Wonderful followon to the first instalment of Hendrik's diaries. In the care home there are many laughs, insights to the world from a geriatric perspective and inevitable sadness. The books are a joy, written in the form of a diary and charting the lives of the members of the Old-but-not-dead-yet club and the other inhabitants of their threatened care home. Thoroughly recommended!

A wonderful sequel, just as charming and funny with such touching moments. Certainly inspires me to start my own Old-but-not-dead club.

Still living his old people’s home outside Amsterdam, Hendrik Groen is a little older but not necessarily wiser or well-behaved. After the death of his close friend Eefje, Hendrik throws himself into the ‘Old but not dead club’ and their new outings to restaurants around the world. Meanwhile on the home front there are concerns about the future of the home in the wake of social changes in Holland and Hendrik’s best friend has had some bad news.

Again, like its predecessor, this book is laugh out loud funny and a philosophical look at life from the perspective of a man of extreme years. There is both humour and pathos a plenty in the book as well as a view on the major world events of 2015. Hendrik has a wonderfully sly sense of humour and whilst there are lots of scatalogical jokes, the balance is wonderful as well as a testament to ageing.

Henk is my hero. I love this book as much as I loved the first. I hope he keeps writing, I long to hear more exploits from the Old But Not Dead Club.

This book and its predecessor should be required reading for anyone looking after the elderly. It was a delight to return to Hendrik’s world. All the learnt wisdom of 80 plus years is there presented in a smart and sassy way. By turns heartwarming and heartbreaking this is a social commentary on the way old people are treated across Europe. It’s akso hilariously funny. You will love Hendrik. Please buy the book.

An absolute must-read, youthful, hilarious diary of the most delightful ageing man.

Hendrik Groen is a young at heart 85-year-old living in a home for the aged. His adventurous spirit and zest for life are recorded in his almost daily diary and if he misses a day, he explains why. This is a follow up of his first diary, which is also enchanting

In his second diary, Hendrik continues his adventurous life with his close friends in the home for the aged. A few spritely energetic people in the home started the ‘old but not yet dead club’. Only eight members were allowed to join and could only be invited. The numbers had to stay small because of the limited capacity of their hired vehicle which took them on their adventures. The group were tight-knit, and very loyal to each other.

Hendrik writes about their friendship and the increasing need for support, physically, emotionally and mentally for each other. Not only does their sense of humour grow by being together but their empathy, compassion and tolerance improve. They learn to receive help from each other too.

There is humour, sadness, death and zestfulness. Their adventures included museums, restaurants, golf courses and more. Things we take for granted became major events in their lives. I did not want this book to come to an end.

The idea of getting old does not seem so frightening anymore because Hendrik has a positive angle to ageing. It is definitely not a boring book for ‘old’ people. I wanted to meet him, hug him, shake his hand and thank him for inspiring me.

Read it, you will be delightfully surprised.

BonnieK

Breakaway Reviewers received a copy of the book to review.

A funny, warm and touching sequel to The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen. I love this character and all his co-conspirators in the old-but-not-dead club. The author does not hold back in his description of the mental and physical issues facing an ageing population or the problems of caring for them.
The old adage ‘life in the old dog yet’ could have been written for Hendrik, Evert and the others.
My thanks to Netgalley for this copy.

I loved the first book of Hendrik Groen's diaries, so I was delighted to see that he had written another one.

It was good to meet up with the Old But Not Dead Club members and read about their adventures, arranging interesting outings & their world cuisine tours. This book really shows that just because you are old & wrinkly doesn't mean you can't get up to mischief. Hendrik's observations of his fellow inmates at the care home are often sarcastic, always amusing. He is able to make even the queue for a lift into an interesting events!

This book was often quite poignant. Hendrik conveys the sadness that one's friends may well not be round for long so we need to appreciate them all the more- something that is relevant no matter what our age as you never know what may be ahead.

I do hope Hendrik & his friends continue for many more happy healthy years- I'd love to hear what Hendrik makes of Donald Trump! Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me share Hendrik's world once again.

