Ironopolis by Glen James Brown

This is a novel of many parts and does not have a plot as such. Instead we have a cast of characters on the Burn Estate in Middlesbrough. Like many a post-industrial town in the north of England, Middlesbrough has struggled with the decline of heavy industry. Once upon a time known as Ironopolis due to its output of pig iron (hence the title of this novel), with the closing of plants and factories it’s suffered entrenched unemployment and associated social ills.

The Burn Estate of the novel is to be demolished and this serves as the backdrop to the stories of its residents. Another backdrop to the novel is the folklore tale of Peg Powler, a witch or faerie of some kind that lures children to water and drowns them. Peg haunts all the stories within the book and is a constant supernatural presence. Finally, there’s Vincent, a local hard man and bully who stalks the estate striking fear into those around him. The six stories that make up the narrative of Ironopolis flesh out these three threads while painting a vivid picture of life in the Burn Estate and in Middlesbrough more broadly. 

Ironopolis has been billed by some critics as a “working class” and a “northern” novel. As someone who is not of that background I cannot judge, but it certainly felt authentic. These are powerful tales that grapple with the issues and challenges that the residents of the estate have to face. But equally it tells their stories with real warmth and this is no simplistic “poverty porn”. 

The story that most touched me was that of Jim Clarke. He embraces the Acid House scene in the 1980’s but eventually tragedy strikes and those he had considered friends are nowhere to be found. As someone who went to many a rave party in the early 1990’s, this story mirrored to some extent my own experiences. The rave scene is often viewed through rose tinted glasses, but as hard man Vincent points out (even a thug can have transitory moments of wisdom) every youth movement thought that they had the answer but eventually passed into history. And the rave scene was as shallow as any, as Jim and I discovered to our cost (though my experience was nowhere near as catastrophic as his).

Ironopolis reminded me of a novel I’m yet to read but have heard much about and that’s Jon McGregor’s Reservoir 13. The reason Ironopolis reminds me of this novel, or rather the description of it that I’ve read, is that the narrative skirts around various issues. From what I’ve read Reservoir 13 features a missing teenage girl but does not really touch on this at all, but rather reveals the life of the English village and its residents from where the girl came. This is similar to Ironopolis’s approach; indeed, a number of girls have gone missing from the Burn Estate, their missing posters dotting the landscape. But like Peg Powler and the hulking presence of Vincent, these missing children are less the focus of the narrative and more supporting structure. Like Reservoir 13, Ironopolis is really an exploration of people and place.

This is an intriguing and emotional read and the stories of from within its pages will stay with me.

4 out of 5 stars