Off the Mark

A humorous rite of passage novel set in 1960s Norfolk in the days before computers, but in an era of glorious soul music Off the Mark charts the progress of Mark Barker, who at sixteen years old leaves an all boys' Grammar School with absolutely no experience of girls or, indeed, the world as a whole. Mark's first foray into the world of work is at an office in a time before computers or modern photocopiers or calculators. His first job also launches him into the presence of girls. As a very shy youth who lacks confidence in his ability to attract the opposite sex, he ends up forming attractions to all the wrong girls - for all the wrong reasons. He wavers between the waspish Karen, who breaks his heart with her lack of compassion, the beautiful Pauline and painfully shy Debbie. Unsuccessful blind dates and foursomes only serve to exacerbate the loneliness of this sensitive teenager, as he scrapes through to manhood - luckily his sense of humour pulls him through. Off the Mark brings life in the sixties for a working class family in a small Norfolk town vividly to life and will be a stroll down memory lane for many readers.