Dimensions
133 x 207 x 20mm
Accidents happen to other people. But on 10 May 2002 Nina Bawden discoverer what it feels like to be one of the 'other people' . . .
It was to be a lovely outing to Cambridge for a friend's birthday party. Nina Bawden and her husband Austen Kark Boarded the 12:45 from King's Cross and settled down with their books and papers. A few minutes later the train derailed. Seven people were killed and 76 badly hurt. Nina was gravely injured and Austen was killed instantly.
In this powerful and poignant letter to her husband, Nina Bawden uses her considerable writing skills to try and make sense of it all. She explains how when - now in her late 70s - she found herself the spokesperson for the survivors of the crash; interviewed in Britain and abroad; and even one of the characters portrayed in 'The Permanent Way', David Hare's play about the state of the railways.
Dear Austen is not just a powerful indictment of today's management of Britain's railways, it is also a gentle, touching - even at times, humorous - tribute to a dear husband.