The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen

By: Hendrik Groen, Hester Velmans - translator

Narrated by: Derek Jacobi

Length: 11 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

For fans of A Man Called Ove comes a funny, big-hearted tale about an old man who is young at heart.

Hendrik Groen may be old, but he is far from dead and isn't planning to be buried any time soon. Granted, his daily strolls are getting shorter because his legs are no longer willing, and he has to visit his doctor more than he'd like. Technically speaking he is...elderly. But surely there is more to life at his age than weak tea and potted geraniums?

Hendrik sets out to write an exposé: a year in the life of his care home in Amsterdam, revealing all its ups and downs—not least his new endeavor, the anarchic Old-but-Not-Dead Club. And when Eefje moves in—the woman Hendrik has always longed for—he polishes his shoes (and his teeth), grooms what's left of his hair, and attempts to make something of the life he has left, with hilarious, tender, and devastating consequences.

The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen will not only delight older listeners with its wit and relevance but charm and inspire those who have years to go before their own expiry dates.

©2017 Hester Velmans (P)2017 Hachette Audio

Critic reviews

"Amusing [and] wickedly accurate...Reading The Secret Diary, I was constantly put in mind of Ken Kesey's madhouse tale One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, another comi-tragedy concerning the tyranny of institutions of the unwanted. Enjoy Groen's light touch but do not be fooled by it....The Secret Diary is a handbook of resistance for our time."—The Express (UK)

"Funny and frank—a story with a great deal of heart."—Graeme Simsion, New York Times bestselling author of The Rosie Project

"A story about how friendship, selflessness and dignity lie at the heart of the human experience. When I'm an old man, I want to be Hendrik Groen."—John Boyne, internationally bestselling author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

Great story, uneven volume somewhat detracting.

I read a few reviews commenting that this book is not as good as A Man Called Ove. The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen is nothing like the first book, so comparisons are unfair. The Ove book is related in the third person, as by an outside narrator. The Secret Diary is told in first person, in (obviously) diary form, and is equally excellent. In Ove, we watch the personal evolution of a sad old man, set in his ways and solitary by nature, into a community minded, open hearted and more open minded man—happier, with new purpose. In The Secret Diary, Hendrik is already open minded and kind. His personal progress is of a different sort but is valuable and interesting nonetheless. I liked both books very much. But with The Secret Diary’s Audible version, there is one problem. I love Derek Jacobi as an actor. His narration was one of the draws that prompted me to buy the audio version. Unfortunately, though Jacobi’s interpretation of Hendrik is perfect, charming and fun, his lack of volume control hurt my ears. Jacobi must have at times had his mouth right up against the microphone, and at other times must have leaned far away from it. Or else he was prone to let his voice drift into quiet mode and then suddenly ramp it up by a hundred decibles. I wonder if the sound engineer was paying attention during this recording. The wide variations in volume aren’t so hard to take if the story is being listened to over speakers in a room. But over earbuds (which I use while walking outdoors) the sudden surges in volume were painful. I needed to manually adjust the volume control of my earbuds far too frequently. I gave the story itself five stars, but had to cut a star off the narration and the overall rating, only because of the volume fluctuations. I still highly recommend this book, with the caveat that buyers with sensitive ears should be prepared for the sharp and sudden changes in the narrator’s volume.

Many a truth said in jest

There are many novels out recently about old people going on quests of self discovery, and I expected this to be just one more. A book that is charming but forgettable, something you grab when it is on sale but wouldn't waste a credit on. But I was so wrong.
Hendrik writes a daily diary about life in a retirement home and his observations are laugh out loud funny. I have worked in a long term care home for the last 12 years. The way he describes the routines of the home, the idiosyncrasies of the residents living there, the patronizing benign neglect of the staff, and the daily conversations, in my experience are all accurate, though perhaps exaggerated a little for comic affect. But underlying this daily narrative are deeper issues. Henrik talks about newspaper articles about seniors and eldercare, and describes so well the attitudinal and physical barriers the elderly face. But most poignantly, he talks about how he and his small group of friends struggle to continue living their lives with dignity as their health declines.
Finally , I must acknowledge the amazing job Derek Jacoby did as the narrator. His caustic and slightly befuddled British accent was the perfect fit for this story. He was able to portray the deep emotion of the story as well as he portrayed the novel's humour.

The grown-up side of living a long life.

This book has such a wide range of reviews that I had to listen to it. It was different than my usual stories; I'm not usually one for geriatric fiction but I must admit that this book helped me understand my aging parents and grandparents much better. I get why many ppl didn't like it; it really is a reminder that for many of us when we are older there will be days/years when we don't remember suddenly how to turn on the TV, that our toast was left too long in the toaster and that sadly instead of weddings and birthday parties, we will be attending funerals. But there were some good bouts of fun for the author. For instance he helped solve the mystery of the dead community fish (spoiler alert: it was him), obtaining the bylaws for what it is and isn't allowed in the retirement home, and how to setup an iPod. Really, it was quite an entertaining and nonthinking read that I enjoyed. Much better than a lot of YA I find myself purchasing lately. This book is for the grown-up in me.

Wonderful!!

wonderful story, wonderfully narrated. thoroughly enjoyed every minute. humerous, touching, real. definitely recommend this book.

Audio

I enjoyed the book and the narration. I laughed out loud and was brought to tears. However I think I missed half the book due to the loud start to most new sentences down to a whisper.

One Day I will Be Old So Look Out World

One day I might need to go t a nursing home and I hope that I have some people around me that still know how to take life one day at a time. The characters in this books are like people I know in my everyday life and this just makes me laugh even more. Have you hugged a Baby Boomer today. Go out and do it because you might be the one who needs a hug or a kick in the pants.

Sweet, poignant, funny

This is a wonderful story of a man who can see the funny side of life while not losing site of what's real. A good story for anyone who's had an elderly loved one or who might be getting there themselves. I loved this book.

delightful!!!

Loved this book from the first chapter! Witty, charming and touching. I had a hard time understanding the accent of the speaker so I've bought the actual book so I can catch the things I missed. I also bought the sequel.

Slow in the beginning, but worth the read.

The first third of the book I wasn’t convinced I would come to feel deeply connected to the main character. The trials of nursing home residents aren’t always more than just mildly entertaining. However, after learning Hendrik’ a family situation and his continued pep for life, I found myself deeply admiring him and genuinely sad when the diary ended.

Performance is stellar

This story is endearing and hysterical. I absolutely loved the imaginative personality that came through. The performance by Derek Jacobi was remarkable. His voice is perfection for this story. The different characters he brought to life with just his voice were as clear as if they were standing in front of me.