Summary of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
“Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha” covers a year in the life of Paddy Clarke, a mischievous 10-year-old boy from Barrytown, a fictional suburb in North Dublin. The novel is a bildungsroman, starting with the playful pranks of Paddy and his friends, and gradually moving towards the end of his childhood, darkened by the increasing tensions between his parents.
Reasons to read Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
“Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha” is a touching and humorous depiction of a boy’s childhood in a working-class neighbourhood in Dublin in the 1960s. The novel won the 1993 Booker Prize. Roddy Doyle, a celebrated Irish writer, received the Irish PEN Award in 2009. Other notable novels by Paddy Clarke include “The Commitments”, “The Woman Who Walked into Doors”, and “A Star Called Henry”.
Setting: Dublin (Ireland)
The fictional suburb of Barrytown is likely based on Kilbarrack, where Roddy Doyle grew up.
Original title: Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
Year of publication: 1993
Nr of pages: 288
