An `on the hoof' account of Liverpool Football Clubs record-breaking 2018/19 season.
From pre-season through to the CL final in Madrid, the book is a running commentary from a long-term fan and season ticket holder of every game and every thought and feeling in between. Structured only by what I was feeling at the time of writing, the book covers the many highs of the season, along with the lows, the celebrations and the concerns that every fan will encounter when watching their team.
Every game is reported but in the context of where I am at the time, whether that be at the ground, watching on TV, listening on the radio or sitting on a beach. The book starts at the beginning of July 2018, as Jurgen Klopp announces the start of the season, picks up the pieces of the previous season and how Liverpool rebuild ready for the challenge ahead.
We then follow the journey of this unique season, the race with City for the title and the highs and lows that accompanied it.
The near failure of the Champions League group stage and the path to ultimate glory. The diary format is broken up by a series of short interludes that talk about my personal path towards being a Liverpool fan in the trophy laden 1970's and 80's and the family trauma that formed this life long attachment, culminating with my experience at Hillsborough and the way it affected me afterwards. The book is a very personal, hands-on interpretation of the season, but will appeal to a wide section of fans who want to relive the experience as told by a fellow fan. The book is split into two parts that alternate, chapter by chapter.
The first is a diary of the season, written in the first person and gives a very immediate view of season, pre and post match, more general thoughts and feelings, analysis and reaction.
Written in a humorous and candid style. The diary is the main thrust of the book. The second part of book is a series of small autobiographical interludes, each approximately 1000-1500 words, that break up the diary and tell the story of my first experiences of Liverpool Football Club and how I came to be a season ticket holder and lifelong fan, alongside the changes at home that helped to form this ongoing attachment.
It covers the period 1972-1990 - the single most successful era for any British club - and covers the European cup wins, the double, the Barnes and Beardsley team and the rise and fall of Kenny Dalglish.
It also includes Hillsborough, an account of the day which I have never told anyone before and the effects it had on me afterwardsThis book will appeal to the wider LFC fanbase.
I do not see this book as being a piece of `football literature', I see it being a fan's own view, something that other fans can relate to, whether that be match-going fans who can relive a similar experience, or the non-match going fan who can get an insight into the obsessive thoughts of one of the lucky people who get to see and experience the game.
In that sense, I believe it has wider appeal. It is less elitist and self-indulgent, more immediate, more irreverent, candid and honest - I'd like to think it's the literary equivalent of Jurgen Klopp.
It's an easy read by someone who cares about the football and doesn't care what people think.
