This is a book of nostalgia and laughter, written with respect and love for a man and a village whose hearts were alive and beating for most of the second half of the 20th century. Both the man and the coalfields are now gone and little villages like this struggle to stay alive.
The people given life here, and what they did to occupy themselves, are typical of the times. Life was hard, but there was always friendship and affection, as well as feuding and fighting. The villages were separate societies in themselves; fiercely independent and ready to defend their uniqueness. Some of that spirit still exists; long may it continue to do so.
Hopefully, each tale will evoke memories of similar scenes among people from other villages and towns, and among different peoples of the world. The sentiments illustrated are universal.
