Just Ignore Him: A BBC Two Between the Covers book club pick
Sep 2020 · Hachette UK
4.7star
31 reviewsreport
Ebook
288
Pages
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About this ebook
'A simply astonishing achievement. The quality, depth, emotional power and terrifying honesty of Alan Davies's story-telling take the breath away' Stephen Fry
'This hugely affecting book is brave, insightful and, at times, funny about things it is hard to be funny about' Jo Brand
The story of a life built on sand. In the rain.
In this compelling memoir, comedian and actor Alan Davies recalls his boyhood with vivid insight and devastating humour. Shifting between his 1970s upbringing and his life today, Davies moves poignantly from innocence to experience to the clarity of hindsight, always with a keen sense of the absurd.
From sibling dynamics, to his voiceless, misunderstood progression through school, sexuality and humiliating 'accidents', Davies inhabits his younger mind with spectacular accuracy, sharply evoking an era when Green Shield Stamps, Bob-a-Job week and Whizzer & Chips loomed large, a bus fare was 2p - and children had little power in the face of adult motivation. Here, there are often exquisitely tender recollections of the mother he lost at six years old, of a bereaved family struggling to find its way, and the kicks and confusion of adolescence.
Through even the joyous and innocent memories, the pain of Davies's lifelong grief and profound betrayal is unfiltered, searing and beautifully articulated. Just Ignore Him is not only an autobiography, it is a testament to a survivor's resilience and courage.
Featured on the BBC Two Between the Covers programme on 6 November 2020
'This hugely affecting book is brave, insightful and, at times, funny about things it is hard to be funny about' Jo Brand
The story of a life built on sand. In the rain.
In this compelling memoir, comedian and actor Alan Davies recalls his boyhood with vivid insight and devastating humour. Shifting between his 1970s upbringing and his life today, Davies moves poignantly from innocence to experience to the clarity of hindsight, always with a keen sense of the absurd.
From sibling dynamics, to his voiceless, misunderstood progression through school, sexuality and humiliating 'accidents', Davies inhabits his younger mind with spectacular accuracy, sharply evoking an era when Green Shield Stamps, Bob-a-Job week and Whizzer & Chips loomed large, a bus fare was 2p - and children had little power in the face of adult motivation. Here, there are often exquisitely tender recollections of the mother he lost at six years old, of a bereaved family struggling to find its way, and the kicks and confusion of adolescence.
Through even the joyous and innocent memories, the pain of Davies's lifelong grief and profound betrayal is unfiltered, searing and beautifully articulated. Just Ignore Him is not only an autobiography, it is a testament to a survivor's resilience and courage.
Featured on the BBC Two Between the Covers programme on 6 November 2020
Ratings and reviews
4.7
31 reviews
Chris
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October 5, 2020
I have been a fan of Alan Davies for at least a decade. I also experienced many of the things that he talks about in his book, including sexual abuse, being ostracized by my family and friends, and a general feeling that something was wrong with me my entire life. This book was extremely liberating for me in a brutal, raw, but somehow beautiful way. Every injustice that he described, I empathized with keenly and profoundly. It felt as if he was speaking directly to me. I thank Alan from the absolute bottom of my heart for writing this excellent book.
11 people found this review helpful
Sanda FitzGerald
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September 12, 2020
My heart breaks for the young Alan Davies as I read this book. A fearless, honest and at times, viscerally raw account of his childhood trauma - the early loss of his mother, a stealthy, manipulative and abusive father, overlaid with the fear that keeps so many children's lips sealed. I hope that writing it helped set him free.
9 people found this review helpful
Susi Jenkins
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January 30, 2021
Astonishing, beautiful writing, moving and above all important. Alan's account of a childhood and adolescence stolen from him by his abusive, cruel and malevolent father, is excrutiating in the extreme. I hope his lovely mum who he lost at 6 and a half, didn't suffer at the hand of her husband, and I hope that she got to laugh and applaud her clever, funny son, from whichever cloud she's on.
3 people found this review helpful
About the author
Alan Davies is a comedian, writer and actor, best known for starring in the hit BBC series Jonathan Creek and his regular appearances as a panellist on QI.
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