Book excerpt: 'Sometimes it feels like I might be the only person awake in the whole country. People might find that a lonely thought. Not me...' As the rest of the world sleeps, the Gritterman goes out to work. Through the wind and the snow and the freezing cold, in the blue-black hours when time slips away, he grits the paths and the pavements and the roads. For him, there is romance in the winter and comfort in his purpose. But what would a life without gritting mean? A song for the unsung hero, this is a bittersweet story about stoicism, dignity and a man leaving behind the work that he loves. It is accompanied by the author's own illustrations.