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The Northern Newsletter

Tag: fiction

  • Book review of ‘The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner’ by Alan Sillitoe

    Oliver Mellor

    Title: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner 

    Author: Alan Sillitoe 

    Publisher: W.H.Allen Ltd

    Genre: Social realism and fiction

    Published in 1959, The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner is a social realism short story featured in a compilation with the same title. This story established Sillitoe as a member of the ‘Angry Young Men’ due to the story’s protagonist – Smith – being labelled as a ‘belligerent and opinionated’ young man, especially towards the class division of the time. However, the novella defies this by pushing the boundaries of its classification. Its message catapults the story and its relevance into our society as we face similar scenarios.

    The beginning of the narrative details the life of a poor working class teenager from Nottingham who lacks any regard for his future, endeavouring into the sport of petty crime. Similar to the rest of those deemed outsiders, Smith experiences social alienation as he is left to survive on his own in a constantly punishing system. Evidently, this causes him to be caught by the police for thieving and is therefore sentenced to be imprisoned in Ruxton Towers, a young offenders institution. During this portion of his life, he discovers his passion for long distance running which develops into a clear motif in the play for a sense of belonging and an escape from the confinements within society, even stating ‘running is the road to self-discovery’. The authorities then notice his physical prowess and decide to take pity on Smith offering him a light workload for his sentencing, but only if he agrees to win a cross-country competition against a highly prestigious public school. Optimism and adrenaline fuels the crowd, Smith speeds ahead of the other competitors yet deliberately begins to slow down eventually stopping a mere few meters away from the finish line. Despite the taste of victory being within his grasp, Smith casts his winnings away in favour of a defiant demonstration of his hatred against the Ruxton Towers administrators. Even with his realisation that he will be dealt heavy amounts of criticism and even worse manual labour, Smith posses no regrets as he believes he has achieved what he deemed worthy of his duty to society. 

    There are clear themes within this novella, from the mistreatment of the working class to being prejudged and deemed weak. The narrative explores the weight of their contributions exceeding those of the rich but still being viewed as fruitless and futile. Clearly illustrated when Smiths sentencing is softened only if he conforms to the authorities agreement, exploiting our protagonist even further. The most significant motif within the short story is the runner himself, the metaphor is able to prominently imply a need for isolation from society’s noise. Arguably allowing Sillitoe to include a political undertone, since when he runs away he is able to mentally reflect personally on himself with clarity, communicating to his audience. This helps the reader to develop with Smith as we both learn of the class division in Britain and how it affects the poor, gradually snowballing our realisation into drawing similarities from now and then. 

    I would certainly recommend this book to those who believe in a need for social reformatory, and especially those who are passionate ‘angry young men’ who are desperate to voice their opinions as mute witnesses.

  • Book review of ‘Where the Heart Should Be’ by Sarah Crossan

    Oliver Mellor

    Title: Where the Heart Should Be.

    Author: Sarah Crossan.

    Publisher: Bloomsbury.

    Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance, Poetry-verse and Young adult.

    ‘Where The Heart Should Be’ can be accurately described as a miscellany of a victorian era event woven into Ireland’s history while being presented in a modern and innovative writing style, separating itself from society’s normalities. Upon collecting the novel, I was unsure as to its intensions due to its short blurb which left a heavy dosage to the imagination. However, after shortly finishing this novella I had received knowledge regarding the repercussions of  the ‘Irish Potato Famine’.

    The Novel’s exposition greets us with our protagonist Ellen Quinn. A teenage girl who is living in Ireland in July 1846 shortly before the Irish potato famine crisis reachers her family. As the novella develops we experience love, loss and an overwhelming captivation to discover its ending.

    The writing is definitely simplistic and this is highlighted further by the structure of the books

    poem-esque technique, constructing short and easy to digest chapters. This is effective in making the book a short and pleasurable read but in all honesty this contradiction can result in gaps of knowledge, causing confusion. A final issue regarding the book was that sometimes the story can emit the emotion of emptiness since some pivotal moments come across hollow or eviscerated of context. Most notably towards the denouement of the novella where the protagonists romance, once forbid appears to be accepted which in my opinions wouldn’t be a reality. Which can indicated the novels rapidness can also result in a lack of clarity and inaccuracy, leaving a feeling that the author prioritises are directed at a hurried ending. My personal advice would be improving certain interactions and developing Ellen’s internal monologues, to remove the problem of its murkiness and rushed feeling throughout.

    Although this book is not one of my preferred genres, I wouldn’t discourage anyone from choosing this unique novel as I can certainly view someone else enjoying this writing style, displaying itself as a clear individual within the world’s multitudinous library.

  • An event featuring author and filmmaker Matt Dickinson

    Oliver Mellor

    On Thursday the 11th of April, myself and lots of lucky students had the pleasure of attending an eye opening event with author and filmmaker – Matt Dickinson. Who is most notably famous for ascending into the clouds through the notorious North Face of Mount Everest in 1996, amid the worst inclement conditions ever recorded. This would leave a significant mark on the author as it influenced him to write ‘The Everest Files’ – an award winning trilogy. 

    I attended the event as an exclusive journalist, where I was able to learn about Matt’s enthralling adventure through the narrow corridors of publishing and during his exploration through the worlds library. He has met authors such as Jeff Kinney, Michael Morpurgo and astonishingly at Edinburgh Book Festival; Matt met the then unknown writer of the Harry Potter series – J.K Rowling who was preparing to publicise the first of a soon to be successful series. As well as his writing career, Matt has also worked on the debut series of ‘Man Vs Wild’ which not only begun but elevated the then unknown Bear Grylls’s and his future career. Which the students had the grotesque experience of viewing Bear consume a pair of Palm Weevil grubs, alive and wild. 

    Continuing on his influences, Matt told us about how he himself had become interested regarding Everest and his creativity. The Ascent of Everest by John Hunt which Matt had been given by his grandfather was the match that sparked his future. 

    Since we were all completely encapsulated within the idea of writing our own individual climb up the almost unconquerable peak, Matt then proposed that we could write a piece of writing in the style of a postcard. Which would entail our experience or journey upon the ‘goddess mother of the world’. Helping to enhance our imaginations, Matt had collected pictures to paint his powerpoint canvas. These detailed the Mountains beautifulness while contrasting this with some lamentable and startling ones that certainly taught the attendees the power of mother nature. Arguably, the most notable pictures proposed the argument of should Everest become a tourist attraction or stay sacred and belong to the locals. This could clearly be seen as certain pictures showed the landfill and exploitation of the porters*. Once the event had closed, the students were able to have their books signed by Matt himself and to be treasured forever.

    I am certain that myself and the fellow attendees would recommend this experience to anyone else if they want to attend a future talk featuring Matt. Definitely, also check out Matts books and notably the fascinating Everest Files trilogy. Perfect for those interested in Geography, creative writing and a thrilling story.

    *A porter is someone who is employed to carry luggage and other loads. Shockingly, some porters are even as young as 16 and hired to carry 116 kilos for £8 a day.