YEAR IN THE LIFE: Adventures In British Subcultures

The self-proclaimed social tourist with an unquenchable thirst for exploring and experiencing communities, Lucy Leonelli in her late twenties left her job as a partner in her headhunting firm. Despite her success she could not shake off the feeling that she was missing out on life out there. She turned to 26 little-understood subcultures of the UK - communities often heard about but very seldom seen and for two weeks in each she lived with battle re-enactors, circus performers, hill baggers, Morris dancers, naturists, trainspotters, yogis, zeitgeist political activists and others, experiencing first-hand their social rituals and customs. Her book charts her adventure as she swam naked with lawyers and vets, cast spells with teachers and IT consultants, dressed in tight latex, drank with self-proclaimed vampires, and fought the undead in an epic LARP battle. Her book shows how misguided our own prejudices can be and how when we open the door to others we might just learn something about our own levels of acceptance, tolerance, equality, community and compassion. A super collection of British eccentricity. 374pp, paperback.