This is a delightful collection of short stories about the
Rev Graham West and his family as they move to take over his first parish in
the Cambridgeshire countryside.
Having been brought up on the edge of the fen area
concerned, I can confirm how realistic the setting is as there must be hundreds
and hundreds of country towns and villages just like the fictional Random in
the book.
My particular interest here comes from the fact that the
author – John Britten – was a teacher at my old school and, while I mainly remember
him as a careers teacher and head of sixth form, he was also an RE teacher for
a long time.
From the brief biography on the book cover, I discovered that he, in fact, studied theology at college and was ordained as a minister in the
Congregational Church - so he will obvious know his subject matter as far as
being a newly arrived clergyman is concerned and, apparently, a few of the
occurrences that are described in the stories really did happen.
The stories are set in the present day so, as well as the timeless
intrigues of the village hierarchy and its larger than life personalities, alongside
cricket, bell-ringing and choir stories, we also have up to date issues such as
parking problems, bank closures and parish website dilemmas.
I am sure this book will appeal to readers of all ages and, whether
you are actually interested in the religious aspects or not – you will still
find it enjoyable. It is very easy to read and written with a certain amount of
humour. Plus, the subjects covered are sufficiently wide that I’m sure that everybody
will be able to identify with many of the stories.
“For Goodness Sake” by John Britten
Paperback: 192 pages
ISBN: 978-1-982955-98-4
Amazon Price: £6.99
Also available on Kindle
