Johno and Roisin- A Liverpool Love Story
…. and in the beginning there was TROUBLE!
by
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“Good morning young Sir! Have you got a shiny new 20p for me? Thank you very much! Now, go and choose yourself a seat. There’s plenty of space back there today. We’ve only got you Year Sevens on board,” was the way that the, very welcoming, driver welcomed me onto my first school bus ever. Things were looking good.. so far. Now I had to solve the, rather tricky, seat selection conundrum... Hmmm....... Lots of empty ones at the front..... the odd, silent, geeky singleton (not unlike myself) in the middle section..... and a whole conglomeration of noisy ‘cool ones’ at the back. This huddle of the ‘in crowd’ comprised of girls with ‘big hair and phones’ and ‘skinhead’ boys, interspersed with the occasional spiky, gelled, coiffure..................... I sat ‘on my own’ at the front. While the busy early morning streets of Liverpool passed us by, I deflected my anxieties by fiddling with my satchel straps. ‘I’ am basically a very shy boy and ‘IT’ is an ancient eyesore. We are a good match really. At least it might come in useful as an ‘icebreaker’ some day. We were just about to go past the site of the old Gasworks. The Council have recently designated it as an area where ‘Travelling People’ can park their caravans. I wonder how many of them are there today? Let’s see. Oh, we’re stopping again. Someone’s getting on. She’s standing still, surveying the seat availability situation. She is the smallest person on this vehicle. She is wearing bright green socks, a denim skirt and a T-shirt extolling the virtues of drinking Guinness. My eyes roved above this total disregard of school uniform policy and........... OH MY GOD! What an absolutely beautiful smile and THE HAIR! Great swathes of the wavy, deep red, stuff framed the most beautiful face I have ever seen. I’m only eleven but COULD I REALLY BE IN LOVE? The girl was taking her time. Eventually she set off purposefully down the aisle. I looked away. She, gracefully, swung in beside me and then began speaking, in my direction, with an extremely attractive Irish accent. “Nice satchel, Mister........... Me name’s Róisín... but you can call me Rosie. What’s yours?” “I’m Ma Johno!” “MaJohno..... that’s a funny one. Are you sure you got it right?” her giggling sounded like the ringing of a little silver bell. “It’s just Johno....................... Does your Mum and Dad live on the caravan site, Rosie?” as you can tell, I am not a great conversationalist, but I was desperate to ‘connect’. “It’s only me and me Ma in the van at the moment. Dad’s over in Ireland, doing some bus- iness.” “Oh I’m sorry, I hope he comes home soon.” “Don’t worry Johno-boy. We like it better this way!” Oh dear. Things on the domestic front don’t sound so good in trailer town. I’d better change tack. “Are you looking forward to starting school today?” “Listen, Johno. Will you be me friend? It’s important for me to have a mate in this place.” “Yes, I will be your friend, Rosie!” at which point she reached out her delicate little hand and squeezed my arm. It is now official. I AM IN LOVE!
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About the Book
Little did Malcolm Johnson know, as he boarded the school bus to ‘The Metropolitan Academy of Liverpool’ for the first time, that his passage from short to long trousers would be such a traumatic one. On that short scheduled service, he was to meet not only ‘she who was to become the love of his life’ (Róisín, a feisty, flame-haired, girl from the Traveller Encampment) but also his nemesis, Mark Carter (bully extraordinaire). As Malcolm (or Johno, as he prefers to call himself) negotiates his way through his first Term, he encounters much that is new and even more that is positively scary. There would be friendships to forge, subjects to learn that he’d never even heard of before and even new ‘bully avoidance strategies’ to put into practise. October finds his football career blossoming as he breaks into the B Team (albeit as a result of an outbreak of childhood disease in the ranks) and December, his first entry into the, slightly unreal, world of showbiz, via The Academy’s rather rickety ‘Talent Contest’. Throughout all these innovations to his new life at Senior School, Johno’s thoughts are never far from his red-headed muse and the elusive ‘first kiss’ he craves. Equally near at hand is the constant threat from those members of the school community who inhabit the darker areas of social interaction. The final act, in a time of great emotional change for young Master Johnson, sees him make a stand against the three psychotic siblings who cause the greatest levels of trouble and fear amongst the inmates of The Academy. As a result of his brave act of defiance, the trio of barbarians leave him clinging to life on a muddy pavement............... Could the young, but profound, love which had evolved between himself and Rosie save him?
About the Author
The author was born into the austere world of 1950’s Bootle (just missing out on the delights of post-war rationing). He enjoyed a very happy childhood, living in an extremely un-insulated council house with his parents and sister, surrounded by a very supportive community of neighbours. His education was carried out at Sterrix Lane Primary School, and then Bootle Grammar School for Boys, to a soundtrack of the impeccable music of the 70’s. During his periods of Higher Education he accumulated a minimalist wardrobe plus a BEd(Hons), MSc and PhD at Edge Hill College and Liverpool University. A long career as a Secondary School Teacher came to its climax in 2005 (with only a minor set of nervous twitches as a legacy). During the few fleeting moments left unaccounted for whilst maintaining his three highly energy-efficient little children, the author has managed to pen ‘this work’ and also that ground-breaking, multi-layered, cult classic ‘Backpacking with Brian’!