Forty. The Quiet One
The 40th Birthday Book for Men: the birthday nobody throws a party for, in full
Forty is the milestone people mark by not marking it. This book is shorter on nostalgia and longer on the honest bits, because forty years is not yet long enough for the prices to be funny.
Not out yet. This page exists so the work is visible while it is being made, which is more honest than a placeholder.
What is in it
- The years you could have been born, and what a house, a week of work and a pound actually cost in each of them.
- What has changed since, with the figures rather than the sighing.
- The honest bits about the age, written by somebody not pretending it is fine.
- Quizzes and things to argue about.
- Things you can now say and get away with.
- Around forty pages to fill in, which is the part that survives.
Formats and price
| Format | Price | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Hardback | £18.99 | The gift version. Survives being kept. |
| Paperback | £12.99 | The one most people buy. |
| Ebook | £4.99 | Read it, but you cannot write in it. |
Where the material came from
The sourced tables in this book are published free on the site. If you only need a line for a card, take it from there and keep your money.
- 40th birthday gifts for men (in production)
Part of Milestone Birthdays, an Home Truths series.
Frequently asked
- Why is the 40th book shorter on nostalgia?
- Forty years is not yet long enough for the prices to be funny. A house in the mid-1980s does not sound absurd the way one in the mid-1960s does, so this book spends less time on the tables and more on the honest bits.
- Who buys a book for a fortieth?
- Usually a friend rather than a family member, and usually somebody who has just had their own fortieth. Forty is the milestone people mark by insisting they are not marking it.
- Is every fact in it sourced?
- Yes, to the Nationwide house price index, the Bank of England historical dataset, the Office for National Statistics and the Official Charts Company.