Penguin Readers Level 3: The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾ (ELT Graded Reader)

Sue Townsend was, and remains, Britain's favourite comic novelist.

For over thirty years, after the publication of her instant and iconic bestseller The Secret Diaries of Adrian Mole Aged 13 ¾ in 1982, she made us weep with laughter and pricked the nation's conscience. Seven further volumes of Adrian's diaries followed, and all were highly acclaimed bestsellers.

She also published five other hugely popular novels - including The Queen and I and The Woman Who Went to Bed for a Year - as well as writing numerous well-received plays. Remarkably, Sue did not learn to read until she was eight and left school with no qualifications. As beloved by critics as she was by readers the length and breadth of the nation, she chronicled the lives of ordinary people in Britain through times of upheaval and great social change.

She lived in Leicester all her Life, dying in the city that she loved in 2014.

Penguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.

Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.

The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.

The Secret Life of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 ¾, a Level 3 Reader, is A2 in the CEFR framework. The text is made up of sentences with up to three clauses, introducing first conditional, past continuous and present perfect simple for general experience. It is well supported by illustrations, which appear on most pages.

Adrian Mole is a 13-year-old boy. Adrian writes a diary about his school, his family and, of course, love. "There's a new girl in our class . . . I think I might love her. I am 13 ¾ years old, so I'm old enough for love!"

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