"Meet Adrian Mole, a hapless
teenager providing an unabashed, pimples-and-all glimpse into adolescent life.
Writing candidly about his parents' marital troubles, the dog, and his life as
a tortured poet and 'misunderstood intellectual'."
I’ve known about The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾
for a long, long time. But for reasons that I cannot know, I’ve never read it.
But for a while, I’ve felt rather melancholy and have turned to more humorous
books to turn my sour mood around. Little did I know there was more than one
book; so I ended up getting an omnibus edition from Powell’s Books that
contained the first two novels.
The story is set in 1981 and
1982, and in the background it refers to some of the historic world events of
the time, such as the Falklands War and the wedding of Price Charles and Lady
Diana as well as the birth of Prince Williams. Mole is also a fierce critic of
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, listing her as one of his worst enemies.
Apart from the humorous events described in the diary, a lot of the book's
humor originates from the unreliable nature of the narrator, as Adrian, who
naïvely, yet confidently, misinterprets events around him.
The book is a hoot and it amazes me how Townsend is able to
understand the inner workings of a teenage male –it’s thoroughly and
hilariously convincing. Yes, Adrian is bit immature and has angst-ridden
personality that could get wearisome as he grows older, but as person who likes
snark and witty, but sometimes, uncomfortable humor, this book works
wonderfully.
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