Munich Airport was the site of the takeoff crash of British European Airways Flight 609 on February 6, 1958. 'The Busby Babes,' a nickname for Manchester United's youthful squad, and the reporters who covered them were on board. In a second, twenty-one people were dead, four were barely alive, and six others were in serious condition. Jimmy Murphy, Manchester United's assistant manager, spoke to the media at the Rechts der Isar Hospital twenty-four hours later: "What about the future?" There will be many obstacles along the way. The 1958 Red Devils were a twelve-year labour of love for Bert Whalley, Matt Busby, and me. The effort was exhausting, but we were successful in the end. My thoughts are all over the place right now due to exhaustion, sadness, and confusion, but one thing is certain: the Red Devils will come back stronger than before. The novel Munichs tells the narrative of Manchester United's comeback, the disaster and its aftermath, the lives of the survivors and the lost, the ways in which football and Britain changed and did not change, and finally, the hope that came from overcoming tragedy.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: David Peace, named in 2003 as one of Granta's Best of Young British Novelists, was born and brought up in Yorkshire. He is the author of eleven novels, including the Red Riding Quartet, adapted for television by Channel Four in 2009; GB84, which was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize; The Damned Utd; Red or Dead, which was shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize in 2013; and most recently Tokyo Redux. He lives in Tokyo.
ROYAL MAIL TRACKED 48
Publisher: Faber & Faber
Published: August 29, 2024
Price: £18.00
ISBN-10: 0571381154
ISBN-13: 978-0571381159
Paperback: 480 pages
Reading age: 10 years and up
Dimensions: 152 x 246 mm
