Myers, Benjamin (2005). Green Day: American idiots & the new punk explosion. Church Stretton: Independent Music Press. ISBN 0-9539942-9-5. OCLC 64553821. There's no doubt that Ben Myers is one of my favourite writers and I will read anything he writes. I'm always full of admiration for Ben and his ability to write something completely different every time.

The book itself is divided into different historical sections, all centring around St. Cuthbert. The first focuses on the monks who carried St. Cuthbert’s coffin to Durham, the narrator is a girl who has visions and is able to talk to the saint directly, in which we get glimpses of his life. It’s worth noting that this section is told as an experimental poem. Myers, Benjamin (3 January 2020). " 'I was half-insane with anxiety': how I wrote myself into a breakdown". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077 . Retrieved 3 January 2020– via www.theguardian.com. But here, in Cuddy, I feel that Myers has excelled himself. Here we have all the poetry and intensity of his writing, all the excellence of his historical fiction and it is all mixed together with some literary experimentation that makes you think Myers is really going places with his writing. Bley Griffiths, Eleanor. "BBC announces new Shane Meadows drama The Gallows Pole, based on 'the biggest fraud in British history' ". Radio Times. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021 . Retrieved 24 May 2021. Past winners of the Tom-Gallon Trust Award". Society of Authors. 8 May 2020. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020 . Retrieved 27 May 2021.Benjaminwill appear at the Cambridge Literary Festival, in conversation with Goldsmiths Prize judgeMaddie Mortimerwhose first novelMaps of Our Spectacular Bodieswas shortlisted for the 2022 Goldsmiths Prize and won the Desmond Elliott Prize, andTom Gatti executive editor at theNew Statesman. Fiction Uncovered Prize Longlist 2015". Jerwood Arts. 12 May 2015. Archived from the original on 21 January 2021.

If all of this sounds too heady or terribly uninteresting, there is good news: The five narratives which contribute to the book's overarching story are excellent. The writing is extremely fine. There is plenty of wit, intrigue, conflict, atmosphere, character development, and good old storytelling to make this a worthwhile read. I am very glad this one found its way into my hands.

About the contributors

Ostensibly the story of St. Cuthbert and his influence on the Christian faith over the last 1400 years, this is a deeply philosophical novel. Myers explores several topics, many of them quite obvious: the difference between faith and religion, the cost of true devotion, and the interplay between Art and Science. Beneath the surface, however, there is so much more happening. The final section is modern day Durham and it’s about a romance between two people in their late teens/early 20’s. Recalling the humanity that was displayed in The offing, I felt this was the most heartfelt part of the book and it has elements which tie in with the previous three parts. It’s also the greatest love letter to the north he’s ever written. As a journalist he has written about the arts and nature for publications including New Statesman, The Guardian, The Spectator, NME, Mojo, Time Out, New Scientist, Caught By The River, The Morning Star, Vice, The Quietus, Melody Maker and numerous others.

So, overall, while I didn't like some parts, I always appreciated his trademark brilliant prose and, man, that first section is worth the cover price alone. Cuddy is a return to epic historical fiction and it didn't surprise me to learn that this labour of love took several years in different locations to write. I imagine as a son of the area that Benjamin Myers grew up steeped in the Cuddy mythology. This place must have been built by brilliant minds and fuelled by a faith in something bigger, a form of faith that he now wishes he too might experience. The triumphant new novel from the Walter Scott Prize-winning author of The Gallows Pole and The Offing All in all a fabulous book one I would hope would appear on prize lists such as the Booker prize .The book defiantly classes as a literary novelThis book was very close to a five star read for me and I think it is definitely a contender for the Booker Prize longlist which is announced on 1 August. Rating this a 3* read tells barely half the story. For a start, nothing about it is middling, or average. So perhaps even rating it all is a futile pursuit. Myers, Benjamin (2002). American heretics: rebel voices in music. Hove: Codex. ISBN 1-899598-23-5. OCLC 50175926.