J. P. Donleavy's Ireland

In 1946, Donleavy (The Ginger Man left his Bronx home for Ireland to study at Trinity College. What ensued was more a rake's progress than conventional university experience, as Donleavy recounts his initiation into Irish society, chiefly at the subterranean or bohemian level. A peer of the legendary Brendan Behan in brawling and roistering, he frequented the pubs, clubs, brothels that undergirded Dublin's literary and social circles, commencing the love-hate relationship that caused him to settle permanently in County Westmeath in the 1950s, when Ireland offered a tax-free haven to working aritsts. Expectedly irreverent, outrageous and witty, Donleavy peppers this quasi-autobiography with anecdotes about amours, marriages, donnybrooks and his amazingly accepting family. The author's own photos generously illustrate the volume. (October)