Life Without Children
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- Create Date：2022-03-03 10:51:38
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Roddy Doyle
- ISBN：1039001807
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Summary
A brilliantly warm， witty and moving portrait of our pandemic lives， told in ten heart-rending and uplifting short stories。
Love and marriage。 Children and family。 Death and grief。 Life touches everyone the same。 But living under lockdown， it changes us alone。
In these ten， beautifully moving short stories， Booker Prize-winner Roddy Doyle paints a collective portrait of our strange times。 A man abroad wanders the stag-and-hen-strewn streets of Newcastle， as news of the virus at home asks him to question his next move。 An exhausted nurse struggles to let go， having lost a much-loved patient in isolation。 A middle-aged son， barred from his mother's funeral， wakes to an oncoming hangover of regret。
Told with Doyle's signature warmth， wit and extraordinary eye for the richness that underpins the quiet of our lives， Life Without Children cuts to the heart of how we are all navigating loss， loneliness and the shifting of history underneath our feet。
Love and marriage。 Children and family。 Death and grief。 Life touches everyone the same。 But living under lockdown， it changes us alone。
In these ten， beautifully moving short stories， Booker Prize-winner Roddy Doyle paints a collective portrait of our strange times。 A man abroad wanders the stag-and-hen-strewn streets of Newcastle， as news of the virus at home asks him to question his next move。 An exhausted nurse struggles to let go， having lost a much-loved patient in isolation。 A middle-aged son， barred from his mother's funeral， wakes to an oncoming hangover of regret。
Told with Doyle's signature warmth， wit and extraordinary eye for the richness that underpins the quiet of our lives， Life Without Children cuts to the heart of how we are all navigating loss， loneliness and the shifting of history underneath our feet。
Reviews
Hails Kirker
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Heard about this book on CBC。
Kasa Cotugno
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We're all in this together， world-wide。 And even though each experience is individualistic， a reader in the U。S。 can identify with each character in these stories set in Ireland of life in lockdown。 Each story sheds a light on a different viewpoint， whether it is disgust at the discarded masks， fear for exposure， a search through empty streets usually filled for a missing loved one， the surprise at how long this has lasted -- all these feelings are universal。 Roddy Doyle writes with his usual fl We're all in this together， world-wide。 And even though each experience is individualistic， a reader in the U。S。 can identify with each character in these stories set in Ireland of life in lockdown。 Each story sheds a light on a different viewpoint， whether it is disgust at the discarded masks， fear for exposure， a search through empty streets usually filled for a missing loved one， the surprise at how long this has lasted -- all these feelings are universal。 Roddy Doyle writes with his usual flair and discerning eye。 。。。more
Susan Tunis
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Like many people， I suspect， I'm still trying to wrap my head around the surreal times we are living in。 I'm subsequently fascinated by literary works that are wrestling with Covid。 And Roddy Doyle's latest story collection definitely captured a spectrum of experience。 It isn't all bad。 I mean， there's a lot bad。 The isolation， the loss of income and identity， the death--but some people drew together。 Mr。 Doyle views the world with clarity， empathy， and imagination。 Each story felt utterly belie Like many people， I suspect， I'm still trying to wrap my head around the surreal times we are living in。 I'm subsequently fascinated by literary works that are wrestling with Covid。 And Roddy Doyle's latest story collection definitely captured a spectrum of experience。 It isn't all bad。 I mean， there's a lot bad。 The isolation， the loss of income and identity， the death--but some people drew together。 Mr。 Doyle views the world with clarity， empathy， and imagination。 Each story felt utterly believable。 They took place in Ireland， but were completely universal。 And while not every story ended neatly or tidily， there was a satisfying completeness to them。It's a short collection of ten stories。 When I got to the last page--and what a final page！--I thought: Excellent， 4。5 stars。 Then I turned back to the beginning to look at the first couple of stories again。 I swear to God， I read the entire book cover to cover a second time！ And enjoyed it EVEN MORE the second time around！！ That says everything。 Mr。 Doyle has earned his 5 stars。 Not everyone will want to read about this time right now。 But eventually people will。 Mr。 Doyle has captured a fraught moment。 Let it live long beyond the first-hand experience of lock-downs， mask mandates， anti-vaxxers， and Covid-19。 。。。more
Jeatherhane Reads
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Roddy Doyle has been on my radar since the 80s， but I have never read one of his books before。 I started The Woman Who Walked Into Doors for a book club a few years back， but found it too depressing to finish。The stories in Life Without Children are also depressing， but mostly because the context is too fresh。 This is what it has been like to live in lockdown throughout the Covid pandemic。 Someone reading these stories in the future will be able to feel in painful detail the way this pandemic ha Roddy Doyle has been on my radar since the 80s， but I have never read one of his books before。 I started The Woman Who Walked Into Doors for a book club a few years back， but found it too depressing to finish。The stories in Life Without Children are also depressing， but mostly because the context is too fresh。 This is what it has been like to live in lockdown throughout the Covid pandemic。 Someone reading these stories in the future will be able to feel in painful detail the way this pandemic has changed the world and isolated us from each other。 Reading it right now might be a little too real。Reading this collection has made me want to read more of Doyle's work。 He is a talented writer with the ability to bring people and places to life on the page。 This book was excellent， and I'm glad I read it。 I only wish I had been able to read it as purely fiction instead of the terrible reality it portrays。Thank you Knopf Canada and NetGalley for the digital review copy of this book。 。。。more
Bonny
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Roddy Doyle writes with lovely language， but even that couldn't save Life Without Children from winning the "sad， frustrated， and disgruntled old men during the pandemic" award from me。 One man throws a mug at the wall during a fight with his wife and thinks that at least it didn't shatter， just broke in half "along an old crack"， another contemplates abandoning his family while on a work trip， and yet another man searches for the son he drove away years earlier with his cruelty。 It might have b Roddy Doyle writes with lovely language， but even that couldn't save Life Without Children from winning the "sad， frustrated， and disgruntled old men during the pandemic" award from me。 One man throws a mug at the wall during a fight with his wife and thinks that at least it didn't shatter， just broke in half "along an old crack"， another contemplates abandoning his family while on a work trip， and yet another man searches for the son he drove away years earlier with his cruelty。 It might have been better if I read this short story collection 10 years from now， maybe when we're all beginning to forget about covid or have completely gotten used to it。 Doyle can convey emotion with his characters， but it's too soon and the emotions are ones we're all far too familiar with and would like to forget。 “The lockdown has ripped away the padding。 There’s no schedule， no job， no commute。 There’s nothing saving him。” 。。。more
Tracy Hollen
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2。5 starsSigh。 Not sure if I’m ready for these pandemic stories。 Low-ish rating partly due to this。 Just didn’t find the stories very engaging。
Sheila
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A book of the short stories set during the Covid lockdown in Ireland 2021。 Sad and generally depressing， they mostly focused on older men who were finding life tough anyway。 The lockdown only added to their problems。 “Gone” tells about a man whose wife has left him， leaving her keys on the kitchen table， her phone。 He’s surprised to think she has a life of her own。 Then we get her side， the horror of enduring lockdown with him。 It’s a story full of unspoken feelings。 The book depicts the frustra A book of the short stories set during the Covid lockdown in Ireland 2021。 Sad and generally depressing， they mostly focused on older men who were finding life tough anyway。 The lockdown only added to their problems。 “Gone” tells about a man whose wife has left him， leaving her keys on the kitchen table， her phone。 He’s surprised to think she has a life of her own。 Then we get her side， the horror of enduring lockdown with him。 It’s a story full of unspoken feelings。 The book depicts the frustration of lockdown ， the gulf between what people say and what they mean， what happens when you have no schedule， no job， no point in living。 As usual with Doyle ， a wonderful insight into men’s inability to express their feelings。 。。。more
Miriam Wilson
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Bought it thinking it was Joan didion， it wasn't。 Not impressed。 Bought it thinking it was Joan didion， it wasn't。 Not impressed。 。。。more
Patricia
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Absolutely loved this - people and events I could identify with and told in a familiar voice。A flavour of the writing:The hill is a killer， never mind the virus。 He doesn’t want to get used to the words and terms， their meanings and consequences - Covid， cluster， at-risk， asymptomatic。 He doesn’t want the carefulness。 This way is freedom， back home is boredom and terror。 He can walk up this hill to the life he never had， or walk back down to the life he doesn’t want。 p39 Life Without Children。An Absolutely loved this - people and events I could identify with and told in a familiar voice。A flavour of the writing:The hill is a killer， never mind the virus。 He doesn’t want to get used to the words and terms， their meanings and consequences - Covid， cluster， at-risk， asymptomatic。 He doesn’t want the carefulness。 This way is freedom， back home is boredom and terror。 He can walk up this hill to the life he never had， or walk back down to the life he doesn’t want。 p39 Life Without Children。And:The people who made the show were to blame - this is what I’d have said to Laura。 They’d made her uninteresting， so she became expendable。 I wondered if life was like that。 Did we all make less of our partners， our spouses， before we walked out？ p53 Gone。And:Cruel to be kind。 That was the saying。 But there’d been no kindness。 Only after the boy was gone and staying gone - then he started to think of the things he’d have done differently， the gentler words he’d have spoken。 p173 The Five Lamps。 William Trevor once told the Times that “The great challenge in writing is always to find the universal in the local， the parochial。 And to do that， one needs distance。” A master of the art form， Trevor loved the necessary brevity of the short story， which he said forced the author to expose the bare bones of truth。 Roddy Doyle’s stories and writing emulate William Trevor。 This is a brilliant collection。 If I had to pick a favourite it would be Gone。 I also loved the uplifting element of the final story - a parable about finding goodness where it is least expected。 A book to reread。 。。。more
Kathleen Gray
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Is it too soon？ This collection of ten short stories centers around COVID-19 and the various restrictions it imposed on our lives。 While all but one of the protagonists are Caucasian men in their sixties （or close to that）， they are still， oddly relatable because Doyle has， as always， brought his sharp eye to small details。 You might not like all the protagonists but I'll bet you'll recognize some of them or， more likely， the situations they find themselves in。 Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC。 I Is it too soon？ This collection of ten short stories centers around COVID-19 and the various restrictions it imposed on our lives。 While all but one of the protagonists are Caucasian men in their sixties （or close to that）， they are still， oddly relatable because Doyle has， as always， brought his sharp eye to small details。 You might not like all the protagonists but I'll bet you'll recognize some of them or， more likely， the situations they find themselves in。 Thanks to Edelweiss for the ARC。 I'm a short story fan who always recommends reading a collection one story a day and this is no exception， especially given the COVID