THERE HAVE BEEN several histories of Bourne written over the past two centuries but this is the largest in printed form running to some 200 pages with 150 illustrations in colour and black and white. The author has been researching the town for more than a decade and has written extensively on historical subjects for local newspapers and magazines while the CD-ROM A Portrait of Bourne is the most comprehensive history yet compiled.

The narrative is divided into six sections, people, places, events, disasters and public services, which are all obvious, but Bourne at war has also been included because research has provided so much information about these momentous times and the people who lived through them that they deserved to be together, from the imperial conflicts of the Victorian age through to the two world wars of the last century.

The book is intended to be a serendipity of our history and heritage and although it can be read straight through from cover to cover by the dedicated reader, it can also be used for random selection or serene dipping, the reader knowing that whichever passage he chooses will not affect the continuity and therefore spoil the enjoyment. Tales of Bourne from Past Times is intended firstly to entertain and then to inform and if this leads to more extensive reading on the subject from other sources then so much the better.

Tales of Bourne from Past Times is published by Bourne Civic Society and is priced £20. All proceeds will go towards the society for future projects and the maintenance and upkeep of the Heritage Centre.

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