Twenty different cinemas have graced Reading's streets over the years, many long forgotten and some of the earliest very short-lived. Picture Palace to Penny Plunge tells the story of the era of the single-screen cinema in Reading, from the travelling shows at the turn of the twentieth century, its heyday with the Vaudeville Electric Theatre in the 20s, through to today's multiscreen entertainment 'villages' and outdoor screenings. It traces the technological developments and how they influenced the types of buildings, the numbers of seats, prices, programmes, refreshments and ownership. It describes each cinema, in the order of its opening, and includes appendices listing some of the films made in or near Reading, and some of the film actors and directors with Reading connections. Illustrated throughout with contemporary photographs and drawings, this book will bring back happy memories and is a unique record of Reading's cinematic history.

A Powerful Mental Health Revelation Indeed. When I finally set aside my futile attempts to break free from my endless years of mental and emotional difficulties, and turned wholly to the Lord, He impressed the following thoughts on my heart: He first revealed that He was pleased that I had finally abandoned my own futile efforts to get well, and had become fully reliant on Jesus Christ. Because of my surrender, I also understood that He was going to reveal His own mental health principles to me-the ones that this world had rejected so many years ago."