Latest Book:
No, Thanks! I’m Quite Happy Standing!
(Paperback 2016 / Hardback 2016)
Marie is turning 69 this year, but there are no signs of her slowing down – she has a new lodger (very into conspiracy theories), an intractable iPhone to wrestle with, and a trip to India to plan!
Recent titles:
Yes! I Can Manage Thank You!
(Paperback 2015 / Hardback 2015)
Another year, another January, and Marie Sharp has written a new diary, dishing the dirt on how the cool grannies live today. And her drug cravings aren’t the half of it.
No! I Don’t Need Reading Glasses! Growing Older Disgracefully
(Paperback 2014 / Hardback 2013)
It’s another chapter in the life of Marie Sharp. Marie shows us that growing older doesn’t mean giving up – or even growing up.
Chelsea Bird – Confessions of a sixties chick
(Kindle Edition 2014)
My debut novel Chelsea Bird – Confessions of a sixties chick, first published in 1964 when I was 20 years old is now available as an e-book
London, 1960s. A cultural revolution is taking place. Young people are finally being seen as a force to be reckoned with. But for eighteen-year-old art student Harriet and her Chelsea friends, this amounts to one thing: being ‘In’. The King’s Road swarms with people wanting to see and be seen; upper-class boys with faux cockney accents party with models, beatniks and photographers; teddy boys are good people to nod to in the street; transport caffs are the must-go places for food, and black men have suddenly become the people to know.
Through Harriet’s eyes, Viriginia Ironside paints a witty, tongue-in-cheek portrait of life in 1960’s London that will strike a nostalgic chord with all those who were there, and make all those who weren’t wish they had been.
Robin Ironside: Neo Romantic Visionary
by Peter Boughton, Virginia Ironside, Simon Martin
(Paperback Edition 2012)
My recent book Robin Ironside: Neo-Romantic Visionary was published to mark the centenary of my uncle’s birth and an exhibition of his work in Chichester and Chester. It is the first monograph on the artist and includes my personal reflections on Robin, notes on the paintings and a catalogue of his writings. Featuring over fifty colour illustrations and drawing on new research, Robin Ironside: Neo-Romantic Visionary provides an overview of Ironside’s creative output and reassesses the legacy of this fascinating and original artist.
The Virginia Monologues -
Why Growing Old is Great
(Paperback Edition 2010 / Hardback 2009)
Do I need to say more?
The Virginia Monologues is available in paperback, hardback and as a Kindle edition from Amazon UK here (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Virginia-Monologues/dp/0141043717/).
Novels:
No! I Don’t Want to Join a Bookclub
(Hardback 2006 / Paperback 2007 / Audio CD 2006 / Kindle Edition 2007)
I wrote this after I’d discovered that being sixty wasn’t a curse, but a blessing. It’s a fictional diary about a sixty-year-old grannie – grumpy old women meet Bridget Jones.
Distant Sunset
(Paperback 1982)
A traditional historical romance, set in mutinous India. The heroine survives everything, from marrying a Maharajah, avoiding the fiery suttee ceremony, being nearly killed by thuggees – full of mad adventures.
Chelsea Bird
(Hardcover 1964)
My first book, which I wrote when I was 20. It caused quite a stir because it was written at a time when “young people” had only just been discovered as a force to be reckoned with. It’s about an art student in Chelsea – rather like me at the time!
Made For Each Other
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 1997)
This is a serious novel about an obsessive love affair – based, as usual, partly on my own experience. I hope lots of women will identify with it.
Memoir:
Janey and Me: Growing Up with My Mother
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 2003)
My mother was a fashion icon who became Professor Fashion at the Royal College of Art in the ‘sixties. Genius as she was, she simply wasn’t a mum. It’s part autobiography and part biography of her sad life.
