This book, or rather, diary, is presented as a comic piece, but it is much more than that. We can have a look at the middle-
aged Mole's life in England, or more closely, in Ashby de la Zouch in the
years after 2000. Apart from the setting, we cannot say that the book is typically English because it touches upon issues of international character, that is, problems that concern most
people in Europe or in the US. Even though the book concentrates on human relationships in the first place, the absurdity of the Iraq
war is also a central subject. It may lend this book some uniqueness as it forms a strong opinion of the war and it also describes to some extent how it affects the lives of ordinary people in England.Apart from this, we can also see how Adrian Mole handles the problems between him and his new girlfriend, Marigold; how he is sucked into a preposterous situation with her; how he gets into debts, or in other words, how he commits
mistakes of several kinds. This is what makes it easy for the reader to sympathize with Mole, who is not special, who excels in nothing. Moreover, he has a rather childish attitude sometimes, and naively believes that he can improve the world around him. Often, this naivety serves as a primary source of the type of humor this book seethes with, whereas other times we are made to laugh by the misunderstandings or the situations. Mole just says the truth, which is almost always embarrassing for most people, and then he is surprised by their reactions. For example, he writes a letter to David Beckham about his grammatical mistakes, and in another letter, he tries to stop Jordan from an unnecessary plastic surgery.Everyday life, international issues and social criticism mingle in the is book, and we can see all this through the eyes of a middle aged man with whom it is easy to identify. All this is treated with deep insight into the human condition, with humor and elegance, which makes
sue Townsend's book a very good reading.
Works by the same author:The Adrian Mole series:The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 (1982)The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole (1984)The True Confessions of Adrian Mole (1989)Adrian Mole from Minor to Major (1991)Adrian Mole: The Wilderness Years (1993)Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years (1999)Other works:Rebuilding Coventry (1988)Mr Bevan's Dream (1989)The Queen and I (1992)Ghost Children (1997)Number Ten (2002)Queen Camilla (2006)
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