This site at the moment is mainly about seven books that I have published under the name Shay Books and two when I was researcher and an author. Three of them are currently available for purchase from this site.
The site is expanding as time passes to encompass some of my other interests.
BOOKS. Information about my Books can be accessed here.
CREATING ART. I enjoy creating pictures which have ranged from A5 drawings of buildings to A3 pastel and acrylic pictures of buildings and the countryside. I currently produce a drawing almost every day of the exterior or interior of a building, with a clear focus on my home town of Royal Leamington Spa. I used my drawings in three of the books I have published.
LOCAL HISTORY. I am interested in researching the history of my home town which is Royal Leamington Spa in the county of Warwickshire, England, and writing about it. I am a committee member of the Leamington History Group and I am helping to develop the Group’s website at Leamington History Group. I have recently written pages on two major factories in the town, Lockeed/AP Auto Parts and Flavel’s Cookers etc, and also Kinmonds Soft Drinks. I lead a few free walks for the Group during the summer months.
I have recently contributed to, and edited, a book about the town entitled
Royal Leamington Spa: A History in 100 Buildings, (CLICK for further details)
and also The Iron Men of Leamington with Martin Green (CLICK for further details).
CPRE. I enjoy the lovely countryside, both where I live in Warwickshire and throughout the UK. I am a member of the Campaign to Protect Rural England but I am now less active with the campaign than in the past.
MODEL RAILWAYS. Another interest is real-life and model railways, especially in Canada and the USA. One type of locomotive has taken my interest and that is a gear-driven loco designed by Ephraim Shay in 1880. 2,767 of these locos were built over a period of 67 years. This is the explanation of the name I use for my small self-publishing venture. Information on these locos can be found on this website – Shay Locomotives, I also have a model railway in the garden of my home.
Mick Jeffs, Shay Books
Contact orders@shaybooks.co.uk
www.shaybooks.co.uk
Links –
Warwick Books
Warwick Society
Leamington History Group
Visit Warwick
Warwick Museum
The Trading Standards Institute
Shay Locomotives
Mick @ Shay Books 