Help and Advice:
You’ll Get Over It: The Rage of Bereavement
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 1997)
I wrote this after my father died, having found absolutely no book that satisfied my needs. Stages of grief – shock, denial, numbness, guilt, rage, misery and resolution? Rubbish.
The Huge Bag of Worries
by Virginia Ironside and Frank Rodgers
(Paperback Edition 2004)
A book to help children between 7 and 13 confide their worries in other people. The heroine is pursued by a sinister bag of worries which she can’t get rid of. Finally she finds a lovely grannie figure who helps her. Used extensively in schools.
Goodbye, Dear Friend: Coming to Terms with the Death of a Pet
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 2007)
When I was working at the Sunday Mirror as an agony aunt, I put a letter in the column from someone suffering from pet bereavement. This book is a mix of advice, and quotes from the 300 moving letters I got in response.
The Subfertility Handbook
by Virginia Ironside and Sarah Biggs
(Paperback Edition 1995)
How to Have a Baby and Stay Sane
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 1998)
I wrote this when my son was born, because I felt there were no books around at the time to explain the pitfalls of pregnancy and birth. It was illustrated by my father.
Problems! Problems!: Confessions of an Agony Aunt
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 1997)
I wrote this during my career as an agony aunt, outlining the kind of problems I receive – from the weird to the mundane – and the kind of advice I give.
Children’s Fiction:
Vampire Master at Burlap Hall
(Paperback Edition 1997)
These all comprise a series of books for children between about 11 and 14. They are all set in the co-educational boarding school, Burlap Hall. This first book tells of a biology teacher who comes to replace the existing one who has resigned to join a cult. Mr Culard turns out to be Dracula.
Phantom of Burlap Hall
(Hardback & Paperback Editions 1997)
Tells the old Phantom of the Opera story again – building works disturb the bones of an old and cruel headmaster of the school, who comes back to haunt the place.
Spaceboy at Burlap Hall
(Hardback & Paperback Editions 1997 & 1991)
Tells of a creepy boy from outer space who arrives because someone tinkers about with the computers.
Poltergeist at Burlap Hall
(Hardback & Paperback Editions 1997 & 1992)
is the story of a an evil presence that coincides with the arrival of a very unpleasant caretaker at the school.
Roseanne and the Magic Mirror
by Virginia Ironside and Caroline Holden
(Hardcover & Paperback Editions 1991)
One day Roseanne, a sad little girl, finds a magic mirror, divided into three parts. One side displays her good side – Rose – , the other, her naughty side, Anne. Eventually the two make friends and turn into Roseanne, who appears in the central mirror.
The Human Zoo
(Hardback and Paperback Editions 1991)
A boy goes to the zoo on his birthday and is given some magic peanuts by a gorilla which make him understand the animals’ language. He’s horrified when his family are taken away for a human zoo… It has a happy ending for animals and humans, and is suitable for 9 – 13 year olds.
International Editions:
USA
You’re Old, I’m Old….Get Used To It!
(Hardback & Paperback Editions 2007)
No! I Don’t Want To Join A Bookclub: Diary of a 60th Year
(Hardback 2006, Paperback and CD Editions 2007)
Czech Republic
Stárnu a užívám: Deník zralé ženy
(Paperback 2008)
Finland
Oon voimissian
(Paperback Edition 2008)
France
La sexygénaire n’a pas dit son dernier mot
(Paperback Edition 2007)
Germany
Nein! Ich will keinen Seniorenteller!
(Hardback, Paperback, Audio CD and Kindle Editions 2007)
Greece
Giagia me gkazia
(Paperback Edition 2007)
Italy
Nonho l’età (per-fortuna)
(Hardback Edition 2007)
Netherlands
Nee Ik Wil Niet Bij Een Leesclub!
(Paperback Edition 2007)
Poland
Nie Nie Chce Sie Zapisac Do Klubu Ksiazki
(Paperback Edition 2007)
Spain
No! No Quiero Hacer Aquagym
(Paperback Edition 2007)