The Book Depository Adrian Mole: The Prostrate Years by Sue Townsend
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Description: Adrian Mole: The Prostrate Years : Paperback : Penguin Books Ltd : 9780241959497 : : 23 Jan 2012 : Adrian Mole is thirty-nine and a quarter. He lives in the country in a semi-detached converted pigsty with his wife Daisy and their daughter. His parents George and Pauline live in the adjoining pigsty. But all is not well. The secondhand bookshop in which Adrian works is threatened with closure. The Book Depository Adrian Mole: The Prostrate Years by Sue Townsend - shop the best deal online on thebookbug.co.uk
Category: Books
Merchant: The Book Depository
Product ID: 9780241959497
MPN: 9780241959497
GTIN: 9780241959497
Author: Euphie
Rating: 5
Review: This book sees the now 39 year old Adrian, who is living with his wife Daisy and their daughter Gracie. He is working in a second hand bookstore and is still dreaming of becoming a published author. His eldest son Glenn is away in Afghanistan and this is a constant source of concern for Adrian, particularly after the death of Glenn’s best friend. His marriage also seems to be going stale. Both him and Daisy seem unfulfilled, and Daisy’s weight gain and general moodiness seems to be having an impact on Adrian, although he seems to lack the tact and insight to fix the issues. His ever present love for Pandora is also an issue between them. As the title of the book suggests, Adrian’s prostate issues are the main concern through the book, he first notices that he has been urinating more frequently, but problems with getting an appointment with the GP means that he delays seeing medical professionals. The GP receptionist issues are obviously exaggerated for comic effect but they do seem worryingly familiar to me. Finally after some gentle persuasion from his family and his employer, Adrian attends the Out of Hours clinic. Adrian is fast tracked through a blur of consultants, and is given the devastating news that he has prostate cancer. This book could have been a depressing read, but somehow Townsend has managed to add humour into the story, and her own unique brand of the surreal in everyday life means that even at the worst times, we don’t slide into the depressing. This book is the last in the Mole series, due to Townsend’s ill health, and it brings back a lot of the characters from earlier books. ‘Rat Fink’ Lucas reappears, as does Brett Mole, Adrian’s half brother. Most of the characters from previous books have also reappeared, including Pandora, who seems to be coming between Adrian and Daisy. Some queries from previous books are also answered, such as the gender of Leslie, the ‘friend’ of his boss. The book does seem to tie up the loose ends, and the ending hints that life may finally be going Adrian’s way. As it is with all Adrian Mole books, I have a love/hate relationship with the character of Adrian, though as he gets older, he does seem to mellow a bit and he is less exasperating. There is a vulnerability in Adrian through this book that wasn’t present in previous novels, particularly when he was receiving his radiotherapy and chemotherapy. I did hope for a happy ending for Adrian, that he would live happily ever after with Pandora by his side. As is the case with all of the Adrian Mole books, if you are a fan you will enjoy the most recent update on Adrian’s life. If you’re not a fan, I doubt this book would covert you. I paid £2.99 for my Kindle version, which I think is a good price to pay for a great book.
Author: Jim J-R
Rating: 4
Review: Almost 40, Adrian is living with his second wife, next to his parents in a converted pigsty. The diary is another interesting insight into his life, and I think being older has helped me to appreciate more of the subtleties of Adrian's behaviour. It's well written, jumping into the plot several years down the line from the end of the previous diary, and yet managing to successfully introduce all the necessary characters without destroying the flow of the diary style entries. The characters are still very much the same, while continuing to expand in new and interesting ways. The book starts off brilliantly, having me laughing by page two, but the comedy seems to fall off a little as the plot descends. Adrian seems a little more obsessive and neurotic than I remember, although I'm not sure if that's just because I can see more of what is happening reading with older eyes. The book deals excellently with Adrian's prostate trouble, giving enough detail for me to emphasise and understand what he is going through (although I speak as someone with my own similar experience), while remaining detached and delicate enough that it doesn't become uncomfortable to read. Townsend introduces a range of new characters whose motivations and actions completely baffle Adrian, which in one case does become a little over the top in one particular instance. I found it to be a fun book overall - a little romp, although possibly darker than the previous books in the series. The ending however seems a little abrupt - some of the stories end satisfactorily but a number of threads seem to be cut off rather sharply or just left hanging. The very end is dissatisfying as well, almost as if the final paragraph has been left out. Still a good book, and I would love to read more. I might even go back and re-read the previous novels.
