Dear Readers
This week marks 21 years since Gail, Hazel, Steph and friends first sat around Gail’s kitchen table, stuffing Issue No.1 of Slightly Foxed into envelopes, sticking on stamps, and making endless trips to the various post boxes around Islington. Over the past two decades we’ve acquired enthusiastic readers all over the globe, and we’re delighted to say that there are a good number of you who’ve been with us since that very first issue.
Once people start taking Slightly Foxed they tend to become addicted. As one of you wrote to us many years ago, ‘I’m like a mouse in a cheese-shop – everything is so delicious I can’t believe the heaven I’m in!’ Perhaps this is because Slightly Foxed is unashamedly about enjoyment – 96 entertainingly written and elegantly illustrated pages of personal recommendations for the kind of books people keep by their bedsides or take down from their shelves from time to time, just for the pleasure of rereading them.
We don’t believe there is such a person as a typical Slightly Foxed reader, but we do know that you all enjoy humour, originality and thoughtful writing, and take pleasure in the way things look. You appreciate the care that goes into producing Slightly Foxed, and our Slightly Foxed Editions, our series of classic memoirs that we’ve reissued as elegant little limited-edition pocket hardbacks. You like the fact that, though we’ve grown, we’re still a small and friendly outfit, and that if you phone us you’ll be answered by a human being.
In an uncertain world, where many things are disposable, Slightly Foxed stands for the things that last – good books, good humour, good company – and we certainly couldn’t do that without your support. We’ve been having a happy time looking through the archive of letters and notes sent in to the office (a hefty file) and, for this week’s newsletter, the staff have selected some favourites to share. Do scroll down to read some of them and for a tempting offer (we hope) to help us empty a few groaning shelves of back issues here at No. 53.
With heartfelt thanks to you all, and best wishes
Gail, Hazel, Steph, Aimi, Izzy, Isabel, Rebecca, Edie & Jennie
and Jess (and Dusty) who are on maternity leave with baby Rafe
and the office dogs at large – Stanley, Tarka, Gideon, Humphrey and Maggie
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