Tajni dnevnik Adriana Molea (13 3/4 god.)

Written in the form of diary entries from January 1, 1981 to April 1982, the book follows the life of 13¾-year-old Adrian Mole, a self-proclaimed intellectual and poet from a working-class family in the English Midlands (Thatcherite era).

Adrian is a typical adolescent: plagued by acne, shaky health, unrequited love, parents on the verge of divorce, school troubles and a desire to be noticed as a genius. He honestly (and naively) records everything:

• Family: Father – alcoholic and unemployed, mother – frustrated, falls in love with neighbor Mr. Lucas and leaves for a while. The dog in the family – a perpetual source of chaos.
• Love: In love with Pandora (golden hair the color of syrup), an intelligent and determined girl from a better family. From first crush to relationship, through jealousy and first intimacies.
• Society: He helps old Bert Baxter (89 years old, cynical and rude), writes poetry, dreams of fame, criticizes the world around him (school, politics, religion).
• Humor: The laughter comes from Adrian's unreliable narration - he thinks he is a deep thinker, but the reader sees his naivety, exaggerations and misunderstandings (e.g. he thinks his mother is an alcoholic because she drinks wine).

The book is a satire on adolescence, family, British society in the 1980s (the Falklands War, unemployment, class differences) - all through the eyes of a boy who takes himself too seriously. Townsend masterfully captures teenage slang, insecurity and the humor of "laughing through tears".

A masterpiece of literature for young people - millions of copies, TV series, musical. Croatia is the first country to include it in the reading list. Sequels: The New Sorrows of Adrian Mole, Adrian Mole on the Threshold of Maturity, etc.