His small furtive eyes flickered, seeking advantage. He was deeply hated, even despised with the collective swarm intelligence of a hunting pack of boys nearly men. El Furtivo (the furtive one), he was called. He was sitting on a simmering powder keg of malevolence and cruelty.
They wished only to hunt him down, blood sport. He was prey, a tethered goat. It passed the time …
A year after the release of his succesful first collection, Undernose Farm Revisted, venue-builder-turned-writer Harry Crosbie is back with a colourful new selection of short stories. Tragic and hilarious in equal measure, these Dublin tales capture the idiosyncrasies of characters old and new. As the likes of James Joyce and Claire Keegan have proven, Ireland has a powerful legacy of short-storytelling. Crosbie’s El Furtivo deserves its place in this heritage, as he toys with masculinity, modernity and what it means to be a Dubliner. As always, he never fails to both shock and delight.
Reviews
‘A unique wise and very funny storyteller. Compelling.’ Joe Duffy, broadcaster and author
‘We all thought Harry Crosbie was a born entrepreneur, but now we realise he was born to write. Elegant, pithy, brilliant.’ Pat Kenny, broadcaster
‘Stories pour out of Harry Crosbie. He is one of life’s raconteurs. It is rare that a talented talker can also write. But when he’s not inventing structures he can build, he’s inventing the people who populate his mind and his memories. Reading these Dublin tales is like spending an evening with the man himself. Pure pleasure.’ Bob Geldof
‘These stories sing with a language so melodic even a third or fourth reading offers up new surprises. He is the real deal, a master of rhythm, phrase and memory. A virtuoso, in fact.’ Tommy Tiernan, comedian and broadcaster
‘Harry Crosbie’s writing has “it”.’ Antony Farrell, director and founder of Lilliput Press
‘There are characters here. There is wit. There are stories that read like an autobiography of a life you wished you had lived.’ Neil Jordan, film director and novelist