"I was thinking how right ma was--Mrs Nugent all smiles when she met us and how are you getting on Mrs and young Francis are you both well?...what she was really saying was: Ah hello Mrs Pig how are you and look Philip do you see what's coming now--The Pig Family!"
This is a precisely crafted, often lyrical, portrait of the descent into madness of a young killer in small-town Ireland. Short-listed for the Booker Prize.
Shortlisted for the 1992 Booker Prize.
Winner of the "Irish Times"-Aer Lingus Literature Prize for Fiction.
"An almost perfect novel...A Beckett monologue with plot by Alfred Hitchcock...Startlingly original."
--"The Washington Post Book World"
"Stunning...part Huck Finn, part Holden Caufield, part Hannibal Lecter."
--"The New York Times Book Review"
"Brilliant, unique. Patrick McCabe pushes your head through the book and you come out the other end gasping, admiring, and knowing that reading fiction will never be the same again. It's the best Irish novel I've read in years."
--Roddy Doyle, author of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
"A chilling tale of a child's hell...often screamingly funny...the book has a compelling and terrible beauty."
--"The Boston Globe"
"Lyrical and disturbing, horrific and hilarious."
--"The New York Times"
"Patrick McCabe is an outstanding writer. The Butcher Boy is fearful, original, compelling and very hard to put out of your mind. American readers should pay close attention to this man."
--Thomas McGuane
Shortlisted for the 1992 Booker Prize.
Winner of the "Irish Times"-Aer Lingus Literature Prize for Fiction.
"An almost perfect novel...A Beckett monologue with plot by Alfred Hitchcock...Startlingly original."
--"The Washington Post Book World"
"Stunning...part Huck Finn, part Holden Caufield, part Hannibal Lecter."
--"The New York Times Book Review"
"Brilliant, unique. Patrick McCabe pushes your head through the book and you come out the other end gasping, admiring, and knowing that reading fiction will never be the same again. It's the best Irish novel I've read in years."
--Roddy Doyle, author of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
"A chilling tale of a child's hell...often screamingly funny...the book has a compelling and terrible beauty."
--"The Boston Globe"
"Lyrical and disturbing, horrific and hilarious."
--"The New York Times"
"Patrick McCabe is an outstanding writer. The Butcher Boy is fearful, original, compelling and very hard to put out of your mind. American readers should pay close attention to this man."
--Thomas McGuane
Shortlisted for the 1992 Booker Prize.
Winner of the
Irish Times-Aer Lingus Literature Prize for Fiction.
"An almost perfect novel...A Beckett monologue with plot by Alfred Hitchcock...Startlingly original."
--
The Washington Post Book World "Stunning...part Huck Finn, part Holden Caufield, part Hannibal Lecter."
--
The New York Times Book Review "Brilliant, unique. Patrick McCabe pushes your head through the book and you come out the other end gasping, admiring, and knowing that reading fiction will never be the same again. It's the best Irish novel I've read in years."
--Roddy Doyle, author of
Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha "A chilling tale of a child's hell...often screamingly funny...the book has a compelling and terrible beauty."
--
The Boston Globe "Lyrical and disturbing, horrific and hilarious."
--
The New York Times "Patrick McCabe is an outstanding writer.
The Butcher Boy is fearful, original, compelling and very hard to put out of your mind. American readers should pay close attention to this man."
--Thomas McGuane
Shortlisted for the 1992 Booker Prize.
Winner of the
Irish Times-Aer Lingus Literature Prize for Fiction.
"An almost perfect novel...A Beckett monologue with plot by Alfred Hitchcock...Startlingly original."
--
The Washington Post Book World "Stunning...part Huck Finn, part Holden Caufield, part Hannibal Lecter."
--
The New York Times Book Review "Brilliant, unique. Patrick McCabe pushes your head through the book and you come out the other end gasping, admiring, and knowing that reading fiction will never be the same again. It's the best Irish novel I've read in years."
--Roddy Doyle, author of
Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha "A chilling tale of a child's hell...often screamingly funny...the book has a compelling and terrible beauty."
--
The Boston Globe "Lyrical and disturbing, horrific and hilarious."
--
The New York Times "Patrick McCabe is an outstanding writer.
The Butcher Boy is fearful, original, compelling and very hard to put out of your mind. American readers should pay close attention to this man."
--Thomas McGuane