The Social Distance Between Us: How Remote Politics Wrecked Britain

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Darren McGarvey uses his own unique proximity to get closer to the action and uncover the truth about Britain, to look at the would-be answers whether from the political Left, the Right or Centre to see how they each get it wrong in differing ways and to look to find ways that we might get it right. *A RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK* *SHORTLISTED FOR THE RATHBONES FOLIO PRIZE FOR NON-FICTION* 'An Orwell for today's poor' - The Times 'This is McGarvey at his best' - Observer 'Breaks your heart and boils your blood' - Big Issue If all the best people are in all the top jobs, then why is Britain such a fucking bin fire Britain is in a long-distance relationship with reality. A ravine cuts through it, partitioning the powerful from the powerless, the vocal from the voiceless, the fortunate from those too often forgotten. This distance dictates how we identify and relate to society's biggest issues - from homelessness and poverty to policing and overrun prisons - ultimately determining how, and whether, we strive to resolve them. So why, for generations, has a select group of people with very limited experience of social inequality been charged with discussing and debating it I've sat on cold pavements with beggars, asking them why they would rather wander the streets than live in supported accommodation. I've pleaded with alcoholics to give sobriety one last shot before they end up dead - and read their obituaries in the paper weeks later. I've sat with youth workers at their wits' end as diversionary services are cut amid a surge in gang and knife violence. Too many people remain so far from this nightmarish social reality that even when they would earnestly wish to bring about change, they don't know where to start. So start here. Praise for Darren McGarvey- 'The standout, authentic voice of a generation' Herald 'Utterly compelling' Ian Rankin, New Statesman 'Brilliant' Russell Brand 'An absolutely fascinating individual' Owen Jones 'Offer s an antidote to populist anger that transcends left and right... articulate and emotional' Financial Times 'McGarvey is a rarity- a working-class writer who has fought to make the middle-class world hear what he has to say' Nick Cohen, Guardian

Reviews

This is McGarvey at his best, asking discomfiting questions of many-most-of his readers and also pointing out that class inequality is endlessly reproduced by people who either do well out of it or are too institutionalised to see what is in front of them. The quality of McGarvey's reporting and storytelling is first-rate... he makes no end of astute points * John Harris, Observer (Book of the Week) *
An Orwell for today's poor... By the end readers will be left in no doubt about the fact that our society is still riven by class inequality * The Times *
Breaks your heart and boils your blood * The Big Issue *
Vital and indispensable. Documents how we succeeded in creating a 21st century ruling class who - in their complacency, their lack of engagement, their blinkered ideology and dead-hand managerialism - are themselves, now, the principal source of the social problems they so confidently locate elsewhere, and which they therefore cannot even begin to solve * Joyce McMillan, The Scotsman *
An essential read for every politician, civil servant, councillor, charity worker, police officer and teacher. [An] angry, but controlled, expose of the wide gap between Britain's decision-makers and those most affected by their thoughtless, stupid or selfish actions. * Susan Dalgety, The Scotsman *

Author Bio

Darren McGarvey grew up in Pollok, Glasgow. He is a writer, hip-hop artist, broadcaster and campaigner. His bestselling and acclaimed first book Poverty Safari was awarded the Orwell Prize for political writing in 2018.