| ||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Authors
Discover books, learn about writers, and more.
Product Description
The Sunday Times
'Excellently done...O'Farrell gives an extra squirm to the traditional English comedy of embarrassment'
Book Description
A compelling and very funny novel about how we define 'success'
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I cannot believe how many times I laughed out loud when I was reading this book. It is a very funny, clever book. Jimmy Conway rediscovers the expections he had of life when he was 15. At 35 it hasn't really turned out like he had expected and once again he lets his teenage self take over and go all out in pursuit of his earlier goals i.e. fame. If the idea sounds tempting to you then you better read this book and find out what happens when Jimmy Conway does just that. I have to say that the book got mildly annoying towards the end, but I guess the character is meant to be annoying. Still I it worthwhile to keep reading because you will never guess the great twist towards the end. I really recommend this book for anyone who is wondering when they got a normal boring life and what happened to their high flying plans and goals or for anyone just after a good laugh.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read O'Farrell's first book "The Best a Man Can Get" in pretty much one sitting. It was witty and dry and I was hoping for more of the same. Unfortunately, this one never quite lives up to the expectations.
Jimmy Conway spent his school days fantasising about how he would behave when he became famous. On reaching the age of 35 none of his fantasies have managed to come true. Yet somehow, following the death of a national celebrity and some fairly far-fetched coincidences, he blags his way into becoming a celebrity - without ever having to perform.
The book explores some serious issues - the effects of celebrity and how we see our friends - but mostly manages to do so in a light-hearted way. It is witty and the characters are charming.
It's not quite as good as O'Farrell's first fiction work, but I bought it on a Saturday and finished it the following Monday evening, which for me is quite good going. It's not that I couldn't put it down, it's just that every time I did, quite soon after, I wanted to pick it up again!
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Journalist John O'Farrell's second book of fiction is a tour de force about fame, celebrity and the tacky, flimsy world of showbiz! The central character, Jimmy Conway, blends into the background, drinks in the same pub with the same friends and seems as normal as instant coffee. But lurking in his past is a dire secret; Jimmy has always yearned for stardom and even wrote letters as a teenager to his future self with advice on how to handle it. After accidentally meeting Billy Scrivens - a more Dickensian name you could not find in modern fiction - and consequently being interviewed for television on the event of Scrivens' death Jimmy is launched on a crazily out of control ascent to the peak of stardom. For Billy Scrivens is (was) Britain's favourite TV personality and Jimmy builds on his tenuous friendship with the deceased to convince the populace that he is in fact Scrivens' successor and the brightest unknown stand up comedian for years.
The truth will out and when it does it is in the most unpredictable and sharply observed form possible. O' Farrell's wit and biting satire strip the celebrities and their status of all dignity, revealing them as sordid, shallow back stabbers. This Is Your Life is probably the funniest British book I have read since Jonathan Coe's hilarious What A Carve Up and is destined, like Coe's, to be read time and time again. A comic masterpiece!
The truth will out and when it does it is in the most unpredictable and sharply observed form possible. O' Farrell's wit and biting satire strip the celebrities and their status of all dignity, revealing them as sordid, shallow back stabbers. This Is Your Life is probably the funniest British book I have read since Jonathan Coe's hilarious What A Carve Up and is destined, like Coe's, to be read time and time again. A comic masterpiece!
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Most Recent Customer Reviews
A good funny read and so true about celebrities
I enjoyed this novel more than The Best a Man Can Get, though that was readable too. I think because of the examination of fame and celebrity, which is so ripe for satire and... Read more
Published 6 months ago by EddieMan
O'Farrell would make a better stand-up than he does a novelist
I've decided to get rid of this book, which I read about a year after its 2002 publication after I was given it as a present. Read more
Published on 28 Feb 2009 by Greshon
Continuity
My first ever review, never been tempted to write one before.
I found 'Utterly impartial history of Britain' brilliant, and that tempted me to buy more by O'Farrell. Read more
I found 'Utterly impartial history of Britain' brilliant, and that tempted me to buy more by O'Farrell. Read more
Published on 17 Sep 2008 by Frugal Dougal
I really enjoyed this book by John O'Farrell
I really enjoyed this book by John O'Farrell. It told the story of Jimmy Conway who always dreamed of being famous but the real truth was that he hadn't done any stand up comedy... Read more
Published on 12 July 2008 by Andy Capp
The value of surface over content...
At times hilarious, this book is about the superficiality of fame and how 'celebs' club together to maintain their 'celebrity' even when they have no idea who anyone is. Read more
Published on 26 July 2007 by Brian Levine
Amusing but contrived
I enjoy John O'Farrell's writing, particular his political columns, and "The Best a Man Can Get" was a successful move into fiction. Read more
Published on 11 Oct 2006 by Dubs
A Great Read
I read this after finishing The Best A Man Can Get hoping it would be as witty and laugh-out-loud funny. I wasn't disappointed. Read more
Published on 23 Jun 2005 by S. A. Houghton
Brilliant!!!
What a breath of fresh air! This book is so cleverly written that you almost believe it was real! A wonderful tale as Jimmy follows his childhood dream of becoming famous, but... Read more
Published on 23 Jan 2005
What would YOU be willing to give up for your '15 minutes'?
Jimmy Conway has always wanted to be a celebrity - and he was sure he'd be really good at it! So when he gets the chance to give up his ordinary life for celebrity status, even... Read more
Published on 2 Nov 2004 by maria1971
If this book is going to be a movie some day...
...I want to see Simon Pegg in the lead!
A friend gave me this book and predicted, that I have read it within two days. Well, he was absolutly right. Read more
Published on 31 July 2004 by Gerry Streberg
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
