05/24/2021
Groen (On the Bright Side) once again follows a zany elderly friendship in this disappointing outing. Septuagenarians Hendrik and Evert are old friends with a standing date to play chess at Hendrick’s apartment. When Evert gets caught in the rain on his way there one day, he ducks into a school where a Christmas program is taking place and finds a baby girl—who is supposed to be Baby Jesus in the play—sleeping in a stroller in the bathroom. Impulsively deciding to take the baby with him to Hendrick’s, Evert sets off a chain of chaos, with school and local authorities frantic to find the missing girl. As Hendrick and Evert try to return her without being caught, a nosy neighbor and an opportunistic sanitation worker pretending to be the kidnapper insert themselves in the situation. Unfortunately, the loose plotting falls apart early, and Evert’s choice to kidnap a baby, presented as a lark with no explanation, will befuddle readers. Add in paper-thin secondary characters—including police, school administrators, and casual observers only concerned about how the missing baby scandal could affect them—and there’s very little here to hook readers. This feels more like a pile of errors than a comedy of them. (June)
06/18/2021
This third book detailing the antics of old geezers Hendrik and Evert is a constant delight. Of the previous installment, The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 ¼ Years Old, the series' pseudonymous author has written: "There's not one sentence in it that is a lie, but not every word is true." Now comes this novel, essentially one long tall tale involving a screwup of Keystone Kops dimensions. It starts with a missing infant, who'd been conscripted to play the baby Jesus in the Christmas pageant at the local middle school. The police think she was kidnapped (their case file is labeled "Kidnapped Baby Jesus"), but she wasn't: it turns out Evert had picked her up by accident while on his way over to Hendrik's for a night of chess and Dutch gin. The octogenarians have to figure a way to return the baby unharmed, without going to jail for having taken her in the first place. By the time it's resolved, 10 teenagers are in jail, Evert has broken his dental plate, someone has called the parents and demanded ransom, and the authorities have tied themselves in knots trying to figure out what's happening to whom and why. VERDICT A very funny book that should appeal widely.—David Keymer, Cleveland
2021-05-05
If stealing a 12-week-old baby four days before Christmas sounds potentially amusing, this might be the novel for you.
Seventy-something Dutchman Evert Duiker, “loudmouth, bullshit artist, heart of gold,” is on his way to his weekly chess game with fellow septuagenarian Hendrik Groen when he has to pee. He stops at the Princess Margriet School and, on his way out of the bathroom, sees Sabine Verbeek—baby Jesus in the evening’s Christmas pageant—waiting unattended in her pram. Evert decides to take her, not out of malice, but simply because he “[thinks] it would be fun.” He and Hendrik immediately acknowledge that “the parents must be out of their minds with worry” but ultimately worry more about being punished for kidnapping. To assuage their guilt as they bumble through feedings, diaper changes, and abandoned attempts to leave Sabine to be recovered in an underpass, they call the school custodian to say “it’s all been a misunderstanding.” The custodian’s opportunistic brother has other ideas and phones the parents demanding a 100,000 euro ransom. If this plot doesn’t entice you, perhaps the tiresome characters will. The women, with one late exception, are particularly reductive, depicted as either scheming (the mayor), shrinking (Sabine’s mother), or annoying (assorted wives, neighbors, and passersby). Men disparage their appearances by calling them “lard-ass” and “fat”; yearn for one’s “lovely ass” and another’s “big tits”; and belittle them as “that broad,” “old witch,” “nosy bitch,” “nagging old lady,” and more. In the end, the wunderkind chief prosecutor, seemingly motivated solely by his desire to show up the mayor, who “looks like she’s spent an hour at the beauty parlor,” comes to the rescue.
Droll buffoonery built atop antiquated stereotypes, repudiated gender roles, and threadbare “wit.
Nicholas Guy Smith narrates this oddball adventure of two Dutch septuagenarians who accidentally find themselves in possession of a baby girl. Hendrik and Evert are looking forward to an enjoyable evening of camaraderie and relaxation. On his way to Hendrik’s apartment, Evert ducks into a school bathroom to relieve himself, but after a series of small and extremely funny misfortunes, he inadvertently kidnaps the infant who is intended to play the baby Jesus in the school’s Nativity play. Smith’s droll delivery and tongue-in-cheek humor make the tale hilarious and a little scary. As the two try to return the baby without being arrested, more craziness ensues. Complete with frantic teachers, distraught parents, bumbling cops, snarky teenagers, and some larceny-minded opportunists, Smith’s performance is as delightful as they come. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
Nicholas Guy Smith narrates this oddball adventure of two Dutch septuagenarians who accidentally find themselves in possession of a baby girl. Hendrik and Evert are looking forward to an enjoyable evening of camaraderie and relaxation. On his way to Hendrik’s apartment, Evert ducks into a school bathroom to relieve himself, but after a series of small and extremely funny misfortunes, he inadvertently kidnaps the infant who is intended to play the baby Jesus in the school’s Nativity play. Smith’s droll delivery and tongue-in-cheek humor make the tale hilarious and a little scary. As the two try to return the baby without being arrested, more craziness ensues. Complete with frantic teachers, distraught parents, bumbling cops, snarky teenagers, and some larceny-minded opportunists, Smith’s performance is as delightful as they come. S.J.H. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine
