Review: Clever and genuinely funny
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 09 16, 2012
I'm so glad I bought this book as its entertainment value is way above its modest price. I've worked supporting special needs students in three inner city schools and, though the book is written from a humorous perspective, there is absolutely nothing in here that I would consider to be exaggerated. I love Phil Church's droll presentation, that ranges from very laid back ironic to full on hilarious. Couple that with excellent observations of the main characters, the failed teacher who seems to fall on his feet and his sidekick, the hapless Malcolm, and you have the ingredients of an engagingly funny novel that is impossible to put aside till the last page. I was especially impressed with the exploration, through the narrator's character, of how someone who has been belittled and put upon from birth, but upon whom impossibly high standards are placed, can simply stop trying, yet through doing so can gain the freedom to please themselves.Altogether a pleasing, witty, genuinely funny book.