Book Review: Funny Girl by Nick Hornby

Funny Girl: A Novel by Nick Hornby
Hardcover: 464 pages
Publisher: Riverhead Hardcover; Unabridged edition (February 3, 2015)

Acclaimed novelist and screenwriter Nick Hornby is back with a new novel.  This time, he takes us back to London in the 1960s.

Starring the intrepid Sophie Straw, Funny Girl is a charming tale of ambition, creativity, and self-identity with an interesting cast of characters including actor Clive Richardson, producer Dennis Maxwell-Bishop, and comedy writers Bill and Tony.

Straw, formerly Barbara, is the winner of Miss Blackpool but she quickly decides that she wants to move to London and become an actress.  She becomes a television comedienne and gets cast in a leading role on her first audition.  Crazy, right?

Hornby has given us a book with both humor and heart.  He has managed to endear us to a small cast of characters--flawed, funny, and unforgettable as they may be--by doing what he does best.

I don't know whether this book will be adapted into a movie or television series.  Given the amount of behind the scenes that take place over a period of a few years, it's really hard to see this as a movie.

Hornby's wit and storytelling has proven time and time again that he can do no wrong.  Funny Girl is no exception.