Teenage Revolution

My recent reading trend seems to be reading the thoughts of memories of men the same age as my Dad. Most of them were also bought for me by my Dad. Nevertheless the most recent, Alan Davies' Teenage Revolution was an interesting read.

You would only really be interested in the book if you are a fan of actor and comedian, Alan Davies. Although the book does cover a lot of the issues of the 1970s and '80s such as racism, music and The Sweeney, it is all through the eyes of Davies and what he was doing at the time. 

The book also came with a television series a few years ago, which lightly touched upon the issues of the era in the way that Davies saw it.

However, for an autobiography Davies is honest that a lot of what he remembers is in fact wrong once he has looked it up. Even simple things have escaped him. He saw his favourite band, The Jam, six times. He can in fact only remember three of those gigs.

It does make my childhood sound quite dull. I went to school and then I came home and did my homework, not really book worthy. Davies did similar things but he grew up in more interesting times. In his earlier years Davies does reminisce about the television shows he watched and what they meant to him. When he got older he had to deal with racism at his school and at the football matches he attended. Likewise with people his age learning about homosexuality and finding the kid at school to bully over that.

Mostly I am jealous at the music he grew up with. Having the chance to see The Jam is enviable. Whereas I had a myriad of shit girl bands and boy bands to feign interest in to appear normal.

The saddest thing about the book though is the fact that Davies lost his mother when he was very young. Missing his mum is something that you can tell in almost every page, which makes the book more than just a vague memory of his childhood. And you realise what a terribly shitty thing it is to happen to a child, and how it never really leaves them.