J.P. Martin: Father of Uncle: A Master in the Great English Nonsense Tradition 1879-1966

by Stella Martin Currey, James Martin Currey (Editor)

The much-loved Uncle series of children’s books were fantastical, surreal, funny and heart-warming. Originally told by Martin to his children, they were finally published when he was over eighty years old – and the hilarious array of characters, including the rich but sometimes foolish elephant, Uncle, captured the imagination of children across the world. Some more well-known fans include Neil Gaiman, Garth Nix, Kate Summerscale, Martin Rowson, Will Self and many more.

Whilst exploring the J.P. Martin archive, editor Marcus Gipps stumbled across over fifty pages of unpublished Uncle stories, which are just as hilarious and well-crafted as the published work. He also discovered a fascinating biography of Martin, the missionary-turned-author, by his daughter, which explores the unique imagination and experiences that informed this remarkable and inventive genius.

Both the additional Uncle stories and the biography have never been seen before, and Marcus would love to share them with Uncle’s legions of fans, and also introduce J.P. Martin and Uncle to new readers.

Genres: Biography

416 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

About the author

Stella Martin was born in South Africa and moved to England at the age of six. She became a journalist and in 1932 married poet and teacher R.N. Currey. She wrote five novels as well as several plays and books of biography and memoir.

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here’s the life and times of J.P. Martin (1879-1966), the creator/author of Britain’s series of Uncle children’s books, lovingly told by his daughter Stella. You’d think I’d find the more interesting stages of Martin’s life to be his time spent as a Methodist missionary in South Africa just after the Second Boer War, or maybe his WWI service in Palestine, or even the fifty-year span from his first creating Uncle to its finally being published in 1964, but I especially was drawn to the 1930s and 1940s era. The chapters set around World War II on the British home front felt much like a black and white Pinewood Studios film. The bonus unpublished Uncle stories are a small plus.