The Deportees
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Roddy Doyle brings us up to date with the changing face of Celtic Tiger Dublin, including at least one well-known character, still on the hustle, from his much-acclaimed book "The Commitments", plus a whole host of immigrants whose scarily-amusing experiences are matched by the Dubliners who attempt to welcome them.
Recommended.
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Hilarious
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Buy it, read it, fall about laughing. This is a return to his best - witty and observant. Haven't laughed this much while reading a book for a long time. Highly recommended.
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Talking Roddy Doyle Blues
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`The Deportees' is an anthology of stories written by Roddy Doyle for `Metro Eireann', a newspaper started by, and aimed at immigrants to Ireland. So rather than be a straight anthology of short stories, the stories are themed either as a story written about an immigrant to Ireland or a native Irishman coming to terms with his newly found multicultural society. As a nation the Irish are used to supplying not receiving immigrant labour and receiving not supplying racial prejudice, it is undoubtedly an interesting paradox, but can Doyle's unquestionable talent make any sense of it.
The first story of the collection `Guess Who's Coming for the Dinner' is probably the most successful and certainly the most entertaining. Larry Linnane has always prided himself on the his daughters sensibilities and that they could be trusted to always independently do the right thing, he has never had any need to worry, until that is, one of them brings a `Black Fella' home for dinner. Larry's awkwardness and the care that he chooses his next clumsy fopaux is a wonder to behold.
The title story involves Jimmy Rabbitte, the man who brought `The Commitments' to the world starting a new multicultural band `The Deportees' using the Dust Bowl songs of Woody Guthrie to spell out the immigrants lot to their hosts, willing or otherwise. It is perhaps that this is such a good premise or possibly the weight of following a character from such a successful novel as `The Commitments' that means this story was never going to live up to its expectation.
Of the other stories `57% Irish' is possibly hampered by its Irvine Welch brand of surrealism not fitting nicely on Doyle's shoulders. `The Pram', again suffers, from being written as a psychological ghost story which does not sit well with Doyle's warm narrative and dialogue. The remaining four stories possibly fit the books concept best but the short form doesn't allow the characters to grow into the sympathetic hero's of Doyle's novels.
I did enjoy the book but I wouldn't count it amongst Roddy Doyle's greatest work, I think it forgets the importance of not being overtly earnest.
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