Rating: 4/5
Pages: 405
Published in: 5th November 2009
Although this book was released last year I literally had no idea of its existence until three weeks ago, after I spotted it at my local bookshop. As an ardent fan of the Adrian Mole series since I was about 12 and three quarters (hah!) I obviously couldn't stop myself from snatching it immediately from the shelf and zooming towards the cashier despite a very limited budget. I usually try and control my spending, especially when it comes to books, but Adrian Mole is one of the few exceptions that I will allow myself. It was an extremely pleasant surprise seeing as I was under the impression that Townsend had announced in 2004 that Adrian Mole and The Weapons of Mass Destruction would be the final book in the series.
I finally managed to read it all yesterday, in just one sitting, and I'm pleased to report that this is yet another excellent installation in the Mole saga - very funny and yet very moving at the same time. The Prostate Years picks up in 2007 and finds Adrian in the final years of his 30's and slowly heading up to the big 4-0. He is still living with his wife, Daisy Mole nee Flowers and their daughter Gracie in the Piggeries just next door to his ever dysfunctional parents. It's a much more grown up book and is even more political than its predecessors - Glenn Mole, Adrian's son with Sharon Bott is still in Afghanistan and former Prime Minister Tony Blair has just been replaced by Gordon Brown. I had gotten the impression that TWOMD was Townsend's harsh criticism of the UK's involvement with the Iraq War and she continues on with this theme as well, along with the 2008 recession and the credit crunch that left thousands of people bankrupt and jobless. Another serious theme is health and illness - Adrian finds himself having to visit the lavatory one time too many during the day...
Of course, no Mole book would be complete without Adrian and his hapless love life falling apart around him; his marriage with Daisy is in serious trouble and Pandora Braithwaite, the love of his life, once again re-enters the picture. This time however you do get the impression that she is not completely adverse to Adrian's feelings and, well... let's just say that things do get pretty interesting as the book progresses.
This was the only part of the book that I was a little disappointed with. Adrian's constant failure with women was pretty amusing during the first four books but I was actually really pleased that he had apparently managed to settle down with Daisy and have a child together. The fact that she eventually left him - whilst he was going through chemo, no less! - was a little repetitive and predictable and honestly I thought that Townsend had thoroughly botched her character. This was a completely different Daisy to the one that appeared in TWOMD and I can't imagine that Daisy falling for someone like Fairfax-Lycett. The open ending with Pandora was interesting, but now I'm dreading that particular relationship falling apart during a potential sequel if it does turn romantic.
The cancer storyline was dealt with brilliantly and realistically.
It was also great to finally discover the gender of Mr. Carlton Hayes' partner Leslie - always thought it was a man!
I would definitely recommend this book to any fan of Adrian Mole. Every new installment seems to be better than the last, and I sincerely hope that we'll be looking forward to another one very soon.