The Dead Republic

A Novel

The triumphant conclusion to the trilogy that began with A Star Called Henry

Henry Smart is back. It is 1946, and Henry has crawled into the desert of Utah's Monument Valley to die. He's stumbled onto a film set though, and ends up in Hollywood collaborating with John Ford on a script based on his life. Eventually, Henry finds himself back in Ireland, where he becomes a custodian, and meets up with a woman who may or may not be his long-lost wife. After being injured in a political bombing in Dublin, the secret of his rebel past comes out, and Henry is a national hero. Or are his troubles just beginning? Raucous, colorful, and epic, The Dead Republic is the magnificent final act in the life of one of Doyle's most unforgettable characters.
"The best of Doyle's trilogy . . . he has avoided crowd-pleasing formulas to create an original and amusing octogenarian double agent, composing a thoughtful book about a sometimes thoughtless political process."
--The New York Times Book Review

"Entertaining . . . A purposeful, funny smackdown of popular culture's contribution to the mythology of Irish nationalism."
--Los Angeles Times 

“The story of Henry’s reintegration into a much changed Ireland is thoroughly absorbing. . . . The plot never stops zipping, but, as the title suggests, there’s a darker picture.”
--The New Yorker
© Anthony Woods
RODDY DOYLE was born in Dublin in 1958. He is the author of ten acclaimed novels, including The Commitments, The Van (a finalist for the Booker Prize), Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha (winner of the Booker Prize), The Woman Who Walked Into Doors, A Star Called Henry, The Guts and most recently, Love. Doyle has also written several collections of stories, as well as Two Pints, Two More Pints and Two for the Road, and several works for children and young adults including the Rover novels. He lives in Dublin. View titles by Roddy Doyle

About

The triumphant conclusion to the trilogy that began with A Star Called Henry

Henry Smart is back. It is 1946, and Henry has crawled into the desert of Utah's Monument Valley to die. He's stumbled onto a film set though, and ends up in Hollywood collaborating with John Ford on a script based on his life. Eventually, Henry finds himself back in Ireland, where he becomes a custodian, and meets up with a woman who may or may not be his long-lost wife. After being injured in a political bombing in Dublin, the secret of his rebel past comes out, and Henry is a national hero. Or are his troubles just beginning? Raucous, colorful, and epic, The Dead Republic is the magnificent final act in the life of one of Doyle's most unforgettable characters.

Reviews

"The best of Doyle's trilogy . . . he has avoided crowd-pleasing formulas to create an original and amusing octogenarian double agent, composing a thoughtful book about a sometimes thoughtless political process."
--The New York Times Book Review

"Entertaining . . . A purposeful, funny smackdown of popular culture's contribution to the mythology of Irish nationalism."
--Los Angeles Times 

“The story of Henry’s reintegration into a much changed Ireland is thoroughly absorbing. . . . The plot never stops zipping, but, as the title suggests, there’s a darker picture.”
--The New Yorker

Author

© Anthony Woods
RODDY DOYLE was born in Dublin in 1958. He is the author of ten acclaimed novels, including The Commitments, The Van (a finalist for the Booker Prize), Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha (winner of the Booker Prize), The Woman Who Walked Into Doors, A Star Called Henry, The Guts and most recently, Love. Doyle has also written several collections of stories, as well as Two Pints, Two More Pints and Two for the Road, and several works for children and young adults including the Rover novels. He lives in Dublin. View titles by Roddy Doyle