16 used & new from £0.01
See All Buying Options
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
 
An Evening of Long Goodbyes
 
 
Share your own customer images
Search inside another edition of this book

An Evening of Long Goodbyes (Paperback)

by Paul Murray (Author) "A black wind was blowing outside the bow window ..." (more)
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

Available from these sellers.


2 new from £4.12 14 used from £0.01
Other Editions: RRP: Our Price: Other Offers:
Hardcover 10 used & new from £1.00
Paperback £8.99 £6.99 34 used & new from £0.01

Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Hood

Hood

by Emma Donoghue
4.2 out of 5 stars (4) 
The International

The International

by Glenn Patterson
4.6 out of 5 stars (7)  £6.29
Eureka Street

Eureka Street

by Robert McLiam Wilson
4.9 out of 5 stars (17)  £5.97
What are You Like?

What are You Like?

by Anne Enright
3.5 out of 5 stars (4)  £5.49
The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

by John Boyne
4.0 out of 5 stars (346)  £4.23
› Explore similar items

Product details

  • Paperback: 465 pages
  • Publisher: Hamish Hamilton Ltd (1 May 2003)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0241141818
  • ISBN-13: 978-0241141816
  • Product Dimensions: 21.7 x 13.6 x 3.5 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 1,318,868 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    •  Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?

Product Description

Review

As the technological revolution and economic boom begin their descent on Charles Hythloday's ancestral pile outside Dublin, he finds his privileged life of cocktails and crumpets under threat. While his idealistic sister Bel tries to embrace this opportunistic new world, in the person of the insalubrious Frank, Charles clings stubbornly to his preferred patrician values of idleness and alcoholism. However, this world begins to disappear from beneath him, not to mention the piano, the ottoman, and the contents of his extensive wine cellar.... With Charles as our charming but dissolute host, we meet a varied cast of down-at-heel aristocrats, mushrooming bourgeoisie, and a phlegmatic criminal underclass, as well as Bosnian refugees and, bizarrely, Yeats. Wickedly funny dialogue and a farcical turn of events make for a chuckle a page, until some darkly hinted secrets begin to make their presence felt. As Charles's muddled attempts to look after his unhappy sister and regain his life of ease seem to be going awry, the Hythloday siblings find themselves entangled in an artistic endeavour for the good of the community... but whose interests are they really serving? Clever and compelling, this is one to read when you want the serious diluted with the silly. (Kirkus UK)


Product Description

An extremely assured and wonderfully funny first novel with a rollicking plot - and at its heart an extremely touching and believable relationship between a twenty-something brother and sister. AN EVENING OF LONG GOODBYES tells the story of Charles and his sister Bel. They live in a crumbling old house outside Dublin where Charles is indolently escaping from real life while Bel strives to live life to the full. Both are romantics; both are trying to find their way in the world without losing themselves, each other and the things they hold dear. And all kinds of things happen along the way: there are fistfights, greyhound races, explosions, many cases of mistaken identity, unwise love affairs and more...
See all Product Description
Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
First Sentence
A black wind was blowing outside the bow window. Read the first page
Explore More
Concordance
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Tag this product

 (What's this?)
Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.
Your tags: Add your first tag
 
See most popular tags

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

An Evening of Long Goodbyes
78% buy the item featured on this page:
An Evening of Long Goodbyes 4.5 out of 5 stars (11)
A Journey with Jonah: The Spirituality of Bewilderment
22% buy
A Journey with Jonah: The Spirituality of Bewilderment
£5.39
Explore similar items
 

