Gatehouse Books
Gatehouse was set up in the late 1970s to provide “an opportunity for writers to express their thoughts and feelings on aspects of their lives.” They worked closely with Manchester adult literacy students to get their stories into print and for these to reach wider audiences including other English learners. Producing books was a lengthy and involved process that ensured the writers had agency over what ended up on the page. When people learn to read and write later in life, using educational resources aimed at youngsters can be frustrating when you have adult life experiences and knowledge but a limited written vocabulary.
The books cover a wealth of experiences of Manchester residents such as: growing up in ex-British colonies then moving to the UK; Somali folk tales; regaining confidence after overcoming childhood bullying; mental health portrayed visually as ‘monsters of the mind’; education, employment and travel from the perspective of a disabled person; surviving intra-familial child abuse; recording memories of north Manchester.
Selected publications:
- A woman on her own by Margaret Fulcher (1978)
- Just Lately I Realise Stories from West Indian Lives (1985)
- My way of living Twenty five years on by Carol Millbanks (1986)
- Listen to me Talking survival by Fay (1989)
- A Guide to the Monsters of the Mind by Victor Grenko (1991)
- Telling Tales (anthology, various) (1992)
- A song for carrying water and other stories from Somalia (in Somali and English) (1997)
- My New World by Georgina Conway (1998)
- Taking Some Honey Home (in Punjabi and English) by Zahida Affridi (1999)
