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Middle England Hardcover – November 8, 2018

by Coe Jonathan (Author)
4.3 out of 5 stars 5,906 ratings

'THE BOOK EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT' THE TIMES

_________________

'It was tempting to think, at times like this, that some bizarre hysteria had gripped the British people'

Beginning eight years ago on the outskirts of Birmingham, where car factories have been replaced by Poundland, and London, where frenzied riots give way to Olympic fever, Middle England follows a brilliantly vivid cast of characters through a time of immense change.

There are newlyweds Ian and Sophie, who disagree about the future of the country and, possibly, the future of their relationship; Doug, the political commentator who writes impassioned columns about austerity from his Chelsea townhouse, and his radical teenage daughter who will stop at nothing in her quest for social justice; Benjamin Trotter, who embarks on an apparently doomed new career in middle age, and his father Colin, whose last wish is to vote in the European referendum. And within all these lives is the story of modern England: a story of nostalgia and delusion; of bewilderment and barely-suppressed rage.

Following in the footsteps of The Rotters' Club and The Closed Circle, Jonathan Coe's new novel is the novel for our strange new times.

_________________

'His affectionately witty attitude to our human foibles is always uplifting . . . superb' The Times

'From post-industrial Birmingham to the London riots and the current political gridlock, [Middle England] takes in family, literature and love in a comedy for our times' Guardian

'Coe shows an understanding of this country that goes beyond what most cabinet ministers can muster . . . his light, funny writing makes you feel better' Evening Standard

'Middle England is a full-blooded state of the nation novel, and it brings us bang up-to-date' Sunday Times

Coe is an extraordinarily deft plotter...the book zips along...he tackles big ambitious themes, in this case the effect of politics on people's lives, and political opinions on personal relations' Mail on Sunday

'What is striking about Coe is not so much his flight from Enghlishness as his ambivalent embrace of it ' Financial Times

'Slick . . . stylishly engineered . . . you'll marvel at the extraordinary attention to detail' Spectator

'Millions of words have been and will be written on Brexit but few will get to the heart of why it is happening as incisively as Middle England' John Boyne, Irish Times

'This is a picture of England that comes from a place of compassion and understanding' inews

'Coe is as funny and tender as ever, restoring some humanity to the tumultuous societal backdrop' Grazia

'Middle England combines top-class soap opera storytelling with melancholy insight into what it means to be English' Metro
'A novel for our times . . . complex, human and utterly unique' Stylist

'Very funny . . . Exceptionally good . . . Delightful' BBC Radio 4, Saturday Review
'Coe's comic critique of a divided country dazzles . . . Properly laugh-out-loud funny . . . it is also incisive and brilliant about our divided country and the deep chasms revealed by the vote to leave. Do not miss' The Bookseller

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  1. Book 3 of 3
    The Rotters' Club
  2. Print length
    424 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    VIKIN
  5. Publication date
    November 8, 2018
  6. Dimensions
    6.38 x 1.54 x 9.45 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    0241309468
  8. ISBN-13
    978-0241309469
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  1. ‘To the privileged, equality feels like a step down. Understand this and you understand a lot of populist politics today.’
    Highlighted by 302 Kindle readers
  2. ‘The people of Middle England,’ she said, addressing the Chinese guest directly, ‘voted for Mr Cameron because they had no real choice. The alternative was unthinkable. But if the time ever comes when we are given the opportunity to let him know what we really think of him, then believe me – we will take it.’
    Highlighted by 163 Kindle readers
  3. ‘What is a stereotype, after all, except a profound observation whose essential truth has been dulled by repetition?’
    Highlighted by 143 Kindle readers
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ VIKIN; First Edition (November 8, 2018)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 424 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0241309468
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0241309469
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.47 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.38 x 1.54 x 9.45 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 out of 5 stars 5,906 ratings

About the author

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Jonathan Coe

Jonathan Coe

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Jonathan Coe was born in Birmingham in 1961. His novels include What a Carve Up!, The House of Sleep, The Rotters' Club, The Rain Before It Falls and Number 11.

He has won many literary prizes at home and abroad, and his biography of the writer BS Johnson, Like A Fiery Elephant, won the Samuel Johnson Prize. Feature films have been made of his novels The Dwarves of Death (as Five Seconds To Spare) and The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim (as La vie très privée de Monsieur Sim). The Rotters' Club was adapted for BBC television in 2005, starring Sarah Lancashire, Alice Eve and Kevin Doyle.

In 2017 he published a novella for children, The Broken Mirror.

Hie latest novel, MIDDLE ENGLAND, published by Penguin in November 2018, reintroduces characters from The Rotters' Club and puts them against a background of real events in the UK before and after the Brexit referendum.

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4.3 out of 5 stars
5,906 global ratings

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Customers find the book to be a fantastic read with well-developed characters.

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5 customers mention "Readability"5 positive0 negative

Customers find the book fantastic and fun to read.

