Four books ago Billy fictionalised his life and gave us a charming nostalgic book about growing up in Manchester. We went through university, marriage and a job in Africa and are now in 1963 and a very different Manchester. These are excellent portraits of social change and values, well worth a read.
Reviewed by Sarah Broadhurst Sarah Broadhurst spent her early working life in the book trade in both retail and wholesale until the arrival of children forced her to look for freelance work she could do from… More reviews by Sarah Broadhurst
About Anything Goes
It's December 1963 when Billy Hopkins and his wife Laura arrive home in Manchester after five years in Africa. The world they left behind has changed beyond recognition: now, it's the swinging sixties, with headlines full of the Beatles and the pill, LSD and mini skirts. Billy's youngest son still believes in Santa Claus and while his daughter's reading Jackie, she's not even a teenager yet, so Billy's not too worried about the impact of modern society on his family.
It's December 1963 when Billy Hopkins and his wife Laura arrive home in Manchester after five years in Africa. The world they left behind has changed beyond recognition: now, it's the swinging sixties, with headlines full of the Beatles and the pill, LSD and mini skirts. Billy's youngest son still believes in Santa Claus and while his daughter's reading Jackie, she's not even a teenager yet, so Billy's not too worried about the impact of modern society on his family.
He's more concerned about the welfare of his increasingly forgetful father and about the daily (and sometimes exquisitely humorous) challenges he faces as a college lecturer. When the four junior Hopkins start to choose their own, unexpected paths in life, though, Billy finds it harder than usual to see the funny side of things… ANYTHING GOES brings readers close to a warm and loving family who somehow get through all their ups and downs without ever losing their sense of humour.
Billy Hopkins, who is better known to his family and friends as Wilfred Hopkins, was born in Collyhurst in 1928 and attended schools in Manchester. Before going into higher education, he worked as a copy boy for the Manchester Guardian. He later studied at the Universities of London, Manchester and Leeds and has been involved in school-teaching and teacher-training in Liverpool, Manchester, Salford and Glasgow. He also worked in African universities in Kenya, Zimbabwe and Malawi. Billy Hopkins is married with six grown-up children and now lives in retirement with his wife in Southport.
It's December 1963 when Billy Hopkins and his wife Laura arrive home in Manchester after five years in Africa. The world they left behind has changed beyond recognition: now, it's the swinging sixties, with headlines full of the Beatles and the pill, LSD and mini skirts.
Anything Goes features in the following genres: Family Drama, Romance / Relationship Stories, eBooks of the Month, Fiction, Recommendations
Paperback, Paperback (a Format). Not Available.
Anything Goes was written by Billy Hopkins and published by Headline Book Publishing Ltd
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