Young Skins in Around the World in 80 Books

Oct 05, 2014 Sam rated it liked it

Shelves: reviewed, 1-contemp-literary, 3-short-stories, read-2015

Wow. Are there any Irish writers out there who *aren’t* expert wielders of clever, aching lyricism? I hope I never find them.

Barrett’s writing is as lyrical as all of the blurbs on the cover promised. But I was a jerk in the fact that initially I kept comparing the stories to those of Barrett’s compatriot, Kevin Barry, who can, just in a few sentences, evoke the shit out of a scene—frustrations built up, hurts experienced, whole lives lived, basically. But I couldn’t help it; the first few stor ...more

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Jul 22, 2024 Tony rated it it was amazing

Shelves: adapted-for-film, short-stories, setting-ireland

The six stories and novella that make up this debut collection take place in a fictional small town in western Ireland, somewhere in Connacht, not far from the Atlantic. It's introduced in the opening lines of the first story ("The Clancy Kid"): "My town is nowhere you've been, but you know it's ilk." And so the reader is off for a wander through this anonymous town via slices of the lives of its younger generation, who don't have much to look forward to.

There's Jimmy, who's been dumped by his The six stories and novella that make up this debut collection take place in a fictional small town in western Ireland, somewhere in Connacht, not far from the Atlantic. It's introduced in the opening lines of the first story ("The Clancy Kid"): "My town is nowhere you've been, but you know it's ilk." And so the reader is off for a wander through this anonymous town via slices of the lives of its younger generation, who don't have much to look forward to.

There's Jimmy, who's been dumped by his girl, nursing a Sunday night hangover with his wobbly friend Tug, facing another long week of nothing. In "Bait", Teddy and his cousin Matteen drive aimlessly around town until they pick up Matten's ex-girlfriend and her pal, and they all end up down at a bar where Matteen earns his weekly money beating people at pool. Things take a turn, with violence always hovering just over the horizon.

In "The Moon" a bouncer at a bar/club ruminates on the end of the summer and his brief secret affair with the boss's daughter, who's back from university in Galway. "Stand Your Skin" is another story in which the loneliness of a man stuck in his own circumstances is at the fore. "Bats" works at the big service station/market alongside a teenage girl and a college boy on his summer break. Ever since getting arbitrarily kicked in the face by the town bully years ago, he's kept his head down and avoided everyone. The college boy's final night drinks outing highlights Bats' disconnection and lack of future.

"Calm with Horses" is a novella-length story about Arm, the muscle for local weed-dealer Dympna. He's got an autistic daughter with a woman he's no longer with but wishes he could be, and spends his days shadowing Dympna, listening to his nonsense. Dympna's mad country uncles supply their weed, and things take a turn... (This was made into a film under the same name, but also titled in some streaming services as "The Shadow of Violence.")

"Diamonds" follows a man who's come back to his small town after destroying his life in the city, granted an easy job as caretaker at the school where he once showed great promise. It's a variation on the familiar story -of a self-destructive addict. And "Kindly Forget My Existence" is a vignette of two middle-aged men who were once friends and had a band together in the 80s now waiting for the funeral cortege of the woman and bandmate they both loved.

The overall effect is a portrait of a place where people (mostly men) remain stuck in webs of their own psychic making, unable to free themselves of the patterns of life, mistakes, and lack of imagination that holds them in place. The writing itself is quite lively, with language that pops without quite straying into being flashy. It's not hard to imagine a tasty short novel coming next, and I'll definitely be watching out for whatever Barrett does next. ...more

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