Good God in Govan

New eBook - Good God in Govan

Govan in the forties was full of tenement buildings, which in turn were packed full of large families, crammed sardine-fashion into the rooms and closes. Born of an Irish Catholic mother and Scottish protestant father, Joe Sharp was from one such family, a bright middle child from a brood of thirteen.

Blessed with a near-photographic memory, the author takes the reader on a detailed tour through his incident-filled life, from his earliest years right through to later life. As a wartime evacuee on a Dumfrieshire farm, he witnesses pigs castrated with a blunt pen-knife and shoots rats trapped in a barrel. Back in Govan, he prays that German bombing raids will continue past midnight so hell get the next morning off school. When the teenage Joe slowly begins to make his way in the world, we are given snapshots of his faltering progress: hes a dental apprentice, melting down platinum fillings for resale to the jeweller; hes an Underground conductor, carried out of the station by Old Firm fans and thrown over a wall; hes touring Europe on the back of a motorbike, attracting the interest of the local constabulary along the way. And each misguided adventure seems to end inevitably with the same fearful refrain: 'an the pee wis running doon my legs.

Humour underpins much of the narrative. The author, like a seasoned wit stood at the bar, appreciates that the key to a well-told yarn is understatement. His punch lines, inconspicuously tagged on to the end of anecdotes, are all the stronger for their casual delivery. And throughout the book the author includes a series of poems and ballads -- some self-penned, others traditional -- to complement whichever topic hes writing about at the time. Often bawdy, nearly always funny, they set the action within a particular time frame and add a welcome layer of nostalgic charm to the proceedings.

Joe Sharp, not being a leader of men nor a figure on the world stage, has not in the traditional sense led a remarkable life; he married, had children and worked in the same factory for nearly forty years. But a close reading of this book belies such a bland interpretation. In fact, the author has crammed much more than his fair share of humour, tragedy and adventure into a very interesting life, and now thanks to his excellent recall and wry way with words its an experience we can all share.

The eBook is available from: www.skoobe.biz
Format: Microsoft.Lit
Price: 4.99