Exciting Times By: Naoise Dolan. If in part one, Ava feels held at a frustrating distance why is she so hard on herself? Caitlin, on the other hand, lives part of the year with her wealthy mother Phoebe, whos just moved to Albuquerque, and summers with her father Lamb, equally affluent, on the Vineyard. The Irish debut novel everyone is talking about.' - The Gloss. Publication Information. Judy Blume, edited by Soon they are sleeping together, and Ava moves into Julians flat. Reviews: Trustpilot. This book is incredibly fine. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Noting that the school hires only white people, she remarks: "Like sharks' teeth, teachers dropped out and were replaced.". I loved the IG stalking references, so current and fun to read. None of the English-speaking characters seek to venture beyond their established social circles, where even brief references to elections or the conditions of domestic workers are dismissed as white savior-ish. They barely notice the Chinese characters on street signs, let alone try to understand them. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself. Im sorry. 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. I personally see the appeal for Sally Rooneys fans (and thats why I chose it as my next rec), but I also think that Dolan deserves praise of her own. I am a huge Sally Rooney fan, ergo, this book was such a treat for me. But boy, this novel feels so liveless and fake. 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 a 21-year-old who leaves Ireland, where shes convinced everyone hates her, to become a teacher of English as a foreign language in Hong Kong. Though this model of relationship-as-power-struggle is hardly new, Dolan brings a fresh 21st-century sensibility to it. 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. Ava is 22 years old and teaches English to rich kids in Hong Kong. And yet its so original. Again, this recalls Rooney, who uses emails both sent and unsent as a potent fictional technique, and writes in Normal People that the network is a form of intelligence in itself, containing them both, and containing their feelings for each other. The book is fast-paced, but with finely-wrought moments of stillness. Previously, she was an editor at Marie Claire, where she wrote and edited culture, politics, and lifestyle stories ranging from op-eds to profiles to ambitious packages. She, a . So lucky us, really. New RRP 14.99. Read more. Exciting Times is published by Weidenfeld & Nicolson. In stylish, uncluttered prose, Naoise Dolan dissects the personal and financial transactions that make up a lifeand announces herself as a singular new voice. I loved him potentially, she thinks. 6 min read. 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. Her debut novel, Exciting Times, was a Sunday Times bestseller, widely translated, and optioned for television. Naoise Dolan's Exciting Times is shortlisted for the 2020 Young Writer of the Year Award. m sorry. Buy Exciting Times: THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER and shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2020 By Naoise Dolan. I often had to re-read passages, as subtext also plays a huge part in the book. Exciting Timesfollows Ava, a young Irish woman living in Hong Kong and her relationship with Julian and Edith. Visit our corporate site. 3.79. evenings that often end in drunken blackouts or in bed with her sort-of boyfriend Julian, who . Not long after her arrival, she finds herself on a lunch date with Julian, an Oxford-educated British banker in his late 20s. Condition - Very Good. Politically alert, heartbreakingly raw, and dryly funny, Exciting Times is thrillingly attuned to the great freedoms and greater uncertainties of modern love. . More Information | PDF Preview: PDF Title : Exciting Times : A Novel: Total Page : 200 Pages: Author: Naoise Dolan: PDF Size : 592 KB: Language : English: . @book_gal. Margaret Verble is the author of several previous novels, including. Its not plot-driven and Ava as a character distances herself from people in the book, so shes not intrinsically likeable. She's lost as well as lonely. Its something I appreciate in memoirs and also in literary fiction. Lily wont send Emerson to her fathers house overnight until shes old enough to talkSo she can tell me if something happensbut she doesnt want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. "Okay wow, what a great book! I really enjoyed this novel and would recommend if you want to read something thats not the normal style." 2. Incredibly readable.' - Belfast Telegraph. Buy Exciting Times: THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER By Naoise Dolan. Though the novel had mixed reviews, one thing readers did agree on is that Dolan is a unique and smart writer who they'll continue to support throughout her career. Already drawing comparisons to Sally Rooneys work, Exciting Times, by Naoise Dolan, has many of the familiar tropes of the millennial novel covered: Jealousy and obsession, love and late capitalism, sex and the internet all come whirling together in a wry and bracing tale of class and privilege. Exciting Times Naoise Dolan. She studied English literature at Trinity College Dublin and Oxford University. "Dolan's preoccupation with power is often couched in humor but always expertly observed. While there, Ava meets Julian, a rich banker from London, who invites her to move into his home. The years pass by at a fast and steamy clip in Blumes latest adult novel (Wifey, not reviewed; Smart Women, 1984) as two friends find loyalties and affections tested as they grow into young women. EXCITING TIMES. The fact that Naoise Dolan is being touted as "the new Sally Rooney" is nothing short of an insult to Rooney's work. This years Womens Prize for Fiction longlist includes quite a few of these disaster women books and I for one am really pleased with that. "The angst of your twentiestrying to figure out who you are can be exhaustingyoure trying on identities like outfits. Its not easy to sustain interest in someone so relentlessly floundering for self-knowledge, and the book flags once Ava and Edith are together. Oh my goodness. 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. An intimate, bracingly intelligent debut novel about a millennial Irish expat who becomes entangled in a love triangle with a male banker and a female lawyer. 