Unforgettably funny and painfully honest, jonathan coe s tale of benjamin trotter and his friends coming of age during the 1970s is a heartfelt celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up. Winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching. Winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. The rotters club offers a thick slice of seventies birminghamsharp, acerbic. The book was published in multiple languages including english, consists of 415 pages and is available in paperback format. Jonathan coe s the rotters club is a timely reminder of how ghastly that benighted decade was in britain. His work has an underlying preoccupation with political issues, although this serious engagement is often expressed comically in the form of satire. The first few pages of this story appear in his novel what a carve up. Some time in 1977 or 1978, when i was still a schoolboy at king edwards. The guardian books podcast jonathan coe and sara collins on their costawinning novels.
Set in the industrial heartland of the west midlands, it chronicles the growing pains of four brummie schoolboysphilip, sean, doug, and benjaminwho must come to. The rotters club by coe jonathan, first edition abebooks. May 28, 2008 the rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Jonathan coe, quote from the rotters club these pieces, he already realised, were merely stepping stones at the start of a journey towards something some grand artefact, either musical, or literary, or filmic, or perhaps a combination of all three towards which he knew he was advancing, slowly but with a steady, inexorable tread. The title is taken from the album the rotters club by experimental rock band hatfield and the north. John mullan analyses the rotters club by jonathan coe. Utterly hilarious and deeply affecting, coes paean to the pop culture and politics of 1970s birmingham revels in keenly drawn characterisation and nimble, witty prose.
Mar 25, 2010 listen to rotters club audiobook by jonathan coe. The rotters club is a 2001 novel by british author jonathan coe, set in birmingham, england during the 1970s. Free download or read online the rotters club pdf epub book. Pdf the rotters club book by jonathan coe free download. Set in the industrial heartland of the west midlands, it chronicles the growing pains of four brummie schoolboysphilip, sean, doug, and benjaminwho must come to terms not only with the. Feb 22, 2001 goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read.
We experience this through the lives of a small group of sixteen and seventeen yearolds brummies. The happiest days of our life prove to be jonathan coes undoing in the rotters club. However this is jonathan coe and he manages to turn this seemingly innocent plot into a political allegory of sorts. The rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel. Jonathan coes novel is set in the 1970s against a distant backdrop of strikes, terrorist attacks and growing racial tension. The rotters club by jonathan coe penguin books australia. The main characters of this fiction, contemporary story are. At a time when people are looking back on the 1970s with nostalgia, jonathan coe s the rotters club is a timely reminder of how ghastly that benighted decade was. S johnson, like a fiery elephant, and the broken mirror, a childrens book. Jonathan coe a considerable novelist and the rotters club is an aberration, an aberration with a sequel promised. The rotters club by jonathan coe by jonathan coe by jonathan coe by jonathan coe. Jonathan coe the best books, recommendations and similar. His first surviving story, a detective thriller called the castle of mystery, was written at the age of eight. Both are, to adopt coes terminology, seriocomic novels in which the personal stories of a group of.
Jonathan coe is the author of thirteen novels, all published by penguin, which include the highly acclaimed bestsellers what a carve up. The rotters club offers a thick slice of seventies birminghamsharp, acerbic, and menacingly true. Im reading coes trilogy about the life and times of benjamin trotter the wrong way round, chronologically speaking. At a time when people are looking back on the 1970s with nostalgia, jonathan coes the rotters club is a timely reminder of how ghastly that benighted decade was. The rotters club jonathan coe s iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coe s most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Jun 26, 2014 the rotters club jonathan coe s iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coe s most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Following the rotters club and its sequel, the closed circle, jonathan coe now offers his first standalone novel in a decade, a story of three generations of women whose destinies reach from the english countryside in world war ii to london, toront. Richard camerons version, staged at the birmingham rep in 2016, was a major inspiration for my novel middle england. The rotters club publishers summary brought to you by penguin. Unforgettably funny and painfully honest, jonathan coes tale of benjamin trotter and his friends coming of age during the 1970s is a heartfelt celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up. The accidental woman, a touch of love, the dwarves of death, what a carve up.
At a time when people are looking back on the 1970s with nostalgia, jonathan coes the rotters club is a timely reminder of how ghastly that benighted decade was in britain. Jonathan coe was born on 19 august 1961 in lickey, a suburb of southwest birmingham. The setting is 1974 and a group of late teens are going through the usual trials and tribulations of that age group. See all books authored by jonathan coe, including the rotters club, and the winshaw legacy. Characters from coes the rotters club return in a sweeping and very funny stateofthenation novel. Middle england by jonathan coe marks a return to the. Perhaps it is a delusion to suppose that we write our own histories.
