Normal Sheeple
 | |
| Author | Paul Howard |
|---|---|
| Illustrator | Alan Clarke |
| Cover artist | Alan Clarke |
| Language | English |
| Series | Ross O'Carroll-Kelly |
| Genre | Comic novel,satire |
| Set in | DublinandCounty Kerry,2018 |
| Published | 19 August 2021,Sandycove |
| Publication place | Republic of Ireland |
| Media type | Print: paperback |
| Pages | 416 |
| ISBN | 9781844885497 |
| 823.92 | |
| Preceded by | Braywatch |
| Followed by | Once Upon a Time in… Donnybrook |
Normal Sheepleis a 2021 book by Irish playwright and authorPaul Howardand is the twenty-first novel in theRoss O'Carroll-Kellyseries.[1][2]
The title refers to theSally RooneynovelNormal Peopleandits TV adaptation(Ross' relationship with Marianne is written in aparodyof Rooney's style),[3]and to the phrase "sheeple",used to refer to people who show herd behaviour, but also perhaps referring to Kerry people as"sheeppeople. "[4]
Plot[edit]
Charles isTaoiseach,and Sorcha is appointed to his cabinet. Honor attends aGaeltachtsummer college, making her first rugby-playing boyfriend, and Ross takes upGaelic football,playing forAn Ghaeltacht GAAinCounty Kerry.[5][6]
Reviews[edit]
InThe Irish Times,Eugene O'Brien wrote that "Howard’s satire is as sharp as ever, with a parallel Ireland existing more concretely in this latest book, which sheds interesting lights on the real Ireland […] Howard keeps the reader off balance by developing seeminglyflat charactersinto whole new levels of complexity. "[3]
InThe Stinging Fly,Kevin Powerwrote "Our rulers serve themselves: the books remind us of this fact repeatedly. They gratify overtly our secret contempt for the powerful. On the other hand, Ross is a “beloved character”. There he sits, at the heart of our popular culture, reminding us that our society is unjust; that ourelitesare shallow and self-serving; and that materialist greed is a hollow pursuit. We love him. We think he’s great. And his family and friends, that nest of vipers: we love them, too. Should we? Of course we should. That’s howclassworks. The Ross books enable us safely both to love and to fear our rulers; to envy their wealth and to disapprove of their behaviour; to experience nakedcapitalistambition and sheer class hatred at one and the same time and without contradiction; to map the shifting landscapes of an increasingly unstable world. "He also noted that" Ross books are masterpieces of denotative realism. A century from now, an interested cultural historian will be able to reconstruct a near-total catalogue of contemporary upper-middle-class lifestyle accoutrements from Howard’s pages: the clothes, drinks, food, make-up, coffee machines, music, movies, actors and actresses. "[7]
References[edit]
- ^O'Carroll-Kelly, Ross (19 August 2021).Normal Sheeple.Penguin Books Limited.ISBN9781844885510– via Google Books.
- ^O'Carroll-Kelly, Ross (5 May 2022).Normal Sheeple.
- ^ab"Normal Sheeple review: Latest in Ross O'Carroll Kelly series is as sharp as ever".The Irish Times.
- ^"New Ross O'Carroll Kelly instalment has the perfect title to sum up 2020".Extra.ie.22 June 2021.
- ^"Geansaí chumann Gaeltachta le feiceáil ar chlúdach an leabhair is déanaí ag Ross O'Carroll-Kelly".Tuairisc.ie.21 June 2021.
- ^"Ross O'Carroll-Kelly le himirt do CLG An Ghaeltacht?".21 June 2021.
- ^"Normal Sheeple".The Stinging Fly.
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