Why read Skinhead?

Book cover of Skinhead

Book description

Sixteen-year-old Joe Hawkins is the anti-hero’s anti-hero. His life is ruled by clothes, beer, football and above all violence – violence against hippies, authority, racial minorities and anyone else unfortunate enough to get in his way.

Joe is a London skinhead – a member of a uniquely British subculture which…

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Topics

White supremacy

Genres

Literary fiction

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Why read it?

1 author picked Skinhead as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Sam Tobin

Author

I am haunted by the story that Richard Allen heard skinheads were a thing, went to a pub, bought a couple of local skinheads a few pints while he pumped them for stories and then went away and wrote Skinhead in a weekend.

A weekend?! It totally shows. Skinhead is as rough, nasty, and real as pulp fiction gets. Titular skinhead Joe Hawkins is a horrendously violent teenage thug, but beyond the aggro is a beautiful pen portrait of working-class London in the 70s. All chipped formica and smashed in faces.

It’s the sort of raw crime writing I find…

From Sam's list on The best books for characters who do unforgivably terrible things but still somehow end up the hero.