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The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾

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Country
  
United Kingdom

Publication date
  
7 October 1982

ISBN
  
0-413-50890-0

Author
  
Sue Townsend

Genre
  
Young adult fiction

3.8/5
Goodreads

Language
  
English

Pages
  
259 pp

Originally published
  
7 October 1982

Publisher
  
Methuen Publishing

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ t1gstaticcomimagesqtbnANd9GcRrrYaldVmufGVdd

Media type
  
Print (Hardback & Paperback)

Followed by
  
The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole

Adaptations
  
The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole (1985)

Similar
  
Sue Townsend books, Adrian Mole series books, Children's literature

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ is the first book in the Adrian Mole series of comedic fiction, written by Sue Townsend. The book is written in a diary style, and focuses on the worries and regrets of a teenager who believes himself to be an intellectual. The story is set in 1981 and 1982, and in the background it refers to some of the historic world events of the time, such as the Falklands War and the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana as well as the birth of Prince William. Mole is also a fierce critic of prime minister Margaret Thatcher, listing her as one of his worst enemies.

Contents

Apart from the humorous events described in the diary, a lot of the book's humour originates from the unreliable narration of Mole, who naïvely, yet confidently, misinterprets events around him.

The book was first published in hardcover by Methuen on October 7, 1982. Sequels include (in chronological order):

  • The Growing Pains of Adrian Mole
  • The True Confessions of Adrian Albert Mole
  • Adrian Mole and the Small Amphibians (all of which were contained in Adrian Mole: From Minor to Major)
  • Adrian Mole: The Wilderness Years
  • Adrian Mole: The Cappuccino Years
  • Adrian Mole and the Weapons of Mass Destruction
  • Adrian Mole: The Prostrate Years
  • Reception

    The book was a best-seller, and had sold 1.9 million copies by November 1985.

    Adaptations

    A 7-part radio series on BBC Radio 4 featured extracts from the book read by Nicholas Barnes. Townsend adapted the book for the stage in 1984 with music by Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley for a 1985 television series.

    A successful stage production ran at the Wyndham's Theatre, London, in 1984-1986, that included Simon Gipps-Kent and followed with a road tour.

    A new musical theatre adaptation by Jake Brunger and Pippa Cleary opened at Leicester's Curve Theatre in March 2015. Townsend had been working on the project at the time of her death.

    References

    The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13¾ Wikipedia