Ninety

by Johnny Proctor

“A great portrait of a seminal time for youth culture in the UK. A nostalgic must read for those who experienced it and an exciting and intriguing read for those that didn’t.” Dean Cavanagh - Award winning screenwriter “A punchy, authentic and recognisable trip down memory lane. Johnny Proctor captures the feeling of what it was truly like in early 90’s Scotland when Acid House went toe to toe with Football hooliganism.” Brad Welsh - Holyrood Gym and ex Hibs CCS “Johnny Proctor encapsulates everything that was right and wrong about football hooliganism and Acid House. It evoked memories of how it felt like to be part of two scenes that co existed” Anthony Donnelly - Founder and owner of Gio Goi Ninety, the first novel from Johnny Proctor Meet Zico. 16 years old in 1990 Scotland, still at school and preparing himself for entering the big bad world while finding himself already on the wrong side of the tracks. A teenager who despite his young years is already no stranger to the bad in life. A member of the notorious Dundee Utility Crew who wreak havoc across the country every other Saturday on match day. Then along comes a girl, Acid House and Ecstasy into his life showing him that there are other paths that can be taken. When you're on a set course of self destruction however, sometimes changing direction isn't so easy. Ninety is a tale of what happens when a teenager grows up faster than they should ever have to while finding them self pushed into a dangerous turn of events that threatens their very existence. Set against the backdrop of a pivotal and defining period of time for the British working class youth when terrace culture and Acid House collided and infectiously changed lives and attitudes accordingly.

401 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 18, 2018

Reviews

[David Peat · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good coming of age novel, where friendships and relationships come together in a landscape. Some good parts around ‘finding’ something and ‘rejecting’ norms; however, the main thrust was the time zone (hence the title) but there was nothing new here - a kind of 25 years later watered down (with the benefit of hindsight) version of Irvine Welsh and John King’s books. The good coming of age plot was let down by a genie storyline with wishes coming true to solve problems, or move the plot on. The informal writing was for affect, but the absence of commas and apostrophes was sometimes distracting. I would read more from John Proctor, as there is definitely something there.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read

If you grew up in the 90s and spent Saturdays dancing in dark warehouses. This is a must read. I could easily relate to many points in this book and reading it, took me back to many a night that had been stored and forgotten about.

Brilliant book. Love the way it's written, with its twists and turns and examples. Made me laugh out loud and will continue reading the other books in this collection.