The Making of Henry

Jan 1, 2026 4:08 AM

Author:Howard Jacobson

The Making of Henry

One day, out of the blue, Henry Nagel inherits a sumptuous apartment in St John's Wood. Divine intervention? Or his late father's love nest? Henry doesn't know, but he is glad to escape the North. After nearly sixty years of angry disappointment, Henry's life is about to change.

Not that the ghosts of Henry's past are prepared to disappear without a struggle - his old school-friend and rival Osmond 'Hovis' Belkin, currently enjoying success in Hollywood; his tragic great aunt Marghanita for whom Henry once entertained a dangerous passion; and his father Izzi, upholsterer turned illusionist, fire-eater and origamist, whose shade Henry interrogates relentlessly. But the present clamours as loudly as the past. His dyspeptic neighbour Lachlan wants his sympathy; Lachlan's sloppy red setter, Angus, wants a walk; and Moira, the waitress with the crooked smile and custard hair, seems to want him. Kicking and screaming every inch of the way, Henry realises he might finally be falling in love.

Reviews

Our funniest living writer

—— Alison Pearson

One of the country's very best writers. The British Philip Roth

—— Jonathan Freedland

Jacobson's writing is as luscious and funny as ever... You're never far from comic brilliance

—— Daily Telegraph

This is a beautifully rounded portrait of a man gazing into the prism of the past... And love, no less, is the key, exquisitely articulated and celebrated

—— Sunday Telegraph

Terrific... Jacobson is at the top of his form

—— Evening Standard

Masterly... powerful

—— Independent

Stuffed with brilliant hilarity

—— Spectator

What elevates The Making of Henry..is the way it talks about love. That, and being funny

—— Guardian

This is brilliantly, biliously funny. It is also painfully, movingly sad...Expansive and compassionate... Sharp and hilarious, this latest novel shows Jacobson at his best

—— Observer

A powerful work...It shows us the perplexity of an old man coming home after 30 years in a gulag to find society much changed and is the work of a true visionary.

—— Daily Telegraph, Christmas round up

Shot through with a fizzing mix of philosophy and comedy

—— Piers Plowright , The Tablet

An unusual, loveable debut...that explores the complexities of family relationships and the weight of memory

—— Natalie Young , The Times, Christmas round up

An unusual, loveable debut about a father and his daugther on the East Coast of Scotland...superbly written with a small cast of memorable characters

—— Erica Wagner , The Times, Christmas round up

The beautiful debut by Scottish novelist Sue Peebles. This tale of a daughter caring for her father who has suffered a stroke is psychologically true and elegantly portrayed

—— Lesley McDowell , Sunday Herald, Christmas round up

The best debut I read...sharp, tender, wicked, and beautifully poised prose that reads like the work of an accomplished novelist

—— Gavin Wallace , Sunday Herald, Christmas round up

As far as literary fiction goes, this is both incredibly literary and amazingly enjoyable… Lyrical, poetic, and always written with the same bittersweet quality which captured my attention right at the start, this is an absolute gem of a book… Clearly, this is about the highest possible recommendation, whether or not you like cricket… When I got to the end, the only issue I had with the book was that I wished it hadn’t finished

—— Robert James , TheBookbag.co.uk

There is much to enjoy in Sri Lankan Karunatilaka’s energetic debut novel… The book bristles with grouchy humour, laconic observations on Sri Lanka’s political troubles and the pathos of coming to the end of life. Steering just the right side of sentiment, it is both an elegy to lost ambitions and a paean to madcap dreams

—— Adam Lively , Sunday Times

A rollercoaster of a novel

—— Times Higher Education

A deliberately rambling account of a dying sportswriter’s attempts to get to the truth of the disappearance of a Sri Lankan bowler... It’s brilliant

—— Nicholas Lezard , Guardian

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