Colin MacInnes gained renown for his incisive novels, vividly depicting the vibrant youth and black immigrant cultures of 1950s London. His works are characterized by a raw realism and authentic voice that draws readers directly into the heart of the era's urban life. MacInnes explored themes of identity, alienation, and cultural collision with a unique sensitivity. His literary contribution lies in his bold portrayal of previously overlooked social strata and his capture of post-war Britain's evolving landscape.
London, 1957. Victoria station is awash with boat trains discharging hopeful black immigrants into a cold and alien land. And when Montgomery Pew, a newly appointed assistant welfare officer in the Colonial Department, meets Johnny Fortune, recently arrived from Lagos, the meeting of minds and races takes a surprising turn ...
Frankie Love, new to the business of crime, seems to run his illegal life on strictly fair principles. Meanwhile Edward Justice, recently appointed member of the vice squad, finds his upholding of the law complicated by love for his girl. In London's world of corruption and crime, where does the line between justice and immorality really lie?
"London, 1958. In the smoky jazz clubs of Soho and the coffee bars of Notting Hill, the young and the restless--the absolute beginners--are revoutionising youth culture and forging a new carefree lifestyle of sex, drugs, and rock'n'roll. Moving in the midst of this world of mods and rockers, Teddy gangs and trads, and snapping every scene with his trusty Rolleiflex, is MacInnes's young photographer, whose unique wit and honest views remain the definitive account of London life in the 1950s and what it means to be a teenager."--Provided by publisher
Bringing together three of Colin MacInnes' finest works, this exciting omnibus explores a very different side of London life in the 1950s than is usually portrayed. His characters are colourful and real, painting vivid pictures of areas such as Brixton and Notting Hill at this time. The stories of friendship, love and growing up are set against a background of jazz and good times, as London's staid reputation progresses to that of a thriving multiracial capital. A man ahead of his time, MacInnes displayed the realities of 1950s London: an emerging teen culture, black immigration and the glamorisation of crime and criminals with remarkable insight and sympathy.
London, 1958—Soho, Notting Hill... a world of smoky jazz clubs, coffee bars and hip hang-outs in the center of London's emerging youth culture. The young and restless—the Absolute Beginners—were creating a world as different as they dared from the traditional image of England's green and pleasant land. Follow our young photographer as he records the moments of a young teenager's life in the capital—sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll, the era of the first race riots and the lead-up to the swinging sixties. A twentieth-century cult classic, Absolute Beginners remains the style bible for anyone interested in Mod culture and paints a vivid picture of a changing society with insight and sensitivity.