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THE CRESCENT: Life in Old Dundee
When John Murphy is sentenced to six months hard labour in Perth Prison for fighting, his wife Annie is left to raise his children in poverty in the tenements of the crescent. She relies on a pittance from her jute mill wages and handouts from the Parish until her husband is released and tries to break the poverty trap by bare-knuckle fighting in the boxing booths and beer tents.
His hard drinking, bare-knuckle fighting, hard-man style is reduced to that of ‘kettle-biler’ at home, like thousands of other men in Dundee who are out of work. Meanwhile, Westminster and the Whitehall war-rooms are booming, thanks to the growth of the British Empire and the realisation that gold and diamonds in South Africa are ready for the taking.
The ‘Kettle-Bilers’ are perfect fodder for the Black Watch recruiting sergeants in Dundee who are swamped with men eager to escape the grimy oppression of the jute mills or the dole. The Boer War takes them to the brink of life and death in a faraway land that the real people of Dundee had never heard of before the call to arms. Winston Churchill begins to write the history of the Boer war or does he actually create it for dramatic reporting.
But what happens to the women left at home? Will the Dundonians ever return from the Boer War? Can the poverty-stricken, alcohol-fuelled, neglectful generation cycle ever be stopped? Find out all this and more in this heart-wrenching, gritty story of hardship, tragedy, hurt and violence, based on the author’s true story of his Dundee family’s origins.
His hard drinking, bare-knuckle fighting, hard-man style is reduced to that of ‘kettle-biler’ at home, like thousands of other men in Dundee who are out of work. Meanwhile, Westminster and the Whitehall war-rooms are booming, thanks to the growth of the British Empire and the realisation that gold and diamonds in South Africa are ready for the taking.
The ‘Kettle-Bilers’ are perfect fodder for the Black Watch recruiting sergeants in Dundee who are swamped with men eager to escape the grimy oppression of the jute mills or the dole. The Boer War takes them to the brink of life and death in a faraway land that the real people of Dundee had never heard of before the call to arms. Winston Churchill begins to write the history of the Boer war or does he actually create it for dramatic reporting.
But what happens to the women left at home? Will the Dundonians ever return from the Boer War? Can the poverty-stricken, alcohol-fuelled, neglectful generation cycle ever be stopped? Find out all this and more in this heart-wrenching, gritty story of hardship, tragedy, hurt and violence, based on the author’s true story of his Dundee family’s origins.
238 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 16, 2021
20 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
July 28, 2021
Great read
This book portrays the poverty and families of Dundee at the turn of the 20th Century, well.
The author writes in such a way that you feel you are a part of that world.
The people in the book are three dimensional, well rounded characters; who stir emotions in you as you read.
His knowledge of the Black Watch and Boar War is extensive. He weaves societal politics in subtlety, letting it underscore the reasons for some of the poverty and horror of that time.
Anyone who knows Dundee, will find this book compelling
This book portrays the poverty and families of Dundee at the turn of the 20th Century, well.
The author writes in such a way that you feel you are a part of that world.
The people in the book are three dimensional, well rounded characters; who stir emotions in you as you read.
His knowledge of the Black Watch and Boar War is extensive. He weaves societal politics in subtlety, letting it underscore the reasons for some of the poverty and horror of that time.
Anyone who knows Dundee, will find this book compelling
January 28, 2024
The Cresent
What a great read based around my hometown of Dundee . Lots of action in Dundee and all around the world when our young lads fought in the war .
What a great read based around my hometown of Dundee . Lots of action in Dundee and all around the world when our young lads fought in the war .
July 24, 2021
A very good read
I enjoyed this book for its evocation of the hard and often bitter lives of the poor in a Victorian industrial city. Even more I was moved by the portrayal of the life of a soldier of the Empire in these times. Ian Campbell has researched his subject well and the anger and disgust at the waste of human life and potential is both powerful and right. I came close to giving this 5 stars and probably 9 out of 10 would be fair.
I enjoyed this book for its evocation of the hard and often bitter lives of the poor in a Victorian industrial city. Even more I was moved by the portrayal of the life of a soldier of the Empire in these times. Ian Campbell has researched his subject well and the anger and disgust at the waste of human life and potential is both powerful and right. I came close to giving this 5 stars and probably 9 out of 10 would be fair.
January 5, 2023
Really enjoyed the pace of this story in Dundee around 1900. My wife was actually brought up in a single end in Littlejohn Street before it was demolished about 1960 but I don't know what number. As a result it was easy to imagine the various areas the characters inhabited all within a square mile of central Dundee. Dudhope Castle, the Hilltown, DRI and Parker Street are all still there. Only drawback was wondering why a character would take a certain route across town.
March 13, 2022
couldn’t put the crescent down.
This book is brilliant. I’m from Dundee and didn’t realise how many men we lost in the war. Was brought up to hate Churchill, even though he died before I was born. I now know why.
I would definitely recommend this book to all my friends and family
This book is brilliant. I’m from Dundee and didn’t realise how many men we lost in the war. Was brought up to hate Churchill, even though he died before I was born. I now know why.
I would definitely recommend this book to all my friends and family
July 26, 2021
Well written account of Dundee at the turn of the 19t/20th centuries. Fictional story about a family who lived in the Crescent. The author has done his homework on local history and he makes this a fascinating read.
February 6, 2022
the crescent
I just loved this book it reminds me of my youth as my grandparents lived in littlejohn st my mother was born there had some fantastic times there plus my great grandmother and grandfather lived there as we’ll o the memories had great times in the crescent
I just loved this book it reminds me of my youth as my grandparents lived in littlejohn st my mother was born there had some fantastic times there plus my great grandmother and grandfather lived there as we’ll o the memories had great times in the crescent
August 13, 2022
What an amazing book this is, i can imagine my ancestors of Dundee living in poverty, some joining the black watch leaving their families behind, struggling for work & trying to make ends meet. I love how the author takes you to streets & pubs, some that are still there.. Now onto book 2….
October 20, 2023
I really really enjoyed this book and have bought the next one. Dundee is my hometown so it was nice to learn a bit of history around the time my great grandparents would have been alive. Have bought the next one and will probably read it in one sitting.
August 16, 2024
Whether your a fan of Dundee History or of life in Victorian working class Britain this book brings detail and reality to what life was like in the late 1800s and early 1900s . Brilliantly research I would suggest
September 14, 2022
Well written. Informative. Historically accurate. Extremely difficult to put down! Kept me up late until my eyes closed!
February 7, 2023
Really enjoyed getting to know old Dundee, and snippets I wasn’t aware of. Was so easy to get through and the family were more than interesting to follow!
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews