Summary
Andrew O'Hagan: Water Flowers
In the midst of miners' strikes and the rise of Thatcherism, best friends Tully Dawson and Noodles navigate through the torments of youth on the streets of Scotland. Noodles does not know what he will do when he graduates, his family is in a state of disintegration, and the books he loves are only considered useful by a high school teacher. Tully works as a turner, he is the soul of every party and with his charisma he can open all the doors that, in that warm summer of 1986, were apparently closed to them. Full of ideals and convinced that the cure for life is only fun, they set off for Manchester with a wacky company for a series of concerts, a night worth remembering. Decades later, under the heavy weight of middle age, Noodles receives a call. It's Tully, with bad news.
A dramatic, nostalgic and extremely witty novel about the undoubted values and challenges of lifelong friendship. The breaking point of the novel will shake even the staunchest of readers, and highlight complex questions about dignity, life and death, to which there is hardly a single answer.
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