CAMP SHATILA: A WRITER’S CHRONICLE, by Peter Mortimer. Published by Five Leaves Publications (tel: 0115 969 3597). £8.99. Softback.

THIS book entertainingly and movingly chronicles the writer’s experiences during a two -month stay at Camp Shatila on the outskirts of Beirut. He arrived apprehensive but undeterred by the advice of a friend that he was, at 64, “perhaps a bit too old” to cope with the hardships of living in a Palestinian refugee camp in the Lebanon.
The Cullercoats-based poet and playwright overcame the culture shock of being in a place where 17,000 refugees live in an area barely larger than a cricket ground — and the disadvantage of not being able to speak Arabic — to form a children’s theatre group.
Having been thrilled by the performances given by the young Palestinian schoolchildren, the author raised £22,000 on his return to bring 15 children and teachers to the North East this autumn. Joined by four girls from Whitley Bay High School, they gave performances at eight venues including Bellingham Town Hall, and were given generous hospitality by many local businesses including free accommodation offered by John Cocker at the Riverdale Hall Hotel.