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Wee Rockets
Wee Rockets does for Belfast what Irvine Welsh did for Edinburgh. A gang of fourteen-year-old hoods rampage through West Belfast, indulging in violent street crime and mugging pensioners to pay for cider, cigarettes and sweets. Branded scum by a shocked community and pursued by a dogged local vigilante, the young gangsters’ antisocial behaviour soon escalates into something much worse.
268 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 13, 2011
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91 people want to read
About the author
Gerard Brennan
36 books43 followersGerard Brennan's latest novel is Disorder, Published by No Alibis Press. His short stories have appeared in a number of anthologies; including three volumes of The Mammoth Book of Best British Crime and Belfast Noir. He co-edited Requiems for the Departed, a collection of crime fiction based on Irish myths which won the 2011 Spinetingler Award for best anthology. His novella, The Point, was published by Pulp Press in October 2011 and won the 2012 Spinetingler Award for best novella. His novels, Wee Rockets and Fireproof, were published as ebooks by Blasted Heath in 2012. He graduated from the MA in creative writing at Queen's University Belfast in 2012 and is currently working on a PhD.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 14, 2017
This is a novel from a young writer in Northern Ireland. It's the story of a gang of young Belfast thugs - kids around the age of 14 from a West Belfast low income neighborhood, Beechmount. The gang - the Wee Rockets - start off mugging senior citizens and move on to more and more violent crimes. The main character, 14 year old Joe lives with his mother. At the beginning of the novel, Stephen Mc Veigh, a 30-something resident of Beechmount decides he wants to do something about the gang. It was never clear to me what his motivation was. To do so, he decides to make the moves on Joe's mom, and starts a relationship with her. There's a lot of violence and unsavory characters in this novel. But I felt the character development was lacking. A reader might think that gang members and residents of low income neighborhoods don't have inner lives so don't notice this thin character development. As the gang wrecks havoc in their neighborhood, readers may just decide when they go to Belfast, they'll avoid that area. But then the gang moves into the city center, and shopping malls, targeting middle class members of the public. I just imagine some readers then crossing Belfast off their list. I would have liked to have more depth to the story and characters. Even the PSNI are just cut-outs, arriving when they do manage to get to a crime scene, too late to be any help.
January 4, 2012
Youthful unrest and angst surface through a gritty street gang called the Wee Rockets in West Belfast. The Irish fourteen-year-olds engage in narcotics, auto theft, and armed robbery where violence and death are often the outcome. I got caught up in their life stories, enjoying their snappy dialogue, proud independence, and brazen capers. Joe Phillips and his mate Wee Danny get each other's back, a good thing we see whenever the chips are down. I don't think I'll ever drink another Dr. Pepper. I haven't seen or read that many crime novels using the central topic of street gangs, and this one is a well-written and fast-paced corker, reminding me of Richard Price's classic title Clockers. Good stuff.
March 2, 2013
Wee Rockets follows a gang of teenagers as they rampage through Belfast, Northern Ireland. The gang is led by Joe and his sidekick Danny as they undertake ‘petty’ crime. But Joe decides to step aside and Liam takes his place. However, Liam isn’t interested in small time crime that only generates beer money, his is a plan with much higher stakes.
This is a cleverly plotted story with many subtle and not-so-subtle aspects. First Wee Rockets is set just after The Troubles that so wracked the country. It is a strong, but not distracting backdrop. Almost everyone has problems as a result, be it bad relationships, unemployment or just plain boredom. In fact, pretty much every character in Wee Rockets is dislikable and flawed. The gang themselves have virtually no prospects in life, however they do not fight for them either – they take from others weaker than themselves, including their own gang members. Thinking about it this could be the case in any underclass society in a deprived area, not just Belfast.
There’s another element about the characters in that even the ‘good’ guys, those not in the gang, aren’t exactly whiter than white. One, Stephen, is so keen to rid the estate of the problem that he starts a relationship with one of the kid’s mothers.
As Wee Rockets progresses the behaviours worsen, from petty violence to assault and battery and to attempted murder. It’s not pretty, but it remains believable. That’s what gives this book real depth and interest. The dialogue is excellent, riddled with interesting, local dialect. The sense of place is equally powerful.
