Your Book Title
A short description of the book goes here. Summarize the hook, tone or key takeaway in one or two sentences.
Available Now!</a >
JOHN R. CAMMIDGE, AN AUTHOR BLENDING MODERN HISTORY, REAL LIFE EXPERIENCES AND A TOUCH OF IMAGINATION TO CREATE INSPIRING STORIES OF INDIVIDUAL COURAGE, PERSEVERANCE AND ACCOMPLISHMENT.
1914 to 1918: A Time to Remember
In 1915, Osmond, a farm wagoner from England’s East Riding of Yorkshire, was sent by the Army to the Western Front, where he drove horse-drawn supply wagons and later hauled heavy artillery for the Royal Field Artillery. Despite being injured and treated in London, he returned to France, navigating the harsh realities of war, encounters with French civilians, the Spanish flu, and the loss or court-martial of friends. Through it all, he held onto his dreams of owning a farm and finding a wife, guided by a steadfast desire to harm no one.
Scheduled for release 4th Quarter 2025
MESSAGE ON BEHALF OF THE AUTHOR
Thank you for visiting this author’s website. John R. Cammidge is a former Human Resources executive and life-long birdwatcher who retired several years ago after a career in Ford of Britain, Bank of America, Stanford University and the University of California. He resides in Marin County, north of San Francisco, and began writing when he retired. He was born in York, England and relocated during 1979 to San Francisco, becoming a United States citizen in the mid-1990s.
So far there are three novels:
- Unplanned: the original edition was published March 2014, shortly after the author discovered that he was the product of an unwelcome sexual assault during World War II. The fictionalized novel is now republished under the title Unplanned.
- Abandoned in Berlin: is a true story set in Berlin and describes Germany’s attitude towards a Jewish family before, during and after World War II. In June 2016, a second generation survivor visits her maternal ancestors’ former block of apartments in Berlin and wants to know why it was seized by the Nazis and never returned by the West German authorities. She learns that her mother, aged 15, was forcibly placed under the “protection” of a Nazi Guardianship Court in late 1933, and that these circumstances led to the seizure of the property
- She Wore a Yellow Dress: An awkward coming-of-age story of two very different personalities, set in Britain, and inspired by the author’s own upbringing. It includes his difficult childhood and the many unexpected challenges that he, his spouse and the British public faced during the transformational years in Britain during the 1960s and 1970s. Each chapter ends with an illustration and description of a bird species that reflects the theme of bird watching that runs throughout the book, and mirrors the characters’ development at each stage of the story.
THERE IS ALSO A PENDING NOVEL
Complaint of an English Wagoner is historical fiction set during World War One, based on my grandfather’s service in the Territorial Army and the Royal Field Artillery. I hope to have it published by the end of 2024.
This site now includes a Bird Blog to continue the author’s interest in ornithology.
A Message From John
Thank you for spending time visiting my website. Currently I am writing new literary fiction titled “Bonfire Nights” set in Britain 1965-1975. Estimated publishing date is year-end 2018. It’s a love story of two Hull University students who graduate in 1966. It’s a business story, focused on Ford Motor Company and the Labor and Conservative British governments’ economic policies during 1965 to 1975. It’s a bird watching story that nurtures the protagonist through difficult coming-of-age experiences. Most events occur when Britain sat outside the European Economic Community and Labor Government values applied. I am currently working on additional character development and detail of how individual citizens dealt with the economic and disruptive circumstances at the time. I have taken some months away from my primary mission, to write a novella “Abandoned in Berlin”, involving a Jewish family (mother and two teenage daughters), who inherits a Berlin block of apartments at the beginning of 1930, and what happens to the family and its business under Hitler and National Socialism during the 1930’s. This is followed by the surviving family’s efforts to recover the building during the early 1950’s under the West German legal system. Guardianship Courts for under-age children during the 1930’s and Restitution Chambers (Courts) during the 1950’s feature prominently. It’s an extraordinary account, especially since it is a true story, and one worth reading. It should be published by the end of summer 2018. Meanwhile the manuscript is posted as a blog on this website and can be accessed by going to the “Abandoned in Berlin” page. It opens in June 2016 when Hilda, the only child of the youngest daughter, discovers her mother’s home in Berlin at the start of a Rick Steves tour, and vows to find out what happened to her family. Nearly two years of research follows. The publication is a tribute to the many organizations and people who assisted with the research, and especially the Charlottenburg (Berlin) Land Registry, the Association of German Banks, the Berlin branch for Central Services (BADV), the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, the State Archives of Berlin, the Berlin Compensation Office, and the Harvard University Law Library. Many others encouraged and supported Hilda’s work.We should never forget despite the efforts of those who would wish us do otherwise. My first novel “An Unplanned Encounter” was published in 2014 and is available through bookstores, Amazon, etc, under the author pen name of Jonathan Husband whereas the above two use my real name of John R. Cammidge. Authorship has become a new career for me after retiring as a Human Resources executive. I try to combine my interest in history, the many years of experience helping people, and my hobby of creative composition, to educate and engage my audience. You are welcome to leave comments and questions and I will try and respond to the best of my abilities.
