 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "A Star Called Henry" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(October 2007) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
 First edition | |
| Author | Roddy Doyle |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | The Last Roundup |
| Genre | Historical fiction |
| Publisher | Jonathan Cape |
Publication date | 1999 |
| Publication place | Ireland |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 352 |
| ISBN | 978-0-224-06019-6 |
| OCLC | 57672557 |
| Followed by | Oh, Play That Thing |
A Star Called Henry (1999) is a novel byIrish writerRoddy Doyle. It is Vol. 1 ofThe Last Roundup series. The second installment of the series,Oh, Play That Thing, was published in 2004. The third,The Dead Republic, was published in 2010. The book follows the early life of Henry Smart, from his childhood in the slums of early 20th century Dublin to his involvement in theEaster Rising and theIrish War of Independence.
The novel is set in Ireland in the era of political upheaval between the 1916Easter Rising and the eventual truce signed with the United Kingdom in 1921, seen through the eyes of young Henry Smart, from his childhood to early twenties. Henry, as a member of theIrish Citizen Army, becomes personally acquainted with several historical characters, includingPatrick Pearse,James Connolly andMichael Collins. Energized by Sinn Féin's victory in the general election of 1918 and the party's establishment of the independent Irish Republic, Henry trained the men in theSoloheadbeg Ambush, the first engagement of the Irish War of Independence.
Later, he becomes a gunman in the ensuing guerilla war against the British, setting barracks on fire, shootingG-men and training others to do the same. At the end of the novel, Henry comes to think that the endless violence and killing of innocent people has little to do with the concept of a free Ireland, or the prospect of a better life in Ireland and more about personal gain.
In the novel, Doyle takes an approach similar toLittle Big Man,Forrest Gump, andZelig in introducing a fictional character in an historical setting and having that character interact with real historical characters. An early example in the novel is whenJames Connolly shows Henry a draft of the1916 proclamation and Henry suggests adding the line "cherishing all the children of the nation equally".
One cover to "A Star Called Henry" features a young member of theIrish Republican Army on patrol. The young man in question is Phil McRory.[1]
.jpg)
While Doyle had addressed issues in his previous novels that indicated hisrevisionist andatheist perspective on Irish history before, in A Star Called Henry he tackled these ideas at a far more ambitious scale. Many reviews of the book took issue with his political opinions rather than the novel itself;[2][3] however, aspects of the writing were criticised too. The novel was nominated for aBad Sex Award in 1999.[4]
Irish reviewers with their own opinions of Irish history tended to be more reserved in their appraisal of the novel than British and American reviewers. Richard Bernstein inThe New York Times noted that "Doyle's new novel never lets up. It is an unrelenting tumult of events recounted with tremendous verbal intensity. But it also seems much of the time to be tumult and intensity for its own sake -- a contrived larger-than-lifeness." and that "The prodigal, extravagant quality of Doyle's new book is evident from the beginning ...".[5]The A.V. Club described it as "extraordinary" and said that "Doyle has fashioned a gratifyingly complex character around which to build his series".[6]
InThe Guardian, Roy Foster notes "The novel's greatest triumph is to recreate this world in Doyle's distinctive shorthand, without any creaky historical set pieces, and make it utterly convincing".[7]
In German-speaking countries it provoked mixed reactions. Reviewers with a penchant for Irish literature and history tended to rate it positively, while critics without this specialist knowledge sometimes rejected the novel. Doyle's language in particular is controversial, the content is perceived as too vulgar and unnecessarily brutal, the style is too artificial.[8]
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)| International | |
|---|---|
| Other | |
<https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/books/99/09/05/daily/091099doyle-book-review.html> <https://www.theguardian.com/books/1999/aug/29/fiction.roddydoyle>
