"The Secret Diary Of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾".
Author:
Sue Townsend writes "The Secret Diary Of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾".
Townsend was born in the United
Kingdom. She grew up in a working-class
family and she left school when she was fifteen. Even after leaving school she
read every book that she could lay her hands on. During her childhood she
practised writing without anybody knowing it. Sue Townsend started writing with
the Phoenix Theatre Writing Group and after six plays the diary entries of
Adrian Mole were read by one of the actors, who sent them to the BBC. There the
diary was used for a radio-play. When the book was published it was an
extraordinary success. The sequel "The Growing Pains Of Adrian Mole" followed
it.
Characters:
Main characters in "The Secret Diary Of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾":
Adrian
Mole He is thirteen years and nine months old and he
worries about having a spot on his chin. He thinks that everyone looks at it
and blames his mother for not giving him vitamins. He worries about the fact
his mother is going to work and he will became a "catch-key boy". Adrian thinks he is an
intellectual and joins in the local library. He is a member of community
service.
His
father: he drinks a lot in Adrian's opinion. He is
jealous of his wife.
Pandora: She is a new girl at Adrian's school. Adrian immediately falls in love with her. He
isn't pleased with the facts that Pandora is dating his best friend and that
she creates scandals at school. But after a while Adrian and Pandora get
together.
Bert
Baxter: He is 89-year-old, and
he is dirty old man who lives in a house, which is in a disgusting state. Adrian has to look after
him, because he joins a group called "The Good Samaritans". They do all sorts
of social work.
Their
neighbours: Mr. Lucas. He is interested
in Adrian's
mother. He never helps his wife with the housework. His wife works hard. She
tries to watch what her husband and Adrian's
mother do together and at the end she leaves her husband.
Nigel: he is Adrian's
best friend, rides a bicycle. He starts going out with Pandora; and Adrian is angry with him.
Summary
Adrian
is 13 ¾ years old. He keeps a diary where he writes what happens to him
everyday since his Christmas holidays. At first, he makes New Years
resolutions; for example he will stop squeezing his spots.
When
he is still on holiday from school, his father, his mother, and their dog get
flu and he has to look after them. Back to school he meets a new classmate, a
girl whose name is Pandora, and falls in love with her.
After
joining a school group that does community services, he starts to help an old
man, Bert Baxter, but doesn't like him at all because both the old man and his
house are in terrible conditions.
During
this time, Mr Lucas and his wife are getting a divorce. At the end of January Adrian discovers that his
best friend, Nigel, is going out with Pandora. He decides to become an
intellectual, so he writes a poem and sends it to the BBC, asking their
opinion. Some times later he gets a letter from the BBC where a man, John Tydeman,
invites him to write in a local newspaper.
On
S. Valentine's no one sends him cards except his mother. In the middle of
February he finds a job: he delivers newspapers.
At
school, he has to pay money to a young "boss", Berry Kent, a classmate, who threatens
him.
In
March his father tells him that he and his mother are splitting up because his
mothers has a relation with their neighbour, Mr Lucas. At the end of the month
his mother leaves for Sheffield with the
neighbour, after his father and Mr Lucas have had a ht. Adrian feels ashamed of his parents and finds
it difficult to live at home. His mother takes a very little house in Sheffield. Since the moment she goes away, his house
becomes as disgusting as the house of Bert Baxter; so he decides to visit his
mother, in her new home. This is the first time he takes the train.
Mr
Lucas turns up to be a very kind partner, who gives her a lot of kisses. Adrian decides to tell
his mother about her ex husband's life. He gets back home, but here, he finds more
and more problems, firstly as his father is jobless they have neither food nor
money. Secondly his father starts to smoke and drink heavily, becoming fatter
and fatter. Last, even at school, the protagonist gets into trouble for wearing
red socks, as a sign of rebellion. Pandora organises a sock protest and all the
members put on red socks, but the headmaster sends them all home.
After
Adrian is taken
to hospital to have his tonsils out and he hears Bert has befriended a woman
called Queenie. In fact Bert Baxter is taken to an old age pensioner's home
because of leg troubles but he hates it. Adrian's
father is still without a job, and he does nothing all day. Adrian's relationship with Pandora is not
very harmonious anymore.
Pandora
finds out that another girl called Barbara is in love with Adrian and hts her. Adrian goes out with Barbara for three-days.
On Adrian's
birthday, Pandora ignores him. But the next day they make it up, the Falklands' War breaks out and the book finishes.