Here’s an example of the no-holds-barred narrative at the beginning of the story:
They spilled out of the alley and surrounded the blue-rinse bitch like a cursing tornado. She screamed, but they moved too fast for the curtain-twitchers to react. Broken nose bleeding, she dropped her handbag and tried to fend off the kicks and punches.
This is another piece of first-rate work from Gerard Brennan.
**Originally reviewed for Books and Pals Blog. May have received free review copy.**
This is a cleverly plotted story with many subtle and not-so-subtle aspects. First Wee Rockets is set just after The Troubles that so wracked the country. It is a strong, but not distracting backdrop. Almost everyone has problems as a result, be it bad relationships, unemployment or just plain boredom. In fact, pretty much every character in Wee Rockets is dislikable and flawed. The gang themselves have virtually no prospects in life, however they do not fight for them either – they take from others weaker than themselves, including their own gang members. Thinking about it this could be the case in any underclass society in a deprived area, not just Belfast.
There’s another element about the characters in that even the ‘good’ guys, those not in the gang, aren’t exactly whiter than white. One, Stephen, is so keen to rid the estate of the problem that he starts a relationship with one of the kid’s mothers.
As Wee Rockets progresses the behaviours worsen, from petty violence to assault and battery and to attempted murder. It’s not pretty, but it remains believable. That’s what gives this book real depth and interest. The dialogue is excellent, riddled with interesting, local dialect. The sense of place is equally powerful.
Here’s an example of the no-holds-barred narrative at the beginning of the story:
They spilled out of the alley and surrounded the blue-rinse bitch like a cursing tornado. She screamed, but they moved too fast for the curtain-twitchers to react. Broken nose bleeding, she dropped her handbag and tried to fend off the kicks and punches.
This is another piece of first-rate work from Gerard Brennan.
**Originally reviewed for Books and Pals Blog. May have received free review copy.**
January 22, 2012
Almost a humanitarian study of mislead youths whose appetite for destruction is superseded by their unrelenting need to be part of a family - albeit criminal and dysfunctional. Brennan explores the preteen psyche daring to tread into the sad and dark world that is teenage gang life. Despite the gritty setting and all purpose violence on display, 'Wee Rockets' delivers a soothing voice of hope and a shot at redemption for former gang members and victims alike. In reading 'Wee Rockets' fathers will explore anxiety, fear, and all manner of concern for their sons as they progress through this difficult stage in their development. I'm yet to read a novel that pulls at the heartstrings as much while still providing a great form of escapism and well executed plot fulfilled by engaging and believable characters. 5 stars.
November 3, 2014
Gerard Brennan is one hell of a talented writer. His new novel, Wee Rockets, is proof of this. It’s a step up again from his hugely enjoyable novella The Point and I suspect is another stone along a path destined for big things.
The subject of the book is a gang of kids on a Belfast estate. They’ve been lead by Joe and his sidekick Danny to mugging local pensioners in order to raise money for fags and booze.
When a local Bruce Lee fan (Stephen McVeigh) decides to take on the gang, Joe and Danny decide it’s time to move on (it becomes especially complicated when McVeigh starts sleeping with Joe’s mother in order to gain further information).
Problem is the new leader of the Wee Rockets is unbalanced and greedy, so it’s not long before the Rockets have spread their wings and taken on some bigger targets.
Enter Joe’s estranged father. He’s returned to his home after time on the run. He’s still on the run, only this time he’s escaping England. It’s through his eyes that we get to see some of the changes in the city and get to feel a sense of sympathy for those who have no way of adapting to the pace of change as quickly as it’s happening. It’s also through him that we get to see that things were ever thus – the neighbourhood is tough and those who live there need to display the hides of rhinos to get by.
Tracking the plot wouldn’t be of help. The Rockets get themselves into increasingly brazen robberies and assaults and the lives of everyone involved overlap with entertaining and sometimes disturbing results.
There’s no doubt that this is a crime book given the mischief that goes on and Brennan never shirks the darkness or the brutality.
It’s hard-hitting when the time is right and he chooses those moments very well indeed.
