[NEU]⋙ Read What Has He Done Now? Tales from a North West Childhood in the 60s and Early 70s eBook David Hayes

What Has He Done Now? Tales from a North West Childhood in the 60s and Early 70s eBook David Hayes

Download As PDF : What Has He Done Now? Tales from a North West Childhood in the 60s and Early 70s eBook David Hayes

What Has He Done Now? Tales from a North West Childhood in the 60s and Early 70s eBook David Hayes

The book is well written and stories are interesting but I got tired of reading them. Tired of every chapter being a different story not related to what was previously read or the next chapter coming up. As a result, I didn't finish reading it and deleted it.


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What Has He Done Now? Tales from a North West Childhood in the 60s and Early 70s eBook David Hayes Reviews

In just the first few pages I felt I was in for a treat as David Hayes echoed my own beliefs; “Our headmistress – I believe anyway – was ahead of her time. She taught us that patriotism was no bad thing, but we must also celebrate our differences ……. We were shown that all the different faiths had many things in common with our own Christian upbringing. We got to see that although different to our beliefs, they too believed in love and tolerance. I suppose, in a nutshell, we were taught to all get along.”

This alone encouraged me to read on.

So much in this book reminds of my own childhood. The story of the author’s little hand-knitted black Scottie dog nearly broke my heart. Even grown-ups can become attached to, well, for want of a better word, teddy bears. Myself and a girlfriend once had a white bear we called Scruffy, and strange as it might seem, he gave us a point of focus in our relationship. I’m aware that sounds daft but it was aptly demonstrated by Tom Hanks in the movie, Castaway. While marooned on a desert island, Hanks had an old volleyball that he painted a face on and named Wilson, and who became his only means of interaction. Hanks had regular conversations with Wilson, but when he built his raft to escape the island, Wilson – who he’d taken such care of – became untethered and floated away. Although Hanks tries to swim after him Wilson had drifted too far and he had to return to his raft, collapsing in tears. He’d lost the only friend he had. The teddy bear is the one children share their secrets with. He listens to everything and never tells a soul, and the loss of a much-loved ‘teddy bear’ or Scottie dog must be more keenly felt in children.

Further into the book and David Hayes relives some of my own childhood memories; Blackberrying (Mrs Hitchens used to make pies out of the blackberries we picked), and a little bell shaped like a lady in a crinoline dress, my mother had exactly that same brass bell.

Also playing in building sites before Health & Safety wisely laid a duty on contractors to ensure children and other members of the general public are excluded. I once climbed up the ladder to the 2nd lift where I found a wall. I went to jump over it not knowing that it was still green and I came crashing down. No harm was done except for a few grazes on my legs but I was terrified. I’d knocked a wall down and felt sure I would be going to jail. In my little eight-year-old mind that was as serious as it could ever get. It never crossed my mind that I’d only knocked down a dozen bricks and the brickie would have it sorted before 9 a.m. It also never crossed my mind that it wasn’t my fault

There’s also very poetic prose in the book which I loved; “That night, as youth coursed through my veins, I felt eternal.” “So near us we heard the dried grasses sizzle with their play – like tinkers' fires on a cold night.”

And finally Hayes discusses the eternal truth of all who grew up in the 60’s and 70’s. The fact that the only identity we had was our music and our clothes, and that’s how we were defined. You don’t get that anymore, do you? Nowadays teenagers have a lot more distractions with PlayStation and Facebook and Twitter and so on that I fear groups of skinheads and mods ‘n’ rockers are never to be seen again. The clothes I wore and the music I listened to would mark me out for the category of friends I would hang around with. Back in the 70’s you wouldn’t find a skinhead listening to King Crimson, or a Rocker listening to blue beat or reggae. You weren’t allowed. You had to like the same music as everyone else in your subculture group.

If I had to find fault with the book, I’d say it needs a good tidy up and to be placed in chronological order. It tends to jump about a little bit. Twice we read of Hayes buying his mother a bar of Cadbury’s Milk Chocolate out of the first money he ever earned. That’s only a minor criticism, and does nothing to take away the delight in a book that was honestly much better than I thought it would be.

Well done to David Hayes
There are two bonuses with this book. I am American, so I learned a lot about English idioms. Also, I'm impressed with Hayes' memory and the richness he adds to descriptions from long ago. It has an immediacy that keeps one engaged.
The book is well written and stories are interesting but I got tired of reading them. Tired of every chapter being a different story not related to what was previously read or the next chapter coming up. As a result, I didn't finish reading it and deleted it.