Synopsis
It may be quiet in the suburbs, but it's far from peaceful...
Oak Drive can be found nestled tidily in an unassuming part of England. Its neat front gardens overlook an average-sized common which the street's residents survey with quiet, some might say, smug, pride. This is the sort of place where it pays to look after the small things, and let the big things look after themselves. Bins should be placed back in their right positions in a timely fashion and paintwork should share the same tasteful but muted palette. Sometimes, however, the big things do not look after themselves - and all hell can break loose in the sleepy streets of suburbia.
Set in suburban Britain, Common Decency chronicles the lives and interactions of the street's residents as they band together to save a beloved oak tree from destruction at the hands of developers.
As tensions rise and repressed neuroses and resentments seep out, the secrets of the street's inhabitants threaten to shatter the well-ordered veneer and reveal some rather more surprising truths...
Publisher information
- Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
- ISBN: 9781529397482
- Number of pages: 320
- Dimensions: 238 x 158 x 30 mm
- Weight: 531g
- Languages: English
Customer Reviews
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Well written
This novel is entertaining, but I would not call it ‘hilarious’, although it's quite amusing in places, rather than outright funny.
I was expecting more... READ MORE
Enjoyable
I was sent an advance copy of Common Decency by Tom Allen to read and review by NetGalley. This is a very readable novel. It is entertaining and quite am... READ MORE
Light hearted, humorous story
This is a humorous, light hearted look inside the lives of residents of Oak Drive, one of London’s suburbs.
Character driven, Don bullies Fannie his lon... READ MORE
Enjoyable debut fiction
When a new couple move in to Oak Drive, curtains start twitching. Who are the newcomers? What does the inside of their house look like after the builders h... READ MORE
Common Decency
Once I got over the fact that maybe this guy's sense of humour doesn't quite match mine - especially wrt the crass joke he pulls very early on I had a bett... READ MORE
Witty and well written
Location: a short row of four attractive terraced houses, though not all retain their original features. Close by is a small park, a community centre and a... READ MORE
Okayish.
‘Common Decency’ offers a caricature of English suburbia, replete with shallow stereotypes and reveals so predictable I could have sworn the information ha... READ MORE
Entertaining cozy novel
I absolutely love Tom Allen and his dry acerbic wit so I had high hopes for this book. It’s a cozy character driven story about a small road, Oak Drive, wh... READ MORE
Wonderful light reading
I was a little sceptical about this as I have a little aversion to “celebrity” authors. However as I really like Tom Allen I thought this was worth a read ... READ MORE
Suburbs and showdowns
You never know what lurks behind the well maintained front doors of the suburbs. Oak Drive is no different. Very different residents band together over the... READ MORE
Four stars!
Common Decency is a quiet, character driven book set on Oak Drive, a tidy suburban street in an unassuming English town where appearances matter and routin... READ MORE
A fantastic read
This is a fantastic read! I wasn’t sure what to expect as a first novel from a comedian, but it’s a tale of neighbours with verysharp observations and som... READ MORE
Just read it
Brilliant . Loved it . A story of what goes on behind closed doors in a street that looks over a park. You really don’t know what your neighbours are like ... READ MORE
Secrets in Surburbia
Vince and Nathan Luke move out to suburbia away from the buzz of central London. They have moved into a small row of 4 houses into their newly renovated h... READ MORE
Lovely, pithy portrait of a neighbourhood
What a lovely, pithy portrait of neighbourly life. The characters go beyond their superficial stereotypes and develop into something warmer and more satisf... READ MORE
Excellent
An engaging story around the neighbours in a small suburban community faced with a proposed planning application that will change their lives. They are for... READ MORE
Intriguing and fun with a lot of plot in the last few chapters.
I wanted to love this book, and whilst there was nothing wrong with it, it just didn't quite hit the mark for me.
It started well; with a bee motif, whic... READ MORE
A gem of a novel!
Common Decency by Tom Allen
Architect Vince and his partner leave their glamorous life in London and move to Oak Drive in suburbia. Their neighbours are... READ MORE
Page turner
I enjoyed this story so very much, neighbours coming together, finally, amidst friendship, love, frustration, anger and tragedy, fully immersive, page turn... READ MORE
Light and entertaining
Well this book has a series of ridiculous story lines. The most prevalent being that of Miranda. However, I kind of loved it. I wanted to know what happene... READ MORE
Turns Out the Quiet Street Isn’t That Quiet
Best known for his television appearances and sharp stand-up comedy, Tom Allen brings a surprisingly gentle, observant touch to his debut novel. If you enj... READ MORE
A lovely gentle story
A lovely gentle story that starts with us getting to know a little unconnected community which then grows into a beautiful story of people coming together,... READ MORE
Lovely read
Just lovely- though it did take me a little while to settle in to this story. A warm, observational tale of life in a small suburban terrace with a group o... READ MORE
A laugh out loud very witty book.
Tom Allen is a sometimes outlandish comedian and presenter. That really comes over in this very enjoyable book. He hass come up with a disparate list of ch... READ MORE
Neighbours pull together
Anyone who lives in a street or on a housing estate will know that people will pull together for something important to them even if some individuals don’t... READ MORE
A cosy and undemanding read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.
3.5
When I started this book I thought it was going to be too twee for me and... READ MORE
Takes the reader behind closed doors
My mum always said that you never know what goes on behind closed doors. This book takes you inside! A great story about a small group of people who live n... READ MORE
Warm and funny
‘Common Decency’ by Tom Allen, focuses on the lives and interactions of a small street's residents as they band together to save an aged oak tree from dest... READ MORE
more interesting than you might think
The residents of suburban Oak Drive are interested in the refurbishing works being carried out on one of the houses, it looks very fancy who could be movin... READ MORE
Brilliant!
Common Decency follows the lives of four very different households whose paths intertwine in unexpected ways. Through a cast of vividly drawn characters To... READ MORE
An entertaining read!
Oak Drive just your average suburban street ?
We look behind the doors and see what’s really going on and the lives the inhabitants lead .
The writing i... READ MORE
A delightful laugh out loud feel good read… highly recommend!
Not my usually read (addicted to crime thriller) but absolutely loved this and found it hard to put down.
Focuses a couple who move to a suburban neigh... READ MORE
Gently humorous
I was given a digital ARC of this book by NetGalley. I like Tom Allen’s wit and it comes through in this book, which is a gentle tale of suburbia where loc... READ MORE
Recommended
First Tom Allen book I have read. I have seen Tom on Great British Bake Off - An Extra Slice so was aware of his style and personality which transposes we... READ MORE
funny and compassionate
Tom Allen's writing is not only funny but perceptive too.I wouldn't have expected him to portray so accurately a nit picking pensioner who makes it his li... READ MORE
A Subtle, Humorous Novel About Community Ties and the Secrets They Hold
I did enjoy this offering from Tom Allen, though not quite as much as I’d hoped. I couldn’t shake the feeling that it would have landed even better as an a... READ MORE
Gentle, cosy read
Delightfully Funny
I read this book courtesy of NetGalley. A delightful funny read with a few real chuckle moments. Observant of suburbia and life within the book follows ... READ MORE
Definitely a book to relax into
A cosy read which seems to be just ticking along. And then, without the reader being aware, they find that at some point they have come to care about the ... READ MORE
A cosy read
Common Decency is a lighthearted story about a suburban neighbourhood. It has warmth and wit and gives pause for thought about the lives and experiences of... READ MORE
a great read
At first I found this book a bit hard to get into but after a few chapters I began to really enjoy it and was hooked. There was a great bunch of characters... READ MORE
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