In which the tenements of Glasgow come to life.
Molly Weir’s Trilogy of Scottish Childhood has been my main read since Christmas – there seems to be very little time for reading these days (blame Martin). I picked up my paperback copy in Dufftown in September, it contains three volumes – however, they only seem to be available separately now – Shoes were for Sunday, Best Foot Forward and One Toe on the Ladder.
Weir writes engagingly about her childhood in the Glasgow tenements, and paints a vivid picture of a way of life based on making every penny go as far as possible. I had a most difficult time getting through the chapters on food, not because they were in any way boring but because I kept getting hungy (I mean, there’s a limit to how much you can read about fish and chips before going in search of a pub that serves them). It was also fascinating reading about Weir’s progress towards fame on the stage, despite never (knowingly) having seen her.
On searching for the amazon links for this entry, I discovered that there are actually three more installments of Weir’s autobiography. They are now duly ordered (though through abebooks).
I found the autobiographies mega readable,totally evocative & yet felt let down by the last installment where Thatcher was praised to the skies, etc & felt ‘Sandy’ remained a shadowy figure,considering how long their relationship was.