Billy Liar
Keith Waterhouse
1959
Around 190 pages
Well, this novel gave me a great new insult to try out ("Look what's crawled out of the cheese."). Other than that, it didn't leave much of an impression.
Billy is a working class 19 year old who lives with his parents and grandmother in Yorkshire. He is also a compulsive liar, and is engaged to two women. Did I mention I hate Billy?
I guess this spawned all sorts of adaptations, so other people were more charmed by Billy than I was. It is a very British story that I can see resonating with people with a similar upbringing. Unfortunately, I am an American, so. Forgettable.
RATING: **---
Interesting Facts:
Adapted into a play, a film, a musical and a TV series.
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