8,386
edits
Changes
Johnny Swanson by Eleanor Updale (view source)
Revision as of 11:03, 15 April 2010
, 11:03, 15 April 2010no edit summary
Winnie works hard at several jobs and Johnny does his bit by doing a paper round for Hutch at the local shop, but when Mr Bennett announces a rent increase, things don't look good. Fresh from his own embarrassment at the hands of the author of the ''Secret of Instant Height'' advertisement he read in the paper, Johnny embarks upon his own scam advert career in an effort to improve the household finances. Of course, he can't tell anybody this is what he's about and so one lie to cover it up adds to another, and another, and another. And then Dr Langford, a proponent of the newfangled BCG vaccination for tuberculosis, is murdered. Before he knows it, Johnny's attempt to help his mother has put her very life in danger...
Oh, I did enjoy ''Johnny Swanson'' - it's serious ''and'' funny. Johnny's adverts are hilarious - How to get into films: ''Go to the cinema'', Free yourself from nosy neighbours: ''Move house'' - and the stack of gullible respondents seems to grow bigger and bigger, the more outlandish his suggestions become. But it's also quite tense at times, as Johnny goes detective, desperately trying to save his mother from a murder conviction and the hangman's noose. And it has serious points to make about quackery and medical malpractice, about the evils of gossip and the mob mentality, and about being honest and taking responsibility for the things that you've done.
Amidst all this, Updale also manages to paint a vivid and interesting picture of life between the two World Wars. What more could you want?!