Shadowman

Johnny Daukes’ memoir Shadowman tells the story of a young life corrupted by sexual abuse and a subsequent journey writing music, comedy and film that amounted to an unconscious recording and processing of that early trauma. The author’s experiences playing in bands, writing and performing radio and TV comedy and refusing to be defined by the inexplicable events of his youth makes for a fascinating, compelling and frequently hilarious dissection of an unconventional life.

Shadowman becomes more complex and outrageous with every chapter: The malign presence in the family of the Catholic sect Opus Dei, the abuser becoming part of the family through marriage, the terrible realisation as further victims come to light. And yet all the time, Johnny Daukes walks a fine line between making your heart break and your sides ache.

With frequent reference to lyrics, sketches and scripts that he wrote throughout his career, at the time unaware of their true significance; this is a memoir that laces brutality with hilarity, trivia with profundity and showbiz excess with lacerating self-analysis.

Written with an irreverence that conceals big questions about pain, art, memory and love, this is a unique book that is melancholy but never mawkish and at its heart is an affirming appetite for life. The rich and eclectic production of the audiobook betrays Johnny Daukes’ background as comedy writer, musician, voice artist and recording engineer and it oozes the rackety gallows humour of a true maverick.

DOWNLOADING INFORMATION

Our audiobooks download as zipped files (due to their size and for your convenience). Once unzipped you will find all of the mp3 files for your audiobook named, and in correct file order.  Due to the way Apple has designed iOS, iPhones and iPads don’t recognise these zip files automatically (unlike Android devices).  So, if you buy one of our titles via your iPhone or iPad, there are two ways to find and listen to your files:

[1] Download for FREE iZip for iOS – then download the audiobook using the link provided either on the webpage or the email we sent you. After the file has downloaded click on the Open With option and choose iZip. The app will open and ask if you want it to unzip all the files, say yes. A minute or so later you will have a list of mp3 files in order, and you just need to tap on the one you want to play and it will start playing in the Audioplayer. You can easily play, pause, jump forward or back.

[2] Slightly easier – download the zip file to your PC or MAC, unzip it to a folder you know the location of (such as your Music or Documents folder), then use iTunes to transfer the files in the same way you would a music album.

We hope you enjoy your audiobook and come back for more soon!