"...Just a first class book that I was so sorry to read the last page of. There were moments that I could swear I was reading headlines...." Read more

"For a terrific reading experience, have all three books in the trilogy in hand and read them one after the other...." Read more

"...things which led to it, beside it’s just brilliantly written and fun to read!" Read more

"This is excellent! David Lodge for the 21st century! I became much more interested in Brexit after reading, but also in his other work. Read it!" Read more

3 customers mention "Character development"3 positive0 negative

Customers love the characters in the book.

"Wonderful continuation of characters written decades ago in ROTTERS CLUB and bringing them up to date in the confusing time of Brexit...." Read more

"...But that won’t stop me. I loved the “Rotters Club” characters and am so happy that their travails have ended so satisfactorily, as the England that..." Read more

"...Loved the characters who are struggling with what life throws at them. Off to buy the previous two. Thanks so much, Mr Coe." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • D. Peters
    5.0 out of 5 stars BREXIT?
    Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2019
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    Wonderful continuation of characters written decades ago in ROTTERS CLUB and bringing them up to date in the confusing time of Brexit. Just a first class book that I was so sorry to read the last page of. There were moments that I could swear I was reading headlines. Funny and frightening.
    3 people found this helpful
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  • Theresa
    4.0 out of 5 stars Coe's Trilogy - fantastic
    Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2019
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    For a terrific reading experience, have all three books in the trilogy in hand and read them one after the other. Read The Rotters' Club, The Closed Circle and then Middle England all in a row. The three together are so much stronger than anyone of the books alone.
    21 people found this helpful
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  • D. Howard
    5.0 out of 5 stars A great conclusion to a wonderful series
    Reviewed in the United States on December 25, 2019
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    As a long-time ex-pat, I hesitate to pronounce on a story so fully set in an England that I hardly recognize. But that won’t stop me. I loved the “Rotters Club” characters and am so happy that their travails have ended so satisfactorily, as the England that they and I knew vanishes in the sunset.
    5 people found this helpful
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  • FuturExpat
    4.0 out of 5 stars A charming, well-written novel
    Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2019
    I wasn't familiar with Jonathan Coe but the day after the General Election I wandered into my local bookseller trying to understand what is driving this seemingly ceaseless British political self-harm. There in the bookshop I found Middle England, marketed as offering insight into Brexit. I am very pleased that I bought it. Firstly, I found Coe an excellent novelist. It's hard work to write such a charmingly effortless-seeming and fundamentally entertaining novel. I literally read the whole book in two or three sittings, which I rarely do these days. Did the book live up to its marketing as offering insight into the evolution of Britain and what made Brexit possible? I think the answer is "yes" -- to a point. Coe did a first-rate job of sketching out a British tale of life, aging, social class, and the human condition. He also did a good job laying out the motivations that doubtless are driving large sections of the UK electorate. Where he failed was to offer a compelling, intelligent, argument for Brexit that would have rounded out the baser motives his book identified. I've been unable to find such a Brexit argument anywhere. Unfortunately the author's reliance on a bit of a stick-figure Tory politician character deprived his novel of a bit of depth. I also found the ending a little too pat after three hundred solid pages of generally rich and deep authorial analysis of Britain's current state. Nonetheless, the merits of this work greatly outweigh its lesser faults. More's the pity that Coe felt he needed a happy ending to this tale of sadness. It's unlikely that life will imitate art as Brexit continues to evolve.
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  • donald r foster
    5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, disturbing and honest look at today's world. Fantastic read
    Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2019
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    I had to cringe and stop reading a number of time because this is the world we're living in. I never read Coe before. Now I want to go to his other books.
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  • Peter C. Blackwell
    3.0 out of 5 stars Bought as a gift
    Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2020
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    No idea what this book is like. got it for my sister at her request.
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  • Deborah Beale
    5.0 out of 5 stars Superbly written & gripping
    Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2019
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    Wonderfully paced narrative. Couldn’t put it down; I disrupted work to finish it. Soothed this expat’s heart; now I more fully understand the roots of Brexit. Loved the characters who are struggling with what life throws at them. Off to buy the previous two. Thanks so much, Mr Coe.
    4 people found this helpful
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  • NicolaWeideling
    4.0 out of 5 stars Brexit Brexit Brexit
    Reviewed in the United States on February 28, 2019
    I have read, and loved, all of Coe's previous novels and Middle England is no exception. However, I almost didn't read it because I am so depressed by the Brexit news everyday I just couldn't face a 'Brexit novel'! I am so glad I did though.

    Middle England forms a trilogy with previous books The Rotter's Club and Closed Circle. And what a trilogy it is! Middle England brings us back in touch with the same characters twenty years on, as they reach middle age. I did feel that the Brexit element was a little heavy-handed in parts of this novel (I know, I know, it's a Brexit novel but even so...) but as usual his characters were sharply drawn, sometimes cartoonish but only in a way that reflects the real-life political buffoons that have been inflicted on us, and his depictions of the ups and downs of long-term friendships and relationships had real pathos at times.

