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44th out of 71 books
—
203 voters
My rating:
add to my books
Man and Boy
by
Tony Parsons
<center>HE HAD TO FACE THE TOUGHEST JOB OF HIS LIFE. AND HE NEVER ONCE THOUGHT HE'D BE ON HIS OWN.</center>
Harry had it all: a beautiful wife, an adorable four-year-old son, and a high-paying media job. But on the eve of his thirtieth birthday, with one irresponsible act, he threw it all away. Suddenly he finds himself an unemployed single father trying
...morePaperback, 368 pages
Published
May 7th 2001
by Touchstone
(first published 1999)
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I definately preferred "About a Boy"- Nick Hornby has no competition whatsoever from Tony Parsons. Parsons tries to be funny. Fails, of course, but then it's made more pathetic by the fact that he totally pulls the heart strings to their fullest extent at the end. And that doesn't quite work. It was almost boring. Almost as bad as Jack Sheffield! [That's saying something:].
This is an engaging, smooth read and I would have rated it higher had I never read/seen "Kramer v. Kramer." I really felt this was borderline plagarism and was very surprised the author could get away with recreating so much of that story, right down to details like carrying the child when he is injured on the playground. I am also surprised that 25 years later this story plays well. When Kramer came out, most men didn't have a clue about real hands-on parenting and a man with custody ...more
sesuatu yang tampak sempurna, sesuatu yang didapatkan melebihi ekspektasi, sesuatu yang dihargai, atau bahkan dicintai, seperti anugrah yang tidak akan datang dua kali, tidak menjamin semua kisah berhenti seperti dongeng dengan ending yang 'happily ever after'. tapi juga bukan berarti harus jadi gentar atau takut hingga tidak punya harapan baru. justru jadi peluang untuk mengorek lebih ke dalam diri, mencari keinginan hati terdalam dan kebenaran tentang diri sendiri, yang bisa jadi baru diketahu...more
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reading "Man and Boy" is like listening to an easy-listening pop song. it is sweet, easy to guess, nothing in particular. it goes well, as usual, and everybody likes it. it is just; i am not really into pop music.
though is beatifully written, i dont find any sense to fill up my soul after reading this book. it is just a too-easy-to-guess and happy ending story, good for the young couples.
i think it will be better if the story of the father and the son (read: ma...more
though is beatifully written, i dont find any sense to fill up my soul after reading this book. it is just a too-easy-to-guess and happy ending story, good for the young couples.
i think it will be better if the story of the father and the son (read: ma...more
My expectations on this book were high. And as soon as I finaly got it from the library I Couldn't keep myself away from it. I Loved it from the first page to the last! On the cover it says that James brown has said in the Observer that he cried five times and laughed out loud four. I didn't really really cry, even thou the grandfaither died. He was after all 70 something. And such happens everyday. I'm not saying that it isn't a big dela, cos it is, but I can never get that engaged. Whatever, I...more
[Some spoilers, but very early in the book and also discussed in the book's own blurb.]
Man and Boy is a book about relationships, love, and the difficulties when your life doesn't quite go to plan. I think I would place this book in a genre of 'emotional' writing that deals with life events that happen to a lot of people (marriage, break ups, children, death, family).
Despite the main character, Harry, being male, I do think this book is predominantly aimed at a female au...more
Man and Boy is a book about relationships, love, and the difficulties when your life doesn't quite go to plan. I think I would place this book in a genre of 'emotional' writing that deals with life events that happen to a lot of people (marriage, break ups, children, death, family).
Despite the main character, Harry, being male, I do think this book is predominantly aimed at a female au...more
“Mengapa banyak lelaki berselingkuh? Karena mereka punya kesempatan. Berselingkuh juga berarti seks tanpa komitmen. Dan nikmatnya seks tanpa komitmen jangan pernah dianggap remeh. Yang kulakukan sekarang adalah seks tanpa komitmen yang tersedia di depan mata. Itulah yang paling menarik bagiku.”
Maka Harry Silver pun berselingkuh. Cuma sekali. Tapi apakah kalau cuma sekali, cuma semalam, bisa dimaafkan dan dilupakan begitu saja?
Harry sudah memiliki segalanya: istri yang canti...more
Maka Harry Silver pun berselingkuh. Cuma sekali. Tapi apakah kalau cuma sekali, cuma semalam, bisa dimaafkan dan dilupakan begitu saja?
Harry sudah memiliki segalanya: istri yang canti...more
A British best-seller...
B+ to this one! I found this book at an airport bookstore in London, England. It was a British bestseller at the time. I was intrigued by the title. It ended up reminding me how "lucky" I have been in my life. Life is unpredictable and we must be happy no matter what it takes. There was one event in the book that TOTALLY surprised me, catching me totally offguard. That's a 'real find' in a book! This isn't a depressing book...it's a book about real-l...more
B+ to this one! I found this book at an airport bookstore in London, England. It was a British bestseller at the time. I was intrigued by the title. It ended up reminding me how "lucky" I have been in my life. Life is unpredictable and we must be happy no matter what it takes. There was one event in the book that TOTALLY surprised me, catching me totally offguard. That's a 'real find' in a book! This isn't a depressing book...it's a book about real-l...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Category: Books
Genre: Literature & Fiction
Author: Tonny Parsons
"Mengapa banyak lelaki berselingkuh? Karena mereka punya kesempatan. Berselingkuh juga berarti seks tanpa komitmen. Dan nikmatnya seks tanpa komitmen jangan pernah dianggap remeh. Yang kulakukan sekarang adalah seks tanpa komitmen yang tersedia di depan mata. Itulah yang paling menarik bagiku."
Maka Harry Silver pun berselingkuh. Cuma sekali. Tapi apakah kalau cuma sekali, cuma ...more
Genre: Literature & Fiction
Author: Tonny Parsons
"Mengapa banyak lelaki berselingkuh? Karena mereka punya kesempatan. Berselingkuh juga berarti seks tanpa komitmen. Dan nikmatnya seks tanpa komitmen jangan pernah dianggap remeh. Yang kulakukan sekarang adalah seks tanpa komitmen yang tersedia di depan mata. Itulah yang paling menarik bagiku."
Maka Harry Silver pun berselingkuh. Cuma sekali. Tapi apakah kalau cuma sekali, cuma ...more
Truth. That's what I kept thinking as I was reading this book. It's true and it's raw. It's sad and it's happy. Tony Parsons has a certain way of making the characters so real. I felt I knew Harry Silver. Really knew him, as a friend.
I guess stories like this don't really need to be complicated to really draw readers in. In the first few chapters I was devastated when Gina and Harry break up. I actually felt pain for Harry during his tiny mid-life crisis when he sleeps with another wom...more
I guess stories like this don't really need to be complicated to really draw readers in. In the first few chapters I was devastated when Gina and Harry break up. I actually felt pain for Harry during his tiny mid-life crisis when he sleeps with another wom...more
I really enjoyed the book and cannot wait to read the sequel, Man and Wife. Parsons does such a great job telling the story of Harry Silver who, for all his faults, has the redeeming quality of loving someone honestly and completely ie, his son. What I liked from following Harry's journey between his wife leaving him and his realization of what love means, is how easily the story moves along. Through the simplicity of language and plot, sincere and honest emotions really shine through, which is ...more
Bab III. Questions.
Harry Silver kembali melanjutkan hidup, dengan sejumput sisa ketidakpuasan -yang mungkin tak diungkapkannya secara gamblang- tapi rasanya bakal nyata di sekuel.
Bab II. And the hardest part, was letting go.
Cinta berarti tahu kapan saatnya melepas kepergian mereka yang kau cintai. Dalem. Ya. Kelelep. Sure. Kata-kata bijak yang mungkin gampang diucapkan, tapi berrrraaaaat dijalankan.
Bab I. But life goes on (with or without ...more
Harry Silver kembali melanjutkan hidup, dengan sejumput sisa ketidakpuasan -yang mungkin tak diungkapkannya secara gamblang- tapi rasanya bakal nyata di sekuel.
Bab II. And the hardest part, was letting go.
