Publisher’s
blurb: Slim Spires was born in England and moved to
Australia with his family when he was eight. He has worked in a bank, as a
psychiatric nurse, owned a motorcycle accessories shop and worked as a cook. He
has done three short prison stints. Slim lives in Melbourne.
This biographical account of Slim Spires’ adventures
is a series of loosely connected anecdotes which largely occurred over thirty
years ago when Slim was a young and reckless nut-case. The stories are simply and
clearly told from Spires’ in-your-face perspective and are often directly addressed
at the reader to create a greater sense of intimacy. He inserts about a dozen
personal photos to add to the authenticity of his accounts. Many of the stories
are highly entertaining and amusing but there is a disturbing, vicious streak
in Spires as he is ready to ‘fuck over’ anyone who has the misfortune of accidentally
crossing his path.
SLIM
is Spires’, aged 61, first book in which he collects stories he has been
telling his mates about his shady past for years. After meeting Andy McPhee the
actor from Sons of Anarchy he was
referred to the writing teacher Ray Mooney and filmmaker Alkinos Tsilimidos who
encouraged Spires to compile this book for possible publication. In the Afterword he hints of more bikie
tales to come.
There are forty-four non-fiction stories in SLIM and the book is structured under
five self explanatory headings:
I
Stories From the Road
II
Cops
III
In Jail
IV
Tall Tales and True
V
Brawls and Fisticuffs
The
language is characteristically shitfaced raw and adopts a smart-assed, ‘fuck
you and fuck your system attitude,’ particularly in the first three sections. Some
of the better stories in the collection, such as, ‘You’re Wanted on the Phone’,
‘At the Drive-In’, ‘Stand-Off On Tom Ugly’s Bridge’ and ‘Ten Days of Amenities’
show Spires defiantly confronting cops and screws from an anti-authoritarian
stance that no one is to fuck with him and that he has ‘nothing to lose.’
Other
strong stories reveal Spiers’ reluctance to take shit from anyone and usually
results in him giving some poor sucker a savage beating, as in the fellow
prisoner in ‘Going to Jail’, the obnoxious driver in “Road Rage’ and the rude
mechanic in ‘Can You Change a Tyre?’ This tough guy image is unapologetic, with
each of his victims getting what they rightly deserve, apart from the waiter in
‘You Again’ who ducks into a beauty, being mistaken for sleaze bag office
worker.
Perhaps
the best stories avoid the punch-in-your-face subtlety typical of Spires’ writing.
‘Look Who Came to Dinner’ where the Slim accidentally attends the wrong party
and ‘Where’s the Sofa?’ in which the author sets fire to a clubhouse sofa
because it stinks of the sweat and grime of an ‘untidy oversized guy’. Both
these stories are genuinely humorous and don’t attempt to resort to fisticuffs
to get their point across. Also highly impressive are his work related stories, such
as, ‘The Paint Shop’ and ‘A Bet’s a Bet’ which would make Bukowski’s ghost
drool with excitement.
Throughout
the book there is an innovative insert called ‘SLIM SAYS’ where Spires periodically
provides us with some of his hard-fought, simple bikie aphorisms. The most
memorable include, ‘Psychopaths have feelings too, you know’ and ‘If
something’s worth doing, it’s worth overdoing.’
These
stories represent three and a half decades of Spires’ life and as they are
propelled by anecdotes you don’t get the sense of continuity you would in a
more cohesive work. He is highly selective in the stories he tells. He only
indirectly refers to his bikie club involvement and in the book drugs and sex
are marginalized. The stories are often more about his personally meted out
sense of justice and the satisfaction he derives from it.
Overall,
Spires as a young man comes across as a vicious psychopath, but he has redeeming
qualities and sometimes reveals his vulnerabilities, as in ‘The Japanese
Hostel’ when he searches for a toilet in his jocks pissed and gets lost. There is a
wonderful photo of him near the end of the book entitled ‘Who’s cooking? 1995’ which
shows a more humane side to Spires. He is replete in chef’s hat and garb. You
really have to admire Spires' tenacity in bringing this book together and in Allen
& Unwin in taking the financial risk in publishing it.
This is a fascinating and real account of stories which provide a voice for a sub-culture which stereo-typically has remained secret or illiterate.
This is a fascinating and real account of stories which provide a voice for a sub-culture which stereo-typically has remained secret or illiterate.
Notes:
Despite
being published by Allen & Unwin, a mainstream Australian publisher, it is
difficult to find previous informed reviews of the book. Nor is there any
evidence of Spires ‘hitting the highway’ to help sell his book.
Find
a brief sampling from the Preface and the book’s index of chapters here: http://ebooks.gleebooks.com.au/product/9781742695945
Buy
a signed copy of the book here: http://slimspires.com/
Buy an inexpensive copy of the book here: http://ebooks.gleebooks.com.au/product/9781742695945