At "The Hollyhocks" old people's home, the inhabitants are "waiting for the scythe." As they do, Lady Celia runs a blackmail business on the side, Mr. Cross keeps a tally of residents' deaths, and Mrs. Bellamy decides she can't take it any more and slits her throat. Meanwhile, two newcomers also cause disturbance, as hidden pasts, unusual sexual preferences, and wickedly dark humor are mixed to delicious effect.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
'At once taboo-breakingly funny and sentiently profound ... astonishing' INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY 'Rubens is compassionately eloquent. She also, as always, gleefully extracts comedy from the most unlikely sources' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'A vision of old age that owes nothing to political correctness ... honest and humane' INDEPENDENT 'Hilarious ... intelligent and funny, Rubens' splendid prose is untainted by phoney sentiment ... read it and don't weep' EVENING STANDARD 'Written with scathing wit.' TIME OUT 'Bernice Rubens writes with both humour and sympathy about the indignities of old age in an ingenious novel with a compelling and chilling plot.' EXPRESS ON SUNDAY 'I read THE WAITING GAME avidly, in one evening, and found myself pondering about the characters for several days after I had finished it.' LITERARY REVIEW
About the Author
Bernice Rubens was born in Wales & later read English at the University of Wales. In 1970 she won the Booker Prize for THE ELECTED MEMBER. A FIVE YEAR SENTENCE was also nominated for the award. 2 books have been filmed, I SENT A LETTER TO MY LOVE and MADAME SOUSATZKA, & MR WAKEFIELD'S CRUSADE was made into a TV series.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Stunning,
This review is from: The Waiting Game (Paperback)
Who would have known all the things that can happen in a home for the elderly.... Bernice Rubens obviously does and she tells us with all her own peculiar wit! A great read!
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
One of my favourite books,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Waiting Game (Paperback)
I am not looking forward to growing old especially after reading this book. However, I laughed out loud at this dark and tragic look at life in a retirement home. The residents all have dark secrets that come to the fore in a masterful and original piece that is definitely one of Rueben's best.
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