A new novel from Bethan Roberts – a brilliant recreation of the early life of Elvis Presley, the making of ‘the King’, and a heartbreaking portrait of the very intense love between him and his mother, Gladys
What if your son was the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll?
From the moment she first holds him, Gladys Presley loves her son Elvis ferociously. She is the one by his side when his father is in the jailhouse; as they move from place to place skirting poverty; as Elvis’s obsession with music grows and he begins his whirlwind rise to never-before-seen success. But while he brings audiences across the land to their knees and achieves unimagined wealth and fame, there is another story – of drinking and diet pills, loneliness and loss – and at the height of his power Elvis finds that even kings must go on alone.
‘Roberts is an exceptionally tender and empathetic writer, and the story of Elvis Presley and his relationship with his mother is one ripe for her skills… both epic and intimate’ Grazia
About the Author
Bethan Roberts was born in Oxford and grew up in nearby Abingdon. Her first novel The Pools won a Jerwood/Arvon Young Writers' Award. Her second novel The Good Plain Cook, published in 2008, was serialized on BBC Radio 4's Book at Bedtime and was chosen as one of Time Out's books of the year. Her third novel, My Policeman, was picked as the 'City Reads' book for Brighton. Her most recent novel is Mother Island, winner of a Jerwood/Fiction Uncovered Prize 2015. Bethan lives in Brighton with her family.
Industry Reviews
An immediately convincing evocation of time and place, as well as character, colour, sultry heat and complex emotions... Moving effortlessly between the late 1950s and Elvis's straitened upbringing, it vividly conveys his world * Sunday Times *
This is an impressive, deceptively gentle novel, full of quiet music and even quieter tragedy -- Claire Allfree * Daily Telegraph *
One of the best books about a rock star I've ever read
Bethan Roberts grew up in a house filled with Elvis's music and pored over her mother's Elvis annuals and scrapbooks as a child... its emotional range rings true and its fidelity to a certain strain of wistful melancholy might go deeper than facts... an understated, thoughtful novel about a man who wore suits fashioned from gold leaf on stage, which occasionally prompts the reader to burst into song. -- Susie Boyt * Financial Times *
Graceland is an astonishing literary achievement. Bethan Roberts somehow manages to unlock the mystery to that beautiful sadness in the voice of Elvis. Utterly heartbreaking. -- Jake Arnott