Thanks to Net Galley and to Penguin UK-Michael Joseph for providing me an ARC copy of this book that I freely chose to review.
A while back I read The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 ¼ Years Old (check my review here) and loved it. I was on the lookout for the next one, and when I saw the next one was available for download at NetGalley I did not hesitate. It has now been published and I could not pass the chance to share my review.
Hendrik explains what has happened since his last diary (yes, he is older now) and decides to write his diary for another year, as a way to keep his brain going. He is now 85 and he needed some time to get over some of the sad events of the last book. But the Old-But-Not-Dead Club is still going strong, with new members and plans, including regularly exploring international cuisine (more or less), a short holiday abroad, and an attempt at local (extremely local) politics. Hendrik’s voice is as witty and observant as it was in the first book, although there is perhaps a grittier and darker note (he is feeling low, everything is getting tougher and unfortunately, life gets harder as the year goes along). But not all is doom and gloom and there are very funny moments, as well as some very sad ones. His comments about politics and world events, always seen from an elderly population’s perspective, are sharp and clear-sighted and will give readers pause. Some of them are local and I suspect I was not the only one who did not know who many of the people where or what anecdotes he referred to at times (I must admit that although I know a bit about Dutch painters, I know little about their politics or music, for example), but even if we cannot follow all the references in detail, unfortunately, they are easily translatable to social and political concerns we are likely to recognize, wherever we live. Funding cuts, social problems, concerns about health and social care, crime, terrorism, global warming feature prominently, although sometimes with a very peculiar twist.
The secondary characters are as wonderful and varied as in the previous book. Some of them have moved on (physically, mentally, or both), and we get to know better some of the ones that only briefly appeared in the previous volume. We also have new arrivals at the nursing home, and a more direct involvement in the home’s politics (with anxiety-provoking news present as well. Is the nursing home going to close?). I loved some of the proposed and adopted rules (a complaint-free zone to avoid wallowing in conversations about ailments and illnesses, a high-tea facilitated by the residents, an art exhibition, even if the artist is not the most sympathetic of characters…) and the sayings of the residents. Of course, life at a nursing home comes with its share of loss and although I don’t want to reveal too much, I can say the subject of death is treated in a realistic, respectful, and moving way.
I shed some of the quotes I highlighted, to give you a taster (although I recommend checking a sample and seeing what you think. And, although it is not necessary to read the first book first, I think it works better knowing the characters and their journey so far):
The idea of using care homes to look after the comfort, control and companionship of the elderly is fine in principle. It just fails in the execution. What old age homes actually stand for is infantilizing, dependence, and laziness.
One in four old people who break one or more hips die within the year. That number seems high to me, but it’s in the newspaper, so there is room for doubt.
It’s always astonished me to see the wide support clowns and crooks are able to muster. Watching old newsreels of that loudmouth Mussolini, you’d think now there’s a bloke only his mother could love. But no, millions of Italians loved him.(Yes, I’m sure this can make us all think of a few people).
Difficult new terms that tend to obscure rather than clarify, especially when uttered by policy-makers. It often has to do with hiding something —either a budget cut, or hot air, or both at once.
Managerial skills alone don’t make for better care, it only makes for cheaper one.
And, a great ending (and one we should all take up this year):
A new year —how you get through it is up to you, Groen; life doesn’t come with training wheels. Get this show on the road. As long as there’s life.
The tone of the book is bitter-sweet, and, as mentioned, it feels darker than the previous one, perhaps because Hendrik is even more aware of his limitations and those of his friends, and is increasingly faced with the problem of loneliness, and with thoughts about the future. But, overall, this is a book that makes us think about the zest for life, about living life to the full, and about making the best out of our capabilities. As I said on my previous review, I hope I can meet a Hendrik if I get to that age, and I’ll also make sure to join the Old-But-Not-Dead Club and be an agitator and enjoy life to the end. Don’t ever settle for the easy way out.
A great book for those interested in the subject of growing old, in great characters, and in an out-of-the-ordinary setting. It has plenty of adventures and events (even trips abroad and international cuisine), although it is not a book I’d recommend to people who love fast action and high-octane thrillers. If you enjoy first-person narrations, love older characters, and don’t mind thinking about the long-term (ish) future, I recommend this very inspiring book.

