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A review by ayami
That Old Country Music: Stories by Kevin Barry
1.0
Audiobook review
Narrator: Kevin Barry (the author) does pretty well, he manages to avoid the affectation present in some other writers narrating their work
Slurpiness level: Extreme, a lot of loud swallowing and sucking in breath
Speed: perfect, listened on 1.0
Kevin Barry writes beautifully. His descriptions of Ireland just transport you there. But, holy shit, the sexist undertones present took away any joy out of those stories.
I mean - let's take the first story, The Coast of Leitrim - supposedly about a lonely man who is afraid to commit his heart. According to other reviewers this is a wonderful, heartfelt story with a happy end (?!). Did we read the same thing? The man crushes hard on a young waitress, fantasizes about her body and their imagined connection, eventually he asks her out and they do start a relationship, in which he is obsessively jealous and possessive. He eventually dumps her, she goes back to Poland and he can't forgive himself. So what does he do? He stalks her instagram account and flies to Poland to accost her at an internet cafe. Supposedly this is exactly what she was hoping for. I mean, seriously?
Other stories are not much better - in one, a young woman seduces an older man for fun just to revel in her newfound power over destroying his life. The only story I enjoyed was Roma Girl. Somehow Barry has failed at making this one creepy and/or yucky.
My advice: stay away.
Narrator: Kevin Barry (the author) does pretty well, he manages to avoid the affectation present in some other writers narrating their work
Slurpiness level: Extreme, a lot of loud swallowing and sucking in breath
Speed: perfect, listened on 1.0
Kevin Barry writes beautifully. His descriptions of Ireland just transport you there. But, holy shit, the sexist undertones present took away any joy out of those stories.
I mean - let's take the first story, The Coast of Leitrim - supposedly about a lonely man who is afraid to commit his heart. According to other reviewers this is a wonderful, heartfelt story with a happy end (?!). Did we read the same thing? The man crushes hard on a young waitress, fantasizes about her body and their imagined connection, eventually he asks her out and they do start a relationship, in which he is obsessively jealous and possessive. He eventually dumps her, she goes back to Poland and he can't forgive himself. So what does he do? He stalks her instagram account and flies to Poland to accost her at an internet cafe. Supposedly this is exactly what she was hoping for. I mean, seriously?
Other stories are not much better - in one, a young woman seduces an older man for fun just to revel in her newfound power over destroying his life. The only story I enjoyed was Roma Girl. Somehow Barry has failed at making this one creepy and/or yucky.
My advice: stay away.