{"id":551,"date":"2012-01-19T19:44:07","date_gmt":"2012-01-19T19:44:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/?p=551"},"modified":"2012-01-19T20:56:20","modified_gmt":"2012-01-19T20:56:20","slug":"death-by-donuts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/index.php\/death-by-donuts\/","title":{"rendered":"Death by donuts"},"content":{"rendered":"

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DEATH by falling from a chair after excess consumption of donuts is quite the unfortunate if interesting fate. ‘Skippy Dies’, Paul Murray\u2019s second novel, tells of such a tale.<\/p>\n

I came by the book quite by chance. A trip to Easons to buy a 50 cent packet of chewing gum resulted in being lured in to view their latest ‘3 for 2’ offers. Moments later I left with 3 random titles I knew nothing about and my wallet \u20ac25 lighter. Two of the books were utter trash, and while it may sound utterly clich\u00e9d, \u2018Skippy Dies\u2019 made up for it.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s set in a Catholic boarding school for boys, an environment many are familiar with (fortunately or unfortunately), starring a stereotypical set of teenagers; weird ones, geeky ones, fat ones, love-struck ones and of course the damn stupid.<\/p>\n

The novel is filled with a rich narrative of many quandaries and predicaments which torment adolescent lives: the trauma of a first \u201clove\u201d, drinking cans at the side of a takeaway and becoming addicted to dieting pills.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m defying all journalistic convention by saying I couldn\u2019t put the book down. But I\u2019m being honest, I really couldn\u2019t! Sheer hilarity ensues throughout, giving a giddy encouragement to read on. I struggle to consider who could not relate at all to it. Coming of age combined with shenanigans, digressions over string theory while building a time machine is somewhat of a cracker. That said if anyone reading this has built a time machine, fair play.<\/p>\n

It is quite unpredictable, which is one of the biggest qualities I look for in a novel; there is indeed nothing worse than knowing what exactly is going to happen next.\u00a0 It provides a reminder of how difficult it was to be 14 with the whole world against you, except for that one girl from the convent across the road.<\/p>\n

It is as sad as it is giddy. The adventurous escapades ultimately lead to a darker core offering an ideal balance of emotion.\u00a0 Skippy does indeed die, after falling off a chair while eating donuts. So, ten points for originality, I won\u2019t ruin the rest for you.<\/p>\n

Someone told me the cover is probably one of the worst they\u2019ve ever seen on a book. Well, as the saying goes don\u2019t judge a book by a cover and, in this case, that couldn\u2019t be more true.<\/p>\n

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DEATH by falling from a chair after excess consumption of donuts is quite the unfortunate if interesting fate. ‘Skippy Dies’, Paul Murray\u2019s second novel, tells of such a tale. I came by the book quite by chance. A trip to Easons to buy a 50 cent packet of chewing gum resulted in being lured in […]<\/p>\n

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