Holburn, Vanessa – The Bell Bookshop

Secret Women

Emma — Sat, 01 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000

This work explores the hidden lives of a diverse group of women who operate with a degree of subterfuge, mystery or deliberate deception. From Freemasonry to fetishism, from witches to activists and survivors, the reasons for secrecy are as different as the women themselves. Together, they represent a rich tapestry of female experience, sensitively recounted by the author as she delves into each woman's secret.

How To Be An Activist: A Practical Guide To organising, Campaigning and Making C

Emma — Thu, 09 Jan 2020 00:00:00 +0000

From experienced campaigner Vanessa Holburn and with a foreword by award-winning animal welfare campaigner Lorraine Platt, this is the essential guide to activism.

‘Essential reading for anyone looking to start a grassroots campaign – and useful bedtime reading for some of our political parties too’ – Hannah Beckerman, Guardian

How To Be an Activist covers everything you need to know to create a successful social campaign and bring about positive change no matter what your cause. This practical, inspirational book covers topics ranging from identifying your central issue and setting meaningful milestones and goals, to learning how to use the media effectively and stay safe and within the law.

It will help you with every step of your campaign, keeping you motivated through periods of self-doubt and staving off burnout as you celebrate milestones on the way to creating meaningful change in the world. With contributions from influential campaigners including Natasha Devon MBE.

Fresh from waving banners in the pouring rain, journalist and campaigner Vanessa Holburn passes on the lessons she has learned so the reader can fast track their movement to success.

This is the age of activism and everyone is invited to join the movement.

Amritsar Massacre

Emma — Sat, 30 Mar 2019 00:00:00 +0000

The shocking massacre of 379 unarmed Indians in the enclosed Jallianwala Bagh park on the command of a British army officer on April 13th, 1919 is considered a brutal example of colonial abuse. Immediately afterwards martial law was established with harsh penalties and punishments. Often considered as the darkest period of the Raj, the massacre helped galavanise the Indian Nationalist movement, making full independence inevitable. Yet both the Queen and former Prime Minister David Cameron have side stepped calls for an apology for the mass shooting during official visits to Amritsar. One hundred years on, is it time to say sorry? This book examines the context in which the infamous event took place – and asks why something that happened 100 years ago remains so controversial. Did the order to fire prevent further native and imperialist bloodshed in the Punjab? Was enough done at the time to investigate if General Robert Dyer acted alone or with the full support of his superiors? Who was ultimately responsible for the 1,650 rounds of ammunition discharged that day? Readers will discover how tensions within the region – and political and professional ambitions on both sides – combined to create a chain of events that signaled the beginning of the end for the British Raj.