It Was An Accident... Jeremy Cameron Simon & Schuster, 1996; pp 250; £14.99 pbk
| Date | 01 September 1996 |
| Author | Craig Steeland |
| Published date | 01 September 1996 |
| DOI | 10.1177/026455059604300310 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
’There is no doubt that increasing
year stretch, subject to a parole licence, and
legislation and advice from both Europe
not reporting as instructed. The story
and
Westminster aimed at safeguarding
basically describes Nicky’s reactions to the
the rights of individuals is on a collision
various pressures upon him either to
course with the expectations of other
resume
his life of crime with his mates or
government departments concerned with
to find his way onto a straighter and
public safety.’
narrower path. He eventually finds himself
at the centre of a growing confrontation
Taken as a whole, this book provides
between two sets of bizarre alliances, one
useful and up-to-date perspectives on a
of which includes Nicky, his mates and the
topic frequently informed more by rhetoric
least bent members of the local police
than by reality.
force, and the other which involves a long
Professor Herchel Prins
list of unlikely bedfellows, including an
Loughborough University
SPO
and the manager of the local
Sainsbury’s store.
Whilst the love of a good woman
emerges as the strongest influence upon
Nicky to go straight, it is perhaps inevitable
that the wild excesses of the plot carry him
on to a point where he is certain never to
become a member
of the badminton club
frequented by the more staid characters in
the book.
Carefully written entirely in dialect, the
novel would seem to sit in a position next
to the new ‘Irvlne Welsh’ genre of gritty
fiction. The book’s great strength is the
powerful and utterly non-judgmental way
in which the author develops the character
of Nicky Burkett with understanding,
respect and affection. As Nicky told his
It Was An Accident...
story, I was moved at times to tears or
laughter. But for me the high point of the
Jeremy Cameron
book was the description of Nicky’s
s
Simon &
Schuster, 1996; pp 250;
reactions to his first experiences in the
£14.99 pbk
West Indies - a wonderful clash of culture,
After
class and colour. His tour around the
...
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