Ships Tuesday, August 24

Come Back To Me Then Go Away is a pioneering work of creative autofiction; a visceral blend of memoir, postmodernist referentiality and tangential meditations on contemporary culture, society and politics. 

These elements coalesce to create a ground-breaking, authentic expression of the mind sifting through memory and grief, meandering daydreams and thoughts; it is fractured and cloudy, shame and regret burn like wounds, pop cultural allusions cling like limpets and the author’s eventual redemption – his love of art and literature –  glows persistently like an encouraging smile. 

King’s life is gritty and, at times, not dissimilar to a Michael Caine gangster flick, yet this is always counteracted by his playful character and narration. 

We follow him along a sinuous recollection of himself as an exuberant, young, working-class boy, his descent into addiction, crime and institutions and the struggle to decide what kind of life he wants. It’s harder to change than to stay the same.

“… in King’s tales a residuum is left behind, a human stain, a wheezing smirch, and that is life as it’s truly lived” - Will Self

“There was an air of intelligent lunacy about you. It puzzled me actually. I am not surprised you tore yourself away from it. I always thought there was more to you. Cops and robbers overrated.” - Detective Sergeant Geoffrey George Bates QPM Rtd