Jonathan Coe, The Rotters' Club

Lisa Salem-Wiseman (Humber College)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Tweet Report an Error

The sixth novel by British novelist Jonathan Coe, The Rotters’ Club (2001) follows the lives of a group of friends growing up in Birmingham in the 1970s, creating a poignant, insightful, and often-hilarious portrait of a troubled and turbulent time in British society. Benjamin Trotter and his friends struggle to grow up amid class antagonism, racial conflict, factory closures, IRA pub bombings, the election of Margaret Thatcher, and the rise of punk rock. With his signature blend of sharp social commentary, engrossing plots, and wicked humour, Coe explores the coming-of-age, not only of Benjamin Trotter, but of England itself.

Born on August 19, 1961, in a suburb of Birmingham, England, Coe has been writing fiction …

1810 words

Citation: Salem-Wiseman, Lisa. "The Rotters' Club". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 March 2007 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=20391, accessed 29 March 2024.]

20391 The Rotters' Club 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.