A GLOBETROTTING teacher has written his first novel after returning to England.
English teacher Darren Melsam admits ‘No Ball Games’ is a semi-autobiographical account of growing up in the Seventies and Eighties in the Midlands.
“I have kids the same age as those in the book and it got me thinking about children growing up these days,” said Darren.
“When I was young we spent most of the time outdoors playing while these days children have their gadgets and seem to spend all their time indoors.
However at the same time I think we all go through the same human experience of growing up.”
‘No Ball Games’ is a coming of age tale of a group of young people and the things they get up to before one of the main characters moves away from the area.
Darren grew up in Halesowen and together with his wife Dawn, also a teacher, has traveled the world teaching in far flung countries such as Borneo, East Africa and parts of the Middle East.
However with their own children getting to an age where they required stability they moved to Redditch.
Dawn now teaches at a local school while Darren teaches in Birmingham.
‘No Ball Games’ has been selling well online and is available as a download for £4.99 or £8 in paperback on Amazon.
