Robert Brien grew up in the warm sunshine in Natal, South Africa before immigrating first to Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe) and then further north to the colder climes of England. Bob's passion for life and desire to experiment in all manner of things makes you wonder how he has managed to survive through to such a ripe old age! His friends and family never quite know what he's going to do next … Life is never boring in such company!
The original object of Robert's autobiography was to cover the period from his earliest recollections up to the time he left school. Indeed, this was achieved in 1988, and the initial volume bore the appropriate title Small Boy in the Sunshine. However, the urge to write drove him to extend this period, and the second edition was born; later on, further editions appeared.
Recently the book was brought completely up to date, but the original title remained unchanged. Perhaps it should have been amended to Old Bloke in the Drizzle, or What it was Like Before Global Warming.
Enjoy Small Boy in the Sunshine - although I suspect that it will be of greater interest to those who read it some way off in the future. Evermore he is one of a dwindling number who can say that his father was born not in the last century, but in the century before that. And that will surely raise a curiosity about the times through which he has lived.