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|reviewer=Sharon Hall
|genre=Humour
|summary=Robert Purcell is a civil law barrister, modelled on his polite and restrained father, a High Court judge. Robert maps out his own adult life in advance, with the personal and professional accolades he expects to garner. However, his controlled and well -measured life unravels in this humorous spoof biography. An enjoyable read.
|rating=4
|buy=Yes
As one knows it will, his life starts to unravel, via the "Lemon Man", toilet paper and a visit to Greece, leading to the fateful night of 29 September 2003 and the subsequent revelations, which are the reasons why Elizabeth has urged him to write the biography in the first place.
There is humour and wit in the writing and the style of the book is carefully developed to illustrate Robert’s character, especially in the form of footnotes which include how to pronounce "Aldeburgh" and his announcement that his daughter's favourite band Gorillaz are ''not without merit'' and ''infinitely preferable … to Oasis''. It took me a while to get into to it, but my smiles and chuckles increased as I progressed through the story. Robert is insufferable, but his seriousness and pomposity is are very funny, and there are some nicely drawn minor characters. Despite it all, you do warm to Robert, who is a an excellently developed character as well a ''short gentleman''.
If you like this book, you may well enjoy [[The Timewaster Diaries: A Year in the Life of Robin Cooper by Robin Cooper]]. You might also enjoy [[Worth by Jon Canter]].
{{toptentext|list=Top Ten Funniest Books}}