Magnificent Joe - Softcover

Wheatley, James

3.48

197 ratings by Goodreads

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1851689664 ISBN 13: 9781851689668

Publisher: Oneworld Publications, 2013

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Recently released from prison, Jim is welcomed back by his childhood mates to the northern working-class town where he grew up. With no alternative, Jim falls in step with their lives: working down the building site, pub, sleep. No time to regret the future that could have been had he not taken that punch and killed that boy. The only glimmer of warmth amid the tough grind is his friendship with Joe, a man with severe learning difficulties who is regarded with suspicion by the rest of the community. But when Joe is falsely accused of a crime, Jim must break the claustrophobic confines of his life and take drastic action in order to protect him.

With his spare and powerful prose, James Wheatley has crafted a brilliantly compelling, often dark, and frequently funny novel about how an extraordinary friendship can offer redemption and help rebuild a life.

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About the Author:

James Wheatley is a research consultant, musician, and writer. A graduate of the Sheffield Hallam Creative Writing Course in the UK, he lives in Yorkshire where he divides his time between writing and playing guitar in several bands. This is his first novel.

Review:

'An enticing read that will resonate with many a reader.'
— Midwest Book Review

'This fine first book, half bildungsroman and half 'state of England' novel, tell the story of Jim and his mates growing up in a village in the north of England . . . Wheatley can sure turn a phrase . . . A sweetly sad story.'
— Publishers Weekly

'Joe's the only magnificent one in this novel about working-class life...A grim and gritty novel, with a slight ray of hope at the end.'
— Kirkus Reviews

'Wheatley is that increasingly rare type of young writer: he has experienced life, and it shows.'
— Daily Mail

'A brutal little novel that manages also to be tender and funny.'
— Independent on Sunday

'A brutal, sometimes moving book . . . written with a spare, unsentimental swagger and plenty of confrontational coal-black humour.'
— Metro

'Taut, tense and tragic . . . a triumphant debut.'
— Ben Myers, author of Pig Iron

'Strong and spare . . . witty and utterly convincing.'
— Jane Rogers, author of The Testament of Jessie Lamb

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