Welcome to a wacky concept that should not work: on the island of Syracuse in Sicily, thousands of captured Athenians are being starved to death in quarries, until a mismatched pair of poor workers conjures up a production of works by Euripides in return for food and water. Glorious Exploits is told by Lampo, the feckless one of the pair; what’s more, his voice is modern barroom Irish, irreverent and lyrical. Boozy, irreverent, callous, the pair’s actions rachet, at the end of a wonderfully executed plot, into transcendent striving that hinges on the power of art and language to change the world. Reminiscent of Irish author Ferdia Lennon’s more established compatriot, Kevin Barry, Glorious Exploits should founder on the shoals of its savage wit but instead it transports and moves. Heartily recommended, another Irish novelist in fancy, superb flight.
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