Customer Reviews

11 Reviews
5 star:
 (7)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (1)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.5 out of 5 stars (11 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Dublin as you've never seen it, 5 Jun 2003
By A Customer
An Evening of Long Goodbyes portrays Dublin from a highly unusual, witty and modern slant. In the rich suburbs of Killiney, in a grand old mansion, a brother and sister are leading very different lives. Their father dead, their mother in an institution suffering from her nerves, Charles and Bel are left to face the unknown. Charles sees himself as protector of the family name, whilst Bel tries desperately to pursue an acting career, all the while entertaining male companions of dubious repute (at least in her brother's eyes). And so Paul Murray lures us into the lives of these two very different characters. An Evening of Long Goodbyes is a very touching and witty story about two lost souls that struggle in the animal world that dominated the Celtic Tiger. By the end of the book I was sad to sever all contact with this world Paul Murray so wonderfully created. Dare I mention the greyhound races?!
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Paul Murray, take a bow..., 16 Jun 2003
By A Customer
I am going to unabashedly rave about this book. I began reading it, lured in by the cover's blurb describing a character who wants to be left in peace but `life has other ideas'. As I was rather sad at the time, I too was feeling that I just wanted to be alone. To my surprise I found myself laughing so much that I was having to put down the book. It completely cheered me up.
As I continued, however, I found myself leaving its Wodehouse-ian outlook for a sharp satire on the downside of the new booming economy in Ireland which, without blotting the comic tone of the book, came as an eye-opener to this Londoner.
Finally I reached a destination so melancholy and elegiac that it stayed with me long after I had finished it.
It is a book with a mad plot and oddball characters which some people won't warm to, but don't be put off. The plot is deceptive. In truth it is as tight as a coiled spring. As for the eccentric characters, they all have a heart that beats and makes you want to stay with them.
Paul Murray has woven hilarity, wit, satire and heartbreaking beauty into a tale of extraordinary and abundant imagination.

I take my hat off to him.

Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars an evening of long goodbyes, 2 Jun 2003
By A Customer
Ever since reading about this young new author in the Irish Sunday Press's review over the Christmas period, I have been dying to get my hands on this book. And it was worth the wait. I was certainly impressed with the quality of the writing and the obvious depth of research. Murray comes accross as being a very intelligent young man as well as a sensitive author. Whille I enjoyed the book on one level for these reasons, on another level, I was somewhat disappointed with the story. I think this was a very personal thing, however. Had I enjoyed the PJ Woodhouse novels, I would have perhaps appreciated the characters in this book more. Having said that though, it was a good read and I enjoyed the references to the current state of Irish society and to the poetry of WB Yeats.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Happiness is a greyhound called...
Let's get allegorical. This terific novel is akin to settling down in a Dublin pub in the company of an aging shaggy-dog storyteller, fortified by the finest whisky - Scots malt,... Read more
Published on 9 Aug 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Paul Murray, take a bow...
I am going to unabashedly rave about this book. I began reading it, lured in by the cover's blurb describing a character who wants to be left in peace but `life has other ideas'... Read more
Published on 24 Jul 2003 by Bert

4.0 out of 5 stars Heart-warming and humorous
Imagine, if you will, PG Wodehouse's Bertie Wooster crossed with Will from Nick Hornby's 'About a Boy', and you have conjured up Charles Hythloday, the main protagonist of Paul... Read more
Published on 18 Jul 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Paul Murray, take a bow...
I am going to unabashedly rave about this book. I began reading it, lured in by the cover's blurb describing a character who wants to be left in peace but `life has other ideas'... Read more
Published on 16 Jun 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Dublin as you've never seen it
An Evening of Long Goodbyes portrays Dublin from a highly unusual, witty and modern slant. In the rich suburbs of Killiney, in a grand old mansion, a brother and sister are... Read more
Published on 5 Jun 2003

2.0 out of 5 stars good but not great
Another good writer cursed by having an invisible editor and being over-enamoured with his own voice. Read more
Published on 5 Jun 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars A touching, witty tale about a brother and sister
An Evening of Long Goodbyes is a touching, witty tale about a brother and sister who struggle to find their way in life. Read more
Published on 31 May 2003

4.0 out of 5 stars An unusual and witty first novel
Those of you who, like me, tend to avoid first novels because so many of them centre around rote and tired coming-of-age stories, should suspend your prejudices for this witty and... Read more
Published on 19 May 2003

Only search this product's reviews


Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums

Listmania!

Create a Listmania! list

Look for similar items by category

Look for similar items by subject









i.e., each product must be in subject 1 AND subject 2 AND ...

Feedback

Ad

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.