ADRIAN MOLE AND THE WEAPONS OF MASS DISTRUCTION by Sue Townsend

Sue Townsend places her signature character, Adrian Mole, in the midst of a post-9/11 world. Now middle aged, Mole battles with anxiety over aging, romance, and the possibility of Iraq nuking Cyprus while he's on holiday there. While I've been constantly fascinated by Townsend's worried creation, I feel like she is becoming tired of writing him. "Weapons of Mass Distruction" is still endlessly amusing, but Mole has lost some of the naive charm that endeared him to those who grew up with him. That said, Adrian's paranoid musings are always enjoyable to read, and "Weapons of Mass Distruction" does not disappoint.