Welcome
"It's the small histories that intrigue me, the untold stories that should not be forgotten."
The Colour Of Flying
A memoir by Barbara Townsend, written from the perspective of herself as a child. Set in 1950s South Africa.
Out of mind
Out of Mind – a story of Robben Island is set in the years 1908 to 1909, during the period that the colonial government used the Island as a secure place of isolation for people with leprosy, and patients suffering from mental afflictions. Out of sight, out of mind of the good people of Cape Town.
Ida's Line
Ida's Line is a historic novel set in South Africa, between 1930 and 1948, during a period of growing fascism and racial hatred for all people not regarded as European. Ida Joubert, a young woman coming of age in Oudtshoorn, openly rejects these racist views. She also challenges the prevailing patriarchal attitudes towards women. This brings her into constant conflict with her white, middle-class family, particularly her father.
Meet Barbara…
Barbara Townsend is a writer devoted to uncovering and giving voice to overlooked stories.
Inspired by early mentors and a father who loved storytelling, her work explores memory, place, and the lives that history often leaves untold. She is the author of two historical fiction novels: Ida’s Line and Out of Mind: A Story of Robben Island. Her latest book The Colour of Flying is a childhood memoir.
A former librarian, teacher, and educational writer, Barbara has long nurtured stories her own and those of others.
She now travels to share her work and writes from a quiet study overlooking fields and mountains in Botrivier where she is working on a collection of short stories.
