Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan, review: a wily, caustic debut novel about young love Soon Ava falls for sternly witty British banker Julian - for his mind in a way, and certainly for his wallet. Aperus are withering. Debut novelist Naoise Dolan is no Sally Rooney, for better and worse A sharp, witty and ultimately moving debut . This book also brought back so many memories from my trip to Hong Kong with my friends after college graduation (swipe!). The following is excerpted from Naoise Dolan's debut novel, Exciting Times, an excerpt of which was published in The Stinging Fly by Sally Rooney. Politically alert, heartbreakingly raw, and dryly funny, Exciting Times is thrillingly attuned to the great freedoms and greater uncertainties of modern love. I really am. More Information | But real life is messy and people are messy, and this book dramatizes that in a way that rings profoundly true. But I didnt trust anyone.The richer I got, the harder it would be for anyone to force me to do anything. Dolans preoccupation with power is often couched in humor but always expertly observed. Aperus are . Honestly. I cant wait to read what Dolan writes next. I really am. But the intellectual aura inserted across the novel felt taut and occasionally reaching. In Irish author Dolan's debut novel, 22-year-old narrator Ava relocates from Dublin to Hong Kong to teach grammar at a school for English-language learners. Blume knows the way kids and teens speak, but her two female leads are less credible as they reach adulthood. $15 at Amazon. With Naoise Dolan on the literary scene, there are Exciting Times ahead.' - i-D. Subscribe to receive some of our best reviews, "beyond the book" articles, book club info and giveaways by email. Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan. Exciting Times: A Novel - Naoise Dolan - Google Books The characters are refreshing, I think particularly for me because they are not American, thus allowing for some exploration of how differing cultures analyze and observe class, race, and politics. Not so much. About the author (2020) Naoise Dolan is an Irish writer born in Dublin. Telling neither the full truth about the other, Ava finds herself falling in love with Edith. Do you take delight in words like "gormless"? Soon they are sleeping together, and Ava moves into Julians flat. ), On a personal level, I found Avas character very insular and detached, but the moments that worked their way under my skin were those where she drafted text messages which she didnt send. Politics FBI agents, prosecutors argued over Trump before raid 8:48pm Gophers Scoggins: Give . Exciting Times PDF Details. Exciting Times takes place in Hong Kong around 2015, when 22 year-old Ava leaves Ireland to take a job as a TEFL teacher and find her own way in the world.This is a novel of many layers. It read as slow-paced indecisiveness. Often when I read a queer novel some of it feels forced; this was seamless. Oh my goodness. You have to understand that this is the kind of story I have very high standards for because the plot is an evergreen plot: young person at loose ends making her way in the world and deciding who to love. Margaret Verble is the author of several previous novels, including. In fact, Now longlisted for the 2021 Desmond Elliott Prize for debut fiction and for the 2021 Women's Prize. Edith is a local, sophisticated, and enthusiastic lawyer who falls in love with Ava and isnt afraid to say so. Its free and takes less than 10 seconds! A banker who likes to spend money on Ava, to have sex and discuss fluctuating currencies with her. Julian, her posh banker boyfriend, has such an apartment which is just as well, since he also has an arrogance to match his salary. The forthcoming book from 'We Are Not Like Them' authors Jo Piazza and Christine Pride asks the question: Who gets to make the choice to be a mom? The comparison was mentioned repeatedly in the book's marketing materials, in reviews, in interviews, and in the 28-year-old's author biographies. . But now theyre co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Exciting Times Naoise Dolan. But Caitlin, whose own demons have been hinted at, will not be so lucky. Buy Exciting Times: THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER and shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2020 By Naoise Dolan. The story follows Ava, a quick witted, self-loathing Irish 22-year-old teacher and Julian, an almost-30-year-old British banker, both living as expats in Hong Kong. @book_gal. I often had to re-read passages, as subtext also plays a huge part in the book. Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan, Paperback | Barnes & Noble Available in used condition with free delivery in the UK. She is in a constant battle of inner conflicttotal social apathy, whilst silently scathing of her prejudiced workplace. Publication Information. Naoise Dolan is in her late 20s and has often been compared to Sally Rooney. Colleen Hoover Regardless, I encourage you to seek outExciting Timesfor yourself because I know so many of you are hungry for reading experiences that capture the complexities of love, personal politics, and the precariousness that comes with being young and lost and in love. When you not only stalk her on subreddits, but worry about whether the algorithm will reveal to her the true extent of your stalking. dynamic. a book review by Michael Pearson: Exciting Times: A Novel "Exciting Times" Author Naoise Dolan On Expat - Tatler Asia I am a huge Sally Rooney fan, ergo, this book was such a treat for me. I also really loved how the author addresses the Irish English references in the novel and wondered if non-Irish readers understand them. The book is fast-paced, but with finely-wrought moments of stillness. It was as if someone else ironed everything for her her whole life, Ava thinks, and her role was to make new creases. Dolan is also funny about Irishness, pointing out