Hamish HamiltonTitles → Kieron Smith, boy

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Kieron Smith, boy

By James Kelman

Rejected by his brother and largely ignored by his parents, Kieron Smith finds comfort – and endless stories – in the home of his much-loved grandparents. But when his family move to a new housing scheme on the outskirts of the city, a world away from the close community of the tenements, Kieron struggles to adapt to his new life.

In his brilliantly evoked post-war Glasgow, Kelman depicts the city during a period of profound social change, with flourishing sectarianism, yet high hopes for the future. In his central character he creates a universal portrayal of the unique obsessions of childhood, whether fishing, climbing, books, brothers, dogs, ghosts, faces or souls…

Warm, funny, with searing insight and astonishing empathy, in Kieron Smith, James Kelman has created and unforgettable boy.

‘One of the world’s greatest living writers’
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‘A true original… A real artist… It’s now very difficult to see which of his peers can seriously be ranked alongside him’
Irvine Welsh, The Guardian

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