River deep mountain high

"River Deep Mountain High" is perhaps the first 'Great Comprehensive School Novel' - there have been many Public School and Campus novels, but nothing that shows what is going on at the sharp end.

In it Calway follows a cast of misfits - and that is before talking about the pupils - in their day-to-day lives at a Welsh Comp. And extracts every last gram of humour from the stupidity of the league table driven education system as his teachers dream of a Rock 'n' Roll lifestyle while everything collapses around them. Originally written and performed as a critically acclaimed play, "River Deep Mountain High" draws on Calway's years of experience in education and is a beautifully written and observed portrayal of a disintegrating education system, that is both hilarious and poignant and says more about life in Britain today than a satchel full of inspector's reports.