It’s my very great pleasure to welcome Tim Walker’s brand new protagonist, Arthur Whitty to Linda’s Book Bag today.
In the interests of complete honesty I must admit that lovely Tim provided the questions for Arthur today as life was simply too complicated for me to do so. Tim has appeared on the blog on other occasions here.
Before we see what Arthur has to tell me, let’s find out a bit about the book he appears in – The Trials of Arthur Whitty which is available for purchase here.
The Trials of Arthur Whitty
This novella is the story of plain old Arthur Whitty, a man whose dreams are never dull and whose vivid imagination and sense of humour carries him through a series of sometimes challenging situations. Arthur has retired to a pair of slippers and jigsaw table in a quiet cul-de-sac in Berkshire, England. He walks his dog, Max, and lets his mind wander to a series of dreams in which he is more daring, skilful and adventurous that his real-life humdrum self. He is an irritant to his orderly wife, Emilia, and has succumbed to irksome cancer treatment following a run-in with skin cancer.
Once a date has been set for corrective surgery, Arthur sets his mind on organising a real-life adventure – a bucket list trip to Machu Picchu in Peru where he finds peace and a calming of the spirit. Arthur’s bullish nature carries him through a series of situations but there is little the retired couple can do about the onset of dementia. But Arthur is well supported by Emilia and their daughter, Holly, as the family rally round to make his declining years as comfortable as possible. And there’s always escape to his secret world of risk, responsibility and danger.
The author has drawn on personal experience and observations of elderly men in a support group he helps run for Men’s Matters charity in Windsor, Berkshire. Half of all royalties from the sales of this book will be donated to Men’s Matters, who support older men by encouraging social interaction and connecting them to health and wellbeing support services.
Doesn’t that sound great? Let’s see what Arthur has to say for himself:
An Interview with Arthur Whitty
Linda: Hello Arthur, and welcome to Linda’s Book Bag. You’re the subject of a new book, the Trials of Arthur Whitty. Firstly, I’d like to hear a bit about yourself.
Arthur: Thanks for inviting me onto your blog, Linda. I’m just an ordinary chap, really. I worked as an accountant for thirty-five years before having to retire a few years early owing to a combination of osteo-arthritis in the hands, and a skin cancer diagnosis that needed surgery. It robbed me of my energy, you see. I’ve also got early onset dementia to add to my growing list of ailments. I have a theory that it’s a consequence of having had radiotherapy treatment to my head. No smoke without fire. Quite honestly, I feel like I’m falling apart. I live in quiet retirement with my wife, Emilia, in a suburban close, and enjoy going for walks with my dog, Max. I should also mention, we have a daughter, Holly, now a university student.
Linda: I’m sorry to hear about your health problems, Arthur. It’s been said that you’re a bit of a Walter Mitty character, with an active imagination and a tendency to slip into life-like day dreams, sometimes to escape the nagging of an overbearing wife. Is there any truth in this?
Arthur: Hmmm. Yes, I suppose so. I do have a rather active imagination and the slightest prompt can set me off into an imagined parallel existence. I suppose I like to imagine myself as someone more interesting, daring and successful than plain old me. As for an overbearing wife, I think that’s a bit harsh on Emilia. She’s a loving partner who is a domestic goddess and I’m happy to submit to her superior organisational skills. But since I retired, she has been trying to fill my days with tasks that previously had remained gloriously undone. My escape mechanism is to take Max, our dog, for a walk. Sometimes twice a day.
Linda: Are any of your secret adventures based on actual events?
Arthur: Popular culture in its broadest sense feeds my imagination – films, TV programmes, books, plus some documentaries. I went to New York City for a work conference once and this experience, added to exposure to popular US movies and shows, have fed into some fantasies. And yes, I have watched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty that you referred to earlier which must have had a subliminal impact. But my bucket list adventure in Peru, only a few years ago, when I climbed up a rocky footpath that came out above and behind the famous Machu Picchu site, was an unexpected wonder that exceeded the scope of my imagination.
Linda: Did the older men’s support group you joined help in any way, and are you still attending?
Arthur: Yes, at first I was a bit sceptical about it, but after a couple of weeks I had become familiar with the cast of characters and started to enjoy their company. Water finds its level, and aging men have much in common to complain about. They have general knowledge quizzes to exercise the brain which does me some good as I’m finding my memory is becoming more and more unreliable.
Linda: Thank you, Arthur, and good luck with the book. I guess the overall theme is that growing old presents a whole new set of problems and challenges, and we’re all heading in that direction. Thanks for sharing your experiences with us – I found the book both funny and touching at times. I applaud your unshakable spirit and wish you well with your ongoing battle to retain your memories and independence.
About Tim Walker
Tim Walker is an independent author living near Windsor in the UK. Born in Hong Kong in the Sixties, he grew up in Liverpool where he began his working life as a trainee reporter on a local newspaper. He went on to attain an honours degree in Communication Studies in South Wales before moving to London where he worked in the newspaper publishing industry for ten years.
In the mid-90s he opted to spend a couple of years doing voluntary work in Zambia through VSO, running an educational book publishing development programme. After this, he set up his own marketing and publishing business in Lusaka, Zambia’s capital, then managed a mineral exploration company before returning to the UK in 2009.
His creative writing journey began in earnest in 2014, as a therapeutic activity whilst recovering from cancer treatment. In addition to short stories, he researched and wrote a five-book historical fiction series, A Light in the Dark Ages. The series connects the end of Roman Britain to the story of Arthur in an imaginative narrative. It starts with Abandoned, then Ambrosius: Last of the Romans; Uther’s Destiny; Arthur Dux Bellorum and Arthur Rex Brittonum, the last two books charting the life of an imagined historical King Arthur.
More recently, he has written a dual timeline historical novel set at Hadrian’s Wall, Guardians at the Wall. His two books of short stories, Thames Valley Tales and London Tales combine contemporary and historical themes and are now available as audiobooks. Somewhere along the way, he co-authored a three-book children’s series with his daughter, Cathy, The Adventures of Charly Holmes.
For further information, visit Tim’s website or find him on Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky.
There’s more with these other bloggers too:
English (US) · 