- Mass Market Paperback: 352 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (Sep 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0142003603
- ISBN-13: 978-0142003602
- Product Dimensions: 19.9 x 12.6 x 1.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 5,475,972 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Rory & Ita
and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Surprisingly, Rory and Ita is Roddy Doyle's first non-fiction book and recounts (largely in their own words) the tale of his parents' lives from their first memories to the present. Doyle is (as his publishers proudly claim) "Ireland's most famous living writer", and his storytelling acumen (matched with an impeccable knack for conveying with maximum vividness the day-to-day detail of his colourfully-drawn locales) has made his books essential reading for anyone interested in contemporary writing. He is, of course, very funny--and who says writing of real distinction should not have us laughing uproariously? Books such as The Snapper and The Commitments proved this beyond doubt.
Rory and Ita is something new in his work--rarely have a writer's parents been brought to life in such vivid, tender detail--and rarely have two outwardly ordinary people had such fascinatingly offbeat, surprising lives.
Born in 1923 and 1925 respectively, the couple have a total recall of every detail of their Dublin childhoods, their eccentric relatives and, crucially, the politics (both came from Republican families). Inevitably, some of Doyle's keenest followers may be wary of this departure from his customarily idiosyncratic novels (even the much-acclaimed A Star called Henry wrongfooted many readers with its marked departure from the areas we customarily associated with Doyle), but Rory and Ita is actually quite as entertaining as any of Doyle's fiction. His parents come across as remarkable talkers (his mother, in particular, has some very surprising tales to tell), and the book (with its rich and colourful portrait of a country caught between the backwardness of religious repression and the indomitable human spirit of its people) creates a picture of a very human and often very funny world that has now all but vanished. Doyle enthusiasts may hesitate--but they'd be wise to add this one to their libraries, as it has all the insight and humour of the author's best work. --Barry Forshaw --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
'A moving and delightful book' Independent Ita Doyle: 'In all my life I have lived in two houses, had two jobs, and one husband. I'm a very interesting person'
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product)
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a simple story about Roddy Doyles parents through a series of interviews. The author attempt to record his parents life stories into a novel is successful. His parents are just ordinary people who re-tell times of old, holidays in wexford, work life in Dublin, the buying of their first house.
It is a very good insight into Dublin - Ireland of old. Sometimes difficult to follow and the story's flow can be lost for a time when Rory or Ita minds meander. Not for everybody.
7 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Rory and Ita Doyle seem like very, very nice people. As you read this book you can picture them chatting happily, reminiscing on the good and not-so-good times, pouring cups of tea and being generally pleasant people. But that's all that can be said about this book in all honesty. If, like me, you're a Roddy Doyle fan you won't get much out of this I'm afraid, as the book is narrated from start to finish by the titular couple, and Roddy is only briefly referred to in a footnote as "you."
As nice as this book is, I finished it and felt distinctly underwhelmed. It's not a book for Doyle fans as he didn't really write it (the book is merely a transcript of their taped reminiscences), nor is it a book for those who like biographies as, well, the Doyle's aren't exactly famous nor have they really done anything. My greatest feeling was that this book was written for the Doyles themselves, as an exercise in telling their story before it was too late.
So, who would really enjoy this book? I think the only people who would really get anything from this book would be those who know the Doyles, and the Doyle family themselves. As for the rest of us, let's just wait for the next volume of Doyle's "The Last Round-Up" trilogy.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3 reviews
11 of 14 people found the following review helpful
2 and a half, really
23 Nov 2002
Format:Hardcover
Sorry to say this makes two disappointing ones in a row for the otherwise terrific Roddy Doyle.Here he essentially transcribes and edits his parents' memoirs. I couldn't help thinking what a great present this book is for his family. By the same token, this oral history doesn't contain a story that will knock the reader out. This criticism comes in spite of the facts that I can't help liking his parents and it was presented coherently. Predictably, the author's family background pales significantly to his characters'. That I should have counted on.
Alternately, Kevin Kearns' often hilarious oral history series on pre-WWII inner-Dublin is definitely worthwhile.
Alternately, Kevin Kearns' often hilarious oral history series on pre-WWII inner-Dublin is definitely worthwhile.
They are just not that interesting
8 Mar 2008
Format:Hardcover
Rory and Ita strike me as nice people who have worked hard; I just wish I could say they led lives that I found interesting. I admire Doyle for honoring his parents this way, but to put it bluntly, this was boring. Growing up, finding work, finding each other, a story that's been told a million times and most of the time in more interesting ways than can be found in this book. After 338 pages, Rory and Ita still remain ciphers, there's no real emotional depth on display; it's just the story of two people who led ordinary lives. That concept can often lead to a wondrous work of art, just not this time.
3 of 5 people found the following review helpful
If you lose your job,it's the boat to England...
7 Feb 2004
Format:Mass Market Paperback
I've read all of Roddy Doyle's books,and no doubt about it,this one is totally different.
This is not a book about Roddy,as a matter of fact it is not really a book by Roddy at all.
This is a book by Rory and Ita Doyle and about their lives and the lives of their parents,grandparents,families and friends.Not only it is written through their eyes and by them,Roddy is hardly even mentioned .His only involvement would seem to have been the catalyst between his parents and the publishers to make the book happen.
Having said that,I found it a very well written and interesting read.It beautifully desceibes the lives,hopes,trials,tribulations,joys,sadness,struggles,family relations,friends,working,religious and all the other things involved in living in Ireland;during most of the 20th.Century.
In many ways it was not all that different where I grew up in Nova Scotia,where many were of Irish and Scottish descent.
In both places,as well as the rest of Europe and America,things were tough,jobs were hard to find,money was tight,but people survived,and in many ways were just as happy as today.
My parents were born about 20 years earlier than Rory and Ita, and went through much the same things that they did working,creating a home and raising a family.I suppose that the biggest difference was that WW1 and WW2 affected things much differently here and The War of Independence certainly had profound effects there.But, inspite of those events ,life went on.
Therefore;as a book that describes the way life went on throughout the 20th Century for a middle class family in Ireland,it is excellent.Wouldn't every family love to have one?It seems to me it would be a much more treasured heirloom than Great Grandmothers drop-leaf table.
This is not a book about Roddy,as a matter of fact it is not really a book by Roddy at all.
This is a book by Rory and Ita Doyle and about their lives and the lives of their parents,grandparents,families and friends.Not only it is written through their eyes and by them,Roddy is hardly even mentioned .His only involvement would seem to have been the catalyst between his parents and the publishers to make the book happen.
Having said that,I found it a very well written and interesting read.It beautifully desceibes the lives,hopes,trials,tribulations,joys,sadness,struggles,family relations,friends,working,religious and all the other things involved in living in Ireland;during most of the 20th.Century.
In many ways it was not all that different where I grew up in Nova Scotia,where many were of Irish and Scottish descent.
In both places,as well as the rest of Europe and America,things were tough,jobs were hard to find,money was tight,but people survived,and in many ways were just as happy as today.
My parents were born about 20 years earlier than Rory and Ita, and went through much the same things that they did working,creating a home and raising a family.I suppose that the biggest difference was that WW1 and WW2 affected things much differently here and The War of Independence certainly had profound effects there.But, inspite of those events ,life went on.
Therefore;as a book that describes the way life went on throughout the 20th Century for a middle class family in Ireland,it is excellent.Wouldn't every family love to have one?It seems to me it would be a much more treasured heirloom than Great Grandmothers drop-leaf table.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
