Philip Collins has created a novel of memories and tenderness as he
describes the exploits of two friends clambering along lifes rocky
path. He recalls days gone by with ease, summoning up
half-remembered playground conflicts, the Merseybeat and the
Beatles. Kevin and Adam flirt with girls, football and
rock-'n'-roll as they grow from children into youths and begin to
come to terms with adulthood. As boys they participated in a blood
brotherhood ceremony involving a rusty compass point, which seemed
to confirm that thered never be any secrets between them. They
believed theyd always help each other and that their unity would
last forever but, as the tale unfolds, they realize that life is
not as simple as a schoolboy ritual. Kevin, overflowing with hope
and ambition, finds his dream of a football career collapsing into
an anxious world of drugs and chaos. Adam, passing through
university and destined for a tranquil middle-class life, gradually
realizes his once feared father is in fact a dependable friend. But
then his father dies suddenly, leaving him shattered. Watching the
foundations of their lives crumble, both Kevin and Adam realize
theyve lost something enormously personal and deeply loved. Like
confused homing pigeons, they return to the streets of their youth.
Finally, after all the misplaced years and turmoil, both come to
understand the qualities dividing the men from the boys. (Kirkus
UK)
An entertaining, provocative novel, a fresh look at male bonding
and our sense of kinship, by a young, high-flying political
consultant. Living in neighbouring houses on a tough estate in
Lancashire, Adam and Kevin were childhood best friends. Kevin -
child of a problem family, revered fighter and footballer - was
definitely the leader, while Adam - puny, bookish and sensitive -
rode on the coat-tails of his dominating friend. However, Kevin's
football career is wrecked by a knee injury, leaving him at 18
unemployed with a wife and two children to support. He takes refuge
in drink and drugs while Adam, complete with a new set of
well-heeled friends, lands a high-flying job in London. The stretch
between Strangeways prison and the hallowed cloisters of Cambridge,
between the estate's Working Men's Club and London media life,
becomes too much for even the best of friends. But when Adam and
Kevin lose the people that mean most to them, they - back in their
home town again - are forced to confront what their roots really
are and what means success to them - and in doing so they come to
know what separates the men from the boys. Touching, funny and
completely unputdownable, Philip Collins's novel of life, love and
loss is the unforgettable story of a new generation. Peopled with
wonderful characters and vivid scenes from closing mines to
university quads, from unemployment centres and hopeless estates to
the upwardly mobile, fast-stream Islington lifestyle, The Men From
the Boys is also rich in the questions it poses. Readers of Roddy
Doyle, Tony Parsons and Nick Hornby will enjoy The Men From the
Boys.
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