Kelly seems to give without asking for any return. She will break your heart along the way if you decide to take this journey with her. The book certainly had a portion of whimsy, and things seemed to contain an element of good timing, but this did not detract my sheer delight of enjoying a full five star experience. It simply is a wonderful book. I was in two minds about how close I would make it and that’s why I changed bits of it,” she says. “But I think for me it was [about] the aftermath of that accident – the sense that the whole city of Glasgow was grieving.” The Writer Karen Campbell is a former police officer and press officer for Glasgow City Council. This shows as she succinctly describes the increasing desperation of Kelly’s situation, resulting in her living on the streets, despite the efforts of social workers. Being a dog lover, Collie of course won my heart, and I loved watching the bond between him and Kelly grow.

On her journey from Glasgow to the south-west tip of Scotland, Kelly encounters ancient pilgrim routes, hostile humans, hippies, book lovers and a friendly dog, as memories stir and the people she thought she’d left behind forever move closer with every step. For the majority of this, I was completely and utterly in love. I loved our flawed main character, the writing style and the contrast between bustling Glasgow and the small towns of Galloway (especially in the phonetic language, very clever)! Karen Campbell is an extraordinary storyteller. She has a deft touch leading you through the narrative with complete enjoyment. There is not a word out of place or a sentiment that is wrong. They were very much about social issues, they were about the world I saw as a cop,” she explains. “I wanted to write about what it was like to be a police office and my experience as a young female. So I didn’t come to it with any preconceptions at all. There’s quite a lot of slow bits in those books. Obviously you’ve got to write fiction, you’ve got to have a narrative. But I wanted them to be quite reflective.” There’s the frustrated social worker in her again. The novel centres on Kelly, who, on her journey from Glasgow to the south-west tip of Scotland, encounters ancient pilgrim routes, hostile humans, hippies, book lovers and a friendly dog, as memories stir and the people she thought she’d left behind forever, move closer with every step.

Summary

I helped you when you needed help. That’s it. Why complicate things? It’s an investment. Maybe it will be there when we need it. We all need kindness”. Overall, Paper Cup is an astute, touching, compelling tale by Campbell that does a beautiful job of reminding us that family is not always those just related by blood but rather those who love, care, support, and accept us. I can often be critical of books which sentimentalise homelessness and poverty and give an impression of a lovely, wee community of people who are homeless but happy. I enjoyed this portrayal of the city of Glasgow and the descriptive realities that people who are homeless face on the street. The descriptions of the streets, the characters, the services available and staff who work within them were immediately recognisable to someone who has worked within this environment. It’s like that wonderful maxim of not judging a person until you walk a hundred miles in their shoes. Kelly’s story is gently teased out to the reader in small increments, through past drunken stories, childhood memories, and the experiences which led her to where she is today. No possessions, no money, and the constant choice between some hot chips and cheap booze. Kelly has suffered so much, and her ability to see glimpses of positivity made me love this story.

This really is a special little book. Kelly has had such a difficult life, everything she touches seems to go wrong, and the drink has its clutches in her every step of the way. She's such an endearing character, clever, strong, witty and unstoppable. Having books out there like these makes readers like you and I think deeply about our role in the lives of these people. This journey and the people we meet along the way show just how much one meeting can have an impact in someone else’s life (and likewise how they can impact your own life). We need more people like Kelly and Dexy in my opinion.

