This is a superb book. Simon Parke felt compelled, after 20 years, to give up his job of Parish Priest, but found the only place willing to take him on was a supermarket on their shopfloor. From this unpromising and potentially gloomy starting point, Parke manages to craft a book that is full of insight, humour, wisdom, and poignancy. It has a wonderful lightness of touch, very funny lines and observations, and utterly convincing character portraits as we become acquainted with his colleagues and regular customers. It's a very revealing insight into the workings of our major supermarkets - his trip to the gleaming headquarters to represent a colleague in a tribunal particularly harrowing in its contrast with the working environment of those facing the customers on the front line. It's deceptively simply written, completely without pretension, yet in gently reminding us of the consumer age in which we live, extremely salutory. Thoroughly recommended.
