Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha

Rating:
Summary: Knowing yourself again
Review: This is an important book. Childhood and the view of the small world from a child's height - physically - is beautifully captured and expertly written in a sometimes colloquial tongue which puzzles the intellect and delights the soul. The boys all have faces, yet the words only impart the slightest of detail about the adults in the story, the view of their faces is obscured. It is important in that it takes men (this man at least) back to their particular childhood with spooky deftness.

Rating:
Summary: Accurate but boring and plotless recreation of a 10-year-old
Review: Yes, this book paints a convincing picture of the mind and world of a 10-year-old boy. But most 10-year-old boys are unpleasant, especially to each other and their younger brothers (yes, I was once a 10-year-old boy). Most of what they do and think is neither interesting nor enlightening. Doyle captures all this well, but I found it very dull. The humorous touches were only mildly amusing--enough for a forced mental "ha ha ha" like the title, not a real laugh. There's not a trace of plot till almost the end, and that bit is trite and too predictable halfway through. I was particularly annoyed by not knowing exactly what some of the dirty words mean, and not being able to look them up or ask someone--which of course is the typical 10-year-old's predicament! Yes, reminders of my youth...and why I'm well out of it.

Rating:
Summary: heart-rending, funny, read it and weep.
Review: Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha is one of the sweetest and most true-to-life books I have had the pleasure to read in a very long time. Doyle captures the essence of childhood in Ireland, as seen from the eyes of a small boy. If you are Irish, or you want to explore Ireland through the eyes of a child growing up in Ireland, read this book. You'll laugh and cry, and you'll want to read it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: Best book ever
Review: This is the best book I have ever read. It follows the emotions of a young boy growing up in Ireland. It is sad in parts, but has a dark wit throughout, and so is very very funny. You must read this book!

Rating:
Summary: One of the top 5 books of all time.
Review: Paddy Clarke is perhaps the best writer of recent years (Though Tim O'Brien might beg to differ) and Paddy Clarke solidifies that. As a 16-year-old, I am still young enough to remember a little bit of what it was like to be 10, and this book does an absolutely outstanding job of communicating that. With his other works (esp. The Commitments and The Woman Who Walked Into Doors), Doyle has a serious chance at a Nobel Prize sometime in the not-too-distant future.

Rating:
Summary: Next best thing to a time machine.
Review: Remember how it feels to BE nine years old? Can you remember: how important it was how your best friend felt about you, how you felt when things were not 'quite right' with your parents, how exciting the 'new kid' in the neighborhood was? Feel, smell and hear again your days as a kid. Though set in Ireland in the 1960's, this is a novel as timeless as it is independent of location. Comparisons to "Catcher In The Rye" fail to understand the universal connection of Paddy Clarke to anyone, regardless of race, nationality or religion. A must read.

Rating:
Summary: better as a short story
Review: The book had a few moments of interest, but it was too long at 280 pages. I found it a chore to get through, and I could not relate to anything our young protagonist had to say. I noticed that one of your reviews said that males would probably relate to this novel better than women; I have to disagree with that statement as I found the book to be rather thin on storyline and of no real interest

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding Coming-of-Age Novel
Review: When I started this novel, I thought it was going to be just another coming-of-age story. Instead, it gave me a complete view of childhood- one I had almost forgotten. What makes it work is the complex spiraling nature of Paddy's thoughts and the plot- much like the narrative structure of *Catch-22*. I strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants to experience being under the skin and completely inside a character

Rating:
Summary: Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha -- An Irish "Catcher in the Rye"
Review: A beautifully written journey into the soul of Paddy Clarke, a 10 year old growing up in working class Dublin in the 60's. Doyle enables the reader to share Paddy's laughter, his friendships and ultimately, his terribly lonely growth from innocence into experience

Rating:
Summary: Regression
Review: A stunning portrait of life as a child. Something we all experience, but sometimes forget. Roddy Doyle gives you the option of becoming a child all over again, through the trials, games and loves of youth. Nothing is omitted, instead, everything is remebered. Written in stream of consciousness, the book conveys a startlingly vivid, truthful feeling. You become Paddy; you remember.