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Reading McDermott's book is like slipping into an Irish pub and taking a stool at the bar with a bunch of half-drunk, late Friday afternoon customers. The language and humor are classic Dublin, Ireland, and a study in cultural niche humor. The book is full of sometimes crude, rude, raunchy, or almost slapstick humor: "He warned –'That whore will give you something you'd need to go to see your doctor about.' So, I took him seriously as the only clap I've ever wanted is from an audience laughing at my jokes!"
Regional humor makes this book quite niche, and sometimes jokes will resonate best with those from the region. For example, "the commentator said it was, 'Getting tight in the middle third' because we were in an awful recession at the time, I laughed to myself that not only would things be getting tight in Middle Third but throughout the rest of Killester as well." But then there are plenty of sections of the book that are just plain funny for all: "There's a bridge in Dundalk called 'Bridge Street Bridge'...They name the street after the bridge and then go and name the bridge after the street that was named after the bridge in the first place."
Reading McDermott's book makes you feel like you are on a road trip with him. His stream-of-consciousness writing style and no-filter attitude come flying by in the narrative, just like the scenery whips by out the window, leaving the reader feeling bemused as well as entertained. Writing humor is difficult, and few authors do it well. Even fewer books have readers roaring aloud. For those who enjoy Irish humor, this one will.