by John Emsley

This is my first e-book and it's a novel. What I've tried to do is show how the things that I've described in my popular science books do actually impact on everyday life.

It's about a young couple, Teresa and Justin, who live in Islington, London, and who want to live a life that is strictly organic, green, sustainable, and chemical-free. They join a campaign group called GreenWar and become active members. They try to live by its ideals, even to the extent of growing some of their own food. But is this really the best route to the future? Slowly they realise that what chemists have done is make possible an alternative route…

This is Teresa's story, as she deals with the stresses of modern life: the pressures of work, the worries of motherhood, and the joys of spending Christmas in Yorkshire. And all the while she dreams of one day becoming a married woman.

  • Published: 2012
  • Publisher: Publicola Publishing
  • ISBN: 9780957227705
Cover of Islington GreenDid you know?

It should take you about an hour and a half to read Islington Green but I'd like to think that if you invest your time in doing so, then by the end of it you will have a different view of chemists and chemicals, and understand better some of the positive ways in which they influence our everyday lives.

You can buy a copy of Islington Green from Amazon as a Kindle edition.

Table of Contents

  • Introduction
  • Chapter 1. Teresa and Justin join GreenWar
  • Chapter 2. Work can be green and rewarding
  • Chapter 3. Wine, water, and washing-up
  • Chapter 4. Teresa and Justin plan an organic vegetable garden
  • Chapter 5. The fight for pure food
  • Chapter 6. Teresa and Justin commune with Nature
  • Chapter 7. Teresa and Justin discover pregnancy has unexpected benefits
  • Chapter 8. Justin's mum comes clean
  • Chapter 9. Is breast best? Are disposable nappies really shit?
  • Chapter 10. Justin on the job
  • Chapter 11. Teresa discovers holey water
  • Chapter 12. Yuletide in Yorkshire
  • Chapter 13. Oh so SAD
  • Chapter 14. It all comes out in the wash
  • Chapter 15. Awash with chemicals
  • Chapter 16. Befuddled by biofuels
  • Chapter 17. Green chemistry?
  • Chapter 18. Keep calm and carry on
  • Chapter 19. Perfect day
  • Appendix: Urban Myths vs. Common Sense