I just finished this and it’s my favorite from the longlisted books I’ve read so far (James, My Friends, Headshot, Orbital, This Strange Eventful History). I already want to read it again, always a good sign :).
I don't usually care about spoilers, but I am glad I only watched the first half of this video originally. Have finished it now and I raced through the second half. I would also be fascinated to know what made one or more of the judges advocate for it to be on the list. There's no obvious reason that stick out, but at the same time I would recommend this more readily to more people and it feels odd to think of that as a bad thing!
Aha, yeah! It’s a weird one for sure- if I hadn’t read this as part of the prize, it would have been a nice book that I enjoyed and didn’t think about much after.
I read Orbital, then Headshot, then this one. I'm currently reading Stone Yard Devotional. At first it seemed like Wild Houses didn't belong on the LL. It is essentially a caper novel. However, all these books so far include a lot of introspection. I ended up really appreciating that in Wild Houses.
I definitely went into this expecting more as it had been longlisted. Personally, if an Irish crime novel was to be longlisted, it should be anything by Tana French.
I left when the spoiler curtain dropped. I have this book checked out from the library and will hopefully get to it before my time runs out. I have a possibly unfair habit of comparing everything on the list to books that didn't make it.
I think your point about reading Booker books with a more critical eye is a good one. I may not have been entirely fair when reading this one because I expected more.
I had that one year where all of my favourites from the list were the ones I read before the announcement, probably because of that (and I guess because they were books I was drawn to rather than feeling like I ‘had’ to read).
I listened to this on audio ( I always love Irish books on audio), and really enjoyed it. I was surprised to see it included on the Booker Longlist, but pleased to have it there. I'd like to relisten to it.
Great Review but I really thought this one was just a good average read. A bit YA IMHO. Can't believe it's on the Booker longlist. Just finished Held and I'm blown away by it. It's my pick for the win now.
Thanks! And yeah, I’m finding it’s not sticking in my head too much. And glad to hear that about Held! I kind of want to re-read it because I found it beautiful when I read it but can’t remember a thing about it!
Of the books from the long list I’ve read so far , I’d rank them 1. My Friends ( best so far) 2. Wild Houses 3. Stone Yard Devotional 4. Orbital Enlightenment was disappointing. I’m struggling through The Safekeep. I have James waiting in my the wings. Wild Houses touches on two big problems in Irish society. Mental Health ( suicide remains biggest killer of young men) and Drugs. It also brings up “ strong women”. Things get resolved by two women coming to the rescue. It shows “ toxic masculinity “ in a particular way.
Ooh, I hope you like those others, and have better luck with The Safekeep! And yes, the novel feels very much like it engages with societal issues in a big way.
I don't often disagree with you but this is one such instance. I just don't see an awful amount of lyricism in the writing (I don't get Kevin Barry or even John Banville from back in the day), so it rarely rises off the page and I thought the character work was middling at best. It was inevitable that Dev would throw off his self-imposed shackles at some point, though at least it avoided the cliche of him coming to save the situation at the very end. Too many flashbacks diluted any claustrophobia that a hostage situation builds up. The book being on the long list nonplussed me
Ahh, totally fair! ‘Lyrical’ was probably a stretch from me, but something about the style appealed to me (although I agree about the plot/character work to some degree- I think that’s the bit where I felt like the book could have really soared but didn’t).
I stopped at the spoiler section because I like to read the Irish books. I will return once I've read it. I'm wondering if you have ever done a video just of the Irish books for a year that you have liked? you mentioned other Irish books that you thought deserve to be on the booker list. I would be interested in that. Thx. I'm enjoying this march through the long list.
I enjoyed it way more than Held or Orbital. I liked the characters and the interactions, but I was left wanting a bit more depth or something akin to depth.
