Pratt a Manger: (Henry Pratt) (Henry Pratt, 2)

This novel concludes the story begun in "Second from Last in the Sack Race," chronicle of the fictional life of Henry Pratt, and continued in two further novels, published collectively as " The Complete Pratt. "Of course this volume renders that title inaccurate, in one sense at least.After several career changes Henry is now a chef, and as the book opens, on the verge of ce!ebrity.Characters old and new are gathered around him, and as a result it is sometimes hard to keep hold of who is who. The story belts along apace, to the extent that you sometimes wish you could slow down to admire the scenery.The ferocious pace leads to some characters and events being rather sketched in, as too many of both are crammed in to a fairly brief novel.It's not quite Nobbs at his funniest and best but it still manages to be moderately amusing. One throwaway line towards the end made me roar, and I wish there has been more like it.It's probably a good idea to come to this after the other novels in the series, but it has a life of its own too, being much more surreal and wild than the earlier work.All that said, it's still very readable and entertaining - a book you can lose yourself in, like a hall of mirrors, where reflections are distorted and enlarged enough to make you smile.

Most of what David Nobbs has written deserves five stars - most, but not all. I recently re-read the first three Pratt Novels as part of the Complete Pratt download to my Kindle and it was logical therefore to revisit this fourth offering in the series. I had forgotten everything about it, so it was like reading it for the first time. What a delight and what a brilliantly told story. The only criticism I might have is the way it ends - it is just crying out for another chapter for me. What a pity that David never wrote a fifth Pratt novel and, of course, he never will now.He has been a favourite author of mine for as long as I can remember and this was just a joy to read. Proper literary scholars might poo poo this kind of novel but, for me, the essence of a good book is one that I can put down in mid chapter because I am falling asleep and then pick it up the next day completely aware of what is going on. I hate books that demand that you read pages again and again to understand the plot. Maybe that makes me too simplistic, but what the hell. I didn't get where I am today without being a HUGE David Nobbs fan....

The fourth in the Pratt chronicles and another joy from David Nobbs - beautifully written, clever, fantastically funny and touching in equal measure. another sheer delight and pure entertainment. Will Henry continue his rise to TV stardom?.....what do you think? A highly recommended read.

Great book, great seller. Book as described. No problems. I would be very happy to purchase from seller again.

'Second from Last in the Sack Race' is probably one of my favourite ever reads and having read the later novels tracking Henry Pratt's life, I was looking forward to this. Although it's enjoyable enough, it doesn't make me laugh and cry and the same time as the first in the series - if that makes sense.

Perfect.

The fourth Henry Pratt book is slightly down on the first three,but still a fair read.Whilst not david nobbs best book, I am pleased I read it to get the full Henry Pratt treatment

This book had me chortling and laughing out loud. What a great sequel to Cucumber man, well worth waiting for. I recommended it to all my friends and even bought it and The complete Pratt as presents, because of the sheer enjoyment.