The title is taken from the album the rotters club. Jonathan coe is the author of twelve novels, all published by penguin, which include the highly acclaimed bestsellers what a carve up. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the rotters club. The rotters club jonathan coe im reading coe s trilogy about the life and times of benjamin trotter the wrong way round, chronologically speaking. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. The rotters club is a wonderfully gripping novel, by turns funny, heartbreaking and terrifying. The rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Mar 19, 2002 jonathan coe is the author of eleven novels, all published by penguin, which include the highly acclaimed bestsellers what a carve up. Jonathan coe audio books, best sellers, author bio.
Jonathan coe s most popular book is the rotters club. Jonathan coe has received the john llewellyn rhys prize, the prix du meilleur livre etranger, the prix medicis etranger, and, for the rotters club, the bollinger everyman wodehouse prize for the most original comic writing. The rotters clubby jonathan coe, adapted by simon littlefieldthe growing pains of ben trotter. The action of this first part starts in 1973 and covers halfadozen years, running through the administrations of heath. Feb 21, 2002 the rotters club by jonathan coe the 1970s are anything but smiley faces and bellbottoms for a family facing adultery, racial turmoil and identity crises in postimperial england. The story of a group of teenagers attempting to navigate their way through the vicissitudes of the decade, the rotters club is an endlessly rewarding literary treat. The first edition of the novel was published in february 22nd 2001, and was written by jonathan coe. Jonathan coe books list of books by author jonathan coe. But after reading and enjoying the third book in the series, middle england, so much last month, i knew i had to find out how the whole thing started. Jun 26, 2014 the rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in 1970s britain. Theres benjamin, the erstwhile dreamer, doug the wannabe journalist and philip another person who dreams big.
The rotters club jonathan coes iconic 1970s comingofage novel winner of the everyman wodehouse prize, the rotters club follows benjamin trotter bestselling author jonathan coes most iconic character through the hilarious and, at times, touching trials and tribulations of growing up in. The rotters club is a 2001 novel set in 1970s birmingham and just like middle england, it is a curious mix of nostalgia and. His many prizes include the everyman wodehouse prize and the samuel johnson prize. Jonathan coe a considerable novelist and the rotters club is. Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books every 1, 2, or 3 months new customers receive 15% off your. Read the rotters club by jonathan coe available from rakuten kobo. The rotters club, jonathan coes first book about benjamin and lois trotter, philip chase and doug andertonfriends at a private school, in birmingham, in the seventiesis one of the best. The rotters club ebook by jonathan coe rakuten kobo.
The rotters club is a 2001 novel by british author jonathan coe, set in birmingham during the 1970s, and inspired by the authors experiences at king edwards school, birmingham. The rotters club by jonathan coe overdrive rakuten. Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Jonathan coe is the author of the winshaw legacy and nine other novels.
The rotters club is a 2001 novel by british author jonathan coe, set in birmingham during the 1970s, and inspired by the authors experiences at king. The rotters club by coe, jonathan and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The seattle times the novels many intricate parts manage to mesh and turn with the startling harmony you find in robert altmans movies. Has jonathan coe written the first great brexit novel. Nov 02, 2018 that book was a sequel to the rotters club, published three years earlier. Buy a cheap copy of the rotters club book by jonathan coe.
The rotters club by jonathan coe the 1970s are anything but smiley faces and bellbottoms for a family facing adultery, racial turmoil and identity crises in postimperial england. Jonathan coe has 56 books on goodreads with 118709 ratings. Jonathan coe is the author of eleven novels, all published by penguin, which include the highly acclaimed bestsellers what a carve up. The rotters club poche jonathan coe achat livre fnac. The first of a twovolume portrait of 1970s england, focused here by the prizewinning coe the house of sleep, 1998, etc. Out of all my published novels, the idea for this one probably goes back the furthest. Jonathan coes comic novels have always tended towards a classconscious blend of satire, humour and heart, and nowhere is this better exhibited than in the rotters club, a story of bellbottomed blood brothers navigating puberty and experiencing the world through the blinkered prism of teenage peepers. The rotters club is jonathan coes attempt at writing a coming of age tale. In jonathan coes the rotters club we learn up close and personal about the perils and pitfalls of coming of age in 1970s birmingham. Its 1974 a time of class conflict, racial tension and. Jan 17, 2019 the rotters club, jonathan coes first book about benjamin and lois trotter, philip chase and doug andertonfriends at a private school, in birmingham, in the seventiesis one of the best. Jonathan coe a considerable novelist and the rotters club is an aberration, an aberration with a sequel promised to be called the closed circle, which will take up the story in the late 1990s. That book was a sequel to the rotters club, published three years earlier.