Synopses & Reviews
"This book is majestic and squalid at the same time, as if the Bible were actually about Elvis. The rhythms and music carry you like a baby on a raft on the river, but it's the precision of the words that cinches you."—Richard Hell, author of
I Dreamed I Was a Very Clean Tramp "A passionate dream of a book. Dazzling, but lucid—as though Flannery O'Connor had gone back to the Ireland of her forebears to write a novel."—Peter Behrens, author of The Law of Dreams
A small Irish town. A river flood. The return of a prodigal son. On the banks of the river Rua, when the rains have stopped and the waters receded, nine bodies are found. What took them to the river?
Enoch OReilly, a self-made preacher and Elvis impersonator claiming to be just returned to Ireland from America, launches a radio show Revival Hour. It enjoys a short but spectacular run, and its disastrous end forces Enoch back to the family home. There he finds clues to a mythic connection between the dead—this brotherhood of the flood—the natural rhythms of the earth, a secret language called riverish, and his lost father.
Conjuring together various traditions—gothic, Irish, Southern, musical, poetic, our deep connections to stories, to our homelands, and to nature—Peter Murphy establishes himself as one of Irelands newest literary wonders.
"A wild and inventive butt-kicker, but also strangely tender, and the language is charged, vivid, luminous."—Kevin Barry, author of City of Bohane
"Murphy can write like an angel, [but] his gaze is mischievous."— Irish Times
Review
"This book is majestic and squalid at the same time, as if the Bible were actually about Elvis. The rhythms and music carry you like a baby on a raft on the river, but it's the precision of the words that cinches you. Maybe best of all, it makes you think and argue, first with the author and then with everything around you."—Richard Hell "A passionate dream of a book. Dazzling, but lucid—as though Flannery O'Connor had gone back to the Ireland of her forebears to write this novel."—Peter Behrens, author of The Law of Dreams and The O'Briens "If this is a novel about 'how the young Enoch O'Reilly was possessed by the voice of the rambling man he would become,' then it's also a novel about fate and family. Murphy is sensitive to ways in which religious language fits neatly with familial ill-fatedness. . . Perhaps the thing that stops this from being a dull novel about the horrors of fate is that it is funny. Ornate, even grotesque, comic episodes are a significant part of its charm. . . Murphy moves into and out of various characters' voices with ease and grace. . . Both stories end in suicide, but both are wonderful portrayals of how we try to re-narrate ourselves and our lives, even if our new stories don't last long enough." —Spectator "Murphys fiction is by turns exploratory, riveting, ponderous and insightful. . . Shall We Gather at the River is by turns lucid and nightmarish." —Sunday Times (Ireland) "A purgatorial landscape that recalls Flann O'Brien by way of Patrick McCabe, Murphy's rural Ireland feels thrillingly unpredictable, if not downright malevolent. . . Murphy rightly eschews easy answers when it comes to explaining the tragedy and, at its best, his prose is as eerily hypnotic as the river of the book's title." —Metro "Peter Murphy's Shall We Gather at the River is a novel in full spate, a torrent of ideas bursting its banks with every turn of the page. . . Enoch O'Reilly makes for a fascinating character, one part Old Testament prophet to two parts daemonic succubus feasting on the misery of others." —Irish Examiner "It's hard to think of a more quintessentially Irish surname than O'Reilly. The name, with its jarring and yet oddly sonorous clash of Pentateuchal and Gaelic registers, seems to echo something fundamental about Murphy's book, which is a volatile hybrid of cultural influences. . . Enoch's true faith is, like that of the novel itself, language. . . One of the strengths of Shall We Gather at the River is the way in which its language - which is as in thrall to the poetry of the Old Testament as Enoch himself is - builds towards a cumulative lyrical effect. . . At its best, the book operates almost like a collection of linked short stories, and there are sections that stand alone as absorbing performances in their own right. The prose is both evocative and slippery, characterised by a kind of evasive bombast. There's an impressive section - a riff, really (Murphy is a heavily riff-based writer) - called 'The Why', in which the book's disembodied narrative voice speculates on what might have caused these suicides. . . There are enough moments of poignancy and lyrical force to make tuning in a worthwhile endeavour." —Sunday Business Post "[The River and Enoch OReilly] is brimming over with ideas, themes, characters and esoteric information. It contains evangelical preachers, father-son relationships, psychiatry, Middle Eastern flood myths. It also takes on one of the most difficult, delicate, painful subjects of contemporary life in Ireland and elsewhere: the occurrence of suicide clusters. . . The book pays heartfelt tribute to the power of radio and recorded sound. . . [Murphys] fiction is strongly informed by his own sense of place - and theres nothing romantic about it. . . The portrait of nature as malign is turned up - as the rock fraternity might put it - to 11." —Irish Times "Weird pale kids who dress only in black and hang out in the woods all the time can sometimes turn into dark and deeply talented novelists like Peter Murphy - this second novel of his is a wild and inventive butt-kicker, but it's also strangely tender, and its language is charged, vivid, luminous." -- Kevin Barry, author of City of Bohane "Strong second novel...Murphy's language is powerful, and in particular uses wavelike repetition to good effect."--Publishers Weekly
Review
A Barnes & Noble "Discover Great New Writers" selection for Fall 2009
Advance Praise for John the Revelator
"Full of things I can remember but can't imagine, a stunning debut novel."
