One of my day jobs is as a Lamda speech and drama teacher. As a former lamda speech and drama student myself I had always aspired to become a teacher of it myself.
One of the many joys of the job is getting to read. Lots. I am constantly on the look out for new literature, plays and poems for my students to test and tackle. My mum reads a lot to so there is a constant stream of books that how backwards and forwards between us.
I ended up reading 'Starter for Ten' by David Nicholls because of my mum. She said it would be a light read after giving birth! I had only just forgiven my mum for giving me 'One Day' to read - I was so devastated that it lived in the fridge for 48 hours (a strange tradition of mine which happens to all books that either upset or frighten me!)
David Nicholls is incredibly talented. Not only has he written novels but has turned tow of his novels into films. He has also written many things for television (including episodes of Cold Feet).
Starter for Ten (set in the 1980s) centres around an obsessive university teenager, Brian, who wishes to become part of a team on University Challenge. The story tells of his loves, friendships and sometimes quite bizarre adventures which he encounters to get there. At times the story is almost cringe worthy as Brian stumbles through trying to function as a normal as humanly possible - and failing to some extents! The novel is funny and witty and has an unexpected conclusion.
I have 'The Understudy' on my shelf still to read. Maybe it should be next on my list?
http://www.davidnichollswriter.com
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