This book first came to my attention when its title was the answer in a literary crossword - I didn't know that until I looked up references to the author brothers. The title intrigued me - how could a nobody have a diary.

The paterfamilias herein decides to have a diary to take him from being a nobody to becoming somebody. He believed that diaries maketh the man and poses the question - "where would Evelyn and Pepys be if it had not been for their diaries?"

I'm looking forward to reading this.

The diary chronicles in hilarious detail the everyday life of the lower middle class during the Great Victorian age, albeit the writer is a 'nobody'.

The blurb on the back states "The roar of laughter which greeted the first serialised publication of 'The Diary of a Nobody' in the magazine 'Punch' in the late 1880s has continued and scarcely diminished ever since."

In its own way it gives a very clear picture of the times. So many of the psuedo-gentility ideas were prevalent in my youth, having been handed down within NZ through the children of our early immigrants. We heard our parents talk of "home" and try to instil 'ladylike' behaviour, or encourage the brothers to behave like 'gentleman'. Its no wonder that the book was a hit at the time, and equally it will continue to appeal to students of the era. The illustrations add to the general tone of the writing.

I'll not be releasing it for a while as my husband would like to read it. Don't suppose I'll persuade him to write a journal entry though.

Received in a care parcel Sherlockfan left for me and my in-laws at the backpackers we were staying at in Wellington.

I'd vaguely heard of this book before, but never read it - looks like it will be interesting. Thanks, Sherlockfan!

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I finally got round to reading this, and what a fun book! It kind of strikes me as the 19th century of The Office, in that the humour is mostly in the reader/audience recognising that the central character's view of the world (and in particular, his own place in it) is completely mistaken. You end up feeling sorry for Charles Pooter, while at the same time laughing at him.

Thanks for introducing me to it, Sherlockfan.

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Given to Otakuu at today's meetup.

Received from FutureCat at a meetup, finally got round to doing a journal entry