Jo is working on a book about the internment of Italians civilians in Britain during WWII
NEW BOOK PUBLISHED BY PENGUIN
The Hurricane Girls is the thrilling, moving and inspirational story of the female air force who once ruled our skies.
Celebrating the lives of the magnificent women, the ATA girls, who courageously flew Spitfires, Tiger Moths, Lancaster Bombers and many other aircraft during World War Two.
Led by firebrand Pauline Gower, an elite group of British women were selected as ferry pilots who risked their lives flying planes for the Air Transport Auxiliary.
Flying without radio; dodging storms, barrage balloons and anti-aircraft fire; and with only a map, compass and their eyesight to guide them, they navigated the treacherous wartime skies.
"Couldn't put it down, excellent read."
AMAZON REVIEW
"These girls - wow!… What a great bunch, rebelling against the rules of what ladies should be doing and giving the boys a run for their money!"
"Thoroughly enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone who has an interest in the war."
SUNDAY TIMES BEST SELLER
In the heart-warming Lost and Found, discover tales from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home that celebrate the power of animals to transform people's lives.
Hear from the young boy whose Battersea dog helped him to deal with a serious autoimmune disease, and from a woman whose Staffie was the friend who got her through cancer.
Meet the couple who were brought together by a Battersea dog; the man who took on a three-legged kitten which changed his life; and the former Battersea hound who became a search and rescue dog.
"I cried lots, some sad tears but mostly happy, reading touching stories of how amazing animals are and how we as humans don't deserve them. "
"The stories are really heartwarming. This book would make a great gift for someone who wishes to learn of the good work done by the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home."
AMAZON REVIEWS
Jo co-wrote Bobby on the Beat with Pamela Rhodes, one of the first British policewomen, who tells her fascinating story.
Back in 1950 Pam became one of the first policewomen in the country. But the force's new female recruits faced a sceptical public in rural Yorkshire and even before they stepped out on the beat there were the prejudices of older male officers to overcome.
Yet from the first Pam was thrust into the front line. From runaway bulls to investigating ladies of the night and cases of vice, her innocent eyes were quickly opened. And soon, spending her days on the streets, she came to know the neighbourhood and the extraordinary characters who lived on the right, as well as wrong, side of the law.
"I thought that this book said it all. I grew up in this period and could remember it all. Lovely read."
"Written from the heart. Love Yorkshire folk and their ways."
"A refreshing read from my wonderful county. I couldn't put this book down, it took me no time at all to finish it."
AMAZON REVIEWS
Ban This Filth! In 2011 Jo discovered the neglected and hilarious papers of Mary Whitehouse in a library in Essex, and licensed the archive for publication.
Ben Thompson's selection of material from her extraordinary archive shows Mary Whitehouse's legacy in a startling new light. From her exquisitely testy exchanges with successive BBC Directors General, to the anguished screeds penned by her television and radio vigilantes, these letters reveal a complex and combative individual, whose anxieties about culture and morality are often eerily relevant to the age of the internet.
"Hilarious but timely selection of letters for the Mary Whitehouse archive."
THE SUNDAY TIMES "MUST READ"
"A fascinating time capsule from an age gone by."
MAIL ON SUNDAY
"A splendidly entertaining book… finds the morality campaigner comically wrong on many matters but impressively prescient about pornography and paedophile TV personalities."
MARK LAWSON,
GUARDIAN BOOKS OF THE YEAR