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smalltownbookmom's review against another edition
4.0
A really touching Mother-son story that gave me About a boy and Dear Frankie vibes! 12 year old Norman's best friend Jax has just died and in an attempt to cheer him up a bit, his mom Sadie offers to help him get to the Edinburgh Fringe festival (a goal he had planned to do as a stand-up comic duo with Jax when the two were 15). Somehow this journey also turns into a quest to discover who Norman's father is (it turns out there are four possible candidates). Leonard, Sadie's tech-savvy octogenarian friend, also helps plan and organize the trip and honestly was my favorite character in the book! I love how there is a growing number of amazing senior characters in books these days like Ove and Eudora Honeysett. A great road-trip comedy featuring memorable characters, each dealing with their own personal hurdles (Norman suffers from debilitating psoriasis and I thought this was dealt with extremely well in the story!). Definitely recommend for anyone who likes a heartwarming underdog story.
nickymaund's review
3.0
A slow burning story as you follow Norman, mum Sadie and family friend Leonard on their road trip (with all the pit stops along the way) to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, as part of Norman’s Five Year Plan. Henderson uses their trip from Cornwall up to Scotland as a way to examine Sadie’s life as mother and as a student following a traumatic life event, and Norman’s short life coping with debilitating psoriasis and dealing with the grief of losing his best friend suddenly.
I loved Norman; he’s kind, considerate and is slowly trying to find the courage to honour his beloved friend and also to find himself. He’s incredibly brave and the world needs more people like him. However I will admit I did lose my way in parts of this story, it felt very drawn out and affected my engagement with Norman, mum Sadie and Leonard.
⚠️Reader caution and potential spoiler; deals with suicide and the after effects. There’s also phrasing in this novel that might cause upset to those affected. ⚠️
I loved Norman; he’s kind, considerate and is slowly trying to find the courage to honour his beloved friend and also to find himself. He’s incredibly brave and the world needs more people like him. However I will admit I did lose my way in parts of this story, it felt very drawn out and affected my engagement with Norman, mum Sadie and Leonard.
⚠️Reader caution and potential spoiler; deals with suicide and the after effects. There’s also phrasing in this novel that might cause upset to those affected. ⚠️
katie_osbourne's review
4.0
4.5 stars. I fell in love with these characters and this sweet, quirky story. Norman is a 12 year old boy who just lost his best friend. While he tries to make sense of life, he pursues a dream of performing at a standup comedy show and finding his unknown father, with the help of his mom Sadie and an elderly man Leonard who joins in on the adventure. Was a bit slow to start but second half flew by.
bianca89279's review
4.0
This was a sweet novel about Norman Foreman, twelve years old, who dreams of performing at one the biggest festivals, The Edinburgh Fringe. Unfortunately, his best friend and partner in comedy, died unexpectedly.
Norman is brought up by his mother and never met his father. Sadie herself is unsure of who the sperm donor might be.
With the help of a very switched on octogenarian named Leonard, the three of them get in Leonard's vintage car and make their way to Edinburgh, with some stop-overs along the way, where Norman can perform his comedy numbers.
The Funny Thing about Norman Foreman was a tender, occasionally funny tale of resilience, and about following your dreams.
Many thanks to Random House UK for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
Norman is brought up by his mother and never met his father. Sadie herself is unsure of who the sperm donor might be.
With the help of a very switched on octogenarian named Leonard, the three of them get in Leonard's vintage car and make their way to Edinburgh, with some stop-overs along the way, where Norman can perform his comedy numbers.
The Funny Thing about Norman Foreman was a tender, occasionally funny tale of resilience, and about following your dreams.
Many thanks to Random House UK for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
kvw's review
3.0
3.5 stars for me. I really wanted to love this book; the premise & characters should have made it easy to love, but something was missing from the start. In the middle I even debated abandoning it. I’m glad I stuck it out though, because the last 100 pages were heartwarming enough to make me bump the rating up a bit. I wish the rest of the book would have been that good! I would recommend, just not one of my favorites.
hbeth21's review
5.0
I listened to this book, and it only serves to confirm that I must have been British in a previous life, or I just REALLY love the British accents. The narrator, Katherine Parkinson, a British actress about whom I have only just learned, was absolutely brilliant in telling this story in different voices. I wonder if I would enjoyed the book quite as much if I had read it, and not listened to it.
Narration aside, the story was just so so good. Authors that have the ability to invoke laugh-out-loud humor, as well as truly heartwarming emotions while dealing with such sad subject matter, are my absolute favorite kind of authors.
Norman Foreman, as well as his mom Sadie, have lost Norman's best friend Jax, to a tragic asthma attack, and the loss of Jax has torn asunder their 5 year plan to perform their comedy duet at the Edinburgh Fringe, a famous comedy festival. So to honor Jax's memory, Norman and Sadie, with the help of their new friend, Sadie's elderly coworker Leonard, set out to get Norman to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe, this year, and only a few weeks away. And as if this feat is not monumental enough, they are also on the hunt to determine the identity of Norman's father, who could be one of a few quite colorful characters. In their adventures, the meet some hilarious and love-able (maybe a couple not-so-love-able) characters, all of which gave me moments of laughter and maybe a few tears.
I love books like these, full of unique characters, telling a really important story, and touching on pretty much all of my emotions. And not to mention, so...British.
Narration aside, the story was just so so good. Authors that have the ability to invoke laugh-out-loud humor, as well as truly heartwarming emotions while dealing with such sad subject matter, are my absolute favorite kind of authors.
Norman Foreman, as well as his mom Sadie, have lost Norman's best friend Jax, to a tragic asthma attack, and the loss of Jax has torn asunder their 5 year plan to perform their comedy duet at the Edinburgh Fringe, a famous comedy festival. So to honor Jax's memory, Norman and Sadie, with the help of their new friend, Sadie's elderly coworker Leonard, set out to get Norman to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe, this year, and only a few weeks away. And as if this feat is not monumental enough, they are also on the hunt to determine the identity of Norman's father, who could be one of a few quite colorful characters. In their adventures, the meet some hilarious and love-able (maybe a couple not-so-love-able) characters, all of which gave me moments of laughter and maybe a few tears.
I love books like these, full of unique characters, telling a really important story, and touching on pretty much all of my emotions. And not to mention, so...British.
loubraryoftheforest's review
5.0
What a brilliant book. Heartwarming and funny, and full of charm. I fell in love with Norman from the first chapter and as we follow his journey you just can’t help cheering him on and wanting him to succeed. Norman has lost his best friend, his only friend. His comedic sidekick. He isn’t sure how he’s supposed to carry on. But with a revised five year plan, a willing elderly man accomplice, and a mum who loves him more than the whole world, Norman can accomplish anything. You will smile, laugh, cry and overall just totally enjoy reading every minute of this wonderful book.
laurajh77's review
4.0
This started off well, but soon became an awful lot of cliches and the repetitive going on about this boy, this precious boy, this beautiful boy, oh god it drove me mad. I have a teen, and the boys chapters didn’t really ring true in terms of the voice. They just don’t speak like that. It was all just a bit madcap really, with lots of coincidences and engineered ‘funny scenes’. Still not sure what the psoriasis had to do with it all. The final section in Edinburgh was just madness. But it was fine, really, probably a 3.5 but I’m rounding up.