256 pp. They trip her up and get in the way. The book is perfect for those who wants to read contemporary, lgbt books. Aperus are . Three-syllable words spread out like the spokes on an umbrella: "attaches" became "a-tach-iss.". That said, I did not always love this book. In Exciting Times, Naoise Dolan's debut novel, the characters have better problems than most of us do. Naoise Dolan is an Irish writer born in Dublin. A sharp, witty and ultimately moving debut . This month we are discussing. It all adds up to a bracing, refreshing first novel, with hints of greater things to come. June 3, 2020 7 AM PT. Her sentences are sharp and confident, especially for a debut. She studied English literature at Trinity College Dublin and Oxford University. Exciting Times Naoise Dolan $27.99 $26.03 in cart add to cart I Might Regret This: Essays, Drawings, Vulnerabilities, and. In July, we'll be reading Brit Bennett's bestselling novel,The Vanishing Half (opens in new tab). Deadline reports that the actress will star in and produce Exciting Times, a "contemporary romance with a twist" adapted from Irish author Naoise Dolan's novel of the same name. Exciting Times is a beautiful novel written by the famous author Naoise Dolan. A variety of explanations for this have been proposed; The Lancet's "Commission on the future of care and clinical research in autism" commented that it "might be part of a different concept of self, less reliance on or reference to social norms, or part of a . In this, shes reminiscent of Sally Rooneys precarious young women, whose struggle for self-affirmation is so snarled up with the power dynamics of sex. In stylish, uncluttered prose, Naoise Dolan dissects the personal and financial transactions that make up a lifeand announces herself as a singular new voice. [3] A college debater, she co-convened the Irish Mace competition in 2015/16. A widowed painter and her teenaged . "Droll, shrewd and unafraida winning debut." Eileen was six years older than me. When the two begin a romance, Ava pretends Julian is only a roommate. Millennials floundering in the realms of the heart. 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 . It was ok, but I was disappointed and wanted a little more." Everyone should read it right now. In fact, Exciting Times (talk about a misleading title) reads like a dry, emotionless version of Conversations with Friends without the subtle characterization and psychological realism that made Rooney a household name. in part two, we watch her coming into the light. This can be really interesting territory for a novel, but it didn't completely work for me here. "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 skilfully reveals to us how Avas choices are all made with self-protection in mind: her constant irony, her low expectations, her chilly relationship with Julian. I cant wait to read what Dolan writes next. The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother. 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. But while it had a similar vibe and a cast of millennials, it definitely had more of a dry and cutting tone to it. I don't do that often. Were glad you found a book that interests you! "I have to say I really liked this debut novel by Naoise Dolan. This book really does navigate the muddle of thought and inaction cleverly. @what_leah_reads. I really am. - Publishers Weekly 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. . BookBrowse LLC 1997-2023. Exciting Timesis a smart and funny book that deals with class, money, bisexuality, and the uncertainties of modern love through the eyes of a narrator that is scared to be loved. Her debut novel, Exciting Times, was a Sunday Times bestseller, widely translated, and optioned for television. It seemed farcical that I even needed to explain to Edith . The style is detached and detaching in an interesting way but if you like sinking teeth into a narrative this is not for you. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The book centres on Ava (Dynevor), an Irish woman who moves to Hong Kong . dynamic. Since the content is visually instructed, it creates excitement in learning by the users and improves the retention rate to a greater extent which . Ava herself would give much the same impression, which is a sign the book is successful even if it doesn't make it universally appealing. I also really loved how the author addresses the Irish English references in the novel and wondered if non-Irish readers understand them. $15 at Amazon. 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. CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE | But that's what I really enjoyed about thisthe characters felt real and the uncertainty and non-committal situations also felt very real. [5] Dolan obtained an English degree from Trinity College Dublin in 2016 [6] [2] and later a Master's in Victorian literature from Oxford University. Victoria, or more commonly Vix, lives in a small house; her brother has muscular dystrophy; her mother is unhappy, and money is scarce. Title Edith is curious and enthusiastic, and Ava can no longer maintain her detached, ironical approach to life feelings flower all over the place. The story of how this casual invitation turns the two girls into what they call "Summer sisters" is prefaced with a prologue in which Vix is asked by Caitlin to be her matron of honor. 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 of the Year Award.She lives in Berlin. NY 10036. My main problem was Ava. 'There was something Shakespearean about imperious men going down on you: the mighty have fallen.'. The dialog is brilliant throughout. But when she asks whether he loves her, he cannot say more than "I like you a great deal." Do you marvel at clever sentence structure when encountered in a book? In Exciting Times, Echoes of Sally Rooney, but With a Queer Twist, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/02/books/review/exciting-times-naoise-dolan.html. The project, based on Irish writer Naoise Dolan's debut novel, hails from U.S. financier-producer Black Bear Pictures, which optioned rights to the book ahead of its June 2020 U.S. release to . When Ava leaves Ireland aged 22 to make her own money . Do you re-read witty comebacks to try and bake them into your mind should you ever need them? Let the BookTokking Begin, New Colleen Hoover Book Sells 800K Copies, Colleen Hoover Dominated Book Sales in 2022. I wanted her life, Ava thinks. - Exciting Times [ Book Description ] When you leave Ireland aged 22 to spend your parents' money, it's called a gap year. What listeners say about Exciting Times Average Customer Ratings. Fiercely intelligent, brutally funny and written with such heart, Exciting Times announces an impressive new voice in literature. 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 of the Year Award. Blume knows the way kids and teens speak, but her two female leads are less credible as they reach adulthood. Related Post: Why You Should Buy a Kindle EXCITING TIMES, by Naoise Dolan. "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." Besides school and uni . Exciting Times is the debut novel from Irish writer Naoise Dolan (and one of the Headstuff Picks of 2020 ). By this I mean that Naise Dolan also focuses on love from a millennial point of view. Both intonations feel native to its 22 . Straight romance. Or a good girlfriend? Nine months later, out popped their new child known asExciting Times. Exciting Times is a fun, snappy read ordinarily, Id say its short chapters could be torn through on your commute, but itll brighten lockdown too.