Paula Spencer - (Paula Spencer Novel) by Roddy Doyle (Paperback)

About the Book

One of Ireland's most popular novelists and the author of the Booker Prize-winning "Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha" movingly depicts a woman, both strong and fragile, who is fighting back and finally equipped to be a mother to her children. But now that they're mostly grown up, is it too late?

Book Synopsis

"An extraordinary story about an ordinary life." --People

"Brilliant." --The New Yorker

Meet the eponymous and iconic Irishwoman Paula Spencer in this intimate exploration of recovery and motherhood, by Roddy Doyle, Booker Prize-winning author of The Women Behind the Door

It's been four months and five days since Paula Spencer last had a drink--she's counted. It's been ten years since her husband Charlo died--she's counted that too. She's tried to quit before, but this time it will stick--she's sure of it.

As Paula relearns how to be herself again, she must also relearn how to be a mother--to Nicola, already an adult, who still checks Paula's pantry for bottles every time she visits; to John Paul, who has built an entire life without Paula in it; to Leanne, who seems to be headed down the same path of self-destruction Paula just left; and to Jack, the baby, the only one she's managed to do right by, so far. Things in Ireland are changing, and Paula is doing everything she can to change too.

Told with the unmistakable wit of Doyle's unique voice, Paula's dogged struggle for sobriety is a redemptive tale of a brave and tenacious woman, "as real as realism gets" (Atlanta Journal-Constitution). If you met Paula in The Woman Who Walked Into Doors, you'll be eager to see where she is ten years on; if you haven't yet, you'll feel lucky to connect with her in this book and its successor, The Women Behind the Door.

Review Quotes

"Brilliant." --The New Yorker

"An extraordinary story about an ordinary life."
--People

"Beautifully nuanced and sweetly populist . . . You'll stick with Paula as Doyle gently celebrates her small but memorable victories."
--USA Today

"A tale of ultimate personal struggle, and told superbly . . . Doyle shines a light on a supposedly ordinary life, tenderly illuminating its extraordinary contours."
--The Wall Street Journal

"[Doyle] transforms what might be a bleak story of a working-class woman into a tale of triumph and great humor."
--Entertainment Weekly

"A phenomenally rewarding read... Could not be bettered in its depiction of the minutiae of the life of a recovering alcoholic: relentless, trivial, terrified" -- Observer (London)

About the Author

Roddy Doyle is an internationally bestselling writer. His first three novels--The Commitments, The Snapper, and the 1991 Booker Prize finalist The Van--are known as The Barrytown Trilogy. He is also the author of the novels Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha (1993 Booker Prize winner), The Woman Who Walked into Doors, and A Star Called Henry, and a non-fiction book about his parents, Rory & Ita. Doyle has also written for the stage and the screen: the plays Brownbread, War, Guess Who's Coming for the Dinner, and The Woman Who Walked Into Doors; the film adaptations of The Commitments )as co-writer), The Snapper, and The Van; When Brendan Met Trudy (an original screenplay); the four-part television series Family for the BBC; and the television play Hell for Leather. Roddy Doyle has also written the children's books The Giggler Treatment, Rover Saves Christmas, and The Meanwhile Adventures and contributed to a variety of publications including The New Yorker magazine and several anthologies. He lives in Dublin.