'A Piece of String' is a satire on the UK Government's obsession with measurement and targets, particularly in social policy areas. Its central character, Paul Grant, is a young civil servant who is sent out 'into the field' to test the parameters for answering the question 'Is Life Worth Living?' He finds that life out there is more chaotic and subversive than he had anticipated, and he narrowly escapes kidnap and murder. He finally sues the author in the High Court under Health and Safety legislation. At 60,000 words 'A Piece of String' is short, pointed, funny and literary.
'A Piece of String' is a satire on the UK Government's obsession with measurement and targets, particularly in social policy areas. Its central character, Paul Grant, is a young civil servant who is sent out 'into the field' to test the parameters for answering the question 'Is Life Worth Living?' He finds that life out there is more chaotic and subversive than he had anticipated, and he narrowly escapes kidnap and murder. He finally sues the author in the High Court under Health and Safety legislation. At 60,000 words 'A Piece of String' is short, pointed, funny and literary.