Featured Reviews

Really interesting book, it took me a while to get into the narrative properly. I thought the description and thread throughout the book of homelessness and the way the systems work was so well researched and written, and I know it's only a small insight into the world, but there must be an opportunity for us all to do better, especially those with influence in the systems and support available. I also felt challenged as the main character isn't exactly likeable- something I normally struggle with - but the portrayal of her inner struggles with alcoholism, relationships, pain was really well written and I did feel for her, even if and when she make decisions that didn't make sense or I wouldn't have been able to justify A] poignant and harrowing read. Campbell gambles on our empathy when she shows Kelly at her worst, and she wins because she has written, without judgment or criticism, an original and memorable protagonist; one who moves through a landscape described with love and care, and whose interior voice will continue to ring in the reader's head even after the long journey's end is reached -- CLAIRE FULLER * * Guardian * * Despite that – and despite being shortlisted for prestigious annual crime writing award the Gold Dagger – Campbell doesn’t view herself as a crime writer and never has. And she certainly doesn’t think of the Anna Cameron books as crime novels. Campbell followed the Cameron quartet with three more novels, including one set in Italy during the Second World War. Now comes Paper Cup, a new novel with a new publisher – Edinburgh-based powerhouse Canongate. When I returned my copy to my local library yesterday, I felt kind of sad. Like a piece of me was missing. I was so used to seeing it all over the house as I was reading it. I took it everywhere. This is a story that I’ll carry around with me, and ponder on, for a long, long time.

While Kelly hitchhikes and walks around Scotland, a journalist is also seeking HER out, following a seeming act of bravery on the part of the Homeless Heroine. We see a very different Kelly from the one the media is portraying though. Just don’t be in such a hurry to get away from here” she says. “Because you can’t recapture it once it’s gone”. Paper Cup is a pensive, heart-tugging novel that takes us to Glasgow and into the life of Kelly, a homeless alcoholic estranged from her family who, after finding an engagement ring and witnessing a horrific accident, embarks on a journey south, meeting some interesting characters and visiting some historical places along the way, heading to Gatehouse of Fleet, Galloway to not only return the ring to its rightful owner but to finally confront the demons she fled from and the family she hasn’t seen in years.Despite these coincidences, Paper Cup is often a poignant and harrowing read. Campbell gambles on our empathy when she shows Kelly at her worst, and she wins because she has written, without judgment or criticism, an original and memorable protagonist; one who moves through a landscape described with love and care, and whose interior voice will continue to ring in the reader’s head even after the long journey’s end is reached.

It’s worth it though, to be free to live exactly as you please. There are no restrictions except her own. Yes there is weather, but weather brings sun as well as rain. There are no roofs, but there is boundless sky. The sky reminds her of the sea and home. The language itself was also beautiful, incredibly realistic and will strike right at the heart of those who live in Scotland, particularly the West of Scotland. I am not sure how other non-natives may feel about it however I don't believe you would get an accurate portrayal of the story without it. A]mbitious … picturesque … generous and often wryly comic novel: a nice variety of incident and characters, fine descriptions of street life in Glasgow and of Kelly’s journey - a quest that is both physical and spiritual, offering the prospect of recovery and redemption … readers are surely likely to find pleasure and satisfaction in the humanity of Campbell’s treatment of people who have led difficult lives” Campbell, aformer police officer and winner of the Best New Scottish Writer Award in 2009, said: " Paper Cup is a story about a woman who has nobody and nothing. Who tells herself it’s better that way, because no one can let her down – and she can’t hurt folk either. But Kelly was once a girl with hopes and plans, same as everyone else. So Paper Cup is me, following her on her journey, to see if that girl is still inside. Canongate are my dream publisher, and I’m delighted at the love they’ve already shown Kelly and her crew."

Advance Praise

Scottish writer Karen Campbell is the author of eight novels. Her latest book Paper Cup is published by Canongate. Previous novels include The Sound of the Hours, Rise and This Is Where I Am, all Bloomsbury, and The Twilight Time, After the Fire, Shadowplay and Proof of Life, all Hodder. A graduate of Glasgow University’s Creative Writing Masters, Karen also teaches creative writing. And so begins a pilgrimage across Scotland, starting in Glasgow to Kelly’s home town, as she is determined to return the ring before the Wedding takes place. I won’t tell you how she knows these details, but the journey is all set up in the first chapter. The prose is rich and vivid. The characters are vulnerable, flawed, and troubled. And the plot is a memorable tale of unlikely friendships, familial drama, poverty, homelessness, addiction, guilt, compassion, honesty, survival, mental illness, kindness, and ultimately finding your way home.