It’s also the case that the development of the crime plots themselves isn’t the key to the quality of the work. What is really striking is the way the characters are so well-crafted and always engaging. It didn’t take me long at all for me to feel I knew them all and had done for a while. I can best honour that (and it’s intended as an honour) by mentioning the Coronation Street residents who are so well penned that years can go by and they can be revisited and pinned-down again within seconds of tuning back in.
The other aspect of the characters that I particularly liked is the way they are likeable in the main in spite of the things they get up to. They are presented warts and all, yet in such a way that there are parallels with situation comedy – Brennan uses humour with great variety in a way that suggests he might try turning his hand to film and TV very successfully at some point (if he hasn’t already); there are one-liners, pratfalls and situational plays all the way through.
I’ve become a big fan over a fairly short space of time and would recommend this highly in the hope that it helps to gets the book the audience it deserves.
A real joyride of a read you should be seeking out before long.
Champion.
The subject of the book is a gang of kids on a Belfast estate. They’ve been lead by Joe and his sidekick Danny to mugging local pensioners in order to raise money for fags and booze.
When a local Bruce Lee fan (Stephen McVeigh) decides to take on the gang, Joe and Danny decide it’s time to move on (it becomes especially complicated when McVeigh starts sleeping with Joe’s mother in order to gain further information).
Problem is the new leader of the Wee Rockets is unbalanced and greedy, so it’s not long before the Rockets have spread their wings and taken on some bigger targets.
Enter Joe’s estranged father. He’s returned to his home after time on the run. He’s still on the run, only this time he’s escaping England. It’s through his eyes that we get to see some of the changes in the city and get to feel a sense of sympathy for those who have no way of adapting to the pace of change as quickly as it’s happening. It’s also through him that we get to see that things were ever thus – the neighbourhood is tough and those who live there need to display the hides of rhinos to get by.
Tracking the plot wouldn’t be of help. The Rockets get themselves into increasingly brazen robberies and assaults and the lives of everyone involved overlap with entertaining and sometimes disturbing results.
There’s no doubt that this is a crime book given the mischief that goes on and Brennan never shirks the darkness or the brutality.
It’s hard-hitting when the time is right and he chooses those moments very well indeed.
It’s also the case that the development of the crime plots themselves isn’t the key to the quality of the work. What is really striking is the way the characters are so well-crafted and always engaging. It didn’t take me long at all for me to feel I knew them all and had done for a while. I can best honour that (and it’s intended as an honour) by mentioning the Coronation Street residents who are so well penned that years can go by and they can be revisited and pinned-down again within seconds of tuning back in.
The other aspect of the characters that I particularly liked is the way they are likeable in the main in spite of the things they get up to. They are presented warts and all, yet in such a way that there are parallels with situation comedy – Brennan uses humour with great variety in a way that suggests he might try turning his hand to film and TV very successfully at some point (if he hasn’t already); there are one-liners, pratfalls and situational plays all the way through.
I’ve become a big fan over a fairly short space of time and would recommend this highly in the hope that it helps to gets the book the audience it deserves.
A real joyride of a read you should be seeking out before long.
Champion.
January 13, 2014
The product description for Wee Rockets put me off reading the book for several months. "Does for Belfast what Irvine Welsh did for Edinburgh."
For me, this wasn't a great endorsement and puts Brennan's book into a category of book in one's mind that it simply doesn't merit being in.
Welsh is skilled in putting detestable people in crass and darkly humorous situations and making you cringe and laugh at their exploits, the whole while knowing that you're sharing in their badness, just a little merely by laughing.
Scottish and Irish fiction is littered with stereotypic, 'wee Ned' characters, shoved in front of the readers or viewers to be sneered at from middle-class living rooms.
The worst as a heavy-handed scum-monger, Irvine Welsh managed one sympathetic novel in his masterpiece Glue, in which he fleshes out some real and sympathetic characters. It took Welsh four books to achieve this kind of writing, Brennan did this with seeming ease straight from the off with this book.
With Wee Rockets, Gerard Brennan gives you complex characters to pity, yes, but also to cheer for, shake your head at and relate to. Most importantly he lays their motives bare without judgement and allows the reader to empathise rather than marginalise.
That he conveys such a strong set of characters without asking the reader to judge them, or ridicule the very real people he's created in any way, is testament to his skill as a writer.
