Carry Me Down [Hardcover]

Starred Review. A spare, piercing testimony to the bewilderment and resiliency of youth, Hyland's second novel (following How the Light Gets In) filters the adult world through the distressed lens of adolescence, which makes every change look like a test of survival. John Egan is an extremely tall 11-year-old boy living in the small town of Gorey, Ireland, with the moody triumvirate of his mother, father and grandmother. As he faces the trials of home and school life, John feels he has no place in the world, and his frustration fuels odd obsessions: with the Guinness Book of World Records, with physical human contact and with his "gift" for detecting lies. His parents, already sorting through their own uneasy relationship, puzzle over their only son with doctors and teachers, pushing John to a moment of crisis, which may prove his undoing. John's voice is singular and powerful throughout: "I wait anxiously for my turn, thinking that he'll soon discover me and know that I'm different. I've already decided that I'll tell him about my gift." By the subtle, satisfying dénouement, one is rooting for John's place in the Guinness book and saving a space for him among the year's memorable characters. (Mar.)
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At 11, John Egan is nearly six feet tall with a deep voice, and he feels like a freak, especially after he wets himself in class. John believes he is a gifted human lie detector, and he himself is a great liar; his obsession is to be famous and have his gift recognized in the Guinness Book of World Records. But why is Dad lying? The child's naive first-person, present-tense narrative brings achingly close his helplessness in a powerful adult world. He may be a giant, but he has no control. Why suddenly is the family moving? Where to? What is wrong? When they land up in the public-housing projects in Dublin, the scary threat seems to be from a brutal street gang, but the real terror turns out to be in the intimacy of his home. Focused on small things, the quiet plain scenes of daily life lead to the surprising and unforgettable climax. Pain is harder than ignorance. Who needs the truth? Hazel Rochman
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"This is fiction writing of the highest order." J M Coetzee "Carry Me Down is uncompromising, unputdownable and done with expert lightness. It's a work of discreet brilliance. M.J. Hyland is a truly gifted writer." Ali Smith "In beautifully detailed and understated prose, Hyland's meditation on the nature of falsehood uncovers precious truths at every turn." The Times "The only thing certain is that the writing is wonderfully crafted, astringent, pure, almost eerily free of the tics of style...Its ripples feed the seismic flow of what is an unputdownable read." The Scotsman "Carry Me Down contains echoes of Angela Carter's The Magic Toyshop. Like Carter, MJ Hyland manages to convey a sense of horror even when she describes everyday life. She presents us with a family in which weakness and brutality coexist and portrays a troubled childhood with accuracy and style." New Statesman" --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Eleven-year-old John Egan knows he has a special gift: he can tell when people are lying. Their untruths set his eyes stinging and his stomach heaving. John thinks that one day his gift will make him famous and guarantee entry into the the Guinness Book of World Records. Until then, he has to navigate his father's anger and his mother's abrupt and confusing changes between treating him like a little boy and a then like a man. When the family is forced from their rural cottage into the council-flat slums of Dublin, John discovers that the lies that make him sick are also shielding him from the truth that threatens to destroy his family.

    A portrait of a boy who is a contradiction between aching vulnerability and a menacing anger fuelled by pain, Carry Me Down is a raw, beautiful read, another intensely profound and powerful story from a writer to watch.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

M. J. HYLAND was born in London in 1968 to Irish parents andspent her early childhood in Dublin. Her first novel, How the Light Gets In,was shortlisted for a Commonwealth Writers’ Prize (Eurasia Region) and aPushcart Prize. Hyland’s short stories have been published in Australia, theUS and Ireland, and she is a past editor of the literary magazine NocturnalSubmissions. Carry Me Down will also be published in the US, the UK,Spain, Sweden, Australia and the Netherlands. Hyland lives and works inMelbourne, Australia.

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.