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Star of the Sea
 
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Star of the Sea (Paperback)

by Joseph O'Connor (Author)
4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
RRP: £7.99
Price: £5.99 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Product details

  • Paperback: 432 pages
  • Publisher: Vintage; New edition edition (1 Jan 2004)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0099469626
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099469629
  • Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 13 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (66 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 13,808 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in these categories:

    #1 in  Books > Fiction > Authors, A-Z > O > O'Connor, Joseph
    #13 in  Books > Fiction > World > Irish

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Product Description

Amazon.co.uk Review
Tragedy is a word too often used. Nevertheless, in Star of the Sea Joseph O'Connor manages to achieve a real sense of the tragic, as personal dramas of the most distressing kind play themselves out against the background of the Irish potato famine and the almost equal nightmare of the mass emigration that it caused. As passengers die of starvation and disease in steerage, a drama of adultery, inadvertent incest and inherited disease plays itself out in first class. O'Connor raises, and does not attempt definitively to answer, real questions about responsibility and choice.

Bankrupt aristocrat Meredith is emigrating, pursued by the hatred of his tenants and the memory of his mad-hero father. His children's nurse, Mary, has memories of lost love to torment her, as well as of the husband and child who died of hunger. And the ballad singer Mulvey has both his monstrous past and the certain promise that he will be tortured to death by the Liable Men should he not kill Meredith. This is a kaleidoscopic novel, whose events are seen in many idioms, from many points of view--it is a rich novel that knows that there are limits to the sense that can be made of history. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review
Praise for Joseph O'Connor's "Inishowen":
"This is a tremendous book; affecting, intelligent, ironic, humane and utterly convincing. It is also
extremely funny." -- "Spectator"
"His writing is terrific." -- Roddy Doyle

"From the Hardcover edition."

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Star of the Sea
91% buy the item featured on this page:
Star of the Sea 4.2 out of 5 stars (66)
£5.99
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Customer Reviews

66 Reviews
5 star:
 (38)
4 star:
 (14)
3 star:
 (7)
2 star:
 (3)
1 star:
 (4)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.2 out of 5 stars (66 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
50 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Illuminating, compelling and stylish, 5 Mar 2004
By Neil Madle (Chippenham, Wiltshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
I devoured this novel on a recent vacation to Florida, making a nice counterpoint to traipsing around DisneyWorld with the kids. It is undoubtedly one of the finest novels I've read in the last couple of years.
O'Connor's characters are astonishingly well drawn. Set firmly in the historical context, one could quite easily believe they existed, though the nearest thing to a narrator – Grantley Dixon - is perhaps the least believable figure and potentially the novel's only weak point.
All the key POV characters - Merredith, Mulvey, Mary Duane - are drawn in shades of grey. Indeed, Pius Mulvey is an extremely sympathetic protagonist until events and his own dark urges take him beyond the point of no return on the road to Leeds. It’s at this point that all sympathy is lost. Even the secondary characters – Captain Lockwood, Rev Deedes, Nicholas Mulvey, Laura Merredith – are nicely delineated. O’Connor has a genuine gift for characterisation.
The novel’s structure is likewise fascinating. In many ways it resembles Stoker’s Dracula in its use of diary accounts, letters and recollections from multiple viewpoints. By wrapping the whole story up in authentic trappings, the novel has the air of a historical document. Even if these stylistic flourishes are disregarded, you’re left with a truly compelling plot and a nice final twist.
Star of the Sea is polemical without being naïve. It’s heart wrenching without becoming soapy (far from it). It’s understandably downbeat without being depressing. Above all, it’s a great tale derived from a dark chapter in the history of these Isles and the author is a massive talent.
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20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A pleasant surprise, 3 Mar 2004
By MR PATRICK J BYRNE (Dublin, Ireland) - See all my reviews
I hadn't previously read Joe O'Connor, a writer with a high profile in Ireland (he is the brother of the singer, Sinead O'Connor).
This is a gem of a book, stylishly writen and extremely well researched. The watershed years of the Irish famine have not, to my knowledge, been tackled before and I learned a great deal about this era. Characters are well drawn and the writer even manages to elicit some sympathy for the odious Mulvey. Many of the contemporary illustrations, letters and lyrics which are interspersed between chapters are extremely illuminating and I found myself coming back to these even after finishing the book.
The faux research style of the journalist Dixon grates in places and the ending is rather more long-winded than it could be, but all-in-all this book is highly recommended.
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19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars What a wonderful read....., 4 Feb 2004
By jjb "jojab9" (Hampshire, England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Star of the Sea (Hardcover)
'Star of the Sea'is one of the few novels that I have sat and read in one go. Not only is this a sound and clever story with twists, intrigue and all the page turning attributes you want from a book, but O'Connor's use of language is breathtaking.

This book is as much about language as it is about the story and, because the language is so good, so the characters are brilliantly drawn.
If you aspire to write books then you should look to this as a standard text. It is a wonderful read.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars AMAZING!
I read this novel after it came highly recommended from a literary friend. At first I have to admit that the book was a slow starter but as I read past the first 3 or so chapters... Read more
Published 3 months ago by N. Creer

3.0 out of 5 stars Star of the Sea
Star of the Sea has lived up to the report I had read before purchasing. It is well written and the story does become compelling as it goes along and I shall look for other books... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Mrs. G. V. Rayment

5.0 out of 5 stars Four and half stars...
.....but the system doesn't do halves so I went up to 5.
I have been disappointed with Richard and Judy recommendations in the past - House at Riverton, ok but... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Ms. F. Mccarthy

5.0 out of 5 stars Engrossing - encyclopeadic - unique
Original narrative style - took a while to get into but glad I kept at it. May not be to everyone's taste but personally I enjoyed the unique presentation. Read more
Published 5 months ago by DaisyBelle

5.0 out of 5 stars Murder mystery

I thought it was a brilliant book but terribly depressing - the only thing in its favour is that it makes our economic events of today seem not so bad! Read more
Published 5 months ago by C. Davis

4.0 out of 5 stars but it's not funny
a great book ---- a great read ---- I loved it ---- but 2 reviews on the cover say that it's 'funny' (one says 'hilarious') All I can say is that the Irish must have a very... Read more
Published 9 months ago by P. A. Gordon

5.0 out of 5 stars A modern classic
I loved this book! I was not expecting this book to be as good as the reviews but was surprised. The characters were superb, each one jumping out of the page. Read more
Published 11 months ago by DS

4.0 out of 5 stars A very well built story
I did really enjoy the reading of this book. A captivating story set back at the time of the Great Famine, one of the darkests periods in Irish history. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Francesconi Alessandra

4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable froth
Star of the Sea is a good old fashioned tale of adventure and romance on the high seas. Most of the passengers of the eponymous ship are fleeing Ireland, a country brought to its... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Ingaborga

4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully woven tale revealing a shocking history
I have to agree with the majority of the previous reviews. This a beautifully woven tale revealing a shocking history; a chapter from British history of which I was not aware and... Read more
Published 15 months ago by P. Bilzon

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