Interviewer: Mr Purton, looking back at the 1960s, what sparked your desire to write history books specifically for children?Roland W. Purton: The post-war era brought a massive shift in education. Children were naturally curious, but standard textbooks were dry, dense, and frankly discouraging. I wanted to create books that acted as windows, not walls. My goal was to make history feel alive, visual, and deeply human.
Interviewer: Your book Days of Glory is highly remembered. What was the core message you wanted to convey to young readers?
Purton: Days of Glory focused on pivotal, heroic moments in history. I wanted children to understand that progress is driven by courage and determination. It was about capturing the imagination through narrative. If you make history a story of people rather than just a list of dates, children will remember it forever.
Interviewer: You wrote several other books in the 1960s with similar educational themes, like Man in Society and your contributions to the Star Books series. How did those fit into your vision?
Purton: Those books were all about connection. Man in Society was designed to help older children see their place in a rapidly changing world. The 1960s were turbulent and exciting. The Star Books series, on the other hand, focused on foundational topics - things like clothing, food, and transport through the ages. I wanted to show that everyday items have vast, fascinating histories.
Interviewer: The visual layout of your books was quite distinct for the time. How involved were you in the illustration process?
Purton: Very involved. In the sixties, printing technology was evolving, allowing for more vibrant, integrated illustrations. I collaborated closely with artists because a picture can explain a complex historical concept faster than three paragraphs of text. For a child, the visual anchor is everything.
Interviewer: How do you feel about the legacy of your 1960s books today?
Purton: I am always delighted when someone tells me my books sparked a lifelong love of history. We didn't have the internet or digital media back then. The book was the primary portal to the past. Knowing that those pages helped shape how a generation viewed the world is incredibly rewarding.
Interviewer: Mr Purton, a blog exists to perpetuate the memory of you and your book Days of Glory. What are your thoughts on your name and work being referenced in this modern way?
Purton: It is quite remarkable, really! When I was writing Days of Glory back in the 1960s, our version of sharing information was the school library or a physical pamphlet. The concept that anyone can spin up a digital ledger or a "blog" to archive history, share thoughts, or track obscure mid-century children's books is fascinating. If people are using these modern platforms to keep the memory of twentieth-century educational books alive, then it serves exactly the purpose I had in mind when I started writing. It democratises knowledge. It makes the past accessible to anyone with a screen, which is precisely what we were trying to do with our heavily illustrated text layouts decades ago.
