Books To Dad, with love

From history to sport and from cookery to crime, we round up the pick of the books perfect for Father’s Day (18 June)

Wordle Challenge

The chance to play the online sensation Wordle offline, with a collection of 500 brain-teasing word-based puzzles to do anytime, anywhere.

In March last year the then Mayor, Councillor Mark Jones and the President of Oswestry Borderland Rotary, Cathy Osselton presented cheques to the organisations who had made successful applications to the Bonfire and Fireworks Grant Fund. Rotarian, Jonathan Jones who was present at the unveiling ceremony said: “Over £9000 was raised by this hugely popular event which was organised and stewarded by us and underwritten by the Town Council. The result was that we were able to support many worthy causes such as this one around the town.”

A sum of £500 was awarded to the Cricket Club towards the purchase of the defibrillator and a secure cabinet to house it. This has now been installed adjacent to the back door of Gatacre Pavilion. The shortfall in funding for the equipment was then supplemented by another £500 donated by the family and friends of Andrew Roads, an ex-pupil of Whittington CE Primary School, the Marches School and North Shropshire College.

Andrew, who died suddenly in May 2020 of a totally unsuspected heart condition, lived in London where he had established himself as a successful freelance translator.

Andrew’s parents, Barbara and Jim Roads of Morda explained: “Due to lockdown requirements, an event to commemorate Andrew’s life couldn’t be held until April last year 3 days after what would have been his 43rd birthday. More than 100 friends and family members gathered together to celebrate his life and a collection was made at the event which raised sufficient funds to make a donation towards the cost of the Gatacre Pavilion defibrillator, as well as one in the Forest Hill area of London where Andrew and his wife, Jo, had made their home.”

Oswestry former Town mayor, Councillor Jay Moore expressed his gratitude to Mr and Mrs Roads as well as to Andrew’s sister, Emily Lewis, for their contribution towards the cost of the life-saving equipment, whose ongoing care and maintenance is being paid for by Cae Glas Cricket Club who have undertaken to pay for battery replacement and training of key personnel. “We stand in solidarity with the family in their grief, hoping that the gift that has been made in Andrew’s name brings some small comfort in their loss.”

The Bullet That Missed

by Richard Osman

A decade-old cold case leads aging investigators, the Thursday Murder Club, to a local news legend on the hunt for a sensational headline and a murder with no body and no answers.

A Cook’s Tour

by Anthony Bourdain

Lifelong cook and bestselling author of Kitchen Confidential, Bourdain’s passion for food and adventure shines through as he travels around the world in search of the perfect meal.

Cricket’s Greatest Rivalry: A History of The Ashes in 12 Matches

by Simon Hughes

With the 2023 Ashes Test Series set to start on 16 June, for cricket-crazy fans this book is a fast-paced distinctive history of the iconic, 137-year-old cricketing rivalry between England and Australia.

The Gold

by Neil Forsyth & Thomas Turner

The astonishing true story of the robbery of the century: on 26 November 1983, an armed gang stole gold bullion worth almost £26 million from the Brink’s-Mat security depot near London’s Heathrow Airport.

There’s

behind it.

We’re Gemma and Laura, two tired mums on a mission to boost the motherhood experience one cup of fairtrade, specialty coffee at a time.

We co-founded Tired Mums

Coffee with a mission of strengthening peer support for Mums through creating an inclusive community for all, this in turn improving maternal wellbeing. Our aim is to bring mums together to ensure that quality coffee and conversation is accessible to all and is happening all over the UK. Together we can enjoy the highs, share/support the lows and really normalise the normal.

Our paths first crossed during our NHS careers and one day, over a conversation in a soft play centre with coffees in hand, the concept of Tired Mums Coffee was born! We were both on our second maternity leave and were noticing a lack of peer support for mums. We had also recently learned of a tragic suicide of a mother and decided that we wanted to make things better.

We’ve both developed a deep love of coffee, especially since becoming increasingly sleep deprived in recent years, which led us to explore how coffee could be used to make positive change. There are two parts to Tired Mums Coffee; 1. Coffee, 2. Community – both are interdependent.

Why coffee?

There’s something about a decent cup of coffee that seems to encourage conversation to flow, and that’s so important. Luxurious, comforting coffee along with supportive conversation is our vision for every mum in the UK. Our coffee has a purpose and we are passionate about the journey of how we can use our coffee as a positive tool to influence change.

It was important to us to get the right blends of coffee whether you were choosing to go decaf, had been up all night or wanted something to drink throughout the day. It needed to feel like a luxurious, comforting hug. A little bit of support right there in the palm of your hand. These blends had to be our own, designed by us for other tired mums like us, and nothing short of that would suffice (after all, we can’t be all fur coat and no knickers!).

We have created three specialty coffee blends and donate 1% of all coffee sales to charities/not-forprofit organisations who support mums, these voted for by our mum community.

The community

We have created a growing peer support community that’s accessible to all and based upon our values; non-judgemental, inclusive, welcoming and honest. The community is a place to share the highs and support the lows – some days it’s just about survival!

We have launched our virtual chat series via Facebook and YouTube and were guests on a wellknown podcast in February 2023. We held our first peer support session in March and our first face-toface mini workshop in April 2023! There’s also the beginnings of our #mumsarefine campaign (see social media for more detail).

Our Vision

Our vision is to leave a legacy for future mums (including our own daughters if they choose to have children), by improving their experiences of motherhood and encouraging knowledge sharing across generations.

We feel privileged to play our part in supporting mums and enhancing the motherhood experience. Our research has found that service provisions have changed post-covid, and that there’s an increasing call for focus on maternal wellbeing now more than ever to support those in need. We have a duty to help other mums if we can, this gig is a tough one for all of us.

We are just starting our journey but are lucky enough to be finalists for a national Startup Of The Year award in June. We are excited about the future and would love you to try our products, look at our website and give us a shoutout if you can relate in any way and would like to support our mission!

Thank you! Find

Sunday

SUNDAY 11 JUNE

Bulgarian

Sunday

Relax with a cup of coffee and enjoy the beautiful woodland views, or unwind with friends in our stunning raised tetradecagon building. A warm welcome is always guaranteed and the atmosphere is transformational!