Cinta berarti tahu kapan saatnya melepas kepergian mereka yang kau cintai. Dalem. Ya. Kelelep. Sure. Kata-kata bijak yang mungkin gampang diucapkan, tapi berrrraaaaat dijalankan.
Bab I. But life goes on (with or without ...more
This was a "beach read" book for me, meaning I didn't except it to me much more than a cliched, easy reader that would be enjoyable in a mindless sort of way. But I quickly found myself totally involved in the book and the characters. Tony Parsons has taken an overdone topic and done it right. The emotions are spot on, the dialogue is believable, the plot is engaging and intriguing. My only grip is the ending which felt a bit forced but honestly it's a small thing in terms of...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
All I can say..awesome! Aku sangat suka cerita ini karena sangat menggambarkan kehidupan yang sebenarnya mengenai sebuah rumah tangga. Bahwa menjalin sebuah hubungan serius, menikah dan punya anak bukanlah hal mudah. Setiap orang yang terlibat didalamnya harus berjuang untuk mempertahankan keutuhan rumah tangga tersebut.
Disini juga diceritakan bagaimana Harry yang ketahuan selingkuh oleh istrinya, harus menjadi single parent plus di pecat dari pekerjaan. Lengkap sudah penderitaannya se...more
Disini juga diceritakan bagaimana Harry yang ketahuan selingkuh oleh istrinya, harus menjadi single parent plus di pecat dari pekerjaan. Lengkap sudah penderitaannya se...more
For a "first" novel by this author, I thought he did a pretty good job. A 30 year old man has a one night, one time stand and throws his marriage away. He suddenly finds himself trying to raise his 4 year old son on his own and soon discovers it's not as easy as it looks!
From the dust jacket:
"Harry Silver has it all: a beautiful wife, a wonderful son, a great job in the media-but in one night he throws it all away.
Just yesterday Harry gave hims...more
From the dust jacket:
"Harry Silver has it all: a beautiful wife, a wonderful son, a great job in the media-but in one night he throws it all away.
Just yesterday Harry gave hims...more
OK, well this story has been done before, and then before that. I didn't instantly warm up to Harry Silver because he'd been stupid and ruined his marriage single-handedly by a one night stand with a woman at the office. But then, having done that, he is catapulted into reality and has to think for himself, and realizes how tough it's going to be without his child if the boy lives forever with his mother. He puts his heart and soul into caring for the boy while the mother is away in Japan. H...more
I purchased Man and Boy at Waverly Railway Station while waiting for my train to London. Seven years later I finally got around to reading it.
Man and Boy is an entertaining and easy read, making it a perfect book for traveling. The book chronicles the unraveling and reconstruction of Harry Silver's life after his third-life crisis in which he, a once career-minded family man, becomes a single father in the course of one day. The novel focuses on the post-nuclear family in the era...more
Man and Boy is an entertaining and easy read, making it a perfect book for traveling. The book chronicles the unraveling and reconstruction of Harry Silver's life after his third-life crisis in which he, a once career-minded family man, becomes a single father in the course of one day. The novel focuses on the post-nuclear family in the era...more
Solid modern writing. Quick read. A bit derivative of Nick Hornby. I didn't always like the main character - he's a bit of a prat sometimes - but I guess that's part of the point, isn't it? If John Cusack isn't cast as Harry in the movie version (which I'm afraid is inevitable), I'll be shocked.
Jenna Watt
added it
This was a good book but for a while I was thinking 'whats the point of this' There were some really well written areas and some areas that were not so well written. And many typos and grammar mistakes. I loved the characters. There we some reviews i read that i didnt agree with. One was that they didnt feel sorry for the main character but honestly i dont think you were supposed to. He was supposed to be growing not asking for sympathy. There were times when i laughed out loud and times when i ...more
This funny, touching book set in England centers on Harry Silver, who upon reaching his thirtieth birthday finds his life turned upside down by losing his wife and his job, and is threatened with the possibility of losing his son as well. The whole crisis is precipitated by his entering into a one night stand with one of his co-workers. His wife promptly leaves him and heads to Japan to follow her dreams and he is charged with the sole care of his four year old son, Pat. The book focuses on his ...more
A pleasant surprise and a very bittersweet read. I appreciated more than I thought I would.
