By Megan Thomas
This is charming and wasn’t what I was expecting: I expected it to be funny but it was far sadder than I’d been warned. May or may not have had a mini-weep.
It’s about Hendrick Groen and his life in a Netherlands old age home, where amidst the constant funerals, moaning, bans on toasters and liquified food, he is able to find joy, laughter, love and friendship through co-founding the Old But Not Dead Club.
Though not necessarily an expose of life in aged care, it certainly shines a light on some of the injustices that occur within OAP institutions. Who’d have thought the lamentations of an 83 (and a quarter) year old, red-mobility-scooter-zooming man would resonate so heartily and in such a life-affirming way?
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3 responses to “The Secret Diary Of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old”
[…] The Secret Diary of Hendrick Groen, 83¼ Years Old is the best diary-style book I’ve read, and that is including an all-time favourite, Bridget Jones. It is the secret diary of an old man who lives in a care home in Amsterdam and he is attempting to remain youthful despite the evidence that he is not exactly the young whippersnapper he used to be. To do this, he sets up the Old But Not Dead club with his friends in the home, where they plan monthly activities to remind themselves that though life is getting increasingly more depressing, there is still life left in it. […]
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[…] Review […]
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