What do you think?
Rate this book
Bomber Jackson Does Some
Paperback - signed and dedicated by author - in very good lightly worn edges, corners and spine ends; page block is slightly marked; minor crease on title page. Text is clear throughout volume; pages are clean and sound. TS
296 pages, Paperback
First published May 17, 2012
2 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
May 22, 2012
I raced through this in 4 days. Can't praise it enough. Gripping story, told with feeling and insight, conveyed in sparing, precise words. A hard man with a soft and true heart - you'll root for Bomber all the way. Read this book, and next time you see a big, scruffy bloke with nice eyes drinking from a can on a bench, you will feel that you know him and hope he gets his break. http://www.bomberjacksondoessome.com/
September 9, 2012
This is my first published novel and frankly I'm still far too close to the text to judge it.
There's more information at www.bomberjacksondoessome.com where you can also buy it - not available on Amazon.
There's more information at www.bomberjacksondoessome.com where you can also buy it - not available on Amazon.
February 16, 2021
I honestly absorbed this entire book, i couldnt get enough.
I found myself completely rooting for him, and so frustrated at the circumstances and situations he kept ending up in.
Initially i found the writing slightly difficult becaude the sentences are short and to the point, but after a few pages it was easy.
Im reccomending this to everyone, because i really think it deserves it, and theres so much to learn from Bomber.
I found myself completely rooting for him, and so frustrated at the circumstances and situations he kept ending up in.
Initially i found the writing slightly difficult becaude the sentences are short and to the point, but after a few pages it was easy.
Im reccomending this to everyone, because i really think it deserves it, and theres so much to learn from Bomber.
September 6, 2014
I have never been so brought within a character. This is a beautifully-written, very deeply moving novel.
March 28, 2017
I read this book more quickly than any novel I’ve read for a long time. As I’m busier than I was while reading the other books, that’s a big compliment to ‘Bomber Jackson Does Some’. I lost count of the times I reached the end of a chapter, and was supposed to put the book down and do something useful, but carried on reading the next chapter, and the next.
Even after I reached the end, it continued to haunt me. I found myself thinking in Bomber’s speech idiom, and seeing situations from his perspective, which is very different from mine. Bomber Jackson is an alcoholic ex-boxer, trying to stay dry, and survive economic hardship without being sent back to prison. None of these elements would attract me to the story. I had a list of books to read, and ‘Bomber Jackson Does Some’ wasn’t on it, because I didn’t know it existed. Someone plonked it on the table in front of me and said “Read this, it’s a work of genius”. From the start of the novel, I agreed.
Bob Boyton uses the language of London criminals to create a vivid story. I cared about an ex-con, alcoholic, boxer, who still punches people and sometimes gets drunk and destroys property. In real life, I’d avoid someone like that, but I couldn’t get enough of Bomber. When I was nearing the end of the story, I left the book at an airport departure gate. I was engrossed in it when it was time to board the plane, and in my haste I left it on the chair as I gathered my passport, boarding pass, coat, and cabin bag. I was one of the first to board, right at the back of the plane. When I sat in my window seat, I realized I didn’t have the book. The flight was full, and hundreds of other passengers were flooding into the plane. There was no question of abandoning the book. I had to get it from the departure gate. The flight attendents were uncomfortable with the title of this really important book I had to leave the plane to retrieve: ‘Bomber Jackson Does Some’. They telephoned the gate staff, repeating the word “Bomber” several times as the person at the other end queried it.
In the end, they told me the plane’s doors were closing soon, but they’d allow me off the aircraft to get the book if I was quick. I had to “swim against the current” the entire length of the plane, squeezing past disgruntled passengers as they tried to find their seats and lift bags into the overhead lockers. It didn’t matter, as long as I got Bob Boyton’s brilliant novel so I could read it on the flight. And I did. The flight attendants smiled when I waved the book victoriously, as I regained my window seat, disturbing my neighbours for a second time. I was soon back with Bomber, on tenterhooks as to what would happen next. Nothing else mattered, including the emergency demonstration. I worked as a labourer briefly when I was a student, and never thought building sites or the people who work on them could interest me, real or fictitious. The building site Bomber worked on was fascinating, and so were the people. The nuances of status among labourers, and the competition to win it, opened up a new way of seeing for me. The events in the plot wouldn’t be that entertaining in themselves, but as described by Bob Boyton, they’re compelling. In the same way Jack Nicholson’s acting breathes glamour into the life of a petty criminal mental patient in ‘One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest’, Bob Boyton’s brilliant writing makes an alcoholic ex-boxer’s life seem fascinating as he drifts between menial jobs. We learn about boxers, criminals, and homeless shelters, as Bomber’s battle to stay off the booze is won and lost, won again and lost again, and we race towards the climax of this tightly plotted, brilliant book.
Even after I reached the end, it continued to haunt me. I found myself thinking in Bomber’s speech idiom, and seeing situations from his perspective, which is very different from mine. Bomber Jackson is an alcoholic ex-boxer, trying to stay dry, and survive economic hardship without being sent back to prison. None of these elements would attract me to the story. I had a list of books to read, and ‘Bomber Jackson Does Some’ wasn’t on it, because I didn’t know it existed. Someone plonked it on the table in front of me and said “Read this, it’s a work of genius”. From the start of the novel, I agreed.
Bob Boyton uses the language of London criminals to create a vivid story. I cared about an ex-con, alcoholic, boxer, who still punches people and sometimes gets drunk and destroys property. In real life, I’d avoid someone like that, but I couldn’t get enough of Bomber. When I was nearing the end of the story, I left the book at an airport departure gate. I was engrossed in it when it was time to board the plane, and in my haste I left it on the chair as I gathered my passport, boarding pass, coat, and cabin bag. I was one of the first to board, right at the back of the plane. When I sat in my window seat, I realized I didn’t have the book. The flight was full, and hundreds of other passengers were flooding into the plane. There was no question of abandoning the book. I had to get it from the departure gate. The flight attendents were uncomfortable with the title of this really important book I had to leave the plane to retrieve: ‘Bomber Jackson Does Some’. They telephoned the gate staff, repeating the word “Bomber” several times as the person at the other end queried it.
In the end, they told me the plane’s doors were closing soon, but they’d allow me off the aircraft to get the book if I was quick. I had to “swim against the current” the entire length of the plane, squeezing past disgruntled passengers as they tried to find their seats and lift bags into the overhead lockers. It didn’t matter, as long as I got Bob Boyton’s brilliant novel so I could read it on the flight. And I did. The flight attendants smiled when I waved the book victoriously, as I regained my window seat, disturbing my neighbours for a second time. I was soon back with Bomber, on tenterhooks as to what would happen next. Nothing else mattered, including the emergency demonstration. I worked as a labourer briefly when I was a student, and never thought building sites or the people who work on them could interest me, real or fictitious. The building site Bomber worked on was fascinating, and so were the people. The nuances of status among labourers, and the competition to win it, opened up a new way of seeing for me. The events in the plot wouldn’t be that entertaining in themselves, but as described by Bob Boyton, they’re compelling. In the same way Jack Nicholson’s acting breathes glamour into the life of a petty criminal mental patient in ‘One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest’, Bob Boyton’s brilliant writing makes an alcoholic ex-boxer’s life seem fascinating as he drifts between menial jobs. We learn about boxers, criminals, and homeless shelters, as Bomber’s battle to stay off the booze is won and lost, won again and lost again, and we race towards the climax of this tightly plotted, brilliant book.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews