I love a book that feels like falling into someones brain and seeing life through their eyes, no matter how strange that may be. This is one of those books.Simon Crump is a cleaner. Simon Crump is also an activist who was arrested and given a suspended prison sentence for his involvement in the Sheffield Street Tree Campaign protests fighting Sheffield City Council’s attempts to fell 17,000 street trees. But right now, Simon Crump is a cleaner and he loves his new job. This is a massively unique story in both it’s content and how it is told: it is witty, weird, and warm, and I’m not ashamed to admit I did shed a tear while reading it (and laughed a lot!)I loved reading about this slice of Simon’s life, his love for his work, those who judged and underestimated him, and all the peculiar characters inbetween.

If you liked MacKenzie Crooks’ ‘Small Prophets’, you’ll enjoy ‘Post-It Notes from the Underground’. We follow the daily life of Simon, a wry and downtrodden cleaner who is at another crossroads in his late middle-age, but who is still prepared to stand up for what he believes, and to fight his fights with humour and irreverence. With its prods at class and workplace divides, fighting through mundanity to make a living in a toxic world, this is a sly reminder that we never really know someone, even if we see them every day. And while we might judge someone for where they are right now, when you point a finger at someone, it’s worth remembering that you are pointing three fingers back at yourself. At times puzzling, but never less than entertaining, this is fiction less ordinary, which is a perfectly captivating thing.