A very ,very funny account of football in the North East. As a Newcastle fan & intermittent Gateshead FC supporter (who has also been known to pop over to watch Blyth Spartans & Whitley Bay FC), I could readilly identify with huge swathes of this book.
This is not just a book for the North East fan - any football fan will love it. Non league supporters will ,no doubt, have a chuckle or two as they read large sections of this book. I am certain that they will readily identify with some of the characters Harry runs into in the North East non league scene. If you haven't been to a non league game, this book could well persuade you to go, if anything,just to see if you can spot some of the kinds of characters Pearson describes through his keen observation, or as a result of being drawn into conversation with them (he really does nail some of the more "unusual" characters & experiences you sometimes encounter at non league games).
This is what football is all about - enjoying the game, enduring the pain of mediocrity,having a laugh,a pint & savouring the atmosphere & the people .
Pearson does all of this in this marvellous book, it's just brilliant & I think (for what it's worth !) that it's a must for football fans everywhere.