Synopses & Reviews
After discovering life outside the slums, a young boy is torn between what he has and what he wants, but not suited for either Thirteen-year-old Tom Curdie, the product of a Glasgow slum, is on probation for theft. His teachers admit that he is clever, but only one, Charles Forbes, sees an uncanny warmth in his reticence and in his seemingly insolent smileso he decides to take Tom on holiday with his own family. This powerful novel explores one of Jenkins's consistent and most fruitful themeshow goodness and innocence are compromised when faced with the pressures of growing up and becoming part of society.
Review
"A remarkable writer." —Times
Synopsis
Thirteen-year-old Tom Curdie, the product of a Glasgow slum, is on probation for theft. His teachers admit that he is clever, but only one, Charles Forbes, sees an uncanny warmth in his reticence and in his seemingly insolent smile. So he decides to take Tom on holiday with his own family . . .
This powerful novel explores one of Jenkins's consistent and most fruitful themes - how goodness and innocence is compromised when faced with the pressures of growing up and becoming part of society.
About the Author
Robin Jenkins, the author of a number of novels including Childish Things and Just Duffy, is recognized as one of Scotland's greatest writers. The themes of good and evil, of innocence lost, of fraudulence, cruelty, and redemption shine through his work. His novels, shot through with ambiguity, are rarely about what they seem. He published his first book, So Gaily Sings the Lark, at the age of 30, and by the time of his death in 2005, more than 30 of his novels were in print.