Member Reviews
How to Age Disgracefully is a laugh out loud, wee your knickers romp. The banter is on point and the escapades perfect! Old people have all sorts of surprises up their sleeves, and this set is extra special. Thei interactions with the community center children were priceless. Despite the characters' advanced age, they all demonstrated character growth which does go to show that you can teach old dogs (just like Maggie Thacker) new tricks!
I just need to get my hands on those knotting patterns though, LOL!
Thank you to NetGalley and PENGUIN GROUP Viking | Pamela Dorman Books for the opportunity to read and review this ARC.
This is a fun story with a diverse set of characters with their own personalities and stories. It’s told from the perspective of 4 characters in particular, but there are many others as part of the story as well. I enjoyed seeing how they all came together as found family. It’s funny, heartfelt, and overall a lovely read! I highly recommend it!
How to Age Disgracefully centers around a motley crew of characters, mostly retirees, who come together through a senior group at their local community center. Led by an inexperienced and enthusiastic albeit naive woman, this disparate group of aged misfits, rebels, and scoundrels form heartfelt and hilarious bonds over the course of the story.
Pooley has crafted a perfectly delightful and heartwarming reading experience without crossing into saccharine nonsense. If you are a fan of found family stories and loved Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers or The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise, this book is for you.
How to Age Disgracefully released June 11, 2024. Thank you to NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books for the advanced review copy.
Reminiscent of Richard Osman's "Thursday Murder Club" this story focuses on a group of retired folks that are anything but retiring, who meet when they gather at a community center for a senior activity group. The Community Center is also home to a day care center and we meet a few more quirky characters there. When the center is threatened with closure the whole group bands together to save the center. Wild antics ensue and everyone's secrets come out as Daphne steps forward to sort out everything and lead the group and save the center. Heartwarming, laugh out loud funny in places this is a great read.
One of the most wholesome books I’ve ever had the pleasure of reading!
If you didn’t know, I have an infinite love for Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting so I was doubly excited for How to Age Disgracefully because I knew it was going to be such an eclectic group of characters coming together for mischief and foolishness and it did not disappoint!
This was so funny and I love how Clare Pooley makes friendship bloom from the most unlikely of characters! It was adorable and I by far recommend the audio 🫶🏼
This was such a fun read! With a diverse and interesting group of characters that span 50 years or so, from a teen-aged single father to middle age to senior citizens, we're introduced to them all on a bus from the endangered community center that's brought them all together. They're all navigating big changes in life, and we backtrack from that bus scene to get to know them as they get to know each other. Told from the point of view of four main characters, Ziggy, Lydia, Art, and the fabulous Daphne, secrets and mysteries are revealed over the course of the book. And we root for them all, because as flawed as they are, they're likeable and relatable. I'm in Daphne's age group, and while I'm not even close to being as fabulous as she is, I could certainly relate to her musings on aging. It's funny and sad and heartwarming, and I enjoyed it all.
Thanks to Netgalley and Pamela Dorman Books for providing a digital copy for an unbiased review.
How to Age Disgracefully was such a fun and emotional read. I absolutely fell in love with all of the characters! I flew through this one and cannot wait to read more from Clare Pooley.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
What a hoot!!! If you're looking for a quick, humorous, summer read, this is a book for you. Thoroughly enjoyable with plenty of chuckles and laughs.
Since I'm one of those senior adults -- an octogenarian to be exact -- I can totally relate to the quirky characters ... they remind me of some of the residents in my own senior apartment building!!
Plot, of course, isn't believable, but what the hey ... just grab your cup of tea -- or whatever -- and enjoy a few hours of fun.
Definitely recommend for all adult ages.
I thought this was such a cute and fun story! I loved the feisty, elderly(ish) characters. Daphne was my favorite, and I liked that she had a shady past! There are plenty of laugh out loud moments in this one, and I recommend it if you are looking for an easy and fun read.
Fun story that involved everyone from babies to seniors to pets! I enjoyed the words of wisdom sprinkled throughout the book even if they got too close to home sometimes!!
Clara Pooley always writes the best cast of characters! Another super fun and unique book.
