Handstands In The Dark: A True Story of Growing Up and Survival

Janey Godley

Nov 2011 · Random House

About this ebook

Brought up amid near-Dickensian squalour in the tough East End of Glasgow and sexually abused by her uncle, Janey married into a Glasgow criminal family as a teenager, then found herself having to cope with the murder of her mother, violence, religious sectarianism, abject poverty and a frightening family of in-laws.

First-hand, Janey saw the gangland violence and met extraordinary characters within an enclosed and seldom-revealed Glasgow underworld - from the grim and far-from-Swinging 60s, to the discos of the 70s, to the tidal wave of heroin addiction which swept through and engulfed Glasgow's East End during the 1980s.

This evocative, intimate and moving portrayal of a woman forced to fight every day for her family's future will strike a chord with anyone who has ever struggled against adversity.

Ratings and reviews

An horrific childhood written in such a matter of fact way made me gasp several times. Well written and compelling. I want to know more.

This is a great read , and pulls you in on every turn of the page and give you the insights of what can be the true outcome of someones life and the true strength of love and team work showing us if you stay focus you will get to where you wont to be even if your kick down so many times on your way there .

Witty, fiery and cleverly written. Also uplifting to know someone has that much fight in them.

About the author

Janey Godley is an award-winning comedian from Glasgow and something very different on the comedy circuit. She has performed stand-up all over the world and had her first play performed at the Edinburgh Festival in 2003. This is her first book.