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A Chancer
Tammas is 20, a loner and a compulsive gambler. Unable to hold a job for long, his life revolves around Glasgow bars, home with his sister and brother-in-law, the dog track, betting shops, casinos and occasionally a day at the races.
213 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1985
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185 people want to read
About the author
James Kelman
82 books270 followersKelman says:
My own background is as normal or abnormal as anyone else's. Born and bred in Govan and Drumchapel, inner city tenement to the housing scheme homeland on the outer reaches of the city. Four brothers, my mother a full time parent, my father in the picture framemaking and gilding trade, trying to operate a one man business and I left school at 15 etc. etc. (...) For one reason or another, by the age of 21/22 I decided to write stories. The stories I wanted to write would derive from my own background, my own socio-cultural experience. I wanted to write as one of my own people, I wanted to write and remain a member of my own community.
During the 1970s he published a first collection of short stories. He became involved in Philip Hobsbaum's creative writing group in Glasgow along with Tom Leonard, Alasdair Gray and Liz Lochhead, and his short stories began to appear in magazines. These stories introduced a distinctive style, expressing first person internal monologues in a pared-down prose utilising Glaswegian speech patterns, though avoiding for the most part the quasi-phonetic rendition of Tom Leonard. Kelman's developing style has been influential on the succeeding generation of Scottish novelists, including Irvine Welsh, Alan Warner and Janice Galloway. In 1998, Kelman received the Stakis Prize for "Scottish Writer of the Year" for his collection of short stories 'The Good Times.'
http://www.contemporarywriters.com/au...
My own background is as normal or abnormal as anyone else's. Born and bred in Govan and Drumchapel, inner city tenement to the housing scheme homeland on the outer reaches of the city. Four brothers, my mother a full time parent, my father in the picture framemaking and gilding trade, trying to operate a one man business and I left school at 15 etc. etc. (...) For one reason or another, by the age of 21/22 I decided to write stories. The stories I wanted to write would derive from my own background, my own socio-cultural experience. I wanted to write as one of my own people, I wanted to write and remain a member of my own community.
During the 1970s he published a first collection of short stories. He became involved in Philip Hobsbaum's creative writing group in Glasgow along with Tom Leonard, Alasdair Gray and Liz Lochhead, and his short stories began to appear in magazines. These stories introduced a distinctive style, expressing first person internal monologues in a pared-down prose utilising Glaswegian speech patterns, though avoiding for the most part the quasi-phonetic rendition of Tom Leonard. Kelman's developing style has been influential on the succeeding generation of Scottish novelists, including Irvine Welsh, Alan Warner and Janice Galloway. In 1998, Kelman received the Stakis Prize for "Scottish Writer of the Year" for his collection of short stories 'The Good Times.'
http://www.contemporarywriters.com/au...
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
June 8, 2010
I think I went straight down to the greyhounds at Shawfield after reading this and saw half of the characters from the book
October 11, 2011
You can almost see the tenements and the dilapidated landscape coming out from the pages of this book. Reminded me alot of Loachs two scottish films, Sweet Sixteen and My Name is Joe. Really flawed characters that you can identify with stuck in the mundane.
October 26, 2018
Tammas opened a pack of cigarettes. He lighted one then thought about betting for ages. He walked to the pub, had lots of cigarettes and thinking on the way. In the pub he said
Fuck off
His pal said
Naw, fuck you
His pals dad had died/someone was getting married/ a man had landed on the moon.
Tammas had a think. And lighted a few cigarettes. Then he went to bet somewhere and won or probably lost. And he had some fags.
It was all good. Apart from anyone reading the book. In which case a 1-10 shot had lost.
Fuck off
His pal said
Naw, fuck you
His pals dad had died/someone was getting married/ a man had landed on the moon.
Tammas had a think. And lighted a few cigarettes. Then he went to bet somewhere and won or probably lost. And he had some fags.
It was all good. Apart from anyone reading the book. In which case a 1-10 shot had lost.
December 8, 2023
I've yet to read a living writer as good as Kelman. Captures life with brutal honesty and ease.
June 26, 2016
easy review, this. I love James Kelman but this book was deliberately tedious, which I can sometimes tolerate but not easily when the plot is all about gambling.
July 10, 2025
A realistic style novel about Tamas, a twenty year old who is a loner and gambler. He is not sure what he wants in life. He is from a working class family and lives in Glasgow. He has worked in factories but doesn’t like working indoors. He is unable to hold a job for long. He has a very supporting sister in Margaret. Tamas lives with his sister and her husband. Tamas is mainly at the pub where he mixes with a couple of friends he has known for years, or at some gambling venue, be it horse or dog racing, pool or cards. He goes out with one young woman, then falls for a woman with a baby.
It is a dull, bleak read, but by the end of the novel I had a fair amount of empathy for Tamas. A memorable read.
This book was first published in 1985. This novel is the first to be written by James Kelman, but it was published after ‘The Busconductor Hines’ (1984).
It is a dull, bleak read, but by the end of the novel I had a fair amount of empathy for Tamas. A memorable read.
This book was first published in 1985. This novel is the first to be written by James Kelman, but it was published after ‘The Busconductor Hines’ (1984).
July 15, 2015
A great expose of Glasgow life. A realistic affair compared to the stylised adventures of a trainspotting , but in my opinion adds to an authenticity in that it's more true to life (nothing against trainspotting, it's great in it's own right)
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews