The Diary of a Nobody

This is one of my favourite books. It is delightful and funny. Gentle humour pervades this endearing tale of an ordinary man, his family and friends of a past era. I laugh aloud with this book. The narrator is marvellous and does not let one joke or nuance slip. I have read this book many times and have listened to the audio book version many times too. Charming and uproariously amusing. Magnificent performance. A happy book!

Diary of a Nobody is in a class of its own and I do not rank my books. It is amusing and true to its original form, which I first read in the traditional way 30 years ago.

The most memorable moment in Diary of a Nobody is when Pooter paints the bath red and gets into all kinds of subsequent trouble.
I also liked it when Willie changed his name to Lupin, consequently shocking his father.

Never listened to Martin Jarvis before, but he does this book 'perfectly' in my opinion.

It is impossible to rename this book. The name is perfect.

I recommend anyone who has not read or listened to this book to get it; curl up on the sofa on a wet and miserable day, with lots of snacks and a nice fire, and get some free laughter therapy.
This book belongs in the heart of 'everyman' (and woman).

This book is in the top tier of my library.

I actually think it could be a satire of FB pages although it was written over a century ago! Mr. "Nobody" records his daily life and thoughts, and plans to have them published. He is oblivious to how others view him - somewhat of a sop. And yet, he is a sympathetic character because he always tries to act honorably.

The narrator is perfect for the material - his inflections, etc. sound just like the diary author would speak.

It is so humorous in such as understated way that I found it hilarious.

Humor is very individual but if you like absurd, deadpan satire (some Monty python skits come to mind) than you will probably like this.

I think I would have enjoyed this more if I'd recognized Mr. Pooter. I wonder if he's too far away in time and place for me to "get" the humor in this nicely crafted work. While I recognized (and laughed at) my own obsessions, vanity, and naivite in Adrian Mole's and Bridget Jones's diaries, Mr. Pooter's adventures left me bemused. I wondered also if it would have been funnier if I'd read the actual book rather than listened to Martin Jarvis's excellent performance: part of the pleasure in reading a "diary" can be the disconnect between the flat delivery of the words on the page, and all they leave unsaid. Three stars for the story, five stars for Mr. Jarvis.

What a roller coaster ride following the mundane life of Victorian clerk Charles Pooter - two setbacks for every break he catches, though that's often his own fault, given his petty, narrow outlook.
Jarvis' narration effectively highlights Pooter's pomposity, and general cluelessness.

I bought this because it was on a list I found of the best 10 books with happy endings. It was not to my taste and I gave up after about 90 mins listening. The narrator, although annoying, is perfect because the book is supposed to be annoying. Too bad I couldn't make it to the end. Some may like this style, but I grew up with someone around who was too much in real life like the character being parodied in the book!