Tony Hogan tells the story of a Scottish childhood of filthy council flats and B&Bs, screeching women, feckless men, fags and booze and drugs, the dole queue and bread and marge sandwiches. It is the story of an irresistible, irrepressible heroine, a dysfunctional family you can’t help but adore, the absurdities of the eighties and the fierce bonds that tie people together. Told in an original foul mouthed and laugh out-loud-funny voice, it launches itself headlong into the middle of one of life’s great fights, between the pull of the past and the freedom of the future. And our delightful spunky utterly unreliable narrator Janie Ryan, born and bred for combat, is ready to win.
If you’re sitting around looking at your own family this Xmas, rolling your eyes (or shuddering) and wondering how the heck you’re going to put up with them, you couldn’t get a better book to curl up in and hide behind than this, it’s as charming as it is rough and I delighted in each and every page. Hudson has great style to her prose and the ability to utterly nail a moment by using some delightful imagery, i was transported into the times and place with a smack and then bumped my way along this great narrative ride. Hudson’s ability to make us feel for these characters and care for them, even when they seem unlovable is testament to her charming ability to write delightful stories that melt their way into your heart.
Great fun, recommended and if you know any Scot’s then it’s a must get.
Shortlisted for the Polari Prize, Guardian First Book Award, the South Bank Sky Arts Awards, the Saltire Scottish First Book of the Year and the Green Carnation Prize and all with good reason too, this is a first class first novel.
Out now
£12.99 Paperback
For more info or to buy see the publishers website here:
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