Ian McMillan (1)

The 'Bard of Barnsley', Ian McMillan attempts to find the essence of what it is to be 'Yorkshire'. Although 'Not Yorkshire Enough', in his own words, McMillan has carved a career as a poet and writer with a distinctive Yorkshire voice. Travelling the length and breadth of the County McMillan explores the influences on his own life and work and reflects on how they link to this idea of being 'Yorkshire'. A proud and independent people, the people of Yorkshire are far more than beer, flat caps, avarice and yorkshire pudding.

In fact, this book is 'Not Yorkshire Enough'! McMillan is a South Yorkshire man and therefore the majority of the book focuses on South Yorkshire, specifically the Barnsley area. Even as a native of West Yorkshire who has worked in South Yorkshire in the past, I can see the differences in dialect, habits etc. Therefore I almost read this book as though a 'foreigner' from outside God's Own Country. Having said that McMillan is an amusing writer who easily gets sidetracked and has a wry sense of the absurd. I didn't dislike the book but it didn't exactly do what it said it would!… (mere)

Neither Nowt nor Summat is Ian McMillan's look at what it means to be from Yorkshire, or more precisely what is Yorkshireness. The book is his response to his personal fear, that despite being born in Yorkshire, to a Yorkshire mother, having a Scottish father muddy's the water making him NYE or Not Yorkshire Enough.

The book is a mixture of travelogue and anecdotes taken from his personal life. While there might be a heartfelt need to prove his Yorkshire credentials, it is also a lighthearted look at the history, culture and stereotypes that typify Yorkshire.

As someone born in God's own County myself, (thankfully long before non sensical Government tinkering would have meant I was doomed to have Humberside on my birth certificate) I enjoyed this book. Incidentally I've always thought I was a Hullensian not Hullonian, so you might want to check that out before a return visit to 'Ull. For me it was part trip down memory lane, remembering words and phrases that are lost when one becomes exiled and part education knowing where they came from in the first place. It was lovely revisiting well known places and visiting some that were new. It was full of Yorkshireisms that make you remember that you can indeed take the man/woman out of Yorkshire but you'll never take Yorkshire out of the man/woman. Of course it displayed examples of the old stereotypes, but stereotypes inevitably contain a nugget of truth. Although personally I feel the notion that we are tight is one promoted by people wi' more money than sense or spendthrifts!

Whether it is possible to define Yorkshireness, I'm not sure - we're a complex breed, but this book gives it a good go. From characteristics, beliefs, language and outlook. Despite the size of the County, the differences between town and country, industrialised locales and rural, there is an integral core that any Yorkshireman/woman would recognise in another and this book attempts to show that.

This is a book for any self respecting Yorkshire person to enjoy, as it confirms our own credentials. It is also a good book for any non Yorkshire person, to introduce them to some of the delights of Yorkshire and to help them understand why we are so proud of our Yorkshireness.

I received an ARC via NetGalley in return for an honest review.… (mere)