The Young Wan: An Agnes Browne Novel

Rating:
Summary: "In the Jarro there is magic."
Review:

After having read all three of the Agnes Browne Trilogy; The Mammy,The Chisellers and The Granny,I thoight that would be the end of O'Carroll's books about life in the Jarro and in the markets of Moore Street.
Well,let me tell you,O'Carroll hasn't run out of stories,and for my money this is his best yet
It is not often that I read a book that makes me laugh out loud,but this one did-and many times.
As Malachy McCourt,brother of Frank McCourt,says,"You will laugh your arse off and your tears will do away with your water-retention problem."
That about says it all!!
When can we expect a movie? It's sure to be a winner.

Rating:
Summary: A Perfect Fourth
Review: “The Young Wan”, is the 4th book published by Brendan O’Carroll that chronicles the life, friends and family of Agnes Brown, although it is now the first when placed in chronological order. The original three books formed a remarkable trilogy that could easily have stood on its own. The author took a risk by expanding the series to 4 but it was a gamble well chosen and readers are brilliantly rewarded. The remarkable woman who we met in the original series now has her story told and even that of her mother and a small bit of her grandparents. The result is a complete picture of a remarkable woman and the family she raised.

The book for me was he darkest of the four but that did not prevent it from at times causing the most pleasurable discomfort from laughter after it brought tears from the words of a devoted son, and sorrow from the brutality, stupidity and pure meanness that only humans practice. If you think you have read of all the cruelty a parent can inflict on a child read Agnes’s story. If you think there is a finite depth that a parent can sink to in abuse of their own, read this story, for Dante never created a level so low. That these parents I refer to would seek shelter in an Apartheid state after committing what can only be termed mass murder, is an appropriate locale for those who judged their own child so cruelly.

This book and the four part series it is a portion of is some of the best reading I have ever done, no time I have spent with a book has been more satisfactorily used. The brutal parts of this tale should in no sense put you off from this book and the three that follow, for the series is about the triumph of the human will no matter what it faced, no matter how familiar the face may have been that inflicted such pain. It is a story of a woman that literally handed her dream to a sibling, a woman who never thought of quitting much less did.

This is a remarkable collection by a gifted man who loved his mother enough to tell her story.

Rating:
Summary: Glad I didn't pass on this one
Review: After reading the Agnes Browne trilogy I wasn't too enthusiastic about reading this novel when I found out it was a prequel. Once I know how a story ends I usually don't care to go back in time to before it ever started. But this novel is definitely an exception. In fact, I think it is the best novel Brendan O'Carroll has written! He goes back in time and introduces the reader to Agnes' grandparents and parents, he explains how Agnes and Marion become best friends, and how she arrives at her job in the market place just to name a few of the storylines. All of these are wonderful, some very poignant ( her relationship with Nellie and dealing with her mother's dementia and her sister's delinquency) but others very funny, especially the scenes with Marion. Oh, if we all had a zany, irreverent friend like Marion! The scene where she and Agnes make their First Confession is one of the funniest things I have ever read. All in all, just a terrific novel. I hope Mr. O'Carroll is working on another one.

Rating:
Summary: There is magic in this book! Wonderful!
Review: Although I bought The Mammy trilogy sometime ago, I didn't read the first book until an online book group selected this title as a group read earlier this year. While reading The Mammy I learned that there was a 4th book, actually a prequel, called The Young Wan. No sooner had I gulped down The Mammy, I rushed to read the next two books, The Chisellers and The Granny. And since I was having such a good time with Agnes, I bought The Young Wan and unfortunately read it all too quickly. I say unfortunately because now I wish I had saved it for that time when nothing but a wonderful book will do. And while I am a stickler about reading books in order or reading a prequel first no matter how the books are published, I am so glad that I read The Young Wan last since it was the best of the four books im my opinion and ended this series beautifully. Now I am so sad to see this book and series end and only hope that Mr. O'Carroll will write more about the Browne family in the future.

The Young Wan begins on the eve of Agnes's marriage to Redser Browne. Almost at once the reader realizes that not only is something wrong with Agnes's mother, Connie, but that Agnes may not be getting married in the Church after all. And in what can only be described as the most revealing and poignant part of the series the author takes us back in time to find out more about Agnes's parents and grandparents. This portion allows us to see Agnes's mother, Connie, as the daughter of a wealthy family and a part of her father's foundry business. We see how she meets the younger man who is to become her husband and how he eventually becomes a labor leader. We also feel for Connie when her father disowns her when she marries against her father's wishes. We also see Agnes as a young child, as the older sister of Dolly who becomes part of a gang od burglars at a young age, as a student at a parochial school and then a merchant in the Jarro. Parts of the book are laugh out loud funny especially when Agnes and her lifelong friend Marion are together but parts are also very tragic and sad. Agnes grows up all too quickly taking care of her fragile mother and trying to keep her sister in school and not prison. She becomes the right hand of stall owner learnign the trade fast and a lover of rock and roll dancing where she eventually meets her husband. But perhaps the most poignant part is the end when Agnes proves how special she is when she helps out her sister Dolly and than takes a stance backed by her mother and a priest who figures prominently in their family history.

