Brilliant!!!

I was blown away by this work, I wanted to get back into fiction & this definitely got me there!

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1 person found this helpful

Not as good as the hype portrayed

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

I downloaded this book having heard it reviewed on Radio 4. Unfortunately I didn't feel it deserved the glowing report. Although the setting and characters were portrayed eloquently, there was little substance to the story. I felt little for the characters and found even less that hooked me into their predictable disclosures. A disappointing purchase.

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Brilliant but disturbing

Roddy Doyle always brings you into the heart of Dublin life, the characters you recognise, the scenarios you've witnessed for yourself. The middle aged men he describes could be in any bar you walk into, the tiny world of Irish celebrity during the boom years is astutely accurate. As you believe the voice of the main character, you are drawn into the insecurities of the modern male, eclipsed by a more successful and stronger partner, emasculated, but sweet and supportive. Beneath it all, however, is a dark undercurrent, a scar that cannot heal. The ramifications of this are slowly revealed, the reconstructed outer personality hiding the horror within. I cannot help but hope none of this is biographical.

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2 people found this helpful

What a superb book . The ending is truly shocking

So different to his other books. The raw guilt of institutional abuse by individuals that wreck the victims life. A book that sadly will echo with thousands of his countrymen who suffered this nightmare..

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Savagely extraordinary

Oh I've a love hate relationship with this book! Extraordinary story told in a matter of fact style with a truly unexpected ending. Such a mix of emotions finishing it, think I need to reflect on it further before deciding how I feel overall.
But oh my, it's powerful. Irresistible.
Read -or listen I should say - to it.
Glad I listened rather than read as Doyle's dry style enhanced it, lulled me into false sense of security, added to the quite unpredictable ending.

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Totally absorbing tale of finding a way to live

A close relative of mine went to a Christian Brothers institution so at times-even though the descriptions of casual cruelty are low key- this was amost too much for me. But, but the writing kept me coming back. Brilliant.

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2 people found this helpful

Very sad story well told.

its always special when the author narrated. Sad story well told. recommend it highly to all.

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An excellent listen

As a big fan of Roddy Doyle's work, and also a student whose parents entrusted my education to the 'loving care' of The Christian Brothers, this was a must-buy for me and I was not disappointed.

It tackles, head-on, a running sore with Ireland's messy intermeshed relationship between The Church and authority, shedding further light on the already well-documented damage this has done to many people over the years.

The book is quite different in style for RD but as always the wonderful natural feel of the dialogue makes it seem as if you're sitting at an adjacent table in a bar just listening in. The story moves on at a good pace with excellent narration by the author and there's no filler here whatsoever.

Others have mentioned the ending with some unhappy with it, however I found it excellent and completely unexpected.

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