    Coe's writing is a pure joy to read.
    10 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Realjaco
    5.0 out of 5 stars Sign of the times
    Reviewed in the Netherlands on June 4, 2019
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    Another great novel by Jonathan Coe in which he shows us exactly in what kind of world we live nowadays. With sharp observations and a mild look at people's choices and positions he tries to make sense of the UK as it is today. And great to see the characters of the Rotters' Club again!
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  • Sam Holliday
    5.0 out of 5 stars Nothing ‘Middling’ about this triumph
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 19, 2018
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    At the turn of the century I read a book which I thought at the time – and probably still do to be honest – was one of (if not the) best modern novels I’d ever read.

    ‘The Rotters Club’ by Jonathan Coe had a massive influence on me because I felt it was almost a story of my own teenage years and that of my teenage friends as so many of experiences and feelings depicted mirrored that of my own little world.

    It was made even more personal for me because, as a proud Midlander, it was refreshing (and sadly unusual) to see this wonderful coming-of-age book was set in and around Birmingham and featured many of the major Midlands events I, and my friends and family knew so well - The Birmingham pub bombings, strikes at British Leyland etc etc.

    The book centred on the lives, loves and musical awakenings of a group of boys and their families throughout the 70s with a big emphasis on the culture of the period and the emerging political feelings of all involved. Music was also an important backdrop as it showed how punk enriched and changed the lives of some people (as it did for me) while leaving those young characters who were still enjoying meandering prog rock in utter bemusement and bewilderment. It was at times very funny, others moving, genuinely tragic in bursts and so very, very real that it had a massive impact on me as I know it did a lot of other people.

    Fast forward nearly 20 years and Jonathan Coe has revisited the same characters (for the third and possibly final time) to look at how the years 2010-2018 have touched the lives of this mixed bunch of former school friends now they are stumbling uncertainly into middle age. The Brexit debate and the attitudes that existed before, during and after it are a fascinating and eventually dominant factor of this new book as are the prevailing political shifts but once again it is more of a book about relationships, friendships, love and failed dreams. Yes it reflects the changing face of Britain as a whole and the the Midlands in particular but like all great novels about great events it is about people first and foremost and what fascinating people they are..

    I can’t recommend this superb book enough and even if you haven’t read the first two in the trilogy I hope you will still be as thoroughly absorbed as I was by a book that is a truly memorable snapshot of a truly memorable period for us all.

    Thanks for reading and if you have got this far make sure this joyous book is the next thing you read.

    Loved it.
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  • shirley denise
    5.0 out of 5 stars A fictitious but reality inspired view of Great Britain leading up to Brexit.
    Reviewed in Canada on August 23, 2020
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    For anyone interested in UK politics and more specifically why Britons voted to leave the EU, this will give a glimpse into the British psyche. It is also the dénouement of the trilogy which began with the Rotters' Club. In terms of the life long passion of the main character it is a bit of a let down. It is definitely recommended that the two previous novels be read in sequence before this attempting this one.
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  • Snapdragon
    5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant for understanding modern Britain and Brexit
    Reviewed in Australia on January 24, 2019
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    This is a great book, full of really interesting characters, whose stories inter-connect. Coe has a marvellous way of describing subtleties of character with a few well-chosen words. What’s even better, from an Antipodean point of view, is that these characters are such that between them, they convey the complexities of British life that have led to the almighty mess of Brexit. Former PM David Cameron gets a slamming. While almost every sensible person from Barack Obama on down backs staying in the EU, this novel painlessly explains why 51.9 % of Britons voted to leave. Indeed, some of those reasons are compelling, but leaving the EU seems set to be the worst way to address them.

    Threaded throughout the novel are meditations on the notion of England. Old England. Middle England. The English way of life in a world of mass immigration, economic inequality, racism, terrorism, of the rich getting richer and the middle and lower classes poorer. You’ll be pleased to know though, that for almost all the characters, life gets better by the end of the book. Highly recommended. I look forward to reading the previous two books in this series.
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  • Paul@Aude_France
    5.0 out of 5 stars Topical and brilliant
    Reviewed in France on November 15, 2019
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    A brilliantly-paced and very topical conclusion to The Rotters' Club trilogy. This third book is the arguably the best of the three. Benjamin is still as devastatingly indecisive as ever, Doug is at war with Brexiters and Tories (even though his romantic life reaches across the aisle, so to speak). There are brilliantly portrayed new characters (Sophie, Coriander...) where others from the previous books have disappeared (Paul, Sean..).
    Coe uses events such as the London Olympic Games, the 2011 riots and the Brexit referendum to offer insights into life in Britain, and what undercurrents are at work in the UK. It's not always a pretty picture and the author seems to be writing from a place of anger. Even Benjamin, that most uncommitted of characters, at one point slaps his hand on a table and shouts "F*ck Brexit".
    A great book and a future classic read for people wanting to understand this period in British history.
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