Trainspotting

Many people will find this book hard to read because it is in a language that is hard to understand unless you can read and understand Glaswiegen . I remember the film of this book being released in 1995 in Edinburgh but was not well received south of the border!

I was able to read this book but found the contents disturbing, but I feel that Edinburgh and the surrounding area have changed since it was first written and published in 1993. The book takes on board the subject of drink and drugs with the main drug being Heroin

The story really gets going when the boys attempt the drug-deal of a lifetime, which inevitably leads to double-crossing and betrayal, and destroys their tenuous friendship, with Renton ironically using the drug that previously owned him to move on to a better, drug-free existence. The highs and the lows of Renton's crew are adeptly and movingly chronicled  blending gritty realism with stylistic psychedelia. Director Boyle doesn't shy away from either extreme.

The book is well written and Irvine Welsh has certainly described the drug world surrounding Edinburgh's underground drug movement with a most amazing interacy that shows that Welsh really knew the subject.