Where Are We Now?
Published on 5. March 2020
Book
Hardback
256 pages
978-1-83893-198-8 (ISBN)
Description
A moving, funny and topical novel about lost love, growing older and the realities of life in a society that is still coming to terms with thirty years of violence from the author of Gull and Backstop Land.
'No one is more acutely tuned to the heartbeat of Belfast than Glenn Patterson and no one is more skilled at capturing all its love and madness. He does so with both tenderness and humour' DAVID PARK.
When he unexpectly loses his job, Herbie struggles to find a purpose. His wife, the great love of his life, has long left him for a Southerner, and his daughter has fled Belfast for London in search of work and an easier life.
But a local cafe under new ownership, a friend in need and an unexpected spark of romance give Herbie something to wake up for.
From the author of Gull and Backstop Land, Where Are We Now? is a novel about lost love, growing older and the realities of life in a society still haunted by decades of violence. By turns moving and funny, topical and sharp, it is a life-affirming story of a life not yet over.
'No one is more acutely tuned to the heartbeat of Belfast than Glenn Patterson and no one is more skilled at capturing all its love and madness. He does so with both tenderness and humour' DAVID PARK.
When he unexpectly loses his job, Herbie struggles to find a purpose. His wife, the great love of his life, has long left him for a Southerner, and his daughter has fled Belfast for London in search of work and an easier life.
But a local cafe under new ownership, a friend in need and an unexpected spark of romance give Herbie something to wake up for.
From the author of Gull and Backstop Land, Where Are We Now? is a novel about lost love, growing older and the realities of life in a society still haunted by decades of violence. By turns moving and funny, topical and sharp, it is a life-affirming story of a life not yet over.
Reviews / Votes
'[Patterson] succeeds in creating a lively, colour-filled local population whose members also seem symbolic of decay, survival and renewal ... Patterson, who has been a vivid chronicler of Northern Ireland over the past 30 years, writes with wit and lyricism and with such a profound sense of place that I found myself reading his words in a Northern accent. Glen Patterson, like Van Morrison, makes you nostalgic for a past you never had' Irish Times. 'Funny, touching, topical and entertaining' Choice Magazine. 'Glenn Patterson is a civic lodestar in his native city, but mostly he is one of the handful of important writers this island has produced in 30 years. His 11th novel is bidding to be one of his best yet. Where Are We Now? [is] a measured work with all his gifts for identifying vulnerability matured and seasoned' Belfast Telegraph. 'Glenn Patterson gives voice to the fear that when our children leave home and our relationships end, we lose grip on who we are ... This is a beautiful novel from one of Belfast's most notable writers and it offers an opportunity for a lesson in healing and optimism for us all' Waterford Star & News.More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Head of Zeus
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 153 mm
ISBN-13
978-1-83893-198-8 (9781838931988)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Person
Glenn Patterson was born and lives in Belfast. He has written a number of acclaimed novels including Fat Lad, The International, The Mill for Grinding Old People Young and Gull and he co-wrote the screenplay of the film Good Vibrations, based on the Belfast music scene of the 1970s. His first non-fiction book, Backstop Land, was published by Head of Zeus in 2019. He is Director of the Seamus Heaney Centre at Queen's University.