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149th out of 291 books
—
277 voters
The First Verse
by
Barry McCrea
This memorable debut novel explores Dublin's every corner, including a first-of-its-kind portrayal of its thriving gay nightlife, through the eyes of a young man seduced by a secret society's ancient reading rituals, based on the sortes virgilianae. In brilliant prose, author Barry McCrea gives readers a psychologically gripping tale set within the intertwining worlds of l...more
Paperback, 320 pages
Published
May 18th 2005
by Carroll & Graf
(first published 2005)
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Niall Lenihan is entering his first year at Trinity Dublin, as one of two Beckett Scholars. He's somewhat young for his age - bookish and inexperienced; not yet out of the closet to anyone and still nursing an unrequited crush on Patrick, a popular, athletic, and decidedly straight, school chum. As Niall is settling into his rooms at university, a mysterious young man calls him by name from the courtyard below his window and serenades him with the first verse of a traditional song, "Oranges and...more
This is a pretty impressive first novel. It follows Niall, a young student from Sandycove, Dublin as he enters university at Trinity College Dublin to study French and English as a Beckett scholar. So, of course, I was going to read this no matter what. The book traces through one of my favorite cities, in the neighborhoods I used to haunt as a student, and the main character reminds me so much of one of my long-lost dear high school friends that reading the book was almost like a reunion. And t...more
What I liked the best about The First Verse was the plot. I thought the idea was very interesting, and the way McCrea portrays it makes it mysterious and understandable at the same time. The premise of the novel is a cult of people who "read" books. Meaning, they talk themselves into a trance, and then feel their way to a bookshelf, to a book, to a page, to a line on that page, and then that answers the question in their mind. I'd like to come up with original plots like this in my writing.
This is about a young and closeted gay man - very young, I kept forgetting he was not even 20 as he often seemed older to me - who goes to university and meets some people who bring him into their book-based cult: they consult random books and random passages to answer questions about their lives and to divine the future. Great concept but I, like other reviewers, found the ending abrupt and tacked on - interesting but somehow unsatisfying.
So, I found this book completely captivating.
Until the ending.
The end was a total and complete cop-out on the part of the author. It was like he was bored with continued writing, and slapped a "And they lived happy ever after, the end" ending on the plot. It was really rather sad, how he closed out the book. I was hooked in, the plot was moving along with incredible page-turning speed, and then it ended. Kaput. Just like that. *Way* before I thought the plot was ready to close.
I left it sadly d...more
Until the ending.
The end was a total and complete cop-out on the part of the author. It was like he was bored with continued writing, and slapped a "And they lived happy ever after, the end" ending on the plot. It was really rather sad, how he closed out the book. I was hooked in, the plot was moving along with incredible page-turning speed, and then it ended. Kaput. Just like that. *Way* before I thought the plot was ready to close.
I left it sadly d...more
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I read this novel several years ago. It's about a sort of cult that sucks the main character in as he very much wants to belive that something amazing might be happening that marks him out as a special person. That's the way I felt about the book - there was something mezmerizing about it and made it very hard to forget. You end up feeling as overwhelmed as the main character as you read it - fascinating
Unique premise that kept me engaged through the first third of the book, but the remainder was so dense/tiresome that I couldn't finish it. Fault the reader for that - I found the central character SO. INCESSANTLY. GRATING. that I was unwilling to tolerate another page of his antics.
Still, I'll give the author his due for an original plot and a gift with language. Would definitely give McCrea another go in the future.
Still, I'll give the author his due for an original plot and a gift with language. Would definitely give McCrea another go in the future.
Every mystery novel about literature starts with 3 stars. The fourth comes because this is a quite interesting plot, light despite its topic, and quite fun. The amazing work of writing this patchwork of travel guides and Agatha Christie novels is also impressive.
