Gorbals Boy at Oxford

by Ralph Glasser

This is an autobiographical account of life in wartime Oxford, focusing on Ralph Glasser who grew up in the slums of Glasgow, and moved to Oxford to take up a scholarship just before the outbreak of the Second World War. He describes here the diametrically different worlds of the characters he met from snooty north Oxford hostesses to "boss class" progressive thinkers such as R.H.S. Crossman, Harold Laski, G.D.H. Cole and Victor Gollancz, and the shady world of Communist Party recruiters - including Philip Toynbee - in search of appropriate "soul mates". This book is the successor to Growing up in the Gorbals, published by Chatto in 1986.

Genres: Biography

Hardcover

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Ralph Glasser was a Scottish psychologist, economist, advisor to developing countries and author of a highly praised autobiographical trilogy.

Reviews

[Ally Shand · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating little memoir about a Scot (a Glaswegian no less) in the South East. I felt a certain familiarity with both the emotional and geographical maps which were both beautifully drawn.

[Andrew Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

I find myself strangely ambivalent about this autobiography. There is much that is fascinating, not least in the various characters whom he encounters from Crossman to Gollancz; and it is an intimate account - in some ways. But I still feel I don't know him: he reveals but also conceals. And fundamentally, I find him an unsympathetic character, strongly critical of many others, but (it seems to me) somewhat self-indulgent in his own uncertainties. Glad I read it, but doubt I will retain much from it, and highly doubt I'll re-read it.

[Lesley Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointed. What was he studying? I really do not Loire this young man much......... too much not said.

[AZ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autobiographical account covers the beginnings of the Zionist movement, shows the association between Communism and Judaism at the time, and other historical glimpses.