Name: Tom Koss's review of Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry
Item: Night Boat to Tangier
Author: Tom Koss

Kevin Barry

In the dark waiting room of the ferry terminal in the sketchy Spanish port of Algeciras, two aging Irishmen-- Maurice Hearne and Charlie Redmond, longtime partners in the lucrative and dangerous enterprise of smuggling drugs-- sit at night, none too patiently. It is October 23, 2018, and they are expecting Maurice's estranged daughter, Dilly, to either arrive on a boat coming from Tangier or depart on one heading there. Their conversations cause them to excavate their shared history of violence, romance, mutual betrayals and serial exiles. -- adapted from jacket

A Novel

Night Boat to Tangier

Jamie McHale

Very creative way to play with time. Finished in Saugatuck. 

Tom Koss

One of The New York Times Book Review's 10 Best Books of 2019 Named a Best Book of the Year by The New York Times Book Review, Lit Hub, The Millions, The Paris Review, and NPR No. 1 Irish Times Bestseller Longlisted for The Booker Prize From the acclaimed author of the international sensations City of Bohane and Beatlebone, a striking and gorgeous new novel of two aging criminals at the tail ends of their damage-filled careers. A superbly melancholic melody of a novel full of beautiful phrases and terrible men. In the dark waiting room of the ferry terminal in the sketchy Spanish port of Algeciras, two aging Irishmen -- Maurice Hearne and Charlie Redmond, longtime partners in the lucrative and dangerous enterprise of smuggling drugs -- sit at night, none too patiently. It is October 23, 2018, and they are expecting Maurice's estranged daughter, Dilly, to either arrive on a boat coming from Tangier or depart on one heading there. This nocturnal vigil will initiate an extraordinary journey back in time to excavate their shared history of violence, romance, mutual betrayals and serial exiles, rendered with the dark humor and the hardboiled Hibernian lyricism that have made Kevin Barry one of the most striking and admired fiction writers at work today.

Fraser Simons

This is a weird one for me because the story didn’t do much for me, though it was well written and features some lyrical and evocative prose. I also listened to the audiobook, which had the author narrating it, and that guy did a fantastic job. It made the fiction atmospheric and the cadence was fantastic. It would easily be a 4 star for me but I found I was more interested in the descriptions than what the characters were up to.

Jenna

I finished Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry as my first book of #AVeryMerryReadathon2019! I actually haven’t seen many reviews of this one, but it made the NYTimes top ten list this year as one of the five fiction picks and I always love reading the picks.

This book is about two old Irish men, Maurice and Charlie, both drug smugglers, sitting in the Algeciras ferry terminal waiting for Maurice’s estranged daughter Dilly to either arrive or leave on a boat to or from Tangier. The chapters alternate between the ferry terminal and flashing back in time to give snippets of the story of how the men got to where they are.

This book is full of sharp and witty prose. The banter between the old gangsters is really funny and almost charming. The flashbacks provide backstory, and we learn how Charlie got his limp and Maurice lost his eye, while the men’s estrangement from Dilly is slowly revealed.

Barry is exceptional at building an atmosphere. The flashbacks are set in various places around Ireland and the Mediterranean and they all feel distinct. In particular, the tension in one bar scene was palpable, as one patron makes his way to the bathroom to try and overhear bits of the conversation between Maurice and Charlie. I could picture the dark bar and my heart was racing in anticipation of conflict, but I was also laughing at the bartender’s tactics for trying to know what was happening and prevent violence.

This book is a really quick read. If you like troubled characters and a slowly revealing plot that’s not much of a plot but more of a melancholy look back at the lives of two aging gangsters, and you don’t mind a lack of quotation marks, this might be a good one for you! I really enjoyed it.

LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZEIRISH NUMBER ONE BESTSELLERSHORTLISTED FOR EASON NOVEL OF THE YEAR, IRISH BOOK AWARDSSHORTLISTED FOR RTÉ RADIO ONE LISTENERS' CHOICE, IRISH BOOK AWARDSA NEW STATESMAN BOOK OF THE YEAR'A true wonder' Max Porter'Beautifully written' GuardianIt's late one night at the Spanish port of Algeciras and two fading Irish gangsters are waiting on the boat from Tangier. A lover has been lost, a daughter has gone missing, their world has come asunder - can it be put together again?

Gary Homewood

Two aging Irish gangsters wait in a seedy Spanish port terminal for the night boat from Tangier, chatting like Beckett characters. 

Interspersed with a vivid back story of drug dealing, chaotic lives and relationship, madness and violence.

Male friendship, mordant wit, and a seedy but affecting sadness.

LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE IRISH TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER SHORTLISTED FOR IRISH BOOK AWARDS NOVEL OF THE YEAR A BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE NEW YORK TIMES, NEW STATESMAN, TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT, BIG ISSUE, i, THE ATLANTIC and LITERARY HUB 'A true wonder' Max Porter 'Beautifully written’ Guardian It’s late one night at the Spanish port of Algeciras and two fading Irish gangsters are waiting on the boat from Tangier. A lover has been lost, a daughter has gone missing, their world has come asunder – can it be put together again?

Francine Corry

ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: NPR - THE ATLANTIC - THE MILLIONS - MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE - ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH - LIT HUB - LIBRARY JOURNAL - THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY In the dark waiting room of the ferry terminal in the sketchy Spanish port of Algeciras, two aging Irishmen--Maurice Hearne and Charlie Redmond, longtime partners in the lucrative and dangerous enterprise of smuggling drugs--sit at night, none too patiently. It is October 23, 2018, and they are trying to locate Maurice's estranged daughter, Dilly, whom they've heard is either arriving on a boat coming from Tangier or departing on one heading there. This nocturnal vigil will initiate an extraordinary journey back in time to excavate their shared history of violence, romance, mutual betrayals, and serial exiles. Rendered with the dark humor and the hardboiled Hibernian lyricism that have made Kevin Barry one of the most striking and admired fiction writers at work today, Night Boat to Tangier is a superbly melancholic melody of a novel, full of beautiful phrases and terrible men.

Phil James

Laura Mauler

Shan

Shona Tiger

Emily Bult

Jacob Mishook

Reiko Fu

'A true wonder' Max Porter'A blackly comic journey into the abyss' Guardian'Read this wonder of a novel' Jon McGregor'A masterpiece delivered by a glittering talent at the peak of his powers' Big Issue It's late one night at the Spanish port of Algeciras and two fading Irish gangsters are waiting on the boat from Tangier. A lover has been lost, a daughter has gone missing, their world has come asunder - can it be put together again?Night Boat to Tangier is a novel drenched in sex and death and narcotics, in sudden violence and old magic. But above all, it is a book obsessed with the mysteries of love. A tragicomic masterwork from the award-winning Kevin Barry, Night Boat to Tangier is a work of melancholy beauty, wit and lyrical brilliance.

Jamie McHale &
Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry

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Jamie McHale &Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry

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Jamie McHale &
Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry