Wild Houses by Colin Barrett

Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024--San Antonio

Wild Houses by Colin Barrett is a character study set in Ireland that has been longlisted for the Booker Prize this year.  By "character study" I mean that we are given background information about the main characters in the story followed by the story of the events during several days involving all of these characters.  There is no real plot.  For a reader who is absorbing all of the information, it is a fascinating story that raises concerns and questions.  Is this 17-year-old teenager who has been successfully managing her own life since her parents died--doing well in school with a chance at going to university, working part-time in a bar, dating a nice boy whose brother is a worthless soul and criminal--going to continue making a success of her life or are circumstances going to hold her back?  Is the very large guy--a bullied loner in school who has been treated for mental problems with symptoms similar to panic attacks and whose estranged father is famous in town for having kidnapped a woman and ending up living in a sanatorium with similar mental symptoms--going to survive on his own after his mother's death occurs and two criminals start bullying their way into his life for the advantages they need for their crime sprees?  Is the school charmer--who bullied for fun and committed petty crimes in school without facing consequences and who is, a few years after school, still a petty criminal taking advantage of others without being able to use his charm to get away with things anymore--going to grow up or waste his whole life?  Is the quiet and sensitive brother of the school charmer/bully--who has a chance to go to university and lead a different life from his brother--going to escape the pull of events that could lead him other directions?  Are the worst of the criminals going to ever be caught and punished?  The book provides all the information needed to set these questions in motion and then leaves it to the reader to think about them and decide for himself what is going to happen to each.  I gave the book 4 stars out of 5.