Grumpy Old Men: The Secret Diary

by Stuart Prebble

To everything there is a season. A time to be born, a time to die ... and a time to have a bloody good moan. Following the huge success of Grumpy Old Men, Stuart Prebble, writer of the highly acclaimed TV series, gives us a more in-depth look at what it's really like to be a pissed-off man of a certain age.

In painstaking detail, he takes us through a year in the constantly irritated life of a Grumpy Old Man, recounting the manifold vexations and absurdities he has to put up with in the perpetual torment that we call modern living. Drinks parties, holidays, hospital visits, his children's misdemeanours, buying presents for the wife, watching television, attempts to visit the gym, trips to the shops, the trials and tribulations of everyday life - each event has something to tip him over the edge. Stuart's diary proves that grumpiness is not just an occasional mood or a temporary feeling, but a way of looking at the world, and will strike a chord with all those who are proud to call themselves Grumpy Old Men.

Genres: Humor, Nonfiction, Comedy

259 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2005

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 1 out of 5]

If only the conservationists could have reached the trees in time this crap would not have been printed.


NOTE TO FRIENDS: I like to read real books not this guff. If you want to give me books please look at or ask my friends on Goodreads. That is all.

[Roy · Rating 1 out of 5]

This wasn’t the book that I was expecting. I thought it would be a literary version of the TV series, which I found funny at the time (when I was in my early 30s) and which I expected to relate to even more now that I am in my early 50s. Instead, it was a year long diary by Stuart Prebble with very few contributions from others from the series.

He is a very annoying man and this is a very annoying book, liberally strewn with casual racism and homophobia that would not be printed now, which is actually a sign of progress, but I doubt that he would see it that way.

The book has also aged badly. Many of the things that made him grumpy are defunct and have been replaced by better alternatives. A sign of progress. Ironically, therefore, far from going to hell in a handcart, everyday life may actually be getting easier. Surely something to be happy about, not grumpy!

[Ian Fryer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read..

Sadly I related to almost every page.. It was confiscated on a couple of times, as it was making me more of a grump than normal... ?

[Alayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as enjoyable as the first one, but still very entertaining.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amusing grouchiness from chaps.

[Sue Le-Heup · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant ,so funny

[Catsalive · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a laugh, it did get me chuckling out loud a few times - oh, the absurdity of life! Has it really been that long since the TV shows? 20 years! Hard to believe.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a good book and I can definitely relate so some of the things mentioned in it even though the book is a bit dated.

[Loraine · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was lying around my other half's bedroom and I picked it up whilst he was in the shower and began reading - I was surprised to find myself laughing out loud at the moaning old men. So true as well - I know men who say such things. A fun, silly book to pass away a spare hour or so.

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite so far of all the "Grumpy Old" books. Like Stuart, I find something to be grumpy about almost every day. I particularly enjoyed his holiday in Lanzarote. Very funny!

[Tanis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nowhere near as funny as the tv series, but it was a charity shop find so no real harm done.

[Nicholas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm sure anyone would be able to find themselves somewhere in this. Quite entertaining and an excellent loo book.