'On the Bright Side' is the sequel to Hendrik Groen's first diary, which I read in 2016, also courtesy of NetGalley (you can find my review here if you're interested!) For those new to Groen's story, I'll give a brief introduction: Hendrik is an octogenarian living in an old people's home in the Netherlands. In the first book, he set out to write in his diary daily to keep his mind active - and it certainly did! A group of friends set up the 'Old-But-Not-Dead-Club' who aim to have as much fun as they can, while they still can - which they certainly did! "Stop spending so much time studying life’s instruction manual. Just do it!! Yes, you may fall down a few times, but so long as you get up again, you’ll be ahead of where you were!"

The first book isn't a complete barrel of laughs though, and it ends with the demise of two members of their club: one lost to dementia, one lost to the world. As I said in my first review, this book deals with the three big Ds: Dementia, Death and Disability. There's no shying away from it.
I remember thinking that the first book felt a very fitting place to end, and was slightly surprised to see a sequel but requested it all the same. It was a joy to be reunited with Hendrik and the Old-But-Not-Dead-Club. This book has many of the same elements there are a lot of laughs, a great deal of interesting voyeuristic people-watching, and even some up-to-date social commentary.

They continue to get up to their amusing antics as in the first book, with some added extras: trying cuisine from a new culture every month, and even spending three nights away on holiday! As you can imagine, chaos ensues at regular intervals. Many of the residents spend their time going to various acquaintances' funerals - but not Hendrik and best friend Evert. They'll be at their own soon enough, won't they?

But this book is a shade darker than the first; perhaps this is unexpected. There's a lot about the possible closure of old people's homes in the Netherlands, and what to do with the growing age of our populations. This book is written/set in 2016, and covers the major world events that went on n that year, many of them grave. Groen has decided opinions on asylum seekers that most of his more conservative neighbours do not share. But it is a reminder that not all old people are racist (covertly rather than overtly), and sometimes it is okay to challenge people, not giving them a 'get out of gaol free card' because of age. I certainly know and have known elderly people who are accepting and inclusive. Groen is one of these, making him instantly likeable. It is also a great way of switching perspective: one minute global, the next minute the saga of fruit appearing in strange places around the home that is a major source of excitement for the residents...

The other darker shades to this book are what inevitably comes with ageing. Hendrik himself continues to ponder the advantages of euthanasia, and his best friend falls further into ill health as does he himself. It's a very real book, not shying away from any subject. Written in diary format makes it very intimate and the reader can feel very much inside Hendrik's head, whether he is pondering where to go on their next club outing, what his current feeling on wearing nappies is, or whether they should invite asylum seekers into the spare rooms at the home.

Although the optimism of the first book is diluted, this is still a very easy read with a good few laughs. And if it hadn't been a touch more melancholy, it wouldn't have felt true. It can also be read as a standalone without the first, although I would recommend both.

I would urge people to read this book; having worked with elderly people, I feel they are often misunderstood, and this book is very good at correcting misconceptions. Apart from that, it is a darn good read: funny, sometimes meandering, touching, and sad.

Some words Hendrik says that I think we all, 85 years old or not, can muse on:

'I should count my blessings even if it's only because I can still experience summer, autumn and winter by sight, sense and smell.'

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin for the opportunity to read this wonderful book. Four stars.

'On the Bright Side' is the sequel to 'The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 1/4 Years Old'. Hendrik continues his journal writing which contains snippets of social commentary about world events as well as the politics within the old age facility where he resides. He shares amusing anecdotes about his fellow residents and continues to share his thoughts about his very special relationships with the members of the 'Old-But-Not-Dead Club' to which he and a select few belong. This book beautifully depicts the importance of close friendships, loyalty, support, love and enjoying life to its fullest, at all stages of life. Thanks to Penguin UK - Michael Joseph and NetGalley for the ARC.

It was a pleasure to be once again in the company of Hendrik and the Old-But-Not-Dead Club. Written a year after his first diary, we are regaled with stories from the care home and from around the world.

I’m sure I said it the last time but I was chuckling aloud at various points in this book, I think the inmates really are a source of great entertainment, especially when they wind each other up. I think it’s refreshing that they are able to find humour in themselves and to admit that they sometimes verge on political incorrectness, Mr. Groen’s often blunt delivery never fails to make me smile.

It was good to get reacquainted with the inmates, see who was still there and causing trouble, considering their age I had expected that there would be a few that wouldn’t be around. It was nice that the Club was still together and that their remit had expanded to world cuisine and a trip to another country.

