Gordon Dale

I felt I was part of the book! Growing up in the East End of Glasgow, Dennistoun and Easterhouse and escaping to university, and living in the West End before suburbia, I recognised and could identify with every one of the characters, either through family, friends or neighbours. The impact of ignorance, brutal economic and emotional stressors, compounded by the ingrained religious and sexual prejudices, experienced by families, and their impact on relationships, are handled expertly by the author. The book is a lived experience and those experiences exist in all cultures. The book has a hopeful ending, that perhaps people can change, not just in terms of individual responsibility but more generally in terms of understanding and challenging the forces which perpetuate poverty and prejudice.