England Away

You can divide the book in three:
First this Tommy Johnson, main character of Football Factory, fancying a good fight and an ass kicking in Deutschland for the pride of his mother England.

Second, Bill Farrell, this veteran of war, going away with his old comrades and remembering the ghosts of the past, his wife and the guys whe killed in Germany. Personally, I´m very interested in WWII, so I thought those moments in the book were very rich and accurate.

And the third part is at the look of Harry, this fat hool who´s more worried about women, but stills want some punch-up. Harry is the responsible for the best humour King can offer. The parts on the ferry and in Berlin watching the fight made me laugh very loudly, almost waking people in my house.

It doesn´t have all that fighting of Football Factory, but seems a better constructed book. While you had some dull chapters in FF like the journalists and go on, focusing the book only on Harry, Tommy and Bill hold your attention all the time.

Go buy it now if you like King style, football, drugs, WWII or only likes to read a pleasant book with strong characters and the best british humour.


Another Gem!   December 8, 2003
R. P. Sedgwick (UK)
6 out of 8 found this review helpful

England Away follows a group of Chelsea hooligans drinking, fighting and picking up women on their way to a Germany v England bust-up in the late nineties. The story is told in three different voices: two of the group on their way to Germany, and a WW2 veteran back home in the UK unconnected to the other characters except by the area he comes from and the pub he drinks in.

Interspersed by the drinking and violence, the patriotism of the characters is revealed in their different ways across the decades, whether it be expressed in fighting in a World War, or in the streets around a football stadium.

As with John King's other books there are no punches spared. Whether you're a man, a football fan, or just British you can't fail to identify with at least part of this book. King's books encapsulate so perfectly the time we live in through the eyes of ordinary working class British people that they deserve permanent recognition.


Football hooligans arrive in Europe – beware…   July 25, 2003
Darren Simons (Middlesex, United Kingdom)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful

If you’ve read other John King books you may expect based on the title that the book’s about football hooligans who follow England and get involved in punch-ups. Well, you’re right – that’s exactly what it’s about. And yet, it’s different to the others at the same time…

The book itself contains three stories: one written by an ex-soldier who on arrival in Europe is shocked by the nationalistic attitude of his fellow-Brits, a second written by someone looking for a punch-up, and the third written by a character taken from another King book, The Football Factory. You don’t need to have read The Football Factory to enjoy the third story but I’d recommend it anyway.

Yes, the theme of the book is football violence (again!) but moves on from the previous books by King in that it talks a bit more about the future of the EU, what else Amsterdam has to offer beyond football and gets a bit more into the minds of his characters.

I’d recommend this book along with the other books by the same author about football (The Football Factory and Headhunters) which despite sounding as if they’re very similar are each worth reading in their own right.


A book about hooligans? ... maybe   September 13, 2002
Mike Bostock (London)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

Definately King's best book, including his later work. The story of a group of England fans travelling to an away match in Berlin is told from three different perspectives. This brings more depth to, and raises more questions about the hooligan culture, and the lives of the British underclass, than most other books on the topic put together.

King (as usual) subtly questions the motives and attitudes of his characters by setting the main story against the recollections of an ex-soldier who battled through a similar route to Berlin in WWII. As the recollections become more horrific, the claims of the hooligans that they are doing England proud and showing the Germans how to fight become more and more ironic. What starts as a book appearing to glorify hooliganism ends by highlighting that the true heroes in Britain today are those who really fought the Germans 50 years ago.


sensitive   October 19, 2001
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

If you can read beyond the vocabulary-the obscenities which we all have used at one time or other-this book is follows 3 characters. Tom is the realcitrant 'yob' and the most connected to the title if that is what you perceive the noel to be. Harry is dealt with very sensitively,he falls in love with a prostitute,can see the merits of other cultures and most importantly of all is still in shock over a friend's violent death. Bill Farrell's experience of a true 'England Away' are his memories of D-Day and his part in the slaughter then. This puts the violence following England FC-the fans-into perspective. This is a novel for all and my favourite of J.King's books. Not to be judged by it's cover!.