His bestselling book might have offered some clues, even though the only thing it asserts is that it is the diary of Henrick Groen, which most fans rightly guessed was a pseudonym. In this anonymous Dutch novel in diary form, Hendrik Groen provides a full reckoning of how 2013 went down in his Amsterdam old folks’ care home. This is fiction (however there is some debate) and written by Groen, (Hendrik Groen is an alias, and Meulenhoff is an unknown Amsterdam resident).

The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old - Goodreads The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old - Goodreads

This is the 30th book, but considering Alex has survived "Kill Alex Cross" before, chances are he survives this one. With a spark of rebellion we have a group of residents set up the Old But Not Yet Dead club whereby they support each other through their difficulties, declining health and tragedies. The book is written in diary format written by an 83-year old man starting January 1, 2013 and ending on New Year’s Eve December 31 of that year. In April 2016, NRC Handelsblad revealed Peter de Smet, a 61-year-old librarian with no previous published written work, as the book’s author. Both De Volkskrant and NRC Handelsblad revealed almost simultaneously in 2016 that Peter de Smet was 62-year-old.Our narrator sets out his mission in the opening pages, to give an “uncensored exposé” of a year in the life of his care home inmates, where the garden always remains locked, the thermostats may not be raised above 23 degrees, and an elderly man in a wheelchair can be pushed down the stairs by his oppressed wife “with no repercussions because the director is afraid of negative publicity”. No matter how old, people need friends they can relate to and occupations which are worthwhile and enjoyable. Imagined or not, this is the diary of someone who wants nothing more than to be allowed see out his days with dignity and respect. Hendrik's life has been a tragic one, yet, for the most part, he approaches what life he has remaining with good humour.

Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old review: a nome de The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old review: a nome

While he is one and a half years older, he has not let his age prevent him from posting his diary entries. I really must make a point of asking my geriatrician next time if there’s anything that can be done about the leaky part or if I’ll just have to resign myself to wearing diapers.I will probably seek out the second book when it is translated see what all the old folks are up to now. This book enables you to enter the very often closed world of life for 80 plus year olds in residential care homes. Evert and Hendrick are akin to what you would find in a school house as they behave like two naughty schoolboys. I would like to thank Net Galley, Penguin UK Michael Joseph and the author Hendrik Groen for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Hendrik Groen - Wikipedia Hendrik Groen - Wikipedia

The man lives in a nursing care home in Amsterdam and tells a blow-by-blow account of the lives of the many eccentric characters living at the home. Given that he has developed a tendency to bumble, he starts keeping his diary once again so that he can reread anything he forgets. He is the author of the book Pogingen iets van het leven te maken: Het geheime dagboek van Hendrik Groen, 83¼ jaar ( The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old) published in 2014. Hendrik is in the unfortunate position of meeting someone truly important to him and then to only know her for eight precious months.He smartens himself up, nervously hosts a get together over cups of tea with both Eefje and Evert and wishes he’d met her half a century sooner. Considering that the basis of this novel is the observations of an elderly man who resides in an Amsterdam nursing home, I should be a bit guilty for chuckling through most of it. It is not just Eefje who keeps Hendrik going; there is also Evert, a sort of Leslie Phillips, Ding-Dong rascal who keeps having body parts amputated; Grietje, an old woman slowly succumbing to Alzheimer’s; and Ria and Antonie, a pair of superannuated chefs who delight in preparing clandestine and strictly forbidden meals in their rooms.