A review by sslinkard
Night Boat to Tangier by Kevin Barry

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

I have no idea why this book was long-listed for any prize. I truly don’t get the appeal. Yes, the author does, from time to time, deliver prose that is truly wonderful. I can even get behind the premise of the story. Two aging Irish mobsters/drug lords (Morris and Charlie) sit in a ferry terminal watching for the estranged daughter of one of them (Dilly). Over the course of the 24 hours during which the book is set, they banter and talk and every other chapter is a flashback to their past…. How they met, their struggles, the violence and drama surrounding them as they chose to participate in the illicit drug trade, even their sordid romantic lives (if they can be called that). The author uses word and phrase repetition, which I’m normally okay with. However, it seemed excessive in this case. The language was incredibly crass - more than it needed to be, in my opinion. If the author removed the repeated words and phrases (especially the F*bomb), the book would be 25% shorter. I get that crass language would be a part of the vernacular for two Irish men who spent their lives in the “underworld”. However, it just became abrasive to me after a while. The only reason I finished the book is because it’s on the 1,001 Books You Must Read Before You Die list, and I wanted to check it off. I’m glad I didn’t pay actual money for this work. I checked out the audiobook from my library. I will say, the author’s Irish accent, while completely lovely, made it a bit more difficult to understand the turns of phrase sometimes. My favorite part of the book is the chapter that focused on Dilly’s point of view. If there was any redeeming portion of the book, this was it. To be fair, as I said earlier, I think the author can create some really wonderful prose. I just didn’t care for most of this book and the prose was not enough to overcome that. I would have given this book 1.5 stars, but added a half star for the prose and the creative use of language.
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