It's the story of how a father - left by his wife after he cheated on her on a one night stand - has to suddenly learn how to be a good father for his 4-year-old son. From washing his hair to taking him to the park, to cooking healthy food for him, and have the boy actually eat it.
It was a quick read, and I loved the characters. It's a bittersweet book about relationships, about fathers, about gr...more
It's the story of how a father - left by his wife after he cheated on her on a one night stand - has to suddenly learn how to be a good father for his 4-year-old son. From washing his hair to taking him to the park, to cooking healthy food for him, and have the boy actually eat it.
It was a quick read, and I loved the characters. It's a bittersweet book about relationships, about fathers, about gr...more
Well for one thing this fiction stuff is not really my genre. It's quite a few years back since I read the book. I just pulled it off the library shelf...must have been depressed or something.
However, my recollection tells me that this was a quick easy going read. I thought it was a quite well written story, which as Tony Parsons is a professional journalist in the ranks of the British press corps, he should be on top of his game with fictional writing.
So...MAN is married with sma...more
However, my recollection tells me that this was a quick easy going read. I thought it was a quite well written story, which as Tony Parsons is a professional journalist in the ranks of the British press corps, he should be on top of his game with fictional writing.
So...MAN is married with sma...more
Lightweight, perfectly enjoyable little book, that is a sort of Kramer v Kramer or book equivalent of a Richard Curtis film. Although the main character is a man, it does feel more like a girly book. I'm not sure that the female protagonist [girlfriend, not the wife] is entirely believable - there are too many inconsistencies in her, e.g. she has certain standards, but then employs an entirely inadequate child-minder with no apparent guilt or concern. And the main character's father is treated...more
l would rate it 4 and 1/2 * actually!
l read it about a year ago, and l remember it took me such a short time to finish it.. parsons' writing style is very comprehensible, without big words and phrases and yet everything is said!
unlike many other books (and esp series these days) that talk about women raising children on their own, this one leads us into the world of a man left to pick up the pieces of his life after his wife leaves him and their child..
beautiful book that will ...more
l read it about a year ago, and l remember it took me such a short time to finish it.. parsons' writing style is very comprehensible, without big words and phrases and yet everything is said!
unlike many other books (and esp series these days) that talk about women raising children on their own, this one leads us into the world of a man left to pick up the pieces of his life after his wife leaves him and their child..
beautiful book that will ...more
it is brilliant of Parsons to bring out such a great story. in fact, this story really related to nowadays kind of relationships. i hate it when Gina couldn't forgive Harry's fault. but, to think out of it, i might do the same thing as Gina had done. i really can't understand what in Pat's mind? maybe because i don't have this kind of situation when i was growing up. but deeply inside of me i want this story that the real parents stay together at the end and care for their own child and live tog...more
Not my normal genre, but I really enjoyed this frank portrayal of life and all that follows from a moments lust. Some simply stunning descriptions and reflections. One that brings a lump to my throat, is when the lead character states we try to protect are children from harm, wrapping them in cotton wool from all of the nastiness in the world. Then without a thought the person who harms them the most is me, a lustful father, who rips his son's world apart. Men, the next time you feel lustful, th...more
This book was an easy read, but I found it to be a little unrealistic. I don't know many mothers who would leave their son and go across the globe to another country, in pursuit of their career, only to return later and demmand that he now lives solely with her and not his dad. Also, the fact that the dad gave the son up with no hesitation. And that the mom (Gina) expected him to give up Pat and let him live in Japan, therefore Pat never getting to see his father. The book was OK, but nothin...more
This is a wonderful, can't-put-it-down till the end book, in which the author, with great humor, tenderness, and humanness, describes the break up of a relationship, the role the father takes in raising his child, and all that happens afterwards. It's a story, in part, about a father's role as parent, and, to some extent, the injustices in a system that assumes the mother is the parent of choice in custody matters. However, this is really not the main thrust of the story. It's simply a story abo...more
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Tony Parsons is a British journalist broadcaster and author.
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“to love means to realize there is a time to let the beloved one go”
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106 people liked it
“Love means knowing when to let go.”
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