The first in The Rotters' Club series, bestselling author Jonathan Coe's iconic tale of Benjamin Trotter is a hilarious, heartfelt celebration of the joys and agonies of growing up WINNER OF THE EVERYMAN WODEHOUSE PRIZE __________ Birmingham, England, c. 1973: industrial strikes, bad pop music, first love, corrosive class warfare, detention, IRA bombings. Four friends: a class clown who stoops very low for a laugh; a confused artist enthralled by rock; an earnest radical with socialist leanings; and a quiet dreamer obsessed with poetry, God, and the prettiest girl in school. Unforgettably funny and painfully honest, The Rotters' Club is perfect for readers of Nick Hornby and William Boyd - or anyone who ever experience adolescence the hard way! THE STORY CONTINUES IN THE CLOSED CIRCLE AND MIDDLE ENGLAND. __________ 'One of those sweeping, ambitious yet hugely readable, moving and richly comic novels . . . a masterpiece' Daily Telegraph 'Very funny . . . Coe had achieved that rare feat: a novel stuffed with characters you really care for' The Times 'A book to cherish, a book to reread, a book to buy for all your friends' Independent on SundayWritten with his signature wit, Jonathan Coe's unmissable new novel, The Proof of My Innocence is available now!