One for My Baby http://www.fishpond.com.au/Books/One-for-My-Baby-Tony-Parsons/9780006514817

By Tony Parsons

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About the Author

Tony Parsons is the author of Man and Boy , published in 36 countries and winner of the UK's Book of the Year Award. He is also the author of One For My Baby, Man and Wife, The Family Way, Stories We Could Tell and My Favourite Wife, which were all international bestsellers. He began his career on the NME and is currently a columnist on the Daily Mirror and GQ, and a regular guest on BBC TV's Newsnight Review. He lives in London with his wife and daughter.

Reviews

Alfie Budd goes to Hong Kong to teach English and finds more than he ever dreamed he could: the woman of his dreams, who loves him back, and a world that is exotic and feels more like home to him than England. Tragically, Alfie loses his wife in a freak diving accident and he returns to England in order to "get on with life." But he doesn't. He takes a job teaching English at Churchill's Language School, where he meets an odd assortment of foreign students trying to get ahead and make something of themselves. Alfie settles into a semidepressed state, believing that you don't get a second chance at love, and he doesn't really seem to care. The only stable and happy fixture in his life is his beloved grandmother, but when she is diagnosed with an inoperable tumor, the grief seems almost too much to bear. Cynicism, wry humor, incisive social commentary, and wisdom fill this tale for modern times that acknowledges the variety of family lifestyles that abound, and the serious life choices everyone faces. This audiobook will make you frequently laugh out loud while it moves you to tears. Not as poignant and endearing as Parsons's first hit, Man and Boy, this is a deeper journey, one that touches your heart in a profound way. Gerard Doyle does a superb job of bringing Alfie and this host of unusual characters to life. Highly recommended for all audio collections.-Gloria Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll., Kansas City, MO Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Praise for One For My Baby: 'Subtle and intelligent' The Times 'Full of hard-earned wisdom. An essential purchase' GQ 'The same combination of self-deprecating humour and well-intentioned bafflement that endeared Man and Boy to millions of readers' Observer 'Stylish, polished, complex and it really gets its teeth into the big issues of sex, love, family and friendship' Mirror 'Another brilliant novel that combines laughter and tears, love and sex -- and real human emotions' Evening Standard 'The writing is confident and accomplished!He makes the reader care!This is art shot through with humanity' Independent on Sunday 'Heartbreakingly universal and full of killer lines on love and love lost' Financial Times Praise for Man and Boy: 'Wistful, touching and funny, it looks back at the glory days of the family without losing hope for the future. In the end, it is a deeply touching book: a love letter to a son from his father, and to a father from his son' Mail on Sunday 'A touching novel! full of quiet tenderness, and written from the heart' Independent 'One of the finest books published this year! Hilarious and tear-jerking in turns' Express 'Parsons has written a sharp, witty and wise book straight from his heart. His characters are all nitty-gritty, bounce-off-the-page, real people; his dialogue is brilliant' Daily Mail 'A grown-up novel that is simultaneously a heart-rending gripping read and suffused with an irresistable reality' Glasgow Herald