OUTWELL: THEN
OUTWELL: NOW
WISBECH: THEN
I had a spell in hospital when I was five, which required a long convalescence. It meant that I missed most of my first year of school but books provided one of the distractions that helped my recovery. During this time,I discovered the new series of children's books by Rev. Wilbert Awdry about an engine named Thomas.
I was fascinated by the characters, human and locomotive alike. I particularly remember a Mrs. Kyndley. Plus, Awdry addressed the books to ‘Christopher’. Was he really writing them just for me?
It was, however, book No. 7 which made the biggest impression. The jacket illustration of , clearly based on the Great Eastern ‘G15’ (LNER ‘Y6') deep in the countryside would leavea lasting impression.
