Refusal Shoes - Softcover

Tony Saint was born in the North of England in 1968. He enjoyed success as a child actor. After university he joined the United Kingdom Immigration Service where he worked for ten years until 2003: most of this time was spent at London Heathrow airport. He has written numerous scripts for radio and TV. He lives in London with his wife and son.

Ever wonder how the officials at Passport Control view you? Henry hates his job in immigration at Heathrow Airport, where he is in trouble for granting entry to too many asylum seekers. He needs to get his refusal numbers up. Told from his viewpoint, the raucous narrative lampoons the refugees with their forged papers, bogus marriages, and multiple identities. Just as outrageous are the immigration officials, the "maladjusted group of power-crazed bigots" who decide a refugee's fate on a guess, a whim, or a bribe. First-novelist Saint worked for 10 years in immigration at Heathrow until 2003, though he denies that this farce is based on what he saw. Every ethnic group is ridiculed, and so are the old and disabled (including a bigoted World War II American vet). The human-rights lawyer gets it, too. The gross stereotypes will amuse and offend all sides, but even patriotic citizens will recognize the absurd bureaucrats who rubber stamp what they want and ignore "petty" considerations of fairness and justice. Hazel Rochman
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