I feel somewhat put to shame by the Club members, as they show a great deal of zest and willingness to experiment and seem to care less and less about what is expected of them; it certainly gave me a bit of a kick when I realised that I have not been that adventurous at trying new things. The great thing about it though is that it certainly gave me the motivation, because I certainly do not want to end up as one of the whingers or complainers with only ailments and the weather to talk about.

Even with all the laughs that are provided in this book, you still get to see the other side of the coin, the struggles of getting older and no longer being able to rely on your own body, losing people that are close to you and the added pressure of the home possibly being closed. As ever there were points that I was in floods of tears, but Hendrik would keep telling himself to get over it so you start to feel that way too.

It was brilliant to catch up with Hendrik and the Old-But-Not-Dead Club members, I shall wait with baited breath to see if we will get another diary and find out what other antics and adventures this remarkable group get up to.

What better way to kick off 2018 than by spending some time with my favourite Dutch pensioner and rebel Hendrik Groen? I am so happy to see him pen a sequel to his first Secret Diary which I reviewed here. I’ve missed him and his friends and wondered how they were getting on in their care home in North Amsterdam.

As you can tell from the blurb, Hendrik is still rebelling against the system and trying to live his best life despite the draconian rules set out by his care home and the more understandable limitations due to his age, health and the local weather. Not that he lets any of those stop him very much and it’s good to see him still challenging penny-pinching bureaucracy and evasive jobsworths while venturing outdoors as often as he and his motorised scooter have enough charge to do so. The Old-But-Not-Dead Club is still going strong and setting itself new challenges, even if it’s inevitably missing a couple of its inaugural members.

If it seems on the face of it that not much has changed, that’s only partly true. Everything I loved about the first instalment of Hendrik Groen’s diaries – his irreverent side swipes against those running the country and his care home, his feelings about his fellow inmates and commentary on what’s going on in the Netherlands and the wider world outside – are all still very much in evidence here. But there’s a more reflective and more emotional Hendrik Groen within these pages than appeared in The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 1/4. In that, it felt as if he were only just opening up again to friendships with the Club members and a more romantic relationship with one in particular. Here, even though he hasn’t been writing the diary for a year when the book opens, he’s had two years worth of the Club meeting, a death of someone close to deal with and now in On the Bright Side, he’s facing fresh challenges which let us see a deeper, more vulnerable side to the outwardly gruff Groen. And this book is all the richer for that.

Hendrik has invested time and effort in his friendships and when they’re under threat, it affects him deeply. Happily, those very friends will see him through difficult times, helping him find a way to deal with them, usually with laughter and good humour. Raucous, fun and devil-may-care they may be at times but it’s not only heartening but touching to see the camaraderie and love the Old-But-Not-Dead Club members have for each other. On the Bright Side is a life-affirming and fitting sequel to Hendrik Groen’s Secret Diary and I adored getting to spend time with Hendrik and the Old-But-Not-Dead Club again for more irreverent talk, madcap adventures and touching friendships. We could all learn a thing or two from Hendrik and his friends and I can highly recommend this second volume of his diary to you. I loved it.

I was delighted to spend more time in the company of Hendrik Groen and share in his joys and sorrows. Once again he made me smile with his sense of adventure and his refusal to put up with the petty annoyances of "rules". As I grow older I am less and less inclined to follow rules unless I understand why and what for and I would enjoy having Hendrik as a friend and ally. It was also a very sad book and we are not spared the indignities of aging and the frustrations. Its not the twee, laugh at the old-folks book that some might expect but a wry take on modern life from the perspective of one who has been around a while..

I was delighted to have the opportunity to read this book as an arc from Netgalley. I adored the first Hendrik Groen book, and the second in the series certainly doesn't disappoint.
We find Hendrik 2 years older and still living in his care home in Amsterdam. The Old but not Dead Club are still causing mayhem in the home and planning outings to give them something to look forward to. However, due to the advanced age of the members, the club is slowly being depleted with new members having to be approved.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book but felt there was more of a poignancy to this one, natural I guess, due to the characters getting older and frailer. Some parts were just heartbreaking, but there are still plenty of laughs and the book is a pleasure to read. I enjoyed how real life world events of 2015 were written about in this book and commented upon by Hendrik, this gave it a sense of realism and of time passing.
I would certainly recommend this book to everyone.

