A Shropshire man has released his latest literary feast - packed full with local references - online for the very first time.
In an attempt to attract the attention of publishers, 44-year-old Peter Neale, of Wenlock, has entered his children’s book The Olympian in an online unpublished writers’ competition.
The book, the product of two and a half years work, is a time travel adventure.
Hero Joey lands in Shropshire in 1890 when Baron Pierre de Coubertin is inspired to start the modern Olympics by Dr William Penny Brookes and the Wenlock Olympian Games.
The story proceeds to chronicle Joey’s quest through time to reunite his broken family, whilst accompanied by an idiosyncratic group of Victorian tourists.
A host of characters share their names with former Shrewsbury Town stars including: Joey Anthrobus, Mrs Ogrizovic, Jeremiah Hornsby and Reverend Turner.
Mr Neale said: “This is my third full-length manuscript, having written the others between 1993 and 1995.”
Readers have shown interest in the tale posting many positive comments on the competition website.
One contributor said: “An excellent read for children and also for adults who like to read a good children’s book”.
The opening chapter of ‘The Olympian’ can be read for free or the novel downloaded for £1.30 by logging on to www.bookhabit.com
3 Comments
There is no doubt that Dr William Penny Brookes inspired Baron Pierre de Coubertin to found the International Olympic Committee. That not only makes him a founder of the Modern Olympic Games it makes him a founder of the Modern Olympic Movement too.
However, Peter Neale’s version of the history of the Modern Olympic Games, which is promoted by the Wenlock Olympian Society, is fatally flawed since it ignores the first modern international Olympic Games that took place in Athens in 1859.
Let’s not confuse the events that were organised in Much Wenlock with the Olympic Games. However, the national Olympic Games that took place in London at Crystal Palace in 1866, that was organised by Dr Brookes, did look like an Olympic Games. That was the first proper Olympic Games to be held outside of Greece in modern times.
The first modern international Olympic Games to be held in a stadium was that held in Athens in the Panathenian stadium in 1870.
Yours faithfully,
Mike Pagomenos
Founder of Zappas.org
Member of the International Society of Olympic Historians
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I am very honoured and thrilled to find that Mr Pagomenos would consider it necessary to respond to a local newspaper article about my unpublished book!
I am aware of the work of Zappas.org, largely through reading David C. Young’s excellent book ‘The Modern Olympics: A Struggle for Revival’, and I do not seek to deny or belittle any of your work.
Mine is purely a children’s adventure and the title ‘The Olympian’ refers to the name of a fictional time travel tour taken by the characters rather than to any real historical individual. I am, however, very proud of my small home town’s link to the modern Olympic movement and hope that full recognition is given to Doctor Brookes’ work when the games are held in London in 2012.
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It’s high time that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) recognised both Dr William Penny Brookes and Evangelis Zappas as founders of the modern Olympic Games.
The IOC unfailingly ignores both men and promotes Baron Pierre de Coubertin as the sole founder of the modern Olympic Games.
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