I’m a professional writer, novelist and Cultural Historian.

My latest novel, Cinnamon Breeze, follows the seventeen-year-old Lisa as she leaves home and the security of her life in London to live with her estranged father in Sundsvall, Northern Sweden. Eager for new experiences and challenges she finds work in a sawmill, discovers her father’s affair with the stylish, married Ester, and falls for the enigmatic Lars.

Cinnamon Breeze is a coming of age story full of new experiences and intrigue for the young Lisa. Over the course of the book, Lisa discovers a social awareness and develops a political consciousness. As fascism rages across Europe, Lisa quickly learns where her beliefs lie. She hears about the appalling things that are happening in Germany and Austria, and the boy she falls in love with goes off to fight in the Spanish Civil War.

My debut novel Anaesthesia is a love story set against a background of morphine addiction in the First World War. In Anaesthesia I try to bring to life the untold stories of a young couple living through the Great War. But it isn’t really a war story; it’s a story of love and addiction that explores each character and the way they cope with extraordinary circumstances. It brings to life in earthy detail the under-reported darker side of wartime London and captures the moods of desperation and hope.  My intention is always to bring to life past events and to give a voice to those who are no longer in a position to speak for themselves. All my books are available from bookshops as well as on Amazon and Kindle

I grew up in the 1960s in North Harrow in what is now Greater London. I consider myself unbelievably fortunate to have been around at the peak of an explosion of youth culture and great music. My lasting memories are of the Beatles, Rolling Stones, Hendrix, Motown, Sweet Soul Music and strange smoke in the air.

I now live on the western edge of the Yorkshire Dales where the hills and streams drive my imagination. My juke box is filled with singles from the 1950s and ’60s. I have restored a 1960’s record player and listen to LPs, and my iPod is filled with music from everywhere.

Qualifications

  • PhD in Cultural Research (Lancaster)
  • BA (Hons) in Design History (Central Lancashire)
  • MA in Creative Writing (Lancaster)

Research Interests:

Social, Cultural and Design History of the twentieth century specialising in twentieth-century Americana, particularly juke boxes and the cultural trappings of young people. I have a long-standing interest in youth culture, design and popular music. My main focus is on the relationships between people and the influence of design and popular culture in the context of historical periods.

My literary ambitions lie in Historical Fiction and drama where I give a voice to those no longer in a position to present their point of view.

Key Interests:

Historical Fiction, Cultural, Social and Design History, Americanisation, Industrial Art Deco, Juke Boxes, Youth Culture, Subculture, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Style, Cultural Theory, Spiritualism and Sweden.

Publications:

Cinnamon Breeze: The making of Lisa Strang (IngramSparke, 2026)

Anaesthesia: a story of love, war and addiction (IngramSpark, 2019)

Juke Box Britain: Americanisation and Youth Culture 1945-1960 (Manchester University Press, 2009).

Americanisation and youth culture: juke boxes and cultural fusions with special reference to northwest England (PhD, Lancaster University, 2004)

‘Conflict on the high street: Americanization, juke boxes, coffee bars, and the moral decay of the young in industrial Northwest England 1945-60’, Manchester Region History Review (v. 22, July 2012)