On the Bright Side, The New Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, is a total delight. I hadn’t read the first book in this series, The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 ¼ Years Old, so wasn’t sure what I was letting myself in for. What I didn’t expect was this screamingly funny, desperately sad and ultimately incredibly uplifting read. Hendrik’s short daily diary musings are often hilarious as he describes his life, what’s happening in the world around him, his friends and other occupants of the retirement home. He gives real insight into the indignities of old age – as well as the issue of care for the elderly. Hendrik and his friends are all in their eighties and most rely on something (a cane; a wheelchair) to get around. They are, however, determined to enjoy life rather than sit around complaining or being spiteful and judgemental, as are many of their fellow residents. Instead, they organise outings and get involved in running the home. They’re great fun, a joy to meet and just a little subversive. Adding a measure of mystique is the fact that no-one seems to know who penned these books. Whoever it is, I really hope there’s another in the pipeline!

Another amusing diary from the Dutch octogenarian. The elderly group of rebellious residents of the care home continue with their outings and get togethers, outwitting the staff whenever possible. Hendrick is obviously feeling his age more and the dialogue is quite so light-hearted as in the previous edition but he battles on and the book was just as delightful.

I really enjoyed Hendrik's first diary when I read it just over a year ago and wondered when we would be hearing from him again. After a short break, he's back and this time he has more to say than just the ongoing shenanigans of the Old but not Dead club.
We start with a bit of a catch up. There been a few changes - not really too surprising given the age of some of the cast - some more notable than others but the old by not dead club continues to wreak havoc and make mayhem with their outings. This time not only are they still doing their day trips but they have also decided that they should be trying cuisine from all four corners so they are also taking it in turns to choose a restaurant. They also plan a really rather ambitious outing. Away from the club, the friends and their peers in the home, along with the staff, provide more of their fair share of entertainment. Some rip-roaringly funny, others poignant and some a little more on the sad side. Also included are Hendrick's observations of not only life in the home but also life for his age-group outside. How things are changing for the elderly. We also have his reports and opinions on things that are going on in the world. Quite a lot of these are, understandably, centred around his own country and contained incidents and people who I have never heard of so that did distract me a little. I also can't remember the first book being quite as political as this one but I may be mis-remembering; I may just be personally more sensitive to that kind of thing at the moment. I did however find this follow up to be a little harder to read and definitely much darker than the first. I actually read it in shorter bursts than the first, needing a bit of respite along the way both to digest what I was reading and also to take a break away from it by reading other books in between. I can't remember needing to do that before. But then again, having had a rethink, the world is indeed a darker place on the whole than it was when his first book was set so maybe it's more accurate than I care to think about. Denial and all that jazz.
Politics aside, I really did enjoy the remainder of this book. I just love Hendrick and his attitude. How he toys with the dark side of growing old but, at the same time, embraces the time he has left; determined to get the best from it. There's a lot of introspection in this book which even at my younger (in comparison) age I found quite interesting and definitely food for thought.
My thanks go to the Publisher and Netgalley for the chance to read this book.

Hendrik Groen is 85 years of age in this, his second episode of life in the slow lane, living in the care home in Amsterdam and writing in his diary daily with his various exploits. The Old-But-Not-Dead Club is still going strong, although one or two members have left – a couple of new things have also been added to their agenda. Going to different restaurants every three weeks for a culture change; and the planning of a trip away, where the eight elderly members will stay overnight in a hotel for two nights.

Hendrik and his best friend Evert continue to get up to mischief – their stirring of trouble delights the group. Well something has to brighten their day, doesn’t it! With death getting closer to them all, a lot of the residents spend time going to funerals. But Hendrik no longer goes – he’ll be at his own soon enough he thinks!

Light-hearted and humourous as well as sad and sometimes depressing, Hendrik shows everyone that age is only a number – live each day to the fullest (then rest the next day to catch up before starting all over again) On the Bright Side is an entertaining and enjoyable follow-up to The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83¼ Years Old which I recommend.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read and review.

I loved this as much as I loved the first book I'll definitely be buying my grandma a copy when it's released just like I did with the first book (she also adored the first book)