Nana – a novella by Mark Towse (from D&T Publishing), pre-order live on Amazon, Friday 5thMarch.
I’ve always been fascinated by the elderly generation. On the odd occasion that I stayed at my Grandad’s house, he would present me with a can of cola and a Mars bar from the lounge cabinet. I remember the soda always being flat, and the chocolate had an odd white coating. Of course, I was hooked on sugar at that age, so it didn’t stop me guzzling it all down.
The smells, the colours, the textured ceiling, it has all stayed with me.
That being said, the main trigger for the story was helping my son on his paper round one afternoon. Most of the streets we looked after were full of semi-retired or retired folk, and boy, we met some characters.
Still kids at heart, I guess, wanting to be loved, listened to, they’re not so different. At least, that’s what I thought.
Nana: A term of endearment used in some countries for one’s Grandma. Some say the title is derived from the Italian word for Grandmother, Nonna. Another theory is that it stems from the word Nanny, i.e., someone who takes care of children.
Meet Olly’s nana, Ivy. It takes more than clean dentures, brandy, and bingo night to keep this one happy!
Nana Ivy lives in Newhaven Crescent, where most of the other residents are past their expiry date and all kinds of batshit crazy, the kind of place where you hang your sanity up at the door.
Being the matriarchal type, Ivy cares for the other residents as though they were kin, so of course, it’s of enormous concern when their veins begin to blacken and they start shedding skin, not to mention the glistening things crawling out of their hair. They’re pushing their luck, and Nana Ivy knows it.
Did I mention she has a dark secret?
Young Olly doesn’t know what to make of it when he comes to visit, but he’s about to find out there’s more to his nana than cough drops and slippers. Oh yes, he’s in for a long night.
-MT
