A Star Called Henry (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Roddy Doyle
- First Published: 1999
- Type of Work: Novel
- Time of Work: 1902-1921
- Setting: Dublin and rural Ireland
- Principal Characters: Henry Smart, Henry Smart, Sr., Miss O’Shea, Granny Nash, Piano Annie, Ivan, James Connolly, Michael Collins, Jack Dalton, David Climanis, Alf Gandon
- Genres: Long fiction
- Subjects: Revolutionaries, Prostitution or prostitutes, 1910’s, 1920’s, Poverty or poor people, Violence, World War I, Amputation, amputees, or prosthetics, Terrorism or terrorists, Ireland or Irish people
- Locales: Dublin, Ireland
A Star Called Henry represents Roddy Doyle’s departure from fiction in contemporary settings and, in part, from the comic tone that has characterized his work since the late 1980’s. However, in some of his work—Paddy Clark, Ha Ha Ha (1993) and The Woman Who Walked into Doors (1997)—Doyle portrays not only urban poverty but its inherent tragedy, two themes that are important in A Star Called Henry. This novel’s greater innovation lies in its use of historical events—particularly Dublin’s Easter Rising of 1916 and the violence of the years that...
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