The North – the new book thread : Fri Sep 06, 2013 9:52 pm  

Has anyone else read Paul Morley's book The North? As someone born in Wigan and having lived in Wigton, Bolton, Nelson and Morecambe, and doing three years at Manchester University, I thought it might be a good read about where I grew up, before I left for London.
Anyone any views on it?
Or is there a book thread I should be on?

Re: The North : Sat Sep 07, 2013 6:17 am  

We used to have a book thread, unfortunately many on here think reading is a large town in Berkshire

Re: The North : Sat Sep 07, 2013 7:12 am  

Is that surprising give the volume of self-absorbed diatribe that gets posted on here by many of the regular posters on here?

Re: The North : Sat Sep 07, 2013 7:38 am  

I like what you did there, "volume", very good that.

Re: The North : Sat Sep 07, 2013 9:40 am  

cod'ead wrote:

We used to have a book thread, unfortunately many on here think reading is a large town in Berkshire

I like your pun. But, silly, it's Reddin, innit.

Re: The North : Sat Sep 07, 2013 1:41 pm  

Better get me coat then.

Re: The North : Mon Sep 09, 2013 4:40 pm  

Euclid wrote:

Has anyone else read Paul Morley's book The North? As some born in Wigan and having lived in Wigton, Bolton, Nelson and Morecambe, and doing three years at Manchester University, I thought it might be a good read about where I grew up, before I left for London.
Anyone any views on it?one
Or is there a book thread I should be on?

I read a review of it (reviewed by Stuart Maconie, he liked it) and I heard it being discussed on the radio.
Sounded good so, when next in a bookshop (n.b a proper bookshop, not like Amazon in that it's not virtual and you get to leaf through the book and also get your real book home a lot quicker), I had a look through it.
From that (albeit unreliable) five-minute glance through, it seemed to be more about Lancashire than "The North", so I didn't bother.
I had already read Stuart Maconie's Pies and Prejudice which, whilst lightly amusing, was also a little bit Lancashire-centric and I noticed some glaring inaccuracies about places outside the County Palatine.

As a Wiganer, you might like it.

Re: The North : Mon Sep 09, 2013 4:50 pm  

Putting coat down for a moment......I read it and I agree it is not only North West biased, but is really about the authors life as an 8 year old in Stockport. It is interspersed with various facts about the north over the last few hundred years, seemingly placed at random. It would have been more accurately titled something along the lines of Paul Morley's North to be fair. The author's skill is such that it is a reasonable read but not a keeper, so it's now in the charity shop.
Personally don't care much for Mr Maconie's work an awful lot.

Re: The North : Mon Sep 09, 2013 6:27 pm  

I agree, I was lent Maconie's "Pies and Prejudice" and told it was a brilliant read - I struggled to keep any interest past the first chapter and I don't know whether it was the writing style, the subject, or what, which was strange as I find Maconie to be very listenable on the radio.

Re: The North : Wed Sep 11, 2013 7:47 pm  

Being Wigan born and bred I have read all Maconie's books, my personal favourite being "Cider with Roadies" which is pretty much his autobiography of his early life. It mentions many places with which anyone from the town would be familiar and gives a good idea of what life was like in the town in the 70's.