There's no morality tale here, merely a very good writer lifting the curtain to reveal people trapped in a tiny world of expectations (low) and dreams (big).
Brennan shows us the worst and best of his characters, without making them caricatures or victims; in this alone he surpasses Mr Welsh. Add in a wonderfully descriptive narrative, hugely grounded and believable characters and spot-on dialogue and you have one of my favourite new authors.
Excellent stuff.
For me, this wasn't a great endorsement and puts Brennan's book into a category of book in one's mind that it simply doesn't merit being in.
Welsh is skilled in putting detestable people in crass and darkly humorous situations and making you cringe and laugh at their exploits, the whole while knowing that you're sharing in their badness, just a little merely by laughing.
Scottish and Irish fiction is littered with stereotypic, 'wee Ned' characters, shoved in front of the readers or viewers to be sneered at from middle-class living rooms.
The worst as a heavy-handed scum-monger, Irvine Welsh managed one sympathetic novel in his masterpiece Glue, in which he fleshes out some real and sympathetic characters. It took Welsh four books to achieve this kind of writing, Brennan did this with seeming ease straight from the off with this book.
With Wee Rockets, Gerard Brennan gives you complex characters to pity, yes, but also to cheer for, shake your head at and relate to. Most importantly he lays their motives bare without judgement and allows the reader to empathise rather than marginalise.
That he conveys such a strong set of characters without asking the reader to judge them, or ridicule the very real people he's created in any way, is testament to his skill as a writer.
There's no morality tale here, merely a very good writer lifting the curtain to reveal people trapped in a tiny world of expectations (low) and dreams (big).
Brennan shows us the worst and best of his characters, without making them caricatures or victims; in this alone he surpasses Mr Welsh. Add in a wonderfully descriptive narrative, hugely grounded and believable characters and spot-on dialogue and you have one of my favourite new authors.
Excellent stuff.
March 30, 2013
My first encounter with Gerard Brennan's work was the excellent Fireproof, and I enjoyed it so much I immediately returned for more of his words. I don't really know what I expected from Wee Rockets, so I entered the realm of young troublemakers, single mothers, tough guy vigilante sportsmen and no-longer-absent dads with an open mind.
The characters start out as eminently unlikeable, but intriguing, especially the 'Wee Rockets' gang who beat and rob the elderly to keep themselves in cider and weed. The longer the tale goes on, however, the more likely you are to meet somebody else whose actions are even more abhorrent and your previous disdain is transferred to them instead. It's a technique that Brennan employs with great skill and grace, and I was overjoyed to see that the knack he had in Fireproof of delivering quality and believable dialogue is evident in his earlier work.
Joe and Wee Danny are the want-out leader and sidekick from the gang of youths who've been attacking aged members of the community, and the new glorious leader Liam is intent on taking the gang to new heights of crime with disasterous consequences. McVeigh is the local one-man vigilante mission intent on spoiling life for everybody, especially Joe, and Dermot the absent dad who's returned to the city to reunite himself with his son for his own selfish needs.
It's a harsh world he's created here, with some downright nasty characters who find themselves doing some rotten stuff, but it's compelling and enjoyable, and I for one am a big fan of Gerard Brennan's stuff. My only (and small) gripe is that none of the characters have the wit and charm of one of his other creations, Mike Rocks from Fireproof, but I think that's very much intentional.
Another great read.
The characters start out as eminently unlikeable, but intriguing, especially the 'Wee Rockets' gang who beat and rob the elderly to keep themselves in cider and weed. The longer the tale goes on, however, the more likely you are to meet somebody else whose actions are even more abhorrent and your previous disdain is transferred to them instead. It's a technique that Brennan employs with great skill and grace, and I was overjoyed to see that the knack he had in Fireproof of delivering quality and believable dialogue is evident in his earlier work.
Joe and Wee Danny are the want-out leader and sidekick from the gang of youths who've been attacking aged members of the community, and the new glorious leader Liam is intent on taking the gang to new heights of crime with disasterous consequences. McVeigh is the local one-man vigilante mission intent on spoiling life for everybody, especially Joe, and Dermot the absent dad who's returned to the city to reunite himself with his son for his own selfish needs.
