After spotting Kinokuniya Malaysia's highly-shared Facebook post highlighting the diary on December 13, 2020, we were naturally intrigued to see what else was inside, especially considering how some of us (especially this author) tend to be self-loathing pessimists at times.

In such an unprecedented year, you might just want to switch your usual annoyingly cheery and inspirational diary for a more realistic one. Complete with realistic journaling prompts, boring crosswords, useful phrases and pointless doodles, you can’t find a more relatable book. var et_builder_utils_params = {"condition":{"diviTheme":true,"extraTheme":false},"scrollLocations":["app","top"],"builderScrollLocations":{"desktop":"app","tablet":"app","phone":"app"},"onloadScrollLocation":"app","builderType":"fe"}; The diary makes no bones of what it wants to do. The blurb on the cover even describes itself as a "downbeat journal for pessimists, cynics, and losers everywhere," and that you'll "love it."After all, we remember how our lofty resolutions went this year. At least now we know better than to jot down ‘travel more’. var et_frontend_scripts = {"builderCssContainerPrefix":"#et-boc","builderCssLayoutPrefix":"#et-boc .et-l"}; I don’t know. I’m still writing so I suppose those poems will have to go somewhere. I like doing it and feel like there’s more to do. It started in a random and unplanned way and I suspect it will end similarly. Another section aims to dig out some of your deepest doubts, fears, and insecurities, and asks you piercing questions about them. IMAGE: Asbury & Asbury If this Perpetual Disappointments Diary speaks to the pessimist within you, you can head over to Kinokunyi to get a copy.

As we wrap up 2020, this might just be the perfect diary to help you start your new year with realistic resolutions.To truly capture the essence of 2020, Kinokuniya is selling a product that is such a big mood — the Perpetual Disappointments Diary.

Introverts who are perfectly happy on their own would appreciate the ‘Excuse Generator’, a roadmap to the perfect excuse to get you out of any social situation. So yes, it’s available now and I’ve no idea how long it will be in future, so maybe act now if you’re ever going to. You can’t argue it’s not a timely gift given the state of the world. Before you start thinking that this diary is too emo, there are actually real reflection questions too, to pull you out of any rut. First published in 2016, the diary has kept up with new editions every year – you can even buy the 2021 edition right now. But still, the general pessimistic outlook you get from its contents has stayed unchanged. IMAGE: Asbury & Asbury Rather than single pieces, I think of them as fragments of one bigger poem that is essentially novelistic. So you have the big plotlines of Brexit and Trump and the sense of this grand historical sweep, but you also get the granular details of visits to the barber and letting a fly out of the window. And there are themes that echo across the whole story, including meditations on the nature of time and reality, or recurring characters like Dan Hannan.All in all, a pretty suitable diary considering everything that's happened in 2020, although we're not sure many will care to ponder on the crap they've had to suffer over the past year. IMAGE: Asbury & Asbury IMAGE: Kinokuniya Malaysia Everything depressingly real from weight gained to debt accumulated and public shamings, you can keep count with the Perpetual Disappointments Diary. We didn’t really – the covers were curling because of production problems that became an annual headache and eventually led us to seek out a ‘proper’ publisher. It’s now in its third edition with Pan Macmillan and I’m not sure whether it’ll extend beyond that – this could be the last sad hurrah. No –only from asburyandasbury.com/shop. I haven’t figured out how distribution works and will happily take advice if there are any experts out there. The National Poetry Library and British Library have copies, so I have some baseline literary credibility.

No – I did a talk at D&AD Manchester and the Off The Shelf Literature Festival in Sheffield and enjoyed both. So I’m looking for other opportunities and open to suggestions. Granted, those come with slight personal jabs, but hey, there’s no growth without first realising your weaknesses. Fair warning that some of the excuses are rather questionable, but will definitely make for a good laugh. If the above sums up how you're feeling (we hope not), The Perpetual Disappointments Diary might just be perfect for you (again, we really hope not). IMAGE: Kinokuniya MalaysiaAnd the death poems are always popular, if that’s the right word. There’s something about writing and reading those poems in-the-moment that turns it into a different experience. (Sorry about the bad photos by the way.) The Perpetual Disappointments Diary describes itself as a “downbeat journal for pessimists, cynics and losers everywhere”. For those who need gifting ideas, this could be the perfect present for your chronically cynical friends. Be it for Christmas or any time of year, we’re sure they’ll appreciate this amusing journal.