the irony of Ava having to teach her young ESL students how to aspirate the th in things when, as a Dubliner, she has gone 22 years without once pronouncing it herself. She has been short-listed and long-listed for several prizes, including the Women's Prize for Fiction, the Dylan Thomas Prize, and the Sunday Times Young Writer . But that's what I really enjoyed about thisthe characters felt real and the uncertainty and non-committal situations also felt very real. Noting that the school hires only white people, she remarks: "Like sharks' teeth, teachers dropped out and were replaced.". Pre-publication book reviews and features keeping readers and industry "Echoes of Sally Rooney's Conversations with Friends resound in this exacting debut novel about a young Irish woman living in Hong Kong who becomes embroiled in a love triangle with a wealthy man and woman." Theres a certain dry, almost deadpan quality in her observation of the lives of her twentysomething characters the complications of attraction, and the gap between whats felt and whats spoken; calmly articulated self-loathing, and precise capturing of class differences that both authors nail down dead. Heavily influenced by Sally Rooneys Normal People in terms of the tiresome indecisiveness of committing to a relationship, its as if Exciting Times is just Normal People set in China with some extra LGBT content packed in. Overall, the #ReadWithMC community had trouble relating to Ava, mainly due to her passive aggressiveness and inability to speak the truth to fellow characters in the book. The novel is shot through with moments of such startling self-awareness as this. After high school, Caitlin travels the world and cant understand why Vix, by now at Harvard on a scholarship and determined to have a better life than her mother has had, wont drop out and join her. exciting times naoise dolan ending explainedlivrer de la nourriture non halal. She is known for her debut novel Exciting Times . Do you marvel at clever sentence structure when encountered in a book? Instead of just a romance or coming-of-age narrative, Dolan dives a bit deeper to probe what we carry into the relationships we form (like our personal politics and gendered expectations) and how those either weigh us down or perhaps end up setting us free., Exciting Timeslost me a bit in the second half with its pacing. "If I had to describe this book to someone in two sentences it would be like this:Eleanor OliphantandNormal Peoplegot together and had a baby. "Dolan's preoccupation with power is often couched in humor but always expertly observed. Omnipresent yet subtle, Hong Kong doesn't overshadow the characters and their struggles in trying to figure out life. Naoise Dolan is an Irish writer born in Dublin. ROMANCE | Reviews: Trustpilot. Despite the chip on her shoulder, she falls in with Julian, an Eton-educated English banker who she enjoys being with because they (supposedly) arent that interested in each other: It wasnt like normal friendships where I worried if the other person still liked me. She moves into his swanky apartment, rent-free, and they have sex. Ava is 22 years old and teaches English to rich kids in Hong Kong. The novel takes place a few years after the 2014 Umbrella Movement, peaceful demonstrations that galvanized Hong Kongs youth, who were demanding open elections, in a renewed spirit of protest. Besides school and uni . It finds her teaching English while abroad and indecisive about two lovers. "Droll, shrewd and unafraida winning debut." Its not plot-driven and Ava as a character distances herself from people in the book, so shes not intrinsically likeable. Julian is a banker who likes spending time with Ava, but incapable (or simply unwilling) to express his feelings for her. She is highly attuned both to the power dynamics at play (do you want me to depend on you? she asks him) and to her moral predicament, as she adds up how much money she is saving on rent, as well as on the clothes and meals Julian pays for with the funds he doesnt know what to do with. Why do you like me? Ava asks him. After a local waiter replies to her English greeting in Cantonese, an irritated Edith points out one of Avas blind spots: Youre not noticing because youre white, she says, people see me and assume Im from here. Edith might let Ava off the hook, but why should todays reader do the same? Her relationships are dysfunctional and we see her repeatedly make choices that we know (or think we know) are wrong for her. The title of Naoise Dolan's debut novel, "Exciting Times," is a clever trick an ambivalent phrase that reads one way in millennial deadpan, an additional way as an . The novel goes on to discuss the history of colonialism by the British of the Irish and Hong Kong. Es un libro en el que la protagonista est tan bien retratada y es tan cruda y llena de aristas que, realmente, casi da igual lo que le pase a ella personalmente, porque lo que te interesa como lector es su voz, su forma de ver el mundo y su forma de verse a s misma. Those whove spent time in Hong Kong cant help wondering what its like to be among the Anglophone transplants who work and party there. His privilege is the invisible third party in the relationship. In November we went for brunch on Aberdeen Street with Ralph, pronounced 'Rafe', who'd gone to Balliol with Julian, now worked at . Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. audible mp3, ePUB (Android), kindle, and audiobook. "I have to say I really liked this debut novel by Naoise Dolan. Unfortunately, Dolans superficial evocation of the island is conjured mostly through Instagram latte art geotagged on fashionable streets. This book is incredibly fine. Exciting Times is a beautiful novel written by the famous author Naoise Dolan. With a similar rhythm of detachment and sparsity found in Rooney and Ottessas writing, I can see why comparisons are being drawn, and I dont think this comparison does Dolan any disservice.