Soon after a wild night at the pub, twenty-year-old Sharon Rabbitte of north Dublin finds herself expecting a little "snapper" by an older man she loathes. Her refusal to name the father sets in motion a family drama involving her three brothers, two sisters, and her parents, along with her employers and all her friends. Though Sharon is often coarse and earthy, she is still a remarkably sensible young woman, and she soon discovers who her friends really are.  Some people tease and torment her, some make remarks to her siblings, some force her father to take direct action in her defense, and all spread gossip.

Sharon's father reveals an emotional range from outrage toward Sharon for embarrassing the family to tender concern as her time draws near. As the eight-member family trips all over each other emotionally (ironically symbolized in their battles for the one bathroom, often occupied by Sharon), the tensions within the family grow more intense. Widespread speculation about who the father is disrupts the neighborhood, with some hotheads visiting their own brand of justice on the family. The arrival of the baby offers a chance at resolution.

The second (after The Commitments) in Roddy Doyle's The Barrytown Trilogy, this novel also focuses on the Rabbitte family and is set in the working class tenements of rowdy north Dublin, where humor and family togetherness are often the qualities which enable the characters to survive.  In this novel, the action focuses on a single member of this family and the chain of action set in motion by her pregnancy.  More intimate, more personal, and more emotionally moving, than The Commitments, this novel shows admiration for Sharon's stalwart behavior under the pressures of family, friends, and neighborhood.

Dialogue is spot-on, with Doyle's use of dialect controlling the pace and giving vibrancy to the story, so much so that this resembles a play as much as a novel. His focus on one Catholic family of eight people reveals the strengths which enable them to survive and even thrive.  With the pub as family's social center, we see the characters' attitudes toward sex and childbirth, their "escapes" from the workday, their daily amusements and sense of humor, and their lack of concern with the dogma of the church.  Both humorous and touching, the novel shows Doyle's growth from a writer who depends on neighborhood atmosphere, quirky dialogue, and fast-paced humor for effects to a writer who is willing to convey warmth and build sincere feeling for his characters. n Mary Whipple
Soon after a wild night at the pub, twenty-year-old Sharon Rabbitte of north Dublin finds herself expecting a little "snapper" by an older man she loathes. Her refusal to name the father sets in motion a family drama involving her three brothers, two sisters, and her parents, along with her employers and all her friends. Though Sharon is often coarse and earthy, she is still a remarkably sensible young woman, and she soon discovers who her friends really are. Some people tease and torment her, some make remarks to her siblings, some force her father to take direct action in her defense, and all spread gossip. Sharon's father reveals an emotional range from outrage toward Sharon for embarrassing the family to tender concern as her time draws near. As the eight-member family trips all over each other emotionally (ironically symbolized in their battles for the one bathroom, often occupied by Sharon), the tensions within the family grow more intense. Widespread speculation about who the father is disrupts the neighborhood, with some hotheads visiting their own brand of justice on the family. The arrival of the baby offers a chance at resolution. The second (after The Commitments) in Roddy Doyle's The Barrytown Trilogy, this novel also focuses on the Rabbitte family and is set in the working class tenements of rowdy north Dublin, where humor and family togetherness are often the qualities which enable the characters to survive. In this novel, the action focuses on a single member of this family and the chain of action set in motion by her pregnancy. More intimate, more personal, and more emotionally moving, than The Commitments, this novel shows admiration for Sharon's stalwart behavior under the pressures of family, friends, and neighborhood. Dialogue is spot-on, with Doyle's use of dialect controlling the pace and giving vibrancy to the story, so much so that this resembles a play as much as a novel. His focus on one Catholic family of eight people reveals the strengths which enable them to survive and even thrive. With the pub as family's social center, we see the characters' attitudes toward sex and childbirth, their "escapes" from the workday, their daily amusements and sense of humor, and their lack of concern with the dogma of the church. Both humorous and touching, the novel shows Doyle's growth from a writer who depends on neighborhood atmosphere, quirky dialogue, and fast-paced humor for effects to a writer who is willing to convey warmth and build sincere feeling for his characters. n Mary Whipple