EnvelopeBooks is built on a simple idea: that books are letters from a writer to a reader. With that in mind, we look for works of fiction and non-fiction that had to be written and have to be read. Our covers reinforce the metaphor. Designed as envelopes, they use subtle postal motifs as graphic clues to the content of each book. Now read one. Or write one.

I hope to display 3 books this time, one a personal account of living in and visiting Japan entitled ‘An Affair with a Village — the work of social anthropological fieldwork and the long-term relationships built up’. The other two are novels: the first the tale of a 1960s escapee from the expectation that a girl, even with a degree, should quickly settle down, marry and have children.

The book, ‘Sharing Worlds’, recounts the exciting life she discovers between Mexico and Scotland, a fascinating job she finds, but still the conflict with wanting eventually to fulfil that expectation.

The second novel, to be launched at the Fair, is a sequel, and recounts the peripatetic life of a young woman whose travels and troubles are symbolised by the book’s title, ‘Born at Sea’. Set in the last three decades of the 20th century, it touches on cultural conflicts, the (recovering) plight of indigenous languages, and the early days of Climate Change, all presented through the eyes of a girl growing up. Spolier alert/ promise: both novels draw on some of my own experience as a social anthropologist, but the second is an entirely invented story.

Sylvia named Coopers Oxford Marmalade Factory, ‘the Jam Factory’ when she established an Art and Antiques Centre with café, bookshop and repair services. The name has stuck! She’s best known locally for the ten year Oxford Castaway series in The Oxford Times. It brought together people who would usually never meet and she made it diverse which was rare then. Her novel, Sculpting the Elephant, is half set in Jericho and half in India. Sylvia is a campaigner for libraries and recently, with friends and the help of Korky Paul raised the money to build the first community library in west Kenya where her novel Not so Black and White is partly set. Her best-selling Brushstrokes in Time is a historical novel which tells the story of the courageous Stars artists (Beijing 1979). Her memoir has been endorsed by the journalist, Yasmin Alibhai Brown, the international poet Sudeep Sen and the history professor, Rana Mitter (Oxford and Harvard).

Mario Coelho is a award wining children’s book illustrator based in Oxford with several mainstream picture book publications including with the prestigious Oxford University Press and several independent publications with the very well known and acclaimed children’s poet John foster.

Very recently I have worked alongside the great illustrator Korky Paul for a publishing project with Epic Tales where we both illustrated several titles.

Walton Street Writers is a writing group founded by Sara Banerji. We meet regularly to share our writing, and thoughts on life, americanos and flat whites. We aim to be helpful to each other, and offer observations in an open and uncritical way. We have published several anthologies including Tales from a Bookshop, Tales from a Café, and most recently, Côte Tales (2024) which you can find on Amazon.

Writers whose work features in Côte Tales:

Anne Harrap, Catherine Hurst, Charles Bidwell, Harold Roffey, J.M Kennedy, Jane Spiro, Jenny Burrage, Keith McClellan, M.S. Clary, Neil Hancox, Sara Banerji, Valerie Dearlove and Simon Howard.

Additional members of Walton Street Writers not mentioned above are Maria Armero, Carol Lange, Sheila Johnson and Julie Dyson.

Several members have published novels, memoirs and poetry, and collections of their own stories.

Enthralling. Inspiring. Impossible to forget. Epic Tales creates books, resources, and live storytelling experiences that have inspired many children to fall in love with reading, helped others overcome anxiety and related issues, and put smiles on the faces of entire families. Our work draws on decades of professional storytelling, school visits, teacher training, and Reading for Pleasure expertise.