No News at Throat Lake

Rating:
Summary: Honest, disarming look beyond the film sets & postcards
Review: As others have agreed, I liked Donegan's straightforward style. Adding to the list of favorite bon mots below, I'm chuckling over his reaction to seeing his picture on the cover of the newspaper's he's joined: Narcissus' bedroom wall. And summing up some fearsome portraits in some Anglo-Irish manse as having the hair of Barbara Stanwyck and the face of Fred MacMurray.

The end of the account does hit rather suddenly, as if Donegan wanted to duck out with as little damage as possible--again, not surprising in an Irish rural context to which he has, if imperfectly, adapted over his stint. I would have liked some nuts and bolts knowledge: how did he survive on what the paper paid him? Did he play any more golf, being a Scotsman who's written previously about the sport? Was he living rent-free in his (former? on-and-off?) girlfriend's family's shack? Wouldn't more of his London and Glaswegian pals look him up, or call him, or e-mail him? How did the Tribune fill its pages and meet its bills? Still, the charm of Donegan's year of discovery lies more in his admittedly artful arrangement of a slew of witticisms, anecdotes, and set-pieces. Newt Gingrich gets his deserved comeuppance, by the way.

A light read, sure, but not without it worthwhile insights into Derry, Dublin, the memories of a former pop star, a funeral, and the realization into what opting out ultimately leads one to understand.

Rating:
Summary: Extremely entertaining
Review: Donegan does a superb job of capturing the spirit of life in a rural Donegal town. His descriptions of the behaviors of the local residents provides the reader with a superb understanding of the pace of life in Donegal. The culture as well as the cynical wit of the Irish come across beautifully. I laughed out loud at Donegan's narrative around the Mary of Dungloe festival and his encounter with Newt Gingrich. It was a very easy read and I was disappointed to reach the conclusion. Donegan beautifully captures the Irish art of total disregard for political correctness and expressing things exactly as they are perceived. A highly recommended read for those who don't take life too seriously. Don't let the title put you off...

Rating:
Summary: Witty and Fun----A glimpse of rural Irish life
Review: Donegan gives the reader a fun but narrow inside view to the charms and tribulations of rural Irish life. Great characters and interesting stories create the fuel for intense laughter as the city slicker to rural farmer/journalist adjusts and takes a liking to his new surroundings. Unfortunately, in the end, the writer finds himself lonely without discovering the underlying concern for humankind that is present in rural Ireland. A concern that does not exist in the world in which he decides to reenter. Definitely worth purchasing.

Rating:
Summary: An adventure for the non-adventurous sort
Review: Donegan's "No News At Throat Lake" has all the charm of a Bill Forsythe movie ("Local Hero") and all the adventure of the Travel Channel. In recounting his move from cosmopolitan London to rural Ireland, he embarks on the sort of journey we would like to take if we ever decided to just "do it." He negotiates the locals and even has some degree of success (though dating is just too elusive for him in Ireland). He gets a job with the local paper that is part Petticoat Junction and "All the President's Men." In short, he has one terrific adventure, and I, for one, am glad he put it all in this little book and shared with the rest of the class. It did wonders for my spirit.

Rating:
Summary: An adventure for the non-adventurous sort
Review: Donegan's "No News At Throat Lake" has all the charm of a Bill Forsythe movie ("Local Hero") and all the adventure of the Travel Channel. In recounting his move from cosmopolitan London to rural Ireland, he embarks on the sort of journey we would like to take if we ever decided to just "do it." He negotiates the locals and even has some degree of success (though dating is just too elusive for him in Ireland). He gets a job with the local paper that is part Petticoat Junction and "All the President's Men." In short, he has one terrific adventure, and I, for one, am glad he put it all in this little book and shared with the rest of the class. It did wonders for my spirit.

Rating:
Summary: He sees life differently, and writes brilliantly.
Review: I think most people who read a great deal secretly hope to write, I freely admit I am guilty. And so when I read a razor sharp piece of writing that appears to have been written with as much ease as skill, it's a love hate reaction.

