- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Piatkus Books (8 Jun 2006)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0749927011
- ISBN-13: 978-0749927011
- Product Dimensions: 19.4 x 13 x 2.2 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 129,552 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
As he approaches forty, Nigel Marsh is in a seemingly enviable position in life: he has just moved with his family from the UK to Sydney, a city he loves, and he runs the Australian office of a leading advertising agency. Unfortunately, he is also stressed, overweight and struggling to balance a high-pressure career, a marriage and the demands of four small children. But his real adventure begins when the unthinkable happens: he loses his job. After the initial shock, Marsh makes a bold decision - to take a year off, embrace life outside the office and reconnect with his family. Fat, Forty and Fired is his hilarious, insightful and deeply moving account of his 'gap year' at home. It follows Marsh and his family through the ups and downs as he rediscovers the joys (and pitfalls) of fatherhood, loses the 20 kilograms he's put on since starting his career, kicks his drinking habit, trains for an ocean swim race and generally gets his house in order - after, of course, moving to a smaller one. An unforgettable adventure from a talented new writer, Fat, Forty and Fired is a story for every man and woman who has ever dreamed about leaving the rat race behind and living a more meaningful life.
About the Author
Nigel Marsh was born in Plymouth. Five years later he was sent to boarding school. He has spent the 35 years since thinking of ways of gaining attention and affirmation of his parents. The CEO of communications group Leo Burnett Australia, he lives in Bronte with his wife and four children.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
SANTA DIDN'T COME to Bronte last year. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
SANTA DIDN'T COME to Bronte last year. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A good yarn, but a bit hollow,
By Bezza "Bezza" (UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Fat, Forty and Fired (Paperback)
It's a good read - pacy, irreverent and witty - although what other reviewers find so incredibly, side-splittingly funny beats me. There are some lovely comic moments and some nice turns of phrase that did make me laugh out loud, but they are well spread through the text. Overall, I found his story more something to reflect on than laugh along with. It's not funny - it is a profoundly sad and endlessly repeatable story that is amusingly and candidly told. Without betraying any confidences, its main subject is the working life of the vast majority of middle-class white men, and how they cope with it - or, more usually, don't. The incredible demands it makes on one's time; the inevitable and often fatal cost to friendships and relationships it extracts; the dislocated, socially dysfunctional and almost tragic life it forces peope to lead; the price it rips from children and marriages; the seeming impossibility of doing it any other way. What consititutes 'progress' or 'success' today (or ought to)? Is there such a thing as an achievable work:life balance, or is this some pointless, unachievable distraction dreamt up by the peddlers of magazines? It's a valuable debate, and one that should be far higher up the agenda, since the costs of the current prevailing middle-class work model are enormous and getting bigger; socially, economically, culturally, spitiually - and yes, he does also dip a toe into that pond.
The author explores all these questions, sometimes with some nice insights (albeit often borrowed), but fights shy of an answer. For him, there is no viable alternative to what he calls the hamster wheel, which is where I found the book unsatisfying. There are plenty of alternatives if one really wants them. He doesn't. It's not a book about a life change - it's a long lunch break. But it's a good read, if you allow yourself to skim over the too prevalent perfect, perfect, wonderful wife and kids bits.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A manual on how to reassess your life,
This review is from: Fat, Forty and Fired (Paperback)
he's not really so fat. ok, he's 40 and he was fired. the important thing is he decides to take a long break to review his life, his values and his performance in adulthood. the result is quite amazing yet subtle. it's a good read for those who are not just living, but who like to think about how they are living.
4.0 out of 5 stars
If you don't laugh aloud at least twice, see your doctor.,
This review is from: Fat, Forty and Fired (Paperback)
Fat, Forty and Fired rarely flags and is often very, very funny. Nigel has an English turn of phrase and an Australian heart. I found this book about his extended period out of the paid workforce, caring for his children full-time, engaging and thought-provoking, although he, his family and friends sometimes made me feel flabby, unfocused and fifty. If a friend needs cheering up, this is just the ticket, as long as they don't mind the odd four-letter word and some bawdiness. I also think someone who has recognised they have a drinking problem could find gentle inspiration in these pages. This is, ultimately, a book filled with kindness, good intentions and hope.
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