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A Lean Third
The majority of the 18 stories in A Lean Third have been substantially revised by the author, making these new versions of great interest to academics and fans alike. Of particular note is a 3,000 word afterword, written especially for this edition. The author gives revealing insights into the background of many of the stories and his lifestyle at the time of writing. A fascinating and essential new edition.
108 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2015
12 people want to read
About the author
James Kelman
80 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 - 5 of 5 reviews
November 17, 2022
"If James Kelman ever receives the Nobel Prize, his short fiction will have been an important part of his achievement. The wit and profundity (A Lean Third) contains will reward unlimited reading."
— The Independent
"Kelman has always been an artist, and a highly conscious one. He is a master of the brief encounter between people who may never see each other again, or indeed have any desire to do so."
— The Scotsman
"Kelman’s reworked stories are an outstanding addition to an already stunning body of work."
— Post Magazine
"Tangerine Press has produced a beautiful reissue of Kelman’s third. Here are snapshots of Scots abroad, nightlife, chance encounters, the thrill and buzz and sadness of working-class life."
— New Statesman
"Kelman suffers perhaps, in the same way as Beckett and Joyce, by not being recognised for his humour. These stories are narrated by people at the bottom or on the periphery. The style is plain. Perhaps that inclines readers to expect grimness. Kelman is, in fact, a very funny writer. His angle of narration is amusing. It comes from being unable to take contemporary reality, or at least that inhabited by his narrators, entirely seriously. He gives it slant, as Emily Dickinson advised, but not merely oblique; he is disillusioned before he writes a word... Perhaps Kelman is more than just a literary genius."
— The Penniless Press
"These 18 stories are... the bare bones of a novel that was never written. The afterword, 3000 words of it, has been written especially for this very pleasing publication by Tangerine Press and even if you are not a devotee of the author's numerous works, feels like essential reading."
— The Sunday Herald
— The Independent
"Kelman has always been an artist, and a highly conscious one. He is a master of the brief encounter between people who may never see each other again, or indeed have any desire to do so."
— The Scotsman
"Kelman’s reworked stories are an outstanding addition to an already stunning body of work."
— Post Magazine
"Tangerine Press has produced a beautiful reissue of Kelman’s third. Here are snapshots of Scots abroad, nightlife, chance encounters, the thrill and buzz and sadness of working-class life."
— New Statesman
"Kelman suffers perhaps, in the same way as Beckett and Joyce, by not being recognised for his humour. These stories are narrated by people at the bottom or on the periphery. The style is plain. Perhaps that inclines readers to expect grimness. Kelman is, in fact, a very funny writer. His angle of narration is amusing. It comes from being unable to take contemporary reality, or at least that inhabited by his narrators, entirely seriously. He gives it slant, as Emily Dickinson advised, but not merely oblique; he is disillusioned before he writes a word... Perhaps Kelman is more than just a literary genius."
— The Penniless Press
"These 18 stories are... the bare bones of a novel that was never written. The afterword, 3000 words of it, has been written especially for this very pleasing publication by Tangerine Press and even if you are not a devotee of the author's numerous works, feels like essential reading."
— The Sunday Herald
May 31, 2020
I have enjoyed others of Kelman's works, but these stories did little for me. Written is Scottish slang, much is lost in translation if you don't share that common language. Quippy and humorous as it was, I couldn't help but feel like I was missing the purpose or punchline due to the slang barrier.
January 1, 2025
a decent read if you're into writing that errs on the experimental. consistently good balance between setting the scene and conveying feeling, which isn't always the case in first-person narrative. unafraid of swearing, either, which i like in scottish lit because it's true of the way we talk lol
January 11, 2022
Highlights for me were Paperbag, The Glenchecked Effort, the same is here again. Leave “…the dwarfs”till last - that one’s tough!
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March 20, 2016Bonus points for using the word "peelywally."
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews