The following review has been submitted by Glasgow Women’s Library volunteer Kath Kane as part of the Mixing the Colours: Women Speaking About Sectarianism project. If you would like to find out more about reviewing books or other materials for the Mixing the Colours project, please contact Rebecca Jones
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The divided city is Glasgow. Set in modern times, the book tells the story of three boys; two Glaswegians and an asylum seeker. The two Glaswegians are united by a shared passion for playing football but divided by their family backgrounds and religious upbringing; one being a Protestant, Rangers supporter and the other a Catholic, Celtic fan. The plot centres around their attempts to help the asylum seeker who, in the first pages of the book, is stabbed and left for dead. The sense of adventure continues throughout as the boys get to know each other and their families. They have to learn how to accept their differences and put them aside in order to help the newcomer to the city. The Glasgow portrayed is one full of divisions; religious, racial and social. The main conclusion of the book, however, is that “Deprivation, and all that goes with it, is what really divides this city” (p.160). In the final chapter a positive future for the city away from sectarian intolerance is forecast in the form of a football team which unites young men, building on their strengths despite their differences, and which encourages them to “behave like grown men…in some cases better than grown men” (p.230).
I chose this book to review as part of Glasgow Women’s Library Mixing the Colours project because, although I have lived in Glasgow for some years, I felt I didn’t have a good understanding of the conflict between Protestants and Catholics. Divided City helps to explain this conflict, not in a boring way, but in a fast moving narrative that is both exciting and funny. A recommended read even if football is not your passion.
Kath Kane
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