M HKA Ensembles

Book, 10.9 x 18 cm, 224 p, language: English, publisher: TRUE TRUE TRUE, ISBN: 978-94-90006-03-7.

Collection: Collection M HKA, Antwerp (Inv. no. B 2024/778).

Literary synopsis *Alone, Desperate and Going Nowhere* is the second in a trilogy of short comedy novels by Paul Haworth. Alex ‘Abs’ Brenchley is back. The seven-foot tragedy opens the sequel to *Silk Handkerchiefs* with the words “2008 was the worst year of my life.” This is the story of that year. *Alone, Desperate and Going Nowhere* sweeps our hyper-emotional hero across England, into the depths of despair and deranged behaviour, towards a mythical destination – The Lady Field – a fabled area of Hampstead Heath where it isn’t just men who are cruising. Carnforth yobs, *Sex and the City: The Movie*, dogging fanatics, Christian Slater, Community Support Officers and the Page Street Gang – these are just some of the forces Alex is up against as he seeks to find the manhood, absolution and purpose in life that will empower him to win the love of Trevoreesia, his Absqueen. All the while, the economy is collapsing – “My life had been in crisis for so long and now the world was catching up,” observes Alex – and the soundtrack to this far-gone era is Take That’s cruel taunt: THIS COULD BE THE GREATEST DAY OF OUR LIVES. Does that day come for Alex Brenchley or will he remain, always and forever, *Alone, Desperate and Going Nowhere*? Mixing Cockney, teen lingo, Victorian slang and inventive wordplay, Haworth’s colourful style makes for an exhilarating and addictive read. Relation of the novel to the artist’s practice The character and story of *Alone, Desperate and Going Nowhere* have been developed through radio shows, YouTube videos and short stories written by Haworth since 2003. In 2007 Haworth started a MySpace page: the idea was to tell a story through photos, layout, blogs, and profile music. That summer he lived with Sam de Groot, who had just published his first book through TRUE TRUE TRUE. He liked the writing but MySpace and its design was anathema to him, so he said he would publish it if it was made into a book. In Haworth’s words: “The writing has found its right place and direction; I guess one of the things which interests me in art – and certainly I do get it wrong, often – is finding the right place for an idea: painting, book, T-shirt, rap, poem, evening.” [Novel website](http://truetruetrue.org/#alone) [Youtube](http://www.youtube.com/silkhandkerchiefs)