I must admit that after reading some rather ordinary books, I found The Young Wan was just the right book to lift me out of my book doldrums. I so loved these characters and only wish they were part of my family or friends. In addition, this book left with this burning desire to visit Dublin and walk the streets of the Jarro.

If you read little else this year, please read The Young Wan and the trilogy and find out for yourselves that magic, music, laughter and tears can all be found in the Jarro and with Agnes Browne.

Rating:
Summary: Continuing Agnes Browne Saga-Before she was 'The Mammy'
Review: Brendan O'Carroll's 'The Young Wan' is the fourth in the continuing Agnes Browne saga takes a step back into the past. Rightfully being the first tale in the life of Agnes Reddin before she became Mrs. Nichols 'Redser' Browne. Before she was 'The Mammy,' who had 'The Chisellers' and before the made her 'The Granny'-Agnes was just a young girl, or 'The Young Wan,' growing up in the Jarro in Dublin. A place where the working-class live, where women shout gossip across the street and everyone knows everyone else's business. The story begins in 1940 is the meeting of Agnes and her best friend Marion Delany (later Mrs. Tom Monks). then it switches to 1921 about the meeting and eventual courtship of Agnes' parents Connie Parker-Willis and Bosco Reddin. Connie a homely head of the accounting office and Bosco a dashing factory worker and union organizer. It wasn't long after their whirlwind romance and marriage along came Agnes Reddin.

During the time after Agnes was born Bosco encouraged Connie to reconcile her differences with her father. Her visit to see him was the most sorriest tale that would leave one in tears. As Agnes grew she was "the quiet one" and her first four years of school was barely noticed. Then in her Holy Communion class it changed that's when she met Marion Delany. A milestone on her life. The disappearance of her mammy was another milestone in Agnes' life, or perhaps a millstone. After the birth of her sister Dolly, Agnes was no longer the baby, but "a young wan" as Marion put it. Thee were times Agnes and Marion they did everything together. They drew closer. From that hilarious outburst of the first confession, the indignities of Catholic school, the daytrips to "the Market," working in the factories, unwanted birth of siblings and nights in the dance halls when rock-and-roll by Bill Haley and the Comets from America made the Dublin scene to meet the boys.

There were the darker times like the tragic death of Agnes' father, the truth about her mother's parents involvement of "Misery Hill Massacre" incident and the shame that was brought on the family, her mother's failing health and sister Dolly is accused of burglary and sentenced time in jail. As Agnes' life began to change she took comfort in her friends and along with Marion meet her future husband. First, it was Marion swept away by Tommo Monks. Marion introduced Agnes to Redser Browne. The rest is history. Then came the day of Agnes' wedding, the Jarro was full of gossip who knew of Agnes' secret. But Agnes now grown-up, keeping her broken family together at the same time creating one of her very own. 'The Young Wan' is completely different approach from 'The Mammy' trilogy but still retains the wit and unforgettable characters that had the making of the greatest Irish mother and family. This was a roaring good time I definitely recommend.

Rating:
Summary: As wonderful as the first three books
Review: Picked up The Young Wan wanting a great laugh from start to finish which of course, I got but was so surprised at the attachment I had for the characters this time around. Brendan O'Carroll has a way of drawing you in to the story so deeply you can smell aul' Dublin throughout this book, I laughed so hard at the confession scene with vivid memories of my kid sister in the same boat and cried at the sense of loss in other scenes which I won't spoil on you...........read it in one sitting !!! BOC - you are brill...............

Rating:
Summary: Och, tis a wonder
Review: This 4th book of O'Carroll's actually is backstory for his remarkable trilogy that chronicles the life, loves, and family of the inimitable and incredible Agnes Brown. It traces dear Agnes?s own childhood and gives us insight into her mother and grandparents. With its inclusion, avid readers now have the whole picture. Just as full of rollicking hilarity and side-splitting laughter as the others, The Young Wan is also the darkest of the four as it documents the brutality, stupidity and cruelty of certain levels of Irish life.
A marvelous set of books by a gifted author.

Rating:
Summary: Agnes and her family will win your heart
Review: This reads like a long short story. The language in parts surprised me at first but then it became just part of the story. In this novel, the reader meets Agnes' parents...how they met, how they married, how they fell in love. They have two children: Agnes and Dolly. Tragedy strikes and more hardships arise. Agnes has to grow up quicker than her age as she is faced with tough life situations.

Likeable characters and certainly does make the reader interested in the other books in this series.