Absolute Beginners by Colin MacInnes was written in 1958 and details the emergence of the ‘mod’ and explores uneasy race relations in inner-city London in the lead up to the swinging sixties.

I initially found it a frustrating read, as the (unnamed) teenage narrator speaks with a litany of (now-) clichéd slang and puns, but once I reminded myself that in many respects MacInnes is recording this language in print for the first time I decided to roll with it.

As such, it is an interesting snapshot of a very specific time and place, and the story rollicks along at a cracking pace to a decent conclusion. Recommended.