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4.0 

The Dalkey Archive

By Flann O'Brien
The Dalkey Archive by Flann O'Brien digital book - Fable

Publisher Description

A fantastical caper—and the final novel—from the acclaimed twentieth-century Irish writer praised as being imbued “with the true comic spirit” by James Joyce.

No one would think that the end of the world would begin in the small town of Dalkey, twelve miles south of Dublin. Doomsday is the furthest thing from the minds of humble civil servant Mick Shaughnessy and his friend when they come across an injured swimmer near the sea. Helping the man back to his house, they discover their new acquaintance is a theologist and physicist who claims the impossible: not only can he control time, but he’s developed a chemical compound that eliminates oxygen from the atmosphere.

To stop humanity’s demise, Mick takes matters into his own hands, embarking on an outrageous adventure that has him meeting Saint Augustine in an underwater cave, recruiting a policeman who believes in a “Mollycule Theory” that has people turning into bikes and vice versa, and ferreting out the presumed-dead author James Joyce in a nearby resort town. Only time will tell if Mick can save planet earth . . .

The Dalkey Archive is witty, sly, outrageous, and the characters remind one at times of Nabokov or De Vries.” —Texture

“The undoubted humor of [The Dalkey Archive] derives as much from Mr. O’Brien’s facile use of language as from the play of his fertile imagination. . . . Not to be missed.” —Library Journal

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4 Reviews

4.0
“oh this book was too funny! the penname flann o'brien is proving to be a true gem. though i wish we'd spent a little more time philosophizing with de selby, everything joyce had to say about the odyssey and his life made up for it tenfold. it's just so cleverly funny and the sharp ending had me rolling with laughter.”

About Flann O'Brien

Flann O’Brien is a pseudonym for Brian O’Nolan (1911–1966), an Irish novelist, playwright, and satirist. Born in Strabane, County Tyrone, he is regarded as a key figure in postmodern literature. His English language novels, such as At Swim-Two-Birds and The Third Policeman, were written under the pen name Flann O’Brien. His many satirical columns in the Irish Times and an Irish language novel An Béal Bocht were written under the name Myles na gCopaleen. O’Nolan’s novels have attracted a wide following for their bizarre humor and modernist metafiction.
 

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