On the Pig's Back

From the renowned author of Alfie comes an autobiography that provides both a fascinating memoir of a bygone era -- the North of England before World War II -- and a moving account of the struggles of a self-taught man to find his voice as a writer. At age 30, Bill Naughton was a married manwith two children, driving a coal truck in Bolton for a living. Getting up around midnight to write, he found that the effort of shaping a single sentence brought him out in a thicker sweat than did the loading of a few tons of coal. But eventually, after years of strain and torment, he had by 1945published and broadcast a number of stories, and his first book, A Roof Over Your Head, was in its third printing. The events leading up to this transformation make a lively narrative, spiced with hints on writing which no aspirant should miss.

A visit to his birthplace in County Mayo in 1945 results in a description rich in forgotten folklore and custom of the Irish people, and in turn leads to the story of his family's emigration. At the age of 4, Naughton was loathe to leave his Irish home but was finally persuaded by his mother, whotold him that once in England they would all be "on the pig's back" (or "high on the hog"). Bolton during the Great War and the Depression is then vividly evoked in a series of portraits: domestic life in a coalmining family; the author's career at Catholic elementary school; the raucous streetscene of the day; and the degradations of life on the dole. With a wonderful ear for dialogue and the rhythms of local speech, Bill Naughton gives the reader a unique look at the triumphs and tragedies of pre-war working class life.