Community Reviews
This book is just trying to hard. Far too many poop/fart/senior citizens having sex jokes. I wanted to like this book as it came highly recommended. But it’s just implausible from the beginning. There’s no explanation why Fred is destitute and about to be homeless in a day. Which the whole book hinges on, as he then takes on the life of Bernard, who died in a wheelchair and then fell in the river while Fred was there.
Like the review of a TV show, “this is what straight people think gay people are like“. I want to say “this is what younger people think senior citizens act like.” Except they really don’t, I think people have a better understanding of the subtleties of human nature. While the author dedicated it to her beloved grandparents, all of the senior citizens in this book seem to be caricatures and far too many jokes at their expense. Overall, the book just didn’t hold together - no nuance whatsoever.
Great book to start a year of reading! Brimming with empathy and compassion, Anna Johnston illuminates geriatric loneliness and homelessness with humor and grace. Full of wonderful passages to be savored.
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