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A review by carollynnrivera
The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 1/4 Years Old by Hendrik Groen
2.0
Someone read "A Man Called Ove" and decided to capitalize on the curmudgeonly-old-person trend. But where Ove was charming, funny and profoundly human, this was basically depressing and superficial. I suppose I left it feeling like I had a better appreciation for the challenges and loneliness of the elderly but it also made me wish fervently that I'd die before I hit 70.
The "author" (meaning the diarist) spent a lot of time complaining about how old people do nothing but complain. It was really strange to read a fictional account that read like someone's literal diary - boring, dry details about what he ate for dinner, what the weather was like, and the cuts the government was making to elderly care.
Sarcasm and dry wit can be used to great effect, but in this book it just read like complaint after complaint. If you want sarcasm done well, go with Elinor Oliphant.
Apparently old people hide money in socks, get ripped off, derided or ignored by everyone they meet, and are generally mean to each other. Even the friendships were not very interesting. He talks about their monthly outings but there is nothing compelling about them unless you want to know what they ate and whether it rained that day. In some cases he even mentions how excited he was about a particular outing, without ever mentioning what they did or what happened (a result of the actual author's lack of imagination, I can only guess).
There was no introspection, so other than reading the occasional "tell, don't show" sentence about how sad he was one day or how touching some show of kindness was, you can't really care about him or any of the characters.
And I don't have an issue with the "depressing" aspect except that it was more hopeless than poignant. I honestly don't understand the rave reviews. Unless maybe you're in your 80s and can have a chuckle about "dribbling" in your pants, there were few redeeming qualities here. Too many entries (one per day for a year) made any kind of detail or reflection impossible.
And maybe I just don't have the experience with assisted living facilities that the author does, but I've known a lot of old people who aren't mean, dull, smelly, or constantly worried about whether they'll get the right cookies for dessert.
The "author" (meaning the diarist) spent a lot of time complaining about how old people do nothing but complain. It was really strange to read a fictional account that read like someone's literal diary - boring, dry details about what he ate for dinner, what the weather was like, and the cuts the government was making to elderly care.
Sarcasm and dry wit can be used to great effect, but in this book it just read like complaint after complaint. If you want sarcasm done well, go with Elinor Oliphant.
Apparently old people hide money in socks, get ripped off, derided or ignored by everyone they meet, and are generally mean to each other. Even the friendships were not very interesting. He talks about their monthly outings but there is nothing compelling about them unless you want to know what they ate and whether it rained that day. In some cases he even mentions how excited he was about a particular outing, without ever mentioning what they did or what happened (a result of the actual author's lack of imagination, I can only guess).
There was no introspection, so other than reading the occasional "tell, don't show" sentence about how sad he was one day or how touching some show of kindness was, you can't really care about him or any of the characters.
And I don't have an issue with the "depressing" aspect except that it was more hopeless than poignant. I honestly don't understand the rave reviews. Unless maybe you're in your 80s and can have a chuckle about "dribbling" in your pants, there were few redeeming qualities here. Too many entries (one per day for a year) made any kind of detail or reflection impossible.
And maybe I just don't have the experience with assisted living facilities that the author does, but I've known a lot of old people who aren't mean, dull, smelly, or constantly worried about whether they'll get the right cookies for dessert.