Lavinia Greenlaw’s mesmerising debut novel about growing up in the surreal banality of mid-’70s Essex.
Lavinia Greenlaw puts before us the monochrome, immemorial middle England of the 1970s in all its dowdy glory, and has us see through the mercurial, bewitching Mary George’s eyes how a seemingly static landscape is suddenly illuminated by the most vivid bursts of energy, colour and drama. Punk’s torch flares into life and singes the fringes of England. Mary George bears witness and burns brighter still: she is more memorable than even the extraordinary events around her, and the reader will find it devastatingly hard to leave her company at the end of this exceptional debut about growing up under the shadow of an unknowable, inescapable small-town mystery.
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In a provincial setting where people rely on the routine of the Parish Council, fetes, jumble sales and scout discos, Tom is tolerated though he is unhinged, while Mary seeks sweet marijuana release with her mate, Billy, until she can move to London. In the confusing process of growing up, Mary has to choose between the snobs and the yokels, and between her divorced parents' version of events from her childhood. In her willingness to help Tom uncover the source of his trauma, she triggers family disclosures and a bigger tragedy for Allnorthover. This novel grasps cloying small-town life and adolescent self-consciousness so accurately that it makes you squirm with claustrophobic pity for Mary. --Cherry Smyth
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Book Description PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # VC-9780007204595
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Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 3988925-n
Book Description Paperback. Condition: new. Paperback. Lavinia Greenlaws mesmerising debut novel about growing up in the surreal banality of mid-70s Essex. Lavinia Greenlaw puts before us the monochrome, immemorial middle England of the 1970s in all its dowdy glory, and has us see through the mercurial, bewitching Mary Georges eyes how a seemingly static landscape is suddenly illuminated by the most vivid bursts of energy, colour and drama. Punks torch flares into life and singes the fringes of England. Mary George bears witness and burns brighter still: she is more memorable than even the extraordinary events around her, and the reader will find it devastatingly hard to leave her company at the end of this exceptional debut about growing up under the shadow of an unknowable, inescapable small-town mystery. Lavinia Greenlaws mesmerising debut novel about growing up in the surreal banality of mid-70s Essex. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Seller Inventory # 9780007204595
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 272 pages. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0007204590
Book Description Paperback. Condition: Brand New. 272 pages. 7.64x5.12x0.94 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # x-0007204590
Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 3988925-n
Book Description PAP. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # VC-9780007204595