The Handsomest Sons in the World: A Memoir (Duckbacks)

by HaroldCarlton (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  2002

  $3.25

  Seen through the eyes of earnest thirteen-year-old Howard, a Jewish family of 1950s London springs into larger-than-life clarity. Beautiful Mum, embittered and repressed Dad, gentle, kindly Grandpa, and towering above the rest, Grandma, with her famed black cloche and white satin bloomers, her unmatchable 'way' with chicken soup (cooked for two days and served with feather-light kneidlach) and her unshakeable belief that her sons are better than any others; all whirl around Howard, who struggles to understand himself and his family with the help of Freud and his knowledgeable elder sister Rachel.

• Used

  Hardcover
  2001

  $3.25

  This memoir of 1950s childhood tells the story of a Jewish boy who grew up to become an artist and best-selling author. It begins with Harold Carlton's deadpan journey through 1950s North London, from circumcision (by a Kosher butcher) to funeral. By the time we reach the climax of his story, we've recognised quirks, problems, jokes and sadnesses that exist in the best of families, but more so in this one.