Barrytown

Blimey. After having it on my shelf for the better part of a decade, I’ve finally taken down Roddy Doyle’s Barrytown Trilogy (The Commitments, The Snapper, The Van) collection to read. I don’t know if I’ve ever come across a more compulsive bit of writing. The damn thing is impossible to put down. It’s sitting about six inches from my hands right now and I’m trying not to pick it up and read more about Sharon and her da’. Should come with a warning label.
(Note: this is not the Barrytown in New Zealand with the mad guy who teaches you how to make samurai swords.)
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Those who have known me for any significant length of time will know of my deep and abiding love of the Alien movies. Those who share this affliction and are in New Zealand should be aware of The Alien Saga, going out free-to-air on TV3 tonight at 11.30pm. This is a feature-length behind-the-scenes doco from 2003 that got fantastic reviews from those who bought it from Amazon or commented on IMDB. Set your VCRs.