
The Old Romantic
Louise Dean(Author)
Penguin Books Ltd (Publisher)
Published on 7. April 2011
Book
Paperback/Softback
304 pages
978-0-14-103060-9 (ISBN)
Description
Ken is so obsessed with death that he's planning his own funeral - right down to the last morbid detail. He will die in the bosom of his family.
There's just one problem.
His family want nothing to do with him. His upwardly mobile son Nick hasn't seen him in fifteen years - and doesn't want to be reminded of the miserable old man he escaped. But Ken is nothing if not dogged. Whether he likes it or not, Ken's going to remind him of exactly what Nick has been missing ... And who he really is.
There's just one problem.
His family want nothing to do with him. His upwardly mobile son Nick hasn't seen him in fifteen years - and doesn't want to be reminded of the miserable old man he escaped. But Ken is nothing if not dogged. Whether he likes it or not, Ken's going to remind him of exactly what Nick has been missing ... And who he really is.
Reviews / Votes
Channels the rough music of everyday life with a tragicomic subtlety, a pin-sharp ear for dialogue and a flair for every nuance of character and class. Louise Dean's fearless, frank and darkly comic novels have brought a fresh colour and character to English fiction -- Boyd Tonkin * Independent * Dark, scurrilous and richly comic. There is so much to treasure in this terrific book, but its deepest joy is the sharp, perceptive writing * Financial Times * Dean is able to demonstrate her unobtrusive skill as the creator of comic set-pieces...painfully funny * The Sunday Times * Very appealing...so vivid are the quintessentially British characters and the snappy, well-observed dialogue. Delightful, eccentric * Observer * Dean's observations have a lyrical intensity few can match * Guardian * A warm-hearted comedy of bad manners * Daily Mail * Dean writes with beautifully controlled clarity about family ties, social class, the generation gap and the vanished England of the past. She's extremely funny, but also humane and moving * The Times * Sharply observed * Psychologies * Compassionate and amusing * The Times Literary Supplement *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 198 mm
Width: 129 mm
Thickness: 19 mm
Weight
367 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-14-103060-9 (9780141030609)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Louise Dean is the author of three previous novels: Becoming Strangers, which was awarded the Betty Trask Prize in 2004 and was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Guardian First Book Award, This Human Season and The Idea of Love. She lives in Kent and has three children.