REVIEW: The Disillusioned by David.W.Scott *REMARKABLE!* A..

Hi there, I was searching google for books on society, disillusionment,
abuse, redemption etc and came across this little gem 'The Disillusioned'
by a young new writer, see it and read the reviews here
http://www.fishpond.co.nz/product_info.php?products_id=631792

On the strength of the reviews I went ahead and bought it ( plus the NZ
dollar exchange rate is good for us ) and I have been thoroughly impressed
with what I read - it was just what I was looking for after not being able
to find anything else like it... A remarkable read, brutally honest
depiction of modern society, epic in scale, and all the more remarkable for
being an autobiography. It deals with UK and New Zealand society,
politics, alcoholism, sexual abuse, lost loves, you name it this guy has
lived it and
come out the other end in one piece... it helped me to understand my own
self destructive tendancies. Well done Mr Scott ! I wish others were as
brave in bearing their souls, their mistakes and their faults in the name of
redemption and helping others deal wth modern life

I've cut and pasted a bit more information I've found out about it below.

regards

Stephen









The Disillusioned
A Story of our Times

D. W. Scott









The book cover and blurb


"The Disillusioned is a surprisingly compulsive read about what I call the
Misfit Generation - the one beguiled at first by the challenge of rational
economics and then bewildered by its effects. David Scott's odyssey is to
find self-worth, to discover basic human values among the detritus of modern
life. At the end you can't be sure he's made it. But his story matters and
he tells it with the pace and directness of a pro."

Gordon McLauchlan, writer and book critic



The Disillusioned is a ruthlessly honest memoir of a young man who writes
both searingly and disarmingly about the highs and lows, the perils and
promise of our times.

The Disillusioned documents the struggle all too common for recent
generations: yearning to find a sense of worth and a purpose to their lives
against the backdrop of abuses rife in modern society and the duplicity of
political systems which favour the rich and powerful despite the hollow
rhetoric that promises something else.

The Disillusioned encompasses three decades, beginning with the
impressionable child indoctrinated with the propaganda of Thatcher's Britain
and suffering sexual abuse, a lack of role models and any sense of
belonging. It is a gripping story of obsessive ambition, discrimination,
sex, scams, suicidal impulses, alcoholism, the search for love, loss and the
quest for redemption in New Zealand.

It is David Scott's story, but also the story of a disillusioned silent
majority; the story of young people bogged down with debt and
disillusionment; the story, too, of the increasing dangers facing our
children in a materialistic world where family bonds and values are
sacrificed for high incomes and status.



The Author


David Scott arrived in New Zealand in 1994 aged 24 and with a singular
determination to break out of the mediocrity of his once industrial hometown
of South Shields in England's northeast. Armed with a curriculum vitae
almost as varied as Forrest Gump's he was until recently an information
technology manager in NZ Defence. No longer content to sacrifice sanity or
precious time for money he is now first and foremost a father. He currently
lives in Island Bay, Wellington.







ISBN: 0-9582332-8-4

Paperback with flaps

240mm x 170mm

320 pages

$34.99

Publication date: last week September 2004

Publisher: Fraser Books, Chamberlain Road, RD8, Masterton.

Tel/Fax: 06 3771359. Email: ifgrant.TakeThisOut@xtra.co.nz

Distributor: Nationwide Book Distributors, P O Box 4176, Christchurch.

Tel: 03 366 9559; Fax: 03 366 4801. Email: info.TakeThisOut@nationwidebooks.co.nz

http://www.less10.com/Books/History/General/product_info.php?products_id=631792

http://www.fishpond.co.nz/product_info.php?products_id=631792

http://4thedisillusioned.blogspot.com/2004_10_01_4thedisillusioned_archive.html

http://www.thebigidea.co.nz/modules.php?op=modload&name=Showcase&file=...ex&func



Reviews

- Customer review on 05/09/2005


I got the disillusioned as it had been recommended by a friend as excellent.
I don't normally read autobiographies, but decided to give this one a go as
my friend was 'raving' about it. She was not wrong.
It's a story of never ending hope with never ending bad luck. It's told with
humour and even though the author has been a bit of a bad lad in his life,
you get carried away with his charm, wishing him a happy outcome. Did he
ever get the happy outcome? Even at the end, you're left unsure, but it's a
story we can all relate to, maybe that's why it's so unputdownable!
I've told all I know to read this incredible life story.
You should read it too.

- Customer review on 22/08/2005


I'm a huge fan of autobiographies and you can always find me scanning the
shelves of the local bookshops for new stories of peoples lives. Most of the
books I read, stay with me for the duration of the book, then leave as soon
as I begin my new one.
Not The Disillusioned.
I read this book with so many conflicting emotions, at first feeling the
arrogance of the author, but then totally understanding him. I couldn't put
it down. What a roller coaster of a ride. Heartbreakingly sad, sometimes
desperate, yet often laugh out loud. (Quite embarrasing when you're reading
it on a busy plane!)
When I finished, for the first time ever, I went straight back to the
beginning to carry myself through this encaptulating ride again.
Although the author diverses many times during his memories, he never loses
you.
I would highly recommend this book, but have your tissues at the ready, to
both laugh and cry.

- Customer review on 12/05/2005


I was pretty sceptical when I started reading this book, but soon realised
that the writer was the real deal. Plenty of people have hard starts in
life, but Scott's takes some beating. It's hard to believe that living
standards this dire really existed in Thatchers supposed 'land of
opportunities'. Add to this - sexual abuse, jobs from hell, lost loves,
alcoholism, financial failure and self-destructive behaviour. This man
leaves no stone unturned. What I liked about The Disillusioned, was that
Scott takes responsibility for his mistakes and is rightfully mystified by
his seemingly endless run of bad luck, but he's not a whiner. This book is
funny, bawdy, incredibly sad and thought provoking.

- Customer review on 26/04/2005


I first read The Disillusioned because I wanted to meet the Author; since
then I've re-read most of it twice!

It's what I would call a gripping read, passionate, gritty and at times
heartbreakingly honest.

I was reduced to tears during some chapters and guffawed with laughter
during others.

This book is full of contradictions and can be painfully frustrating , much
like it's author, but finishing it has only whetted my appetite for more.

An excellent read, bring on the sequel!!

Gemma Arnell.

- Customer review on 26/04/2005


When your family, friends and loved ones cannot reach you, where do you
turn, what saves you from being completely swallowed by the darkness.

The one and only thing that pulled me through and gave me the hope and "The
Light at the End of the Tunnel" was a remarkable and outstanding book by a
New Zealand author, David Scott, "The Disillusioned"

David is an amazing, intelligent, thoughtful writer, who after coming
through all his trials is still a very open, caring and loving man.