Urchin

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Urchin

Category:	Biography
Author:	Garry Shaw
Publisher:	Apex Publishing
Price:	£7.99
ISBN:	1904444318
Pages:	238
Reviewed in issue:	9

Memoirs of World War II are easy to come by, and those that achieve commercial publication tend to focus on some unique aspect of the period. The memories of ordinary people usually fail to find any outlet other than self publication. It is good to see the effort Garry Shaw has made to ensure that his memoir, Urchin, stands out from the crowd. The production values are what one has come to expect of self published efforts. The cover design is amateurish, the proof reading below standard. But these flaws should not cause the reader to overlook the nuggets of inspired writing with which the book is studded. Shaw’s recollections of being dive-bombed during his newspaper round are perhaps romanticised; I cannot judge. I do not, however, believe that his mother really tried to grow potatoes between his toes. The trouble with exaggeration for the sake of humour is that, if overdone, it turns to surrealism. It comes to the point where the reader is unsure what is true and what is not. This over-anxiety to lighten the tone sits uneasily with the poetic language the author uses so effectively to describe his often Dali-esque surroundings. If he had given more weight to the latter, it would have made for a better read. Whilst humour has its place in non-fiction, it should not be at the expense of realism. Did he lose his nerve when contemplating the risk of upsetting his audience? If so, it caused him to underestimate the value of his greatest asset – his impressive narrative style.

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