---
product_id: 227478943
title: "How Late It Was, How Late: A Novel"
brand: "james kelman"
price: "₩57376"
currency: KRW
in_stock: true
reviews_count: 11
url: https://www.desertcart.kr/products/227478943-how-late-it-was-how-late-a-novel
store_origin: KR
region: South Korea
---

# How Late It Was, How Late: A Novel

**Brand:** james kelman
**Price:** ₩57376
**Availability:** ✅ In Stock

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- **What is this?** How Late It Was, How Late: A Novel by james kelman
- **How much does it cost?** ₩57376 with free shipping
- **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship
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## Description

How Late It Was, How Late: A Novel

## Images

![How Late It Was, How Late: A Novel - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/61rNoVkTJYL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars







  
  
    It's not too late to read a great book
  

*by B***N on Reviewed in the United States on March 2, 2001*

"No frigate like a book to take us lands away," said Emily Dickinson. Oh my, she's right. There are other worlds out there, lots of them. Kelman's book takes us to one, a unique one, right in the middle of Glasgow, in fact in the outer limits of consciousness somewhere - in the mind of a low-life petty thief named Sammy who stupidly assaulted two policemen and got beaten so badly by them that he is blinded. After that, everything in this book is generated, more or less, in Sammy's head as interior monologue (not stream of consciousness as others say) or by the speech of the characters Sammy deals with. Those characters do plenty of talking with an extremely limited vocabulary that nevertheless has an amazing expressive range proving, again, that Scotland is a nation of talkers, great talkers. It is also a welfare state with lots of red tape and institutionalized dullness. So much so that Sammy's difficulties with the DSS Central Medical board and with the DSS in general call into question the Scottish I.Q. and raise the query that they might have there some institutional madness as serious as that discussed in Bleak House. Some advice: Donay be turned off by ye Scottish dialect. Read the first three pages aloud. Aw fine. Aye, they make sense. Ah stories, man, stories, life's full of stories, there to help ye out. Aye right pal okay.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4.0 out of 5 stars







  
  
    Pacing The Cage
  

*by D***S on Reviewed in the United States on June 21, 2009*

Ah, dear, how to write a review of a novel in which over half the words are unrepeatable in an Amazon review?  The irony is that it's the lovely, chanting, profane interior monologue of the book that wins one over.  From starter's orders here, we are inside the mind of a Glaswegian no-account who has lost his sight after having been "done in" by the police.  He has also lost his girlfriend, his memory, and, to a certain extent, his mind.But what a lovely, melodic mind it is!  For all the talk of the book's roughness and the vulgarity of its language, it is intrinsically a sweet book - the poor bloke who never had a chance, blinded, left lovelorn, up against everything the world has to throw at him.  Added to this is Sammy's perspective on the world.  There's precious little self-pity in it.So, we listen in on Sammy's thoughts as the bureaucracy, the police, the doctor, the lawyer all try to take him down.  The recurrent image is of a wounded animal, defanged by blindness, beating the bars of the cage of this world with the mop handle with which he makes do for a cane, all the while drifting in a melodious incantation of meditation.  I didn't want to put this book down.  When I finally came to the end, I felt like saying to Sammy what he says to his son:"The worst of all this is saying cheerio to the likes of yerself, but what can ye do, ye've got to batter on, know what I'm saying, ye've got to batter on."Aye, Sammy, don't we all?

### ⭐⭐⭐ 3.0 out of 5 stars







  
  
    Poor effort from Big Jim
  

*by T***M on Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2005*

The style of this book apparently is know in the trade as "stream of consciousness", but anyone who has ever set foot in Glasgow can see it's just standard weegie punter pub patter spun out into book length and format.I had high expectations coming to this book, having won the Booker prize and generally acclaimed by the critics. But as story lines go, it's average. As a piece of English literature, it's not even on the radar screens. As a piece of Scots literature, it's been heavily watered down (sorry to disappoint the other reviewers who thought the 'dialect' - in actual fact banter - was quite strong). If you're after a solid piece of contemporary Scots stuff in the same vein, Irvine Welsh (Edinburgh) is far better, you'll get a proper story line, some bare minimum of character development, more energy all round and better language. If you're wanting really classic stuff, then maybe Lewis Grassic Gibbon (Aberdonian).But to give the book credit where due, there are some strong points. If you have never been to Glasgow or Scotland (or if you have and are nostalgic - it does happen so I am told...), this book is full of those 'only-in-Glasgow' gems; but to repeat you don't have to be a great author to put them down on paper. If you've never been to Scotland you can have a taster of how depressing life really is there.There's bound to be literary critics out there who can dig out profound observations on human nature and modern society in this. But then again this sort of folk can see meaning in an old bag of chips or a soggy newspaper. And is hard to see whether Kelman actually intended anything with this book other than to make a few coins.Other good points. It's a pretty light read, you can steam through it in no time, and it's ideal for reading on the beach (if you have the luck), on the bus, waiting in a queue etc.If you can avoid spending the money, try borrowing from a friend or from the library. It's not one of those classic tomes you will be wanting to grace your own collection in years to come.If you're seriously wanting to find out more about Scotland and the way of life/language, the only real way to do it is through the cinema. Similar sort of approach to Kelman is taken by Ken Loach ('My name is Joe', 'Sweet Sixteen').

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*Product available on Desertcart South Korea*
*Store origin: KR*
*Last updated: 2026-03-07*