"Hugely entertaining"

The eagerly awaited hilarious new adventure from bestselling author Tony Hawks

'If you had to pick two things you wanted - if you had to - what would you pick?'. I hesitated. This was a bigger question than usually got asked at these post-match debriefs. 'I suppose the honest answer would be,' I said, still accessing the last pieces of required data from a jumbled mind, 'meeting my soul mate, and finding an idyllic house abroad somewhere.' Inspired by breathtaking views and romantic dreams of finding love in the mountains, Tony Hawks impulsively buys a house in the French Pyrenees. Here, he plans to finally fulfil his childhood fantasy of mastering the piano, untroubled by the problems of the world. In reality, the chaotic story of Tony's hopelessly ill-conceived house purchase reads like the definitive guide to how not to buy a house overseas. It finds him flirting with the removal business in a disastrous attempt to transport his piano to France in a dodgy white van; foolishly electing to build a swimming pool himself; and expanding his relationship repertoire when he starts co-habiting, not with an exquisite French beauty, but with a middle-aged builder from West London.

As Tony and his friends haplessly attempt to fit into village life, they learn more about themselves and each other than they ever imagined.

The eagerly awaited hilarious new adventure from bestselling author Tony Hawks

?If you had to pick two things you wanted ? if you had to ? what would you pick??
I hesitated. This was a bigger question than usually got asked at these post-match debriefs.
?I suppose the honest answer would be,? I said, still accessing the last pieces of required data from a jumbled mind, ?- meeting my soul mate, and finding an idyllic house abroad somewhere??

Inspired by breathtaking views and romantically dreaming of finding love in the mountains, Tony Hawks impulsively buys an idyllic house in the French Pyrenees.And here, he imagines, he will finally fulfil his childhood fantasy of mastering the piano, all the while overlooking spectacular views as the troubles of the world pass by unnoticed.

Tony?s hopelessly ill-prepared stumbling into the world of overseas home ownership is perhaps best read as a useful manual of how not to go about buying a house abroad.

He flirts with the removal business in a disastrous attempt to take his piano over to France in a dodgy white van; foolishly elects to build a swimming pool himself; and takes his experience of relationships to a new level when he finds himself co-habiting, not with a beautiful French woman, but with his old mate Ron the builder from West London.

Yet as Tony and his small group of friends haplessly attempt to integrate themselves into local village life, they learn more about themselves and each other than they ever bargained for.

And for at least one of them, love is found at last, in the most unexpected of places?

The house wasn?t quite the stuff of my dreams. It wasn?t an old tumble-down farmhouse ready for loving restoration, but a twenty year old property which looked ready for immediate habitation. Three things made it special - location, location, location.
?That is the Pic du Midi,? said Monsieur L?Agent, pointing to a mountain in the distance, and possibly sensing from my open mouth that a quick sale was far from out of the question, ?You can ski in this place.?
?Yes. It?s quite a nice view,? I said, trying not to look too enthusiastic and attempting to subdue an ecstatic grin.
Inside it had all the features that you?re looking for in a house ? windows, doors, ceilings, floors, bedrooms, a bathroom, radiators, all in excellent condition. The kitchen was a little small but that was more than compensated the view.
The fabulous view.
Did I mention that at all?

Tony Hawks lives in London. He leads a diverse life and has various 'jobs', such as performing stand-up comedy, appearing as a panellist on TV and radio (Have I Got News For You, Just A Minute, I'm Sorry I Haven't A Clue), acting, writing, playing tennis, and making music.

2008-07-14 A very funny book!

I wonder if he's finished the pool yet ... ? In spite of the publicity surrounding Tony Hawk's other well known book Playing the Moldovans at Tennis I decided to read this book first of all. It didn't disappoint, in fact it was hilarious ... especially his experiences with white vans! The book had me in stitches from start to finish. I was amused to read about local village life in the Pyrenees and the characters that add to the amusement ... What I like best about Hawks' style is that he always tells it how it is - no holds barred!