The Cut
by Anthony Cartwright
£12.00
Cairo Jukes, a boxer from Dudley, supports himself on zero-hour contracts. He has grown up among the canals – or the cuts – that web the Black Country like the open veins of an old industrial order. Then he meets Grace, a successful documentary film maker from London.
The Cut will not put you at ease. It describes a relationship built on misunderstandings, intolerance and guilt – one where each side desires something that the other cannot give.
‘Writing The Cut made me understand that we live in a country where we see prejudice in others but not in ourselves. This is a lesson that I, and my two characters Cairo and Grace, have tried to learn, with varying levels of success. It is a hard lesson for us all.’ – Anthony Cartwright
176pp, paperback with flaps, £12
ISBN: 978-1-908670-40-3
Publication date: 23 June 2017
Press & Reviews
'A diamond-sharp novella...These are vividly imagined lives, rendered with the concise strokes of an experienced portraitist.' - Jude Cook, The Guardian
‘A sensitive response to the national aura of suspicion unleashed by Brexit.’ - Jon Day, Financial Times
'Cartwright's depiction of Cairo’s inner life is a salient reminder of how few men outside of the middle classes are now the central subjects of British fiction.' - Daniel Clarke, TLS
‘A compelling protest against simple answers that lingers in the mind long after the final page.’ - Wyl Menmuir
'Cartwright returns to his familiar turf of the Black Country with gentleness and ruthless sincerity. A deeply poignant human story... and a relentlessly gripping tale.' - Mika Provata-Carlone, Bookanista