It's a harsh world he's created here, with some downright nasty characters who find themselves doing some rotten stuff, but it's compelling and enjoyable, and I for one am a big fan of Gerard Brennan's stuff. My only (and small) gripe is that none of the characters have the wit and charm of one of his other creations, Mike Rocks from Fireproof, but I think that's very much intentional.
Another great read.
March 17, 2015
Set in Belfast after the peace process, this is a gritty, authentic story of a teenage gang who roam its streets looking for escape. Not from the 'Troubles', which are fading into history, albeit tentatively, but from the universal boredom inflicted on all older teenagers. To paraphrase some other sons of the province, 'They need excitement and they need it fast'. But Brennan doesn’t just throw out some laddish exploits to amuse, though there are some funny moments. No, rather than encouraging us to embrace the wee lad within, he does the opposite. The book begins with the gangs mugging of a grannie and the main characters decision to get out, away from that life, seeing it for the dead end that it is.
I'm not one for plot spoilers, so no details. What this is, is an engrossing story of a young man's search for who he is, and where he came from, intensified by the return of his dodgy,' jack the lad' father. It's as story of relationships stretched and strained by fluctuating loyalties and spiralling desperation, made real by the believability of Brennan's characters and dialogue. All of this would count for little, to me at least, if there wasn’t a plot to match it. Guess what?…Good guess. Never predictable or pedestrian, always entertaining, Brennan storytelling is more than up to the job. Another impressive Irish export…Their whiskeys pretty good too. A wee glass of Bushmills while you read it would do no harm. Highly Recommended.
I'm not one for plot spoilers, so no details. What this is, is an engrossing story of a young man's search for who he is, and where he came from, intensified by the return of his dodgy,' jack the lad' father. It's as story of relationships stretched and strained by fluctuating loyalties and spiralling desperation, made real by the believability of Brennan's characters and dialogue. All of this would count for little, to me at least, if there wasn’t a plot to match it. Guess what?…Good guess. Never predictable or pedestrian, always entertaining, Brennan storytelling is more than up to the job. Another impressive Irish export…Their whiskeys pretty good too. A wee glass of Bushmills while you read it would do no harm. Highly Recommended.
November 3, 2014
A tale of growing up in a poverty stricken environment yet with a gritty edge seldom seen. Brennan approaches emotive issues fearlessly and rightly so, he does it well.
Joe and his best friend Wee Danny have been leading a gang (the 'wee rockets') who had been terrorising older residents of their area in Belfast. The knowledge that someone suspects them and is attempting to make their life harder Joe hands control over to another member. At this point the importance of family and friendship is highlighted for the young lads and become, in a way,the reason they try and keep out of trouble. naturally in this environment trouble is not very far and when Joes absent father makes a reappearance you just know its not going to be for any admirable reasons.
I liked this book because it made me think about poverty and how poorer people are often made scapegoats within society. 'Hoodies' is a term used synonymously with anti social behaviour, single mothers(the same does not appear to be said about dads for some reason) are frequently used to represent immorality. Brennan doesn't try and dispel these stereotypes but neither does he try and add to them. Instead he discusses the gritty reality faced by teens in todays underpriviledged societies.
Joe and his best friend Wee Danny have been leading a gang (the 'wee rockets') who had been terrorising older residents of their area in Belfast. The knowledge that someone suspects them and is attempting to make their life harder Joe hands control over to another member. At this point the importance of family and friendship is highlighted for the young lads and become, in a way,the reason they try and keep out of trouble. naturally in this environment trouble is not very far and when Joes absent father makes a reappearance you just know its not going to be for any admirable reasons.
I liked this book because it made me think about poverty and how poorer people are often made scapegoats within society. 'Hoodies' is a term used synonymously with anti social behaviour, single mothers(the same does not appear to be said about dads for some reason) are frequently used to represent immorality. Brennan doesn't try and dispel these stereotypes but neither does he try and add to them. Instead he discusses the gritty reality faced by teens in todays underpriviledged societies.
