Bill Naughton recalls his boyhood in the depressed Lancashire of the 1920s with honesty and affection. His working-class background is brought vividly to life, with a wealth of period detail and richly drawn characters. Studded with incident and laced with humour, the book is also at times deeply moving. An intimate account of the tragic conseqences of the 1921 mining dispute shows its devastating effect on family life. Events in the classroom, and episodes in young Billy's spiritual and emotional life, illustrate in touching detail the pains and tribulations of growing up. It is at once the personal story of an immigrant Irish family, and a piece of detailed social history. Saintly Billy is the sequel to Bill Naughton's first volume of autobiography, On the Pig's Back. Readership: general