil s Wine 1980 poems Bismarck 1980 British Writing Today 1981 editor The Cnot Dialogues 1981 Meeting the Snowy North Again 1982 poems Looking for the Rainbow Sign Poems of America 1983 Tenfold Poems for Frances Horovitz 1983 editor Travelling Through the Senses A Study of the Poetry of George MacBeth 1983 Contemporary British and North American Verse 1984 editor British Poetry 1964 to 1984 Driving Through the Barricades 1985 Killing the Moscs 1985 Under the Sea Impressions 1985 Aleister Crowley Selected Poems 1986 American Dreams A Poem 1992 broadside The Humble Disciple 1992 The Iron Tree 1993 Toys of Glass 1995 Adrift in the Oceans of Mercy 1996 Fiction Edit Hiroshima Joe 1985 The Jade Pavilion 1987 Black Chameleon 1988 Dreaming of Samarkand 1989 A Very Private Gentleman 1990 reissued as The American following adaptation for the 2010 film The American War Dog 1996 Music on the Bamboo Radio 1997 The Industry of Souls 1998 PoW 2000 Panther 2001 Islands of Silence 2002 The Alchemist s Son Doctor Illuminatus 2003 fantasy Midnight Saboteur 2004 The Alchemist s Son Soul Stealer 2004 Nonfiction Edit Carpet Sahib A Life of Jim Corbett 1986 biography Rhino Road The Black and White Rhinos of Africa 1992 Opium A History 1996 Doctor and the Detective a Biography of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 1997 Magick Life A Biography of Aleister Crowley 2000 The Dragon Syndicates The Global Phenomenon of the Triads 2000 Cannabis A History 2003 Gweilo Memories of a Hong Kong Childhood 2004 US ed 2005 published as Golden Boy Works translated into French Edit The American Florent Massot 2010 Gweilo Recit d une enfance hongkongaise Editions Gope 2016 Ici Radio bambou Editions Gope 2019 References Edit a b c d e f g h Miller Roger K May 2006 An English Boy s Happy Hong Kong Childhood World amp I 21 5 10 a b Boughton Vick 23 January 2006 Golden Boy People 65 3 46 Morrison Donald 30 August 2004 Hong Kong s Golden Boy Time No 34 p 74 a b Fuller Jean Overton 1992 Cats and Other Immortals Wymington Fuller d Arch Smith pp 7 8 Hotham Gary 1 September 1977 The Knotting Sequence Library Journal 102 15 1765 Scott Macaulay 2 September 2010 Meet Martin Booth the Novelist behind The American Archived 11 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine focusonfilm com https www babelio com auteur Martin Booth 107152 bibliographieExternal links EditObituary in the Guardian Martin Booth Poet and novelist with a keen sense of place The Independent Martin Booth Obituary in The Times Hong Kong s Golden Boy Time Reviews of The Alchemist s Son Carpet Sahib Title amp Introduction by Martin Booth Bibliography Babelio Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Martin Booth amp oldid 1129981757, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