–James Dean Bradfield, lead singer of the Manic Street Preachers
"The prose is a bag of fireworks, crackling with idiom and humour. Domestic, mythic, creepy, funny. Brilliant."
--Nick Laird, author of Utterly Monkey
"There's a novel which there's a lot of excitement about by Peter Murphy called John the Revelator. I've read it and it's an absolutely wonderful book, I mean it's a really wonderful book. And people say 'oh, you know, Irish fiction is stale,' well things can change overnight, and books like Peter Murphy's can change things and be so fresh and so contemporary, so original and so disturbing and brave. I don't know what else is coming out of the blue like that, and that's the way it goes."
—Colm Toibin, The International Herald Tribune
"Everything about John the Revelator excited me—I couldn't wait to turn the page and keep on going. It was like reading for the first time, almost as if I'd never read a novel before."
—Roddy Doyle, author of Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha
"Peter Murphy gives a great read, both wild and grounded. John the Revelator is the bastard of son of J.D. Salinger and Ted Hughes—ballsy, humorous, and brutally honest."
—Sabina Murray, author of The Caprices
"I also read a debut novel by an Irish writer, Peter Murphy, John the Revelator. An atmospheric tale of a young boy growing up in a small village whose life is altered by his friendship with a very free-spirited boy who he meets. It’s an interesting debut, filled with humour and energy, and a certain sense of mystery. Best of all is the old crone, Mrs Nagle, who takes up residence in John’s house whenever she sees an opportunity. Their face-offs are very funny and original."
—John Boyne, author of The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas and Mutiny on the Bounty
Praise from the UK
Murphy's impressive debut novel traces the childhood and young adolescence of John Devine. It is impressionistic rather than narrative-driven. It is part a traditional rite of passage novel and part hallucinogenic graphic nightmare horror. John the Revelator is the shout and answer refrain of the traditional blues song. . .It is also subtly comic. . .the author is to be admired for taking a well-used theme and giving it a great new twist . . . yet underneath the gothic, there is a gentle, tender novel. Peter Murphy's prose is extraordinarily good and each page is sheer pleasure to read."
—Neil Donnely, Irish Independent News
"John The Revelator is as assured a debut as I've read in years, and Murphy has created a cast of characters that will live long in the memory . . . This is a startling first novel, a remarkable statement of intent."
—John Meagher, the Irish Independent
"There is little to find fault with in this remarkably assured first attempt. Murphy, a music journalist from Wexford, has tapped something special with this insight into teenage psyche in a pocket of rural Ireland . . . This is a strikingly beautiful portrayal of mother and son . . . From the outset, Murphy shows a natural flair for narrative . . . Despite such confidetnly written prose, there is no evidence of arrogance . . . The style and attention to detail tally so well that it's easy to consume John the Revelator in one sitting . . . it is a hugely enjoyable work of fiction that announces Murphy as an Irish writer of substance."
—-Sunday Times Ireland
"Directly from the opening paragraph, Peter Murphy’s exuberantly candid first novel draws the reader. . .Murphy succeeds in making his lively, evocative story that bit different, thanks to an assured narrative voice and an ability to detect the bizarre ever lurking within the commonplace. . .Murphy convincingly evokes a child’s response to life. . .This novel continually surprises as Murphy never becomes too clever. . .This may be a story of relatively recent contemporary Irish life, but Murphy also conveys a sense of the Ireland that went into making John’s world, a place in which the Bible and folklore walked hand in hand."
—The Irish Times
"An Irish music writer, Peter Murphy casts his debut novel like a blues noir, steeped in the music that has clearly inspired him. From the title, Blind Willie Johnson's 1930 gospel call and response, he follows the path of Nick Cave's 1985 Delta descent The Firstborn is Dead, with its shades of William Faulkner, Flannery O'Connor and Harry Crews. But this spook-filled Irish landscape, rendered with gouts of blood-red humour, is entirely his own."
—Cathi Unsworth, The Guardian
"Murphy's writing is resolutely unsentimental, but so moving and powerful that the end had me weeping buckets."
—Kate Saunders, The Times (London)
"Beautifully written, darkly humorous and totally engrossing. An exciting and impressive new talent."
—Anne Sexton, Hot Press
"Murphy has a very obvious affection for language, and for the crackle, spark and music of words. Even when describing decay and sourness, he manages to imbue things with an arresting beauty. He leads the reader down some atmospheric and moody byways, and avoids the dramatically obvious in favour of a gentle unravelling of John's friendship with Jamey, and John's attempts to deal with his mother's illness. The book moves with the organic grace of a coming-of-age movie, where everything of importance happens beneath the surface . . . Murphy is particularly good at describing the feverish angst of adolescence, the sweaty crawling-under-your-skin feeling of not knowing where you're going, and in John Devine he avoids the obvious and trite and creates an obliquely fascinating character."
