The Making of Maggie Munroe by JJ Scott
Meet Maggie Munroe, a girl with the strength of Glasgow in her heart and a bunch of men trying to muscle their way into it. They won’t rest until only one has succeeded but, fortunately, she doesn’t suffer fools gladly and can see them coming a mile off - with the help of her intuition, her deid mammy and a Knickerbocker glory.
It is wartime in Maryhill, Glasgow. The city is in turmoil but, throughout it all, its residents struggle for whatever sliver of normalcy they can get. With the support of a boisterous family and steadfast friends, can Maggie navigate 1930s and 40s societal politics in her attempt to find the right path? Her gang includes her unwavering daddy who often cannot see past the end of his nose, an interfering aunt whose biggest belief is in her own opinion and a train wreck girlfriend striving for acceptance, so, when it comes to the four men makin’ a meal o’ it, they are in good company. Still, oor Maggie will not go down without a fight.
About the author
JJ’s writing is heavily influenced by the places and people she met as a shoestring traveller in her 20s. However, she is no longer in her 20s and her work is pure, unadulterated fiction. Writing across a variety of themes and genres, her first novel grew closer to home than abroad, when her Gran revealed that she had, in fact, been proposed to four times in the 1940s (talk about a plot twist) and had turned them all down! This was far too juicy to let go and inspired JJ to fill in the three big mysterious blanks surrounding a woman who was the best storyteller in Glasgow.
Always ready to be inspired, JJ is salsaing through life with her notepad and pen, waiting for the next idea to hit her in the head. Getting run over by a truck (yes really!) was just a blip. She has earned her stripes as a high school English teacher, spreading her love of literature to unreceptive young minds, and has edited and published the work of emerging writers in Firewords Magazine (firewords.co.uk) which she co-founded with her husband in 2014. Discovering and promoting up-and-coming writers is one of JJ’s great joys, especially after attaining an LLB, PGCE and Msc at university when she became thoroughly aware of the hell that lies in a life full of academia without the bliss of creative freedom. With Puck the Cockapoo in tow, she is determined to grab life by the bindings and make it more than just a palatable cover.
She currently has two novels at editing stage and a first draft mid-meltdown, all of which see strong Scottish characters take on the world. Having been published in Gallivant Journal and the IPSE Freelance Corner, she also has a short story collection in progress based firmly on her backpacking experience and the long stints in Toronto, Canada, which has led her to declare it her spiritual second home. Recently she has replaced air travel with campervan travel but one thing remains certain: no matter what life brings, she’ll never truly leave the world of shoestrings, hostels and writing on the road behind.
Review
This book gave me all the feels and made me heartsick for my own wee Glaswegian family. I remember school holidays where me and my cousins, aunts and uncles were all packed into each other's house blethering away. I think because we lived in Yorkshire away from them that when we did see them it was a bit of a culture shock. A huge family who seemed especially close, just like the one depicted in this book. Towards the end of my Gran’s life I started to record her oral history of when she was younger and this book made me remember and resonate with much of its content. My Grannie loved The Locarno and was a bit of a trailblazer in that she married a Protestant when she was Catholic. But it was the stories of family and people that I loved listening to and due to that, I loved this book. It was as if I was learning about a family down the close rather than people who were figments of my imagination.
I also loved all the Scots that was present in the book and I applaud the author for their choice in doing that! It's great that there are more and more books coming out like this as it is a language and it needs to be celebrated. I did like the reference to Tommy Gunn changing his dialect to smooth out the Scots. I don't agree with it but then again I could relate to it as my mum did the exact same thing. At that point in history, you weren't really able to upwardly move if you spoke like the masses.
Maggie as a character was brilliant and I loved everything about her! She reminds me very much of one of my cousins, Jeanette. Loyal to friends and family. Dedicated to her work. Slightly bad choice in men… but is loved by everyone around her. I would have spent many more hours in Maggie’s company if I could!
A great portrayal of family life in Glasgow surrounding the second world war. Let me know if you pick this one up!
