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ewanl's review
5.0
I'm still reading e-book versions of books bought from Unbound. How I wish I could hold the books (particularly this one). Buy it and you'll probably spend half-an-hour looking at the cover with a magnifying glass (I will, when I get my hands on it).
What an assured and fascinating debut novel this is from Helen Taylor. The 'an 'At (= and that) in the title of this post might be how one of the characters, Maurice, would describe it: any Weegie (Glaswegian) would know that the book is about so much more than that... Because it is.
TBOP touches on homelessness, drug addiction, obsession, mental health issues and even has Caravaggio, perhaps the first and most famous creative to prove that genius does not always/often/more than rarely** grow among the nicest people, as a key character in the story. I don't intend to reveal much of the plot here, but can assure you that you will want to turn the pages to find out the fate of all the characters. They range from middle-class professionals and their offspring to Polish immigrants and homeless drug addicts all trying to cope with their lives and choices.
Helen Taylor creates modern "Glesgae" on the page, I could smell the fish suppers in Maryhill and the patchouli oil from the downstairs loo in the Victorian Terraces of Kelvinside. I wanted a can of Irn Bru every five pages. This book is funny, tragic, thought-provoking and a real feat of writing. Buy a copy of the book, a real one, and you'll see what I mean about the cover. Strongly recommended.
What an assured and fascinating debut novel this is from Helen Taylor. The 'an 'At (= and that) in the title of this post might be how one of the characters, Maurice, would describe it: any Weegie (Glaswegian) would know that the book is about so much more than that... Because it is.
TBOP touches on homelessness, drug addiction, obsession, mental health issues and even has Caravaggio, perhaps the first and most famous creative to prove that genius does not always/often/more than rarely** grow among the nicest people, as a key character in the story. I don't intend to reveal much of the plot here, but can assure you that you will want to turn the pages to find out the fate of all the characters. They range from middle-class professionals and their offspring to Polish immigrants and homeless drug addicts all trying to cope with their lives and choices.
Helen Taylor creates modern "Glesgae" on the page, I could smell the fish suppers in Maryhill and the patchouli oil from the downstairs loo in the Victorian Terraces of Kelvinside. I wanted a can of Irn Bru every five pages. This book is funny, tragic, thought-provoking and a real feat of writing. Buy a copy of the book, a real one, and you'll see what I mean about the cover. Strongly recommended.
ewanlawrie's review
5.0
I'm still reading e-book versions of books bought from Unbound. How I wish I could hold the books (particularly this one). Buy it and you'll probably spend half-an-hour looking at the cover with a magnifying glass (I will, when I get my hands on it).
What an assured and fascinating debut novel this is from Helen Taylor. The 'an 'At (= and that) in the title of this post might be how one of the characters, Maurice, would describe it: any Weegie (Glaswegian) would know that the book is about so much more than that... Because it is.
TBOP touches on homelessness, drug addiction, obsession, mental health issues and even has Caravaggio, perhaps the first and most famous creative to prove that genius does not always/often/more than rarely** grow among the nicest people, as a key character in the story. I don't intend to reveal much of the plot here, but can assure you that you will want to turn the pages to find out the fate of all the characters. They range from middle-class professionals and their offspring to Polish immigrants and homeless drug addicts all trying to cope with their lives and choices.
Helen Taylor creates modern "Glesgae" on the page, I could smell the fish suppers in Maryhill and the patchouli oil from the downstairs loo in the Victorian Terraces of Kelvinside. I wanted a can of Irn Bru every five pages. This book is funny, tragic, thought-provoking and a real feat of writing. Buy a copy of the book, a real one, and you'll see what I mean about the cover. Strongly recommended.
What an assured and fascinating debut novel this is from Helen Taylor. The 'an 'At (= and that) in the title of this post might be how one of the characters, Maurice, would describe it: any Weegie (Glaswegian) would know that the book is about so much more than that... Because it is.
TBOP touches on homelessness, drug addiction, obsession, mental health issues and even has Caravaggio, perhaps the first and most famous creative to prove that genius does not always/often/more than rarely** grow among the nicest people, as a key character in the story. I don't intend to reveal much of the plot here, but can assure you that you will want to turn the pages to find out the fate of all the characters. They range from middle-class professionals and their offspring to Polish immigrants and homeless drug addicts all trying to cope with their lives and choices.
Helen Taylor creates modern "Glesgae" on the page, I could smell the fish suppers in Maryhill and the patchouli oil from the downstairs loo in the Victorian Terraces of Kelvinside. I wanted a can of Irn Bru every five pages. This book is funny, tragic, thought-provoking and a real feat of writing. Buy a copy of the book, a real one, and you'll see what I mean about the cover. Strongly recommended.
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