—Padraig Kenny, Sunday Tribune
"Murphy writes spare arresting prose with the brio of Ireland's current literary star Anne Enright and he has the ear for dialogue of Roddy Doyle."
—Daily Express
"Murphy's eerily atmospheric debut . . . with its dark humour and hypnotic prose, brilliantly captures the uncertainties of growing up."
—Daily Mail
"A moving and affecting first novel."
—Sunday Herald
"[A] jaw-dropping debut...Murphy works literary alchemy on every page, filtering the daily tedium of small-town life through John’s bizarre worldview and enriching the story with a caustic humor that still leaves room for genuine moments of friendship and familial tenderness...A terrific, disquieting addition to the long tradition of Irish storytelling."
— Kirkus Review
"In the hallowed pantheon of Irish coming-of-age novels, Murphy's strongly written debut splits the difference between the sensitivity of Portrait of an Artist and the freakishness of Butcher Boy...Murphy understands the gracelessness of teenage boys and that peculiar delinquent wisdom shared by all the great coming-of-age novelists. With this novel, he doesn't have to bow to any of them.
— Publishers Weekly
"Beautifully humane and sometimes nightmarish, this incredible debut novel...establishes Murphy as an author of tremendous imaginative and linguistic power who has mastered Flann O'Brien's supernatural whimsy, Beckett's grim irony, and McCabe's unsparing brutality. Essential reading."
— Library Journal
"...this is a noteworthy debut from a writer who sticks with his stormy vision of the world."
— Dallas Morning News
"[A] soul-stirring debut novel...Murphy sets linguistic traps to capture the reader's attention in line after line of inspired and, yes, revelatory prose."
— Seattle Times
Review
"[A] jaw-dropping debut...Murphy works literary alchemy on every page, filtering the daily tedium of small-town life through Johns bizarre worldview and enriching the story with a caustic humor that still leaves room for genuine moments of friendship and familial tenderness...A terrific, disquieting addition to the long tradition of Irish storytelling."
Review
"In the hallowed pantheon of Irish coming-of-age novels, Murphy's strongly written debut splits the difference between the sensitivity of Portrait of an Artist and the freakishness of Butcher Boy...Murphy understands the gracelessness of teenage boys and that peculiar delinquent wisdom shared by all the great coming-of-age novelists. With this novel, he doesn't have to bow to any of them.
Review
"Beautifully humane and sometimes nightmarish, this incredible debut novel...establishes Murphy as an author of tremendous imaginative and linguistic power who has mastered Flann O'Brien's supernatural whimsy, Beckett's grim irony, and McCabe's unsparing brutality. Essential reading."
Review
"...this is a noteworthy debut from a writer who sticks with his stormy vision of the world."
Review
"[A] soul-stirring debut novel...Murphy sets linguistic traps to capture the reader's attention in line after line of inspired and, yes, revelatory prose."
Synopsis
From an author offering "some of the best writing I've seen from a younger Irish writer in a while" (Colum McCann) comes the tale of Enoch O'Reilly-- Elvis-impersonator, preacher-- a small Irish town, a river flood, and the mysterious drowning of nine citizens
Synopsis
In 1984, the river Rua overflows its banks near the Irish town of Murn. When the rains have stopped and the waters receded, nine bodies are found. What took them to the river?
Claiming to be just returned from America, self-made minister Enoch launches a radio show he calls The Revival Hour. After a short but spectacular run, it ends in disaster and hes forced back to the family home. There, he finds clues to a mythic connection between the dead—this brotherhood of the flood—the natural rhythms of the earth, a secret language called Riverish, and his lost father.
In this fever-dream of a novel, Peter Murphy issues a shamans call to conjure together various traditions—the gothic, the Irish, the Southern, the infusion of music into language, the infusion of myth into music and life, the search of a lost son for his long-lost father, our deep connections to our homelands and the cycles of nature. He establishes himself here, firmly, as one of Irelands newest literary wonders.
Synopsis
This is the story of John Devine — stuck in a small town in the eerie landscape of Southeast Ireland, worried over by his single, chain-smoking, bible-quoting mother, Lily, and spied on by the "neighborly" Mrs. Nagle. When Jamey Corboy, a self-styled Rimbaudian boy wonder, arrives in town, Johns life suddenly seems full of possibility. His loneliness dissipates. He is taken up by mischief and discovery, hiding in the world beyond as Lilys mysterious illness worsens. But Jamey and Johns nose for trouble may be their undoing and soon John will be faced with a terrible moral dilemma. Joining the ranks of the great novels of friendship and betrayal — A Separate Peace, A Prayer for Owen Meany, Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha — John the Revelator grapples with the pull of the world and the hold of those we love. Suffused with family secrets, eerie imagery, black humor, and hypnotic prose, John the Revelator is a novel to fall in love with and an astounding debut.
About the Author
PETER MURPHY, a writer and journalist, has written for Rolling Stone, the Sunday Business Post, and others. He has written liner notes for albums and anthologies, including for the remastered edition of the Anthology of American Folk Music, which features the Blind Willie Johnson recording of the song “John the Revelator.”