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Backstories - Simon Van der Velde



DESCRIPTION

These are people you know, but not as you know them. Peel back the mask and see.

CAN YOU FIND THE FAMOUS PERSON HIDDEN IN EVERY STORY?

Dreamers, singers, heroes and killers, they can dazzle with their beauty or their talent or their unmitigated evil, yet inside themselves, they are as frail and desperate as the rest of us. But can you see them? Can you unravel the truth?

‘Oh, how I enjoyed these stories. A highly original and beautifully crafted collection that explodes into the reader’s consciousness like fireworks’ - Kate Horsley, award-winning author of The American Girl.

‘Tightly written, technically accomplished, light-footed, wryly ironic and genuinely affecting. Excellent stuff’ - Professor Graham Mort, Director of The Centre for Transcultural Writing and Research and winner of both the Bridport Prize and The Edge Hill Prize.

This book is dedicated to the victims of violent crime, the struggle against discrimination in all its forms and making the world a better place for our children. That is why 30% of all profits will be shared between Stop Hate UK, The North East Autism Society and Friends of the Earth.


MY BACKSTORIES QUEST

“Whatever happened to, all of the heroes?” The Stranglers 1977

I was twelve years old when I first heard this song and although there was something in the feral tone that grabbed me, I didn’t really understand it. I do now. I get the angst and the loss and the emptiness, which is why, in Backstories, I aim to answer the question.

I’m not interested in simplistic tabloid truths. They clung on too long, drank too much, lost their looks and their charm and generally reminded us that we’re all getting older. That’s not what I want from my heroes.

What I want is to find the spark, to dig down into their pain, their passions and their imperfections, and show you our heroes as they truly are.

So join me on my quest. Let’s bypass the obvious, the tedious, and the dull. Brave the deeper, darker paths where the treasures can be found, and together we’ll uncover the fears and doubts that made our heroes what they were and perhaps catch a glimpse of ourselves along the way.

Whatever happened to all of the heroes?

They turned out to be human beings, in all their diverse glory.

Simon Van der Velde January, 2021


This book is dedicated to the victims of violent crime, the struggle against discrimination in all its forms and making the world a better place for our children. That is why 30% of all profits will be shared between Stop Hate UK, The North East Autism Society and Friends of the Earth.


REVIEW

I was really intrigued by the premise of these short stories, but also concerned that I was going to be smart enough to figure out who they all were...

Immediately I was drawn into the first story by the wonderful voice it was told in. Half way through it and I guessed who it was! Not even my era either. This certainly appealed to the "detective" in me as I eagerly went to the next story.

Eventually I got to a story and could not fathom out who it was. I read and reread it and then hit upon the idea of googling a few clues, and there it was plain as day! I found the stories to be not only very cleverly and beautifully written, but educational too, as I needed to google one other story to solve who the person was.

Most of the stories have a one liner at the end that seals who it is about, but I was starting to want to guess before I got there - it was really addictive. I loved the narrator voice in every story. It easily switched from American to Mancunian and many others whilst maintaining a realism and authenticity to the dialogue.

Some of the stories are hard to read, there is no softening of history here, so be prepared. I don't always like short stories because I feel they can leave you hanging. Not so with this collection. They are just the right length to read in between other books, or when you have a moment to spare. I wasn't left thinking "is that it" as can sometimes happen to me with short stories.

I'm giving this collection of short stories 5 out of 5 stars. Please do get a copy, as 30% of all profits will be shared between Stop Hate UK, The North East Autism Society and Friends of the Earth.

Get your copy here http://bit.ly/Amazon-Backstories

My thanks to Simon for a ecopy of the book to review.

You can find out more about the author here www.simonvandervelde.com

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