Mollycoddling the Feckless

Alistair Findlay has written the first ever memoir of a career in Scottish social work. He reflects on the changing landscape of the profession since he entered it in 1970 in a memoir that is thoughtful, progressive, humane - and funny. He conveys how he and his fellow workers shared friendship and banter in work that can be hard and thankless but also hugely rewarding and worthwhile.

Alistair Findlay has had a diverse career, from clay miner to social worker. He has published four previous collections of poetry, including Sex, Death and Football (2003), The Love Songs of John Knox (2006), Dancing with Big Eunice (2010) and Never Mind the Captions (2011).