Long Time, No See
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2.0 • 1 Rating
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- $12.99
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
Long Time, No See introduces us to the unforgettable world of Mister Psyche in the isolated coastal townland of Ballintra in the north-west of Ireland. Recent school-leaver, occasional worker, full-time companion and Malibu-provider to Uncle Joe-Joe and his friend The Blackbird, Psyche is a boy on the cusp of adulthood, undone by a recent traumatic event. Hanging out with men some fifty-plus years his senior proves hazardous for Mister Psyche when the appearance of a bullet-hole in Uncle Joe-Joe’s window draws him into a series of (mis)adventures which unsettle and bemuse. Perhaps The Blackbird is losing it? Or perhaps The General has decided to act on a decades-old grudge? Whichever way, as the paranoia grabs a creeping hold of Uncle Joe-Joe, his fragile world threatens to collapse. And it is Mister Psyche who must digest this and acknowledge the new world taking shape in the old.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Healy (A Goat's Song) writes early on in his latest novel, "It's extraordinary how ordinary life is," and spends the remainder of the story exploring the mundane. Philip Feeney (aka Mister Psyche) is fresh out of secondary school, living with his parents and doing odd jobs for neighbors in the small coastal town of Ballintra, in modern-day Ireland. His primary task is taking care of his grand-uncle Joejoe and Joejoe's friend, the Blackbird. The elderly duo provide mild entertainment, and Healy details Philip's tasks perhaps too diligently, as the reader is often left feeling as if they've spent time doing chores rather than reading a book. Revolving around the main trio, tangential characters come and go, and Philip either amuses or aids them in a series of exploits, making the book reminiscent of Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat. As Joejoe and the Blackbird begin to deteriorate with age, the story comes into focus, albeit quite late. Highly stylized, chock-full of colorful dialogue, and steeped in Irish idioms, this is a leisurely read about ordinary folk acting out the dramas that make a life.
