- Paperback: 304 pages
- Publisher: Faber and Faber; First Edition edition (7 April 2005)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0571218008
- ISBN-13: 978-0571218004
- Product Dimensions: 23.2 x 15.8 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 400,019 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
A Long Long Way
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Product Description
Independent
'Unsurpassed in First World War fiction, A Long Long Way is a small masterpiece with an exhilarating resoluteness and authority.'
Sunday Times
'A beautifully written book with human value.'
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
74 of 74 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I read this book a few months ago and when I finished it I felt I had to read it again to capture some of the powerful descriptions of human feelings, love, fear, confusion, betrayal, disappointment, compradeship, etc., I picked it up again last week and have enjoyed reading every page of it a second time.
In this book Sebastian Barry has dealt with a subject rarely even talked about until recently in Ireland. That is, the dilemna of 1916 when Irishmen were fighting against Britain in Dublin while at the same time Irishmen were fighting in WW1.
This is the human side of that dilemna. As Colm Toibin says on the cover of the book "This is Sebastian Barry's song of innocence and experience composed with poetic grace and eye, both unflinching and tender, for savage detail and moments of pure beauty. It is also an astonishing display of Barry's gift for creating a memorable character, whome he has written, indelibly, back into a history which continues to haunt us".
In this book Sebastian Barry has dealt with a subject rarely even talked about until recently in Ireland. That is, the dilemna of 1916 when Irishmen were fighting against Britain in Dublin while at the same time Irishmen were fighting in WW1.
This is the human side of that dilemna. As Colm Toibin says on the cover of the book "This is Sebastian Barry's song of innocence and experience composed with poetic grace and eye, both unflinching and tender, for savage detail and moments of pure beauty. It is also an astonishing display of Barry's gift for creating a memorable character, whome he has written, indelibly, back into a history which continues to haunt us".
79 of 80 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I'm not really one for war novels but was drawn to this because of its focus on Irish soldiers fighting in the Great War against the backdrop of the Easter Rising in their own country (I'm Irish myself) and because it was nominated for the Booker Prize. I whizzed through 'The Da Vinci Code' before this (well, I thought it was about time that I knew what people were going on about) and found it a blessed relief to savour the poetic prose of Sebastian Barry's novel after the dross of Dan Brown's. Barry describes interactions and interiority with poetic insight, so much so that I re-read many passages, just to taste properly all that they had to offer. However, some of his graphic descriptions of the field of battle are stomach-churning - and so they should be. In Willie Dunne, he creates a deeply empathic character whose growing sense of out-of-placeness and disillusionment with the discourses of war build incrementally across the novel. I found the end both shocking and deeply moving. This is a superbly crafted book that I would recommend unreservedly.
32 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I don't like using big words when describing books. But I think I will have to do it this time around. A Long Long Way is one of the best novels I have read in a long time. Let me explain.
I've long been interested in fiction that takes place in a war or is in someway related to a war situation. At first because of the action, but as I grew up I liked to read about how people react in a war situation. Following Willie Dunne's ordeals I felt so many pains, so many sorrows. Sebastian Barry shows great depth in describing both the conflicts of war but more importantly the agonies of war, the fear and hopes of the soldiers. I'm not a big fan of poetry. But in this case I think the fact that Sebastian Barry is a poet as well as a novelist and dramatist may explain why his style is so good, so capable of conveying emotion (mind you I haven't read any of his poetry).
A Long Long Way is perhaps the best novel I've read in a long time. If I try to categorize it as war fiction it tops all the books I´ve read recently (Doctorow's The March - good -, Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried - very good -) and war related fiction such as Gunther Grass's Crabwalk - very good - and Ismail Kadare's General of the Dead Army - somewhat disappointing.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Can you sling them on your shoulder?
Sebastian Barry's approach to this subject is, I think, relatively rare, in that it tells the story of World War One from the point of view of Irish recruits. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Eileen Shaw
More than just a war story!
This was one of the best books I have read since joining the Kindle brigade in December. The storyline has been outlined in many other reviews so I won't repeat it. Read more
Published 1 month ago by kindletime
Very Irish
This book worked on many levels. As a Great War novel, it was differentiated from others by telling the story from the perspective of the Irish who had their own issues with the... Read more
Published 1 month ago by Longshanks
A truly moving book
I was initially drawn to this book by the subject matter which was the source of much media coverage following the recent visit of the queen to Ireland. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Mr Q
A Long Long Way
As far as first world war stories go this one was fairly typical. Guy goes to war, people die, you know the drift. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Lucybird
Unforgettable
I finished reading "A long, long way" a week ago and I cannot forget it. I don't think I have ever read such a heartbreaking story, written with such feeling and tenderness that... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mrs. M. Bridge
A Long Long Way
I am deeply moved by this story of a hopeless and homeless soldier. even though I am a Chinese knowing nothing about Easter Rising, the human story told touches every soul.
Published 3 months ago by Dan
Ireland Uprising and Down in the Trenches
For some reason I am drawn to read a lot of books, both factual and fictional, about the two major wars of the twentieth century. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Lady Fancifull
A damned good read!
A Long Long Way
This book is my first taste of Barry and I am not disappointed. He has all the 'earthiness' I enjoy in an author. Read more
This book is my first taste of Barry and I am not disappointed. He has all the 'earthiness' I enjoy in an author. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Ainetheon
Kindle formatting lets a great book down
Why oh why do publishers think that, while they offer a printed book with text formatted to both sides of the page ("Justified"), an electronic book should be sent out totally... Read more
Published 4 months ago by M. J. Harris
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