Mr. Donegan has senses that are like those we all posses, however that's where the similarity ends. A person hears a phrase spoken, the Author hears it with every possible variation his built in thesaurus provides. We all see an event, he matches, contrasts, or finds a bit of irony, with an infinite number of other events. You do not want to be the subject his attention is focused upon when his wit is at work. He's hyper perceptive, quick and ruthless. Think of a spinning propeller; now walk through it.

A poem appears in a paper he writes for, his comment, "I've never seen such a lethal combination of bad poetry and bad taste. It was the anniversary of her death, after all. As soon as I saw it in the Tirconaill Tribune I wished I had never written it". Sure.

He went to cover an event where the tension between Catholic and Protestant were taught to say the least. Ever resourceful he "bought a copy of The Illustrated Orange Song Book at a street stall (I wanted to learn the words to "The Pope's A Darkie" just in case I ever needed to ingratiate myself with the Reverend Ian Paisly". In the flow of his narrative it is brilliantly placed and timed. I know my repeating it will anger some. I would suggest they lighten up, wretched pun not intended.

This is a memoir of a time spent working for a small newspaper in an even smaller Irish town. It's 90% laugh out loud funny, and perhaps 10% dark, perceptive, social satire. You will enjoy every page, and will hate when it ends.

I cannot wait to see Paul Newman play the Priest that saved an island. It will be his next Oscar.

Brilliant read!

Rating:
Summary: No News is Sometimes Good News
Review: I truly enjoyed "No News from Throat Lake" for its wit and entertainment value. Donegan's life journey--from Scottish housing project to minor Pop Star to Guardian journalist to the boondock Irish village of Creeslough is a fascinating one.

Donegan is at his best when he is most self-deprecating. This ability to laugh at himself combined with his outsider status in Creeslough reminded me a bit of the James Herriot books. In fact, after a short stint as a farm-hand, in which he is witnesses a particularily gruesome round of calf de-horning, Donegan muses that he has experienced Quentin Tarantino's version of "All Creatures Great and Small." Donegan is a James Herriot updated for the millenium: hipper, more cynical and with more existential angst.

This is a rambling if charming narrative. For instance, at the beginning of the book, Donegan mentions the girlfriend he has left behind in London, but then no discussion of her is made until the end of the book, and then with little emotional investment or resolution.. If only he could have somehow woven this romance into the conclusion of "No News," it would have truly paralleled "All Creatures." As it is, the climax is a bit underwhelming. Additionally, although the people Donegan meets are entertaining, often eccentric souls, they never take on the fully-fleshed feeling that one gets when Herriot introduces us to Siegfried and Tristan Farnon. Still, Donegan is a clever, funny writer and "No News" never failed to make me smile.

Rating:
Summary: Rivetting. Makes me long to return to Donegal.
Review: Lawrence Donegan's book is one of the funniest I have read all year. He takes an everyday existence, so ordinary to the people he is writing about, and makes it interesting, enjoyable and comforting.
Having spent many summers in this part of Donegal, I was instantly captivated by his affable style and innate journalistic inquisitions.
Throw in a little Newt Gingrich, some decrepit, rain gathering cows and a vist from Meryl Streep and you have all the ingredients of a right rivetting read.

Rating:
Summary: Everyday life in Ireland
Review: Written in a spare, journalistic style, "No News" is easy to read and fun. What do Newt Gingrich, Meryl Streep and gypsies have in common? and what are they doing in a tiny Irish town? A refreshing change from the current "I bought a really great house in another country" genre, its more real-"I rented a dump because it seemed like a good idea". The ending will surprise you.

A great companion to: "Round Ireland with a Fridge" and "Oh Come Ye Back to Ireland-Our First Year in County Clare".

Rating:
Summary: Everyday life in Ireland
Review: Written in a spare, journalistic style, "No News" is easy to read and fun. What do Newt Gingrich, Meryl Streep and gypsies have in common? and what are they doing in a tiny Irish town? A refreshing change from the current "I bought a really great house in another country" genre, its more real-"I rented a dump because it seemed like a good idea". The ending will surprise you.

A great companion to: "Round Ireland with a Fridge" and "Oh Come Ye Back to Ireland-Our First Year in County Clare".