4/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
When a group of senior citizens join the community center for a social club things get interesting. The city councils then threatens to close the community center and both the daycare and senior citizens band together to save it. All along the way each member gets help from the others in unconventional ways.
The way that Clare Pooley is able to pull all these crazy characters together and make it seem totally plausible is amazing! There’s always just enough characters but not too many that it gets confusing. Her books are always so enjoyable and funny! I also loved having an older cast.
Many thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. I would rate this book 3.5 stars. I really enjoyed the eclectic group of characters created by the author. This book had me laughing out loud many time. Pooley definitely knows how to create very interesting characters. My reluctance to rate it 4 stars would be due to the book dragging on at times. I feel like this could have been a much more succinct read and certain scenarios etc were unnecessary.
Right from the first chapter How to Age Disgracefully reminded me of Anxious People. It’s chaos, people are randomly confessing crimes to the police and you get this idea that the characters are not all that smart. Then the police say they’re looking for a specific person and you’re left wondering what THAT person did.
For the next big chunk of chapters I was bored. We get different points of view of a group of characters but nothing is really happening. It does start to build to something happening but it wasn’t easy for me to get there. About the 60% mark is when FINALLY things start coming together and it starts to get interesting. Then it finally circles round to the events of the first chapter and the ending is very satisfying- this is a very similar formula to Anxious People but the story is massively different.
For me, I am just not a fan of this “formula” where you’re grabbed at the beginning but in order to forward you first have to go back and go through some tedium to get the full scope. The story is good and the ending is almost worth the not so interesting beginning bit. I would rate 3.5 rounded down to 3 stars.
In my opinion, no book is more cozy than a Clare Pooley book. This one feels the same as the other, nothing exciting but something to sink in to.
Clare Pooley did it again! This book is so much fun! I don’t know where to start- I loved all of it. It was heartwarming, funny and the many points of view kept me turning pages. I fell in love with each of these characters and enjoyed seeing them through their journeys. I highly recommend this book!
Thank you to NetGalley and Pamela Dorman Books for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
This was the first book I read from receiving an advanced copy through NetGalley and the publisher, thank you!
I have read Clare Pooley’s other books and this one did not disappoint. I loved the character of Daphne , there were a few times when I laughed out loud with her banter and quick wit.
The author has a creative way of bringing characters together from all different walks of life and telling a great story. I also loved that Iona Iverson made a cameo mention in this book!
I recommend reading any/all of Clare Pooley’s books if you’re looking for some feel good reads that will make you laugh(and maybe shed a couple tears)
Clare Pooley is back with another gang of misfits who bond together it the most unlikely of ways. Lydia is struggling in her marriage and finding herself to be redundant as wife and mother until she takes a job managing the Social Club for Seniors. It just happens to be in the same community center as the local daycare, where teenage Ziggy's daughter attends while he finishes up school. The Social Club isn't too impressed on their first day until a member dies in a tragic incident that endangers the future of the Community Center. Daphne leads the group eclectic seniors, along with teenager Ziggy, in a ploy to not only save the community center from being demolished but also to help Lydia find purpose in her life. Along the way, this odd group of old and young find friendship and bond together through a series of hilarious, tearful and dangerous events.
I'm a sucker for unlikely friendships and just like her previous novels, this one is no different. Age doesn't matter when it comes to friendship and loyalty and building a community of people that you can count on. And the characters are just so lovable.
This book was such an utter delight! Following a mismatched group of septuagenarians as they attempt to save their beloved community center, this book is filled with heart and hilarity. I loved the unlikely friendship and found family in this book. It was heartfelt, sweet and truly had me laughing out loud.
I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes a sweet, uplifting and hilarious story. I’d especially recommend it on audio as the narrator really brought the characters and humor to life.
This was a bit of a slog but it was generally pleasant to read. It's an ensemble novel so there was a big cast of characters and I did have trouble keeping them straight somtimes.
What I loved about the book was the emphasis on found family and the intergenerational friendships. That was so fun to witness.
This is my second book by the author and I had a similar reading experience, I don't think I'll try her again. But if you love a big cast of characters, this book is for you.
Loved this one! Great and fun read. Highly recommend.
Many thanks to the publisher, Netgalley, and the author for my ARC.