Reviews tagging 'Suicide attempt'

The Young Team by Graeme Armstrong

4 reviews

stebo24's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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memydogandbooks's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book is full of swagger!

SYNOPSIS:
This is a coming-of-age story set in a violent Glasgow gang culture. Azzy Williams joins a gang in his teens (2004) and experiences the brutality, drugs, and yearning for escape that defines his youth. The story follows him until 2012, where he fights for a different future.

MY THOUGHTS:
  • Written in Lanarkshire Scots for those less au-fait with this Scots language it can take a page or two to get into, I couldn't imagine it written any other way. Like Trainspotting it's part of the story-telling.
  • Armstrong's fictional story, based on his real-life experiences, is a gut punch, it's brutal, it's heartwarming, tragic, terrifying, powerful and poetic.
  • It gives a candid insight into Scottish young people's life in gangs, their need for a sense of belonging and to feel included in life when around them is a world of hopelessness and exclusion.
  • This book made me laugh but it also made my jaw drop as you emotionally follow Azzy and his pals through tribulation of gang and drug culture.
  • Armstrong's writing is poetic, some of the scenes where his main character Azzy is getting high on party drugs and going to raves are just so immersive, and similarly, when he writes about Azzy's drug withdrawal you can't help but feel you are going through it with him.
  • Rightly deemded the Trainspotting book for the next generation this is a powerful story that will stay with me for a long time.
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yer_real_da's review against another edition

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funny hopeful informative reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Wit a book. For a debut novel, Armstrong knocks it oot eh park. Azzy is a compelling protagonist and his ensemble, while hard tae tell apart at first, are a great team. As someone who grew up  and lives in a scheme everything in this book rings true to the sort of stuff I'd see the elder troops doing back in eh day. It's also cracking seeing somecunt shamelessly writing in Scots, no being feart of eh backlash that can come wae it; clearly a wee something picked up fae his hero Irvine. The book slows doon a bit during the rave stage. I was a bit eckied oot after watching Human Traffic and reading Skagboys so having to go through getting telt how ecstasy makes you "feel the love, man" was making me ready tae skip it. The last half of the book however is probably the best part, A'm the same age as Azzy at this point in the book and it's all so real. Must-read for anycunt that was around for the YT culture of the 00s whether ye were about it or no, cannae wait for future English teachers to shove this doon wains' throats instead of Carol Anne Duffy.
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kellyinbookland's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny sad tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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