‘An astute and thoughtful study, focusing intelligently on the creative tension between Storm Jameson’s allegiance to ‘European’ humanist values and her Yorkshire conservatism, and on her perception of gender politics in relation to nationalism’ – Janet Montefiore, Professor Emerita of Twentieth-Century English Literature, University of Kent, UK
My latest book War, Nation and Europe in the Novels of Storm Jameson (Bloomsbury, 2020) uncovers the oft-neglected story of a writer who played a key role in the literary scene of the early and mid-twentieth century in Britain and whose work dealt with some of the biggest political questions of the time. Born in Whitby, Storm Jameson was a fearsome advocate for equality – espousing socialism and fervently supporting pacifism until her deeply ingrained empathy dictated that Britain must intervene in Europe. A fervent anti-fascist, she herself also intervened through her work with refugees as President of English PEN from 1938-1944 and through the detailed studies of European and British politics which characterised her novels of the time. Ranging across wide political territories to depict a fascist Britain, the inconsistencies of socialism and communism at home and on the continent, the experience of occupation, of resistance, of victory and defeat and finally exploring the relevance of colonialism in an age of dying empires, Jameson confronted the issues of her time with characteristic vigour. My book explores these weighty tomes, seeking to restore both their author and their books themselves to their rightful place in British literary history.
Dr Katherine Cooper 