BOOKS - BOOKS - BOOKS Roger George Clark has published five books listed below:
 Roger's latest book THE MAGIC STATUE is a children's novel aimed at 8 - 12 year olds. What do you do when your garden statue comes alive and goes on the rampage? That's the challenge facing two teenagers, Scott and Brandon, when they're left alone in an island cottage during their half-term holiday. Scott Buchanan is English; Brandon Donnelly, American. Their friendship is tested to the limit and their holiday thrown into chaos when a magic statue bursts into their lives. The statue, who's called Alexander, comes from Ancient Greece. Alexander finds it difficult to adjust to the modern world. Everywhere he goes he causes havoc. What should have been a fun holiday turns into a nightmare and a battle for survival as Alexander stirs up trouble wherever he goes. The Magic Statue, a fast-moving black-comedy thriller, was published in 2004.The following books are out of print, but you may find copies on the Internet:  RICHMOND TODAY tells the history of London's most beautiful borough - Richmond upon Thames. The book is illustrated with 100 photos by RGC. Roger explores in words and pictures royal palaces, riverside villas, secret islands and historic boatyards. He finds out where the rich and famous lived, from the kings of England to Mick Jagger, and where General Eisenhower organised D-Day. Richmond has attracted visitors diverse as Samuel Pepys, Horatio Nelson, the last Tsar Nicholas II and Charlie Chaplin. The Beatles made their films here. Writers and artists abound, including Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Virginia Woolf and Henry James. Richmond Today was published in 1994. CHELSEA TODAY - a striking photographic portrait of London's fashionable village. RGC's words and 100 photos capture the essence of this fast-changing area, highlighting Wren's Royal Hospital and the King's Road. Roger explores the secret places, hidden gardens and bohemian street life. Royalty, spies, statesmen, traitors, artists, writers, musicians and stage and screen stars crowd the pages - from Oscar Wilde to Augustus John, Mozart, Tolstoy, Mrs Simpson, Kim Philby, Lord Haw-Haw, Margaret Thatcher, Judy Garland, Lawrence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, John Betjeman, Dracula author Bram Stoker, Ian Fleming, Captain Scott and Whistler. Chelsea Today was published in 1991.  HENLEY THE REGATTA - a photographic study of the world's most famous rowing festival. This book tells the story of a day in the life of the regatta - the crowds, crews limbering up, racing, champagne picnics, tea, finals, celebrations and prize giving - the tension and excitement on the water, the elegance of the spectators, the near-collisions, the exhaustion of the crews as they come up to the finish, their elation when they win. RGC took these photos in the 1980s capturing the Englishness of this event - an Edwardian garden party, with rowing going on at the edge of the lawn. Renowned oarsman Daniel Topolski wrote the introduction and captions. The book captures the spirit of the event and the terrible comeuppance when heavy rain transformed the Stewards' Enclosure into a mud bath. Henley the Regatta was published in 1989.  THE ISLE OF WIGHT - This 32-page tourist guide was Roger George Clark's first book. Published in 1972 it was updated in 1983, but Roger was disappointed with both editions: 'The pictures were all in colour and only a few were taken by me. Some of the remainder are garish calendar shots. This was the opposite to what I was trying to produce. But, as you will see below, I may soon be able to publish something on the Isle of Wight that is nearer to what I originally envisaged all those years ago.Books to Come? 'With luck I hope to publish more books of photos as my work becomes better known. Recently I rediscovered my 1960s Isle of Wight photos. The negatives were hidden away in an old sweet tin. As a student I tramped all over the island and took about 1500 pictures. By the time I'd accumulated a good set of photos other books had appeared on the market and cut the ground from beneath my feet. The only thing I was able to publish was the tourist guide mentioned above.' So Roger put the negatives away and forgot about them - Until now! 'When I looked at the negatives again I realised I was looking at a lost world - England as it used to be - a world of old churches, thatched cottages, and bucket-and-spade holidays. There was the Royal Yacht Britannia riding at anchor during Cowes Week. Paddle steamers thrashed across the Solent. I could see Lord Mountbatten opening a local fete and the prime minister, Edward Heath, on board a yacht at Cowes. Steam trains chugged through the countryside. And the great Cunard liners, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth, steamed past the island on their way to New York. All gone, but preserved on film. The pictures were dripping with nostalgia. So I got in touch with a publisher and, all being well, we should soon publish an album of vintage Isle of Wight photos.' CONTINUED
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