Items related to Oh, Play That Thing
The sequel to A Star Called Henry, sees our hero, Henry Smart, arrive in New York in 1924. This being Prohibition, Henry ends up bootlegging hooch for the speak-easies of the Lower East Side. But when this catches the attention of the mobsters who run the district, Henry realises it's time to leave. In Chicago, Henry discovers music. Furious, happy music played by a man with a trumpet and bleeding lips called Louis Armstrong. But Armstrong is a prisoner of his colour; there are places a black man cannot go, things he cannot do. Armstrong needs a white man, and the man he chooses is Henry Smart.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Review:
Oh, Play That Thing is a fast-moving picaresque sequel to Roddy Doyle's novel about the Irish War of Independence and Civil War, A Star Called Henry. On the run from his former commanders, IRA assassin Henry ends up in the USA and copes indifferently with the gang-dominated New York of the early 1920s, and the worlds of Chicago jazz and the migrant workers of the Depression. Henry is a charming chancer, and a survivor, but this does not mean that he has an especially nice time for more than moments--his own ruthless past continually returns to haunt him.
Review:
Doyle does a nice line in memorable unpleasant images--a bunch of homing pigeons swollen and dying from bathtub gin; a wooden leg smouldering unnoticed from closeness to a campfire. There's also a strong sense of the changing language of immigrants trying to belong; this is, among other things, the story of how his Irish hero learns to think and speak in the American vein. The vignettes of real people--notably Henry's friend the young Louis Armstrong--are more than just decoration. In the Depression chapters, Doyle writes powerfully about the way folklore grows up. In places, this is a jerkily structured book, but it is always a highly intelligent one. --Roz Kaveney
"Sequels often disappoint, but here is one that's every bit as sharp, as surprising and as satisfying as the original . Niall Buggy switches accents seamlessly - Dublin, Brooklyn, mafia, vamp, Satchmo. His repertoire is inexhaustible and awesome." (The Guardian)
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherChivers Sound Library
- Publication date2004
- ISBN 10 0792733649
- ISBN 13 9780792733645
- BindingAudio CD
- Rating
(No Available Copies)
Search Books: Create a WantIf you know the book but cannot find it on AbeBooks, we can automatically search for it on your behalf as new inventory is added. If it is added to AbeBooks by one of our member booksellers, we will notify you!
Create a Want