However, there is not a fifth star. Plot goes mad towards the end, rather out-of-hand for the writer. It seems that characters had gained independence and autonomy, but their novel is more volatile and vague than the previous one written...more
However, there is not a fifth star. Plot goes mad towards the end, rather out-of-hand for the writer. It seems that characters had gained independence and autonomy, but their novel is more volatile and vague than the previous one written...more
Dublin youth Niall Lenihan is a college freshman, closeted and adjusting to the freedom of being away from home for the first time. After a series of mysterious incidents, Niall becomes intrigued with graduate student, Sarah (and attracted to her sidekick, John), after she introduces him to a fortune-telling method derived from reading the first verse of a randomly chosen page in a book. Niall's fascination turns into a dangerous obsession, where every decision he makes is controlled by these se...more
I don't normally like books of this intensity, but it showed a dark side of mysticism and a sort of chanting to obtain alterred consciousness, something that I like to do. made me think a lot about how this was diff. from my experiences of oneness and what brings in the light and avoids the addiction and despair described here.
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Interesting concept, but didn't really find myself caring about the characters. Finished it mostly out of curiosity.
Bastante simple. La idea es interesante pero podía haber aprovechado mucho más la historia.
I really enjoyed reading the novel and then it started to fizzle out on me towards the end. It is about Niall, a college student from Dublin, who finds himself wrapped up in a book cult. He tries to enter a secret society almost with Sarah & John. He first saw the "game" played at a party and quickly became intrigued with Sarah & John's abilities. They ask questions out loud, and find the answers in random books, reading the random "first verse" that they land on... He alienates himself...more
This is a good novel, frightening in the real sense of the term inasmuch as the hero takes you along with him from sublimination, to obsession to insanity. All this in Dublin, with a strong literary backdrop; how much better can it get? My problem is that I filled in the blanks of the book with such zeal that I ended up thinking that the hero's two companions were avatars of himself created by his deranged mind. Not the case, from what I gathered from the McCrea's online interviews I read. So no...more
Jul 29, 2011
Greg Wolfson
added it
there is a story here somewhere....
by far an all time favorite
Fascinating and confusing story about a young gay man in Dublin who gets caught up in a book cult. They use random passages from books and strange rituals to answer important questions, predict the future, and try to connect to a larger, more mystical organization. It's heartbreaking to watch him tear apart his life, hurt people around him and drive himself insane trying to access deeper and deeper meanings, driving himself on a mad search for the people who got him swept up in this.
Aug 26, 2012
Diana
added it
Interesting in the beginning, strong in the middle but in the last part I got disapponted. I really don't like how it finished.
I first read an excerpt from this novel in a short fiction anthology a few years back. Though I leapt into this book with high hopes, in the end I couldn't get through it. Somewhere in the middle the prose just felt so leaden, it was only by sheer effort that I could make my way through page by page. I finally abandoned the effort and donated it to a college library.
A very satisfying novel: a mysterious book cult, modern day Dublin, the struggles of a young gay man and his life in the closet, academic pressure, peer pressure, and well-crafted prose. Brilliant descriptions. I couldn't get enough of it.
The story was weak, but the game is fun! Finding "signs" in books by asking the question and thumbing the pages made for a fun bookclub meeting.
Aug 08, 2008
†††๑۩۞۩๑morticia Schatten๑۩۞۩๑†††
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
everyone
... quite a good book, but I would preferred having another kind of end...
May 13, 2013
Don Brookes
added it
Apr 29, 2013
Gillian
added it
Apr 22, 2013
Brian
marked it as to-read
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McCrea is an Irish writer and academic. He grew up in Dalkey, Co. Dublin, and was educated at the Jesuit Gonzaga College, and Trinity College, Dublin (1993–1997) where he studied French and Spanish literature. He received a Ph.D from Princeton University in 2004, and currently teaches Comparative Literature at Yale University.
His novel The First Verse was published by Carroll & Graf in 2005. I...more
More about Barry McCrea...
His novel The First Verse was published by Carroll & Graf in 2005. I...more
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