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    25

    Jun 2023

    Last Updated: 23/06/2023
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    Ex-Rossett student publishes war-time novella set in Harrogate

    by Flora Grafton

    | 25 Jun, 2023
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    A former Rossett School student has recently published a novel that takes place in early 20th Century Harrogate.

    Gary Baysinger lived in Harrogate more than 30 years ago and has now written a war-time novella set in the town.

    In the space of just ten days, he lost his mother and was diagnosed with skin cancer so took up writing “as a distraction”.

    The book, A kind of Homecoming, was inspired by the 1969 film, “Oh What a Lovely War” – a musical about World War One.

    A scene in the film depicts the Christmas truce of 1914, during which a German soldier tells a British solider about his love for a British girl he left behind when he went to fight.

    Mr Baysinger said:

    “The scene left me with more questions than answers; who is this young man? Who is the girl? Did he survive the war? Did they end up together?
    “I decided to write a story and answer those questions -- I set it in Harrogate because I am fond of the place.
    "I think we all sometimes wonder what would have happened if life had gone different at a young age.”





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    Mr Baysinger's family moved to Harrogate in the late 1970s, where his father took a position at Menwith Hill. Despite his short stint in Yorkshire – moving back to America in 1981 – he said he “wouldn’t want to be anywhere else” at the time.

    He told the Stray Ferret:

    “I spent my weekdays at Rossett High School, my Saturdays at Elland Road, and my Sundays kicking a football around a muddy pitch in Hampsthwaite, or on the Stray”.


    Mr Baysinger is hoping Harrogate library will keep a copy  so locals can read the war-time novel.

    “I recently visited Harrogate for the first time in nearly three decades.
    “I met up with some old friends and was astounded by the warmth and hospitality they showed me.”


    A Kind of Homecoming is available to buy now on Amazon.