Review

Just in a crazy night, with a bad stupid decision, your life can change forever. And perhaps what in the beginning was just a mistake, in the end it would became as the clue of a more real and happy live. This is what “Man and Boy” of Tony Parsons is about. A novel wrote from the perspective of a man, a young man in his thirties, with a great job in the media, living in London and married with a smart and beautiful woman. But suddenly the wife decide to fill in a divorce petition after knowing he had an affair with one of his coworkers, and travel to Japan looking for a new life. This is the beginning of a real adventure, one of those who are not set in an exotic country, or in a future time, but in a contemporary home, where the four-year-old son is crying in the bath because his mother is not there for the shower time and his father is incapable of spread the shampoo in his hair.

The story and the characters

“Man and Boy” tells the story of a broken marriage, which was too weak because of the heaviness of the routine. And how easy a prosperous job can be lost, just when more difficult your life is. But is also a song about familiar relationship between three different generations of men: the grandfather, the father and the little son. And shows how second chances can be best when love is the first. The main character, Harry Silver, rediscover the love of his father while learning to take care of his son, and then is capable of renounce to living with his children just for love instead of opening a legal war against his ex wife. As a prize for all his efforts to be a best person, love -again- returns to his life, in the shape of a dynamic woman who works as a waitress and has her own history of failure.

Thought to be read by men who are learning to survive in a non-perfect world, where their own choices and the peculiarities of modern society can generate a scene of chaos which they are not used to deal with, “Man and Boy” has a good combination between drama and laugh, pain and romance, remembrances and future. It’s also a good view about modern families and social relationships in a big city. The characters of this novel are, instead of Harry Silver, his parents, working-class, who represent the values and thoughts of an elder way of life; his son, who is the future, a new generation involved in broken families; her ex wife, ready for seek and old wish leaving behind her own child but not for forgiven; and the new girl, realistic more than optimistic, practical and open minded, allergic to romance but falling in love at last.

The author

With “Man and Boy” Tony Parson (Essex, 1953) got a non-expected success. Published in 1999, remains as Parson’s best-selling book, which was published in 39 languages, and won the British Book Award’s Book of the Year Prize in 2001. As well as novel’s author, Tony Parson is known as journalist, working for The Daily Telegraph, Daily Mirror and BBC. One of his more famous and polemical series of articles was about the little Madeleine McCanne’s disappearance: the journalist would be accused to be use xenophobic expressions against Portuguese people.

My perspective

To read “Man and Boy” was an interest experience for me. I must confess that tiers fold down in the most painful chapters of this book, which is a catchy, funny and tender draw of family and love. I’m not used to read sensitive stories with a man as protagonist, and a novel like this can be a good point to see life throw a man’s eyes. In sum, I recommend this lecture, especially if you are expecting to be a father. Even that is not my willing, I enjoyed it since the chapter one!

When my teacher recommended this book and told me the story I refused to read it but then I changed my mind and I have to admit that it is addictive and funny even though one of the characters has a terrible illness.

In my opinion the main topic is the immaturity of the protagonist (Kate), who wants to live in her twenties all her life.

Sometimes she reminded me of myself. I was the last of my friends to be engaged and when they were talking about houses, furniture and nappies I was only thinking about working, travelling and going out.

When my niece was born I dedicated my holidays to looking after her and my sister. After five days listening to them crying, after buying all kinds of  baby’s bottles and doing everything that experienced mothers told me to do, I only wanted to come back to work.

In conclusion, I recommend this book because it is easy to read and funny but if you have a bad experience with cancer, maybe you can choose another one because your feelings will be different.