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| photo source: [forbookssake.net] |
This classic British novel by Sue Townsend set in the suburbs of 1982 which is read by almost everyone in 7th or 8th grade in Great Britain is famous for its highly sarcastic and cynical as well as far ahead of his age main character!
The book is written in short diary entries in the time span of about a year and a half. Poor Adrian Mole has to deal with his mother who is currently having her midlife crisis and his clumsy father who doesn’t seem to be good for many things. He only has one friend as he regards himself too intellectual for kids his age, however, he has a good relationship to his grandmother who is there for him when his parents are not.
To begin with the positive aspects, the character of Adrian manages to make you laugh at least thrice per page and his attitude is simply hilarious. His comments to himself, his perception of life and his always knowing everything better are one-of-a-kind. Townsend’s style of course supports this attitude wonderfully, as if she truly were Adrian Mole or at least a 13 ¾ year old teenager feeling exactly these puberty driven feelings.
However, I myself lost interest in the not so spectacular contents of the book and couldn’t help but ask myself if Townsend ran out of ideas at two thirds of the book. What is more is that Adrian’s oh so funny attitude slightly loses its drive and its charm towards the end of the book coming off as rather annoying by then.
All in all, it’s a very quick, fun read with a superb entertainment value most of the time, however, the story loses its focus and creativity at some point. For me, comparing it to other 4 stars books, it’s not as engaging, so…
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