A wonderfully written book about 3 teens from England, seeking a job to help pay their way through college. Along comes a girl and all mayhem ensues! While Americans may not understand all of the slang and phrases, it is a hilarious read. The characters have great depth and the descriptiveness makes you feel as if you were living the adventure right with them. Wonderful book! ( )

This book is a coming of age story that although it had a few slightly humorous moments lacked direction and plot.

I received 'Proper Job' through the Members' Giveway section of Library Thing.
It's rare that a book can make me laugh out loud, but I did with Proper Job a number of times.
This is a well-written and very entertaining coming of age story concerning Andy and his mates in the summer after they finish high school, with their lives before them, but more importantly, with jobs to be had to put money in their pockets.
Ian Hocking has developed some really interesting characters in this work, particularly Andy. As a geeky sort of 17 year old, he faces a number of challenges in getting (and keeping) a job, getting the girl, and trying to discover his friend's name.
I enjoyed the way Hocking wrote the Cornish accent and idiom for some of the characters. It reminded me of Irvine Wesh who does a similar thing with Scottish.
I thought it rolled along brilliantly until the last chapter which, although it tied up the loose ends satisfactorily, seemed less energetic in style than the rest of the story. ( )

*I was fortunate enough to receive a free e-copy of Proper Job from LibraryThing.
This book was, as promised, entertaining. However, the author changes the narration tone between kooky and serious throughout the story, which makes for a sometimes-difficult, sometimes-brilliant read. ( )

http://www.book-blog.com/2011/11/hocking-ian-proper-job.html ( )