The Wild Laughter
Winner of the 2021 Encore Award
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4.0 • 2 Ratings
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
An exhilarating dark comedy about two brothers confronting their father's fate in contemporary Ireland, from a critically acclaimed Irish author
'Propulsive, raucous, funny and deeply moving... I loved it.' David Nicholls, author of One Day
'Brilliant. A hilarious, poetical black comedy... Do read it.' Mark Haddon, author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
'A book of wicked intelligence and tender heart.' Max Porter, author of Shy
It's 2008, and the Celtic Tiger has left devastation in its wake. Brothers Hart and Cormac Black are waking up to a very different Ireland – one that widens the chasm between them and brings their beloved father to his knees. Facing a devastating choice that will put their livelihood, even their lives, on the line, the brothers soon learn that their biggest danger comes when there is nothing to lose.
A sharp snapshot of a family and a nation suddenly unmoored, this epic-in-miniature explores cowardice and sacrifice, faith rewarded and abandoned, the stories we tell ourselves and the ones we resist. Hilarious, poignant and utterly fresh, The Wild Laughter cements Caoilinn Hughes' position as one of Ireland's most audacious, nuanced and insightful young writers.
FINALIST FOR THE AN POST IRISH NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2020, THE RTÉ RADIO 1 LISTENERS' CHOICE AWARD 2020 & THE DALKEY EMERGING WRITER AWARD 2021
LONGLISTED FOR THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE & THE i COMEDY WOMEN IN PRINT PRIZE, 2021
AN IRISH TIMES, IRISH SUNDAY TIMES, IRISH INDEPENDENT & SUNDAY INDEPENDENT BOOK OF THE YEAR, 2020
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Hughes's sharply observed follow-up to Orchid & the Wasp takes a stark look at an Irish family's love and betrayal amid the recession of 2008. Hughes opens with a terminally ill man known as the Chief, taken care of by his wife, the chilly ex-nun N ra, and handsome, loyal narrator Doharty, called Hart, stuck on the family farm while his older brother, book-smart, arrogant Cormac, lives in Dublin. The Chief got caught up in the "height of the country's delirium" during the days of the Celtic Tiger and got deeply involved in real estate speculation, but has now lost everything. The brothers share little except a determination to fulfill the Chief's wish to end his life (euthanasia is illegal in Ireland) and, it turns out, the affection of a woman, Dolly. Dolly is technically Cormac's girlfriend, but she soon falls for Hart. Hughes's taut, voice-driven work balances colorful dialogue with wry commentary, which extends from the characters to the shifting values of their country away from privileging the working class, where the battle for "right of entry from the field into the garden" has been lost, a good man like the Chief can die bankrupt, and sly Cormac does better than the rougher, kinder Hart. This solid family drama stands out by doubling as a poignant state-of-the-nation novel.
