From Publishers Weekly
Recent retiree George Hall, convinced that his eczema is cancer, goes into a tailspin in Haddon's (
Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time) laugh-out-loud slice of British domestic life. George, 61, is clearly channeling a host of other worries into the discoloration on his hip (the "spot of bother"): daughter Katie, who has a toddler, Jacob, from her disastrous first-marriage to the horrid Graham, is about to marry the equally unlikable Ray; inattentive wife Jean is having an affair—with George's former co-worker, David Symmonds; and son Jamie doesn't think George is OK with Jamie's being queer. Haddon gets into their heads wonderfully, from Jean's waffling about her affair to Katie's being overwhelmed (by Jacob, and by her impending marriage) and Jamie's takes on men (and boyfriend Tony in particular, who wants to come to the wedding). Mild-mannered George, meanwhile, despairing over his health, slinks into a depression; his major coping strategies involve hiding behind furniture on all fours and lowing like a cow. It's an odd, slight plot—something like the movie
Father of the Bride crossed with Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" (as skin rash)—but it zips along, and Haddon subtly pulls it all together with sparkling asides and a genuine sympathy for his poor Halls. No bother at all, this comic follow-up to Haddon's blockbuster (and nicely selling book of poems) is great fun.
(Sept.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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From AudioFile
Just when George Hall begins to enjoy retirement, his divorced daughter, Katie, announces her plans to wed a fellow whom he and his wife think is beneath her. Charles Keating playfully tackles this complicated story and delivers line after line with sarcasm, humor, and compassion. As the wedding plans progress, Keating conveys the emotional impact of George's wife's mid-life affair with his former business partner, his son's homosexual relationship, his daughter's inability to make up her mind about tying the knot, and his certainty that he's suffering with cancer--all while sustaining the comical quality of the story. B.J.P. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine--
Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
--Ce texte provient d'une édition qui n'est plus publiée ou qui est non diponible.