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Night song of the last tram: A Glasgow childhood [Paperback]

Robert Douglas
4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
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Book Description

8 May 2006
A wonderfully colourful and deeply poignant memoir of growing up in a 'single end' - one room in a Glasgow tenement - during and immediately after the Second World War. Although young Robert Douglas's life was blighted by the cruel if sporadic presence of his father, it was equally blessed by the love of his mother, Janet. While the story of their life together is in some ways very sad, it is also filled with humorous and happy memories. NIGHT SONG OF THE LAST TRAM is a superb evocation of childhood and of a Glasgow of trams and tenements that has long since disappeared.

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Product details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Hodder Paperbacks; Reprint edition (8 May 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0340838612
  • ISBN-13: 978-0340838617
  • Product Dimensions: 13.2 x 2.3 x 19.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 48,500 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

'Exquisite ... a beautiful paean' (Sunday Times )

'His prose is direct, pacy, uncluttered ... engaging, deftly written and honestly remembered' (Herald )

'NIGHT SONG OF THE LAST TRAM is a simply written book and all the better for it ... It recreates stunningly clear memories of a Glasgow childhood ... At the age of 66, Robert Douglas has written his first book - I cannot believe it will be his last.' (Daily Mail, Scotland )

'A well-written slice of social history delivered directly by an eyewitness' (Independent on Sunday )

'It has been a while since a book has reduced me to both tears of laughter and sympathy, but Robert Douglas managed it with NIGHT SONG OF THE LAST TRAM.' (Journal, Newcastle )

'It is as a record of the old Glasgow spirit that this book is especially worthwhile.' (Sunday Herald 20050410)

'The portrait of his mother is beautifully done ... and her loss (through breast cancer) when he was still very young is heartbreaking: it brings tears to my eyes now just writing about it. Douglas has real skill in conveying experience and his use of the Glasgow vernacular lends an extra poetry to the writing. A quite exceptional autobiography.' (Publishing News, Book of the Month, November 20050410)

'Told with a direct, unsentimental honesty ... a vividness that makes them real. This is a remarkable, deeply moving autobiography.' (Cumberland Times 20050410)

'Wonderful ... vivid.' (Stockport Express 20050316)

'The descriptions of streets and smells and childhood feelings ... come from some little fire that's never gone out in Douglas' mind ... His prose is direct, pacy, uncluttered ... engaging, deftly written and honestly remembered.' (Herald 20050316)

Consider for instance "The Great Midden-raking Expedition", the sort of thing millions of Winnie-the-Pooh fans would be familiar with if Christopher Robin had been a Glaswegian ... NIGHT SONG OF THE LAST TRAM is a simply written book and all the better for it ... It recreates stunningly clear memories of a Glasgow childhood ... At the age of 66, Robert Douglas has written his first book - I cannot believe it will be his last. (Daily Mail, Scotland 20050318)

'A heartwarming, heartbreaking tale of a young boy's struggle to become a man.' (Our Time, Cambridge 20050405)

'Robert Douglas looks back to his Glasgow childhood and his experiences, the misery (and the laughter) pouring out on every page. The portrait of his mother is beautifully done ... and her loss (through breast cancer) when he was still very young is heartbreaking: it brings tears to my eyes now just writing about it. Douglas has real skill in conveying experience and his use of the Glasgow vernacular lends an extra poetry to the writing. A quite exceptional autobiography.' (Publishing News, Book of the Month, Novembe 20050405)

'One of the most moving autobiographies ever penned by a Scottish writer'

(Daily Record 20050405)

'Heart warming characters caught up in a clever mystery'

(YOURS 20050405)

From the Publisher

A hugely affecting blend of painful recollection and rich nostalgia, and a brilliant evocation of post-war Glasgow, Night Song of the Last Tram is set to be this year's mega-selling childhood memoir.

If you were enthralled by Angela's Ashes and charmed by The Road to Nab End, you won't be able to resist Night Song of the Last Tram. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.


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Customer Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars
4.9 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
42 of 42 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Glasgow Autobiography 23 Feb 2005
By A Customer
Format:Hardcover
I have just finished 'Night Song of the Last Tram' by Robert Douglas and if you like really well written autobiography then this is one for you. It tells the story of a little boy growing up in Glasgow between 1946 and 1953 and is a funny and nostalgic tale (Although you might need to have a box of tissues to hand - without giving too much away...). The characters are all vividly portrayed and the setting gives you a real sense of what life was like in those days, and how much our lives have changed now. Highly recommended.
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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Pure nostalgia 29 Jun 2006
Format:Paperback
If you, like myself, were born in Glasgow in the forties, and lived up a close through the fifties, then you'll appreciate this 'magic' book.

Robert Douglas has captured the senses and atmosphere of life in Glasgow as a wee boy growing up to being a working teenager.

It's life that many Glaswegians will relate to.

Excellently written with honest Glasgow patter yet mixed with a tinge of sadness for his personal relationship with his father.

A truly enjoyable read.

David Hunter
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19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A Glasgow Childhood. 19 July 2006
Format:Paperback
This is another one of those books I just couldn't put down! It was so beautifully wrote, and takes you completely into the book as if you were there.

I love the way Robert uses the Glasgow accent in this book it makes it so realistic.The discriptions of the people, places and feelings are superb.

I have read a lot of true life/Biographies, but i actually cried when I read the latter chapters of the book.

It is sad story and yet wonderfully warm at the same time.

I can't wait to read Roberts next book.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars Quick postage and item as described
Just as described reasonable condition.Just as described reasonable condition. I apologise for not filling in the necessary amount of words you require. Read more
Published 13 hours ago by anne binning
3.0 out of 5 stars Its appeal would be limited to Glasgow and district
The earthy and true to life tale has a limited appeal but it would not be understood by those unfamiliar with Glaswegian tongue however as a Glaswegian I can see some merit in the... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Rachel Homer
4.0 out of 5 stars A story worth reading.
Robert Douglas provides the reader with a nostalgic and often heartbreaking view of times past. He uses his personal memories and locations set in the Maryhill district and... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Rev. Thomas R. Wilson
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Books
Great writer, good stories and this particular triology is very good.
I enjoy my Kindle have a lot of books on it.
Published 2 months ago by margaret millar
4.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing narrative and anacdotes
I thoroughly enjoyed being transported in time and space to Glasgow in the 1940s and 1950s. The anecdotes are told with humour and insight and although Mr Douglas had reason to... Read more
Published 2 months ago by M. Hunter
5.0 out of 5 stars Glasgow Nostalgia.
The first of a trilogy of autobiographies of a man who relives his Glasgow childhood from the 1940's. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Mrs. L. J. Mitchell
5.0 out of 5 stars grat book
as expected i love this book was recommended from a friend, would recommend this book as it is an easy read
Published 2 months ago by stumobuck
5.0 out of 5 stars How It Was
I really enjoyed this book; I used to know Glasgow at around that time and he
just made it come alive! The characters were amazing and I was sorry when it
finished. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Sylvia Edwards
5.0 out of 5 stars A barillant book
Took me back to my own childhood in Lanarkshire. Makes you realise how spoiled we are today. recomend this to anyone with an intrest in the fiftys or sixtys.
Published 3 months ago by RR
5.0 out of 5 stars My dad loved this.
Bought this for my dad as he grew up in Glasgow around the same time as the book is set and much of it struck a chord with him. Read more
Published 5 months ago by Anne Marie Carson
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