The Hope Family Calendar

By: Mike Gayle

Narrated by: David Morley Hale

Tom Hope is broken. Ever since his wife Laura died he hasn't been the same man, and definitely not the same father. Luckily however, his mother-in-law Linda is there to pick up the pieces and look after his two struggling daughters, Evie and Lola.

But Tom getting arrested on the first anniversary of his wife's death is the last straw for Linda.

She decides on drastic action, and in a final attempt to make Tom reconnect with his daughters, Linda leaves for Australia. Now, with two fast-maturing girls on his hands, Tom has to learn how to accept his responsibilities and navigate the newly discovered world of single fatherhood - starting immediately.

While Linda finds her journey brings more than she bargained for, Tom suddenly has only himself to rely on.
Will he fall back into grief or finally step up and be the father his girls need?

Bittersweet, funny and sad, THE HOPE FAMILY CALENDAR is a novel about grief, love and family.

(P)2016 Hodder & Stoughton©2016 Pizza FTD Ltd

Critic reviews

I didn't move a muscle for a whole afternoon in my eagerness to finish this book. Gayle writes with such warmth and wisdom about the human condition, at the same time creating a page-turner in this charming family tale which centres so movingly around unbearable loss. His easy, confident writing style draws you in to become another member of the Hope family and share with them the - often humorous - ups and downs of learning to live again after bereavement. Neither Tom nor Linda - the main characters - are perfect, but both are endearingly real. I highly recommend this novel - I know it will stay with me for a long time. (Hilary Boyd, author of Thursdays in the Park)

The Hope Family Calendar is the most heart-wrenching novel I've read this year...With a style similar to David Nicholls, Gayle's writing is incisive, lyrical and very beautiful...It's impossible not to fall in love with the Hope family.

An emotional and surprisingly funny story you'll want to read in one sitting.

A delightfully easy and poignant read.

Praise for Mike Gayle

Wise, witty and wonderful . . . a triumph! (Jenny Colgan on TURNING FORTY)

Not just readable, fresh and witty, but sophisticated in execution . . . funny but also poignant.

A funny and frank account of a hopeless romantic.

Mike Gayle has carved a whole new niche out of the male confessional novel.

Unique, funny and full of drama . . . Genius! (Closer on THE STAG AND HEN WEEKEND)

Wise, witty and with endearing characters, this is a feel-good-read with lots of laughs.

Boring

I found this book very boring. Nothing about it resonated with me; it just fell flat. A man narrating the women's parts as well as the men's was confusing and didn't help.