Read
December 21, 2021Wee Rockets isn’t an easy read, especially for those of us who have lived in areas where marauding pint-sized and adult-sized yobs have wreaked havoc, making you terrified to leave your own home - just swap Belfast for Glasgow in my case. Yet author Gerard Brennan offers us an insight into the life of these yobs which makes you realise (at least in this case) that there is fear behind all that bravado, despite the fact that the book opens with the mugging of an old lady.
The story that emerges is an unexpected one, which makes you wonder had they lived in a better environment that these kids would have turned out differently.
Brennan also stays truthful to the way these kids speak without making the text unreadable for those not used to ‘the craic.’ The Northern Ireland tourist board will not thank him either for the picture he paints of Belfast, but it’s probably a realistic one.
I like my fiction to be escapist, hence the four stars.
I look forward to reading more books by the author of The Point.
The story that emerges is an unexpected one, which makes you wonder had they lived in a better environment that these kids would have turned out differently.
Brennan also stays truthful to the way these kids speak without making the text unreadable for those not used to ‘the craic.’ The Northern Ireland tourist board will not thank him either for the picture he paints of Belfast, but it’s probably a realistic one.
I like my fiction to be escapist, hence the four stars.
I look forward to reading more books by the author of The Point.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2012
Not bad at all - especially as I got it free from Amazon for the Kindle. I enjoyed the local speech and use of language as well as the scene setting. Evokes a good sense of the Belfast streets but also what it's like to be a young lad anywhere you are faced with dilemmas about belonging, good v bad, wanting your parents and rejecting your parents. A fast paced read and hard to put down at times.
April 12, 2024
Truely a thing of dark beauty,
One of the best most relatable coming of age stories I have every read, like, Lord of the Flies fuck off and get with the times.
Does leave one craving a fag and a wee bit of cider, just for old times though...
A wee Irish Clockwork Orange. for the 2000s
Better than the Dory Girls.... but just as many Wee's
One of the best most relatable coming of age stories I have every read, like, Lord of the Flies fuck off and get with the times.
Does leave one craving a fag and a wee bit of cider, just for old times though...
A wee Irish Clockwork Orange. for the 2000s
Better than the Dory Girls.... but just as many Wee's
November 3, 2014
Oh my, what have we done to our children? WEE ROCKETS should be used as a manifesto to bring about change in our society. You might read this brilliant new novel by Gerard Brennan and think that the teenage gang that he writes about is a bit extreme but then think about the riots on the streets of England this summer, think about the boy that was shot and killed on his bike a couple of years back or just listen to the news this Christmas and count the number of teenagers stabbed to death on our streets. Violence, aggression, a lack of moral code, all fuelled by cheap alcohol and an easy supply of drugs. Is this what life has become for so many of our young folk?
My kids have been lucky enough to grow up in an environment that protects them from the madness of urban life and they have parents who work hard to teach them right from wrong, who build their self-esteem and who foster their talents. What happens to the kids that don't have these benefits? Can it really be like the world that Brennan so ably describes in WEE ROCKETS? Children, and they are children, whose parents condone or even encourage underage drinking and smoking, who know that their kids are out roaming the streets up to no good? Of course it is, we see it in every town in the country.
All through the book I kept thinking about the teachers who try everyday to give these kids an education and how difficult that must be because of other influences from society that are so strong. You may think I'm sounding a bit 'old' here, but well, I am and I can't help wishing that some aspects of society today could be improved. Can the clock be turned back? Probably not. Can things improve for our kids? I don't know, but certainly reading such an indictment of modern society brings the current situation into sharp focus and stops you and I from sticking our heads under our duvets and ignoring the harm that is being done to a generation.
This is a tremendous book and I urge you to read it.
August 8, 2012
The Wee Rockets are a gang of fourteen year old hoodies/yobbos/scum/etc. - whatever you want to call them. And as the blurb says, they mug pensioners for fag money and booze money and sweet money, later escalating to drug money and more. They spend their time getting pissed on cheap cider, congratulating themselves on their latest ill-gotten gains. They are not nice. But such is the solidity of Brennan's writing, the depth of his prose, even through their most evil of deeds, the fact the Wee Rockets are just a group of troubled children trying to make their way in a world they are desperate to find a place in is never far away.
Take Liam - initially a bit part player in the Wee Rockets. Early in the book, he tries to stand up to a fellow, more aggressive gang member - Wee Danny - and is left beaten and bloodied and tearful. When Liam sinks into some serious depths of depravity later in the book, I, as the reader, was never allowed to lose sight of the fact these were merely the expressions of a frightened child clawing in the darkness to find his place.
Through their odious activities, lead by Joe, the Wee Rockets begin to gain something of a local reputation, yet hoodied-up, no-one can be sure who they are. One man - Steven McVeigh - a built like a shithouse do-gooder of a vigilante - is determined to find out. He soon has his eyes on Joe as a prime suspect.
What follows is a story of family and gang loyalties, of broken children and broken adults, all set in the streets of West Belfast. But West Belfast is no mere setting in this book. Such is the strength of Brennan's writing, he is able to breathe life into the very streets. West Belfast becomes a character in its own right. And that, my friends, is the sign of a great writer.
WEE ROCKETS is a brilliant tragi-comic drama written with pace and verve, as colourful a piece of darkness as I have read.
Take Liam - initially a bit part player in the Wee Rockets. Early in the book, he tries to stand up to a fellow, more aggressive gang member - Wee Danny - and is left beaten and bloodied and tearful. When Liam sinks into some serious depths of depravity later in the book, I, as the reader, was never allowed to lose sight of the fact these were merely the expressions of a frightened child clawing in the darkness to find his place.
Through their odious activities, lead by Joe, the Wee Rockets begin to gain something of a local reputation, yet hoodied-up, no-one can be sure who they are. One man - Steven McVeigh - a built like a shithouse do-gooder of a vigilante - is determined to find out. He soon has his eyes on Joe as a prime suspect.
What follows is a story of family and gang loyalties, of broken children and broken adults, all set in the streets of West Belfast. But West Belfast is no mere setting in this book. Such is the strength of Brennan's writing, he is able to breathe life into the very streets. West Belfast becomes a character in its own right. And that, my friends, is the sign of a great writer.
WEE ROCKETS is a brilliant tragi-comic drama written with pace and verve, as colourful a piece of darkness as I have read.
November 3, 2014
Wee Rockets is not what you expect it to be. Beautifully written, wonderfully crafted and with a really brilliant story and superb characters – all elements which were present in the equally excellent The Point – this book makes you take notice, reading with your eyes wide open.
It would have been so easy for Gerard Brennan to write his boy villains into a corner, make them one dimensional and place them in a deprived area within a crime setting, but instead he makes us feel sorry for the little feckers who are so hell-bent on wrecking everything around them.
And so a story about mindless thuggery becomes something else, making the reader embrace the fact that there is good in everyone, even the worst of us. It’s a little like what some of the Great Stories like The Godfather and The Sopranos and The Public Enemy are so good at doing – showing the Bad And Good in thugs which is so endlessly, utterly fascinating – but in Wee Rockets it’s all about the kids.
I’m not going to go into the storyline, but I will say that I hugged and kissed my own boys extra tight after reading Wee Rockets. Yes, I am a big softie, but yes, I also love books like this one and Gerard Brennan has done a fantastic job. I’m passing Wee Rockets on to my 13 year old son, as it is incredibly difficult to find decent reads for boys of that age that don’t involve vampires/werewolves/supernatural beings/magic/Hooray Henrys.
It would have been so easy for Gerard Brennan to write his boy villains into a corner, make them one dimensional and place them in a deprived area within a crime setting, but instead he makes us feel sorry for the little feckers who are so hell-bent on wrecking everything around them.
And so a story about mindless thuggery becomes something else, making the reader embrace the fact that there is good in everyone, even the worst of us. It’s a little like what some of the Great Stories like The Godfather and The Sopranos and The Public Enemy are so good at doing – showing the Bad And Good in thugs which is so endlessly, utterly fascinating – but in Wee Rockets it’s all about the kids.
I’m not going to go into the storyline, but I will say that I hugged and kissed my own boys extra tight after reading Wee Rockets. Yes, I am a big softie, but yes, I also love books like this one and Gerard Brennan has done a fantastic job. I’m passing Wee Rockets on to my 13 year old son, as it is incredibly difficult to find decent reads for boys of that age that don’t involve vampires/werewolves/supernatural beings/magic/Hooray Henrys.
May 17, 2014
Life in post-Troubles West Belfast isn’t pretty. The security points are gone, but so is the security. Fourteen-year-old boys beat up grannies for drinking money and the police seem unconcerned.
Joe heads the gang dubbed the Wee Rockets. When he finds out a vigilante (Stephen) is planning to clean up the neighbourhood, he and his mate, Wee Danny, figure it’s time to get out, if only temporarily.
They don’t really see anything wrong with mugging old people, although they do think the gang’s new leader, Liam, overdoes it a little, impaling a security guard with a broken pool cue and getting another gang member run over.
Things heat up when Stephen starts dating Joe’s mother as way to keep tabs on him and Joe’s father returns after an unexplained absence of many years. To bond with his son, he first shares a carryout (booze) in a new part of town, then takes him joyriding. For a finale, he uses him as wheelman on a robbery that goes wrong.
The plot moves right along and the characters are well drawn (interesting to read a different variety of English). Most of them are male, but there are a couple of women: Joe’s mother and especially his father’s girlfriend play significant roles.
Bleak though life seems, there is hope for a better future. Stephen, an athletic man with a job, sees himself as a good role model for Joe. Too bad Joe doesn’t see it the same way.
Joe heads the gang dubbed the Wee Rockets. When he finds out a vigilante (Stephen) is planning to clean up the neighbourhood, he and his mate, Wee Danny, figure it’s time to get out, if only temporarily.
They don’t really see anything wrong with mugging old people, although they do think the gang’s new leader, Liam, overdoes it a little, impaling a security guard with a broken pool cue and getting another gang member run over.
Things heat up when Stephen starts dating Joe’s mother as way to keep tabs on him and Joe’s father returns after an unexplained absence of many years. To bond with his son, he first shares a carryout (booze) in a new part of town, then takes him joyriding. For a finale, he uses him as wheelman on a robbery that goes wrong.
The plot moves right along and the characters are well drawn (interesting to read a different variety of English). Most of them are male, but there are a couple of women: Joe’s mother and especially his father’s girlfriend play significant roles.
Bleak though life seems, there is hope for a better future. Stephen, an athletic man with a job, sees himself as a good role model for Joe. Too bad Joe doesn’t see it the same way.
November 3, 2014
This was a fun read that took a few twists and turns. What started as an Warriors-meets-Trainspotting tale of youth gone wild quickly turns into a Guy Ritchie-esque multiple-plot crime story. It didn't really get moving for me until the second half of the book, and when the pieces fell into place, I was looking forward to a huge climax that didn't quite arrive. That's not to say this book isn't good, it's tightly written and the characters (scummy as they are) are all captivating. I just felt the ending was a bit rushed, with everything coming to a head too quickly.
November 3, 2014
WEE ROCKETS will make you think of legendary names in crimes. Richard Price and THE WIRE to name a few. Its' construction is extremely impressive, but sporting a structure that would've supported a novel of epic length, the conventional format of WEE ROCKET makes it a little disappointing. It's very good but it could've been THAT special novel given just a little more scope. Nonetheless, very VERY impressive effort for a young writers such as Brennan. I am eager to see what's next for him.
November 3, 2014
Another book where reading the blurb covers everything you need to know plot wise.
This was a great read. Less gritty than I expected but that worked in its favour. Evenly paced and with all characters given space to live and breathe, it's a winner all the way. Recommended and another feather in Blasted Heaths cap
This was a great read. Less gritty than I expected but that worked in its favour. Evenly paced and with all characters given space to live and breathe, it's a winner all the way. Recommended and another feather in Blasted Heaths cap
August 13, 2012
Brilliant. Off the hook good.
September 6, 2014
Wonderful story of disenchanted youth prowling the streets in Northern Ireland. A great sense of humanity interwoven throughout the entire novel.
January 2, 2016
Good read and characters but weak story
I liked some things about this book. The characters were good and even the bad ones were likeable but the story didn't match them.
I liked some things about this book. The characters were good and even the bad ones were likeable but the story didn't match them.
April 29, 2017
A piece of the life of out of control teenage boys, and their families, in West Belfast.
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