If you liked “A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman, which was made into the movie “A Man Called Otto” starring Tom Hanks, you’ll no doubt take a shine to “The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 83 Years Old” translated by Hester Velmans. The main differences are the Ove book takes place in Sweden and involves an old man living in a type of retirement village, whereas the Groen book takes place in the Netherlands and involves an old man in a nursing home. But if you’re the “Accidental Tourist” like me, Sweden-Netherlands, they’re all one-and-the-same. Pompous of me, I know.

Hendrik Groen decides to keep a journal while being a resident (inmate) of a nursing home, to keep himself occupied and his mind active. His wife has dementia, doesn’t recognize him, and is in a different mental institution. He doesn’t have any children and has no visitors. He finds that keeping the journal helps him relax and accept life in the nursing home with a grain of salt. The journal becomes the family he doesn’t have, if you will. Once I have committed something to paper, I can distance myself from it a bit, and then I’m less insufferable. That’s a lot nicer for the people around me too. (I’ve noticed the same effect for my writing also.)

“The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen” is full of geriatric humor and wit, laced with end-of-life insight. Today is World Alzheimer’s Day. What are you supposed to do with that? Try to remember it? Dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease, next to falls, is their biggest fear. Pointedly, Hendrik Groen’s story of surviving in the nursing home revolves around, like the earth revolving around the sun, a close female friend he meets in the nursing home. His friend progresses through the stages of Alzheimer’s Disease, with Hendrik looking after her.

Like Ove’s attachment to Saabs, Hendrik becomes interested in old people’s means of transportation, namely a mobility vehicle called a Canta. He buys one and, not satisfied with its 3 mph, has it souped up. Of course he gets himself into all kinds of trouble. Here in the US, we have golf carts and UV’s buzzing to the Post Office and grocery store, plugging up parking lots and confusing drivers on the streets. In the Netherlands it’s the Canta.

I won’t say that “The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen” is a must read for all seniors. Being a senior myself at 76, and having just recovered from cancer, except for the side effects of treatment, the book hits a little too close to home. I did ask myself a couple of times, “Do I want to be reading this?” But I’m glad I did. Ginnie asked me what I was cackling about while I was reading it. I read her some passages, and now she is reading it, and cackling, and reading me passages.

“The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen” is the first book of a trilogy. So, if you’re looking for something that will last through the dog days of summer, Hendrik Groen may be your ticket, depending on how fast or serious a reader you are. I’m going to put off books two and three for a while: On the Bright Side: “The New Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen, 85 Years Old” and “Two Old Men and a Baby.” I’ll switch writing styles and read some Anne Tyler. After all, she’s written over 20 books, which includes a Pulitzer Prize winner. That should keep me busy for awhile, not necessarily out of trouble.

Ginnie’s father, Paul Harvey (no kidding), is turning 98 on Sunday the 15th this coming June. He resides in assisted living. Being an avid reader, I think I’ll buy him the hard bound copy of “The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen” for his birthday. He may enjoy it or he may not. If we see him driving a Canta to church or the barber shop, we’ll know he liked it. If he disowns me from the family, we’ll know he didn’t.

Happy summer reading.

————

Have a good story? Call or text Curt Swarm in Mt. Pleasant at 319-217-0526 or email him at curtswarm@yahoo.com. Curt is available for public speaking.