Hendrik's hilarious and touching diary documents his life as an OAP living in a care home. When he recruits some similarly young-at-heart friends to join his 'Old But Not Dead Club', Hendrik proves that love can blossom, rules can be broken and fun is within reach, even at their age. So begins a charming, poignant and moving novel that reminds us not to underestimate the oldest amongst us.
Hendrik Groen (Author)
Hendrik Groen started his diary on the literary website of
Torpedo magazine. He says about his novel- 'There's not one
sentence that's a lie, but not every word is true.' The Secret
Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 1/4 Years Old has been translated into
over thirty languages.
Hester Velmans (Translator)
Hester Velmans is the author of two popular children's novels and a
translator specializing in modern fiction. Her translation of
Renate Dorrestein's A Heart of Stone won the Vondel Prize for
Translation and was a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers
selection. Her translation of Lulu Wang's The Lily Theater was a
New York Times Notable Book of the Year.
Her children's book Isabel of the Whales now has a sibling- the
second in the Whales Series, Jessaloup's Song (age 10 and up).
%%%Hendrik Groen stated his diary on the literary website of
Torpedo magazine. He says about his novel- 'There's not one
sentence that's a lie, but not every word is true.' The Secret
Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 1/4 Years Old has been translated into
over twenty languages.
'A great deal of heart' Graeme Simsion 'Praised for its wit' BBC
Radio 4 Front Row 'When I'm an old man, I want to be Hendrik Groen'
John Boyne 'I laughed until I cried' David Suchet 'Thoughtful,
anxious and gruff... Laced with humour' Mail on Sunday 'Amusing
[and] wickedly accurate' Sunday Express
*-*
A story with a great deal of heart, it pulled me in with its
self-deprecating humour, finely drawn characters and important
themes. Anyone who hopes to grow old with dignity will have much to
reflect on
*The Rosie Project*
Thoughtful, anxious and gruff... Laced with humour
*Mail on Sunday*
Full of off-beat charm and quirky characters
*Stylist*
A joy to read, as much concerned with friendship and dignity as it
is with the debilitating effects of aging ... An entertaining and
uplifting story of a man in the winter of his days, stoic in the
face of bureaucratic nonsense and an unabashed need to wear a
nappy. Imagined or not, this is the diary of someone who wants
nothing more than to be allowed see out his days with dignity and
respect. It's not too much to ask, really, is it?
*Irish Independent*
Amusing [and] wickedly accurate ... I was constantly put in mind of
One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, another comi-tragedy concerning
the tyranny of institutions of the unwanted. Enjoy Groen's light
touch but do not be fooled by it. We live in an ageing society. The
Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen is a handbook of resistance for our
time. ***** FIVE STARS
*Daily Express*
Hendrik Groen is king
*Ray Kluun*
Highly entertaining ... a delightful and touching saga of one man's
way of coping with old age ... we may assume that Hendrik Groen is
a character of fiction. But it is a fiction so closely based on the
observation of real life that it is utterly convincing
*Daily Express*
Hendrik pens an exposé of his care home, sets up the
Old-But-Not-Dead club and relishes the arrival of a new female
resident. This geriatric Adrian Mole made me laugh and think.
Terrific
*Woman and Home*
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