Items related to A Short Gentleman (Charnwood)
When Robert Purcell, aged eight, read his father's entry in Who’s Who, he saw his own life unfolding before him. Like his father, he’d get a first in Law, then enjoy a distinguished career as a barrister and a judge. For a long time, everything went to plan. Then his life fell apart. He committed a crime. He went to prison. Now he’s out, his wife has told him to write an account of who he is and why he is who he is. What drove him to his crime? To an English gentleman who loathes the confessional culture such emotional striptease is torture. Nevertheless, A Short Gentleman is that confession. An intellectual giant but an emotional pygmy, Robert struggles to come to terms with the forces that brought him down: Elizabeth, the wife who wanted him to change, Judy Page, the ex-girlfriend who came back to haunt him, Pilkington, the childhood bully who grew into an adult bully, Mike Bell, the old friend Robert was always happy to patronise. Finally, there’s his father, who proved, at the end of his life, not to be the man Robert thought he was. Despite everything, Robert remains heroically determined to carry on being the same magnificently pompous and self-righteous man he always was, utterly resistant to therapy, change and the emotional demands of the opposite sex.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
'exhilarating... brilliantly plotted' -- New Statesman
`A Short Gentleman is unusual these days: an English comic novel which is elegantly written, civilised and genuinely funny...' -- The Scotsman
`Canter is a sharp writer with a wickedly dry wit. His precise style is a joy to read...' -- The Metro
`Jon Canter projects a series of funny, sometimes hilarious, incidents in which the comedy is structured rather than slapstick, verging on the licentious but masterfully avoiding it' -- Times Literary Supplement
`this is light reading but deceptively so, offering deliciously well observed vignettes of the top legal set' -- Time Out London
Book Description:
`A Short Gentleman is unusual these days: an English comic novel which is elegantly written, civilised and genuinely funny...' -- The Scotsman
`Canter is a sharp writer with a wickedly dry wit. His precise style is a joy to read...' -- The Metro
`Jon Canter projects a series of funny, sometimes hilarious, incidents in which the comedy is structured rather than slapstick, verging on the licentious but masterfully avoiding it' -- Times Literary Supplement
`this is light reading but deceptively so, offering deliciously well observed vignettes of the top legal set' -- Time Out London
'An English comic novel which is elegantly written, civilised and genuinely funny, there are smiles on almost every page. It never tumbles into farce, for it is a comedy of character, observation and tone' - Allan Massie, Scotsman
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherUlverscroft Large Print Books Ltd
- Publication date2008
- ISBN 10 1847824196
- ISBN 13 9781847824196
- BindingHardcover
- Number of pages504
- Rating
(No Available Copies)
Search Books: Create a WantIf you know the book but cannot find it on AbeBooks, we can automatically search for it on your behalf as new inventory is added. If it is added to AbeBooks by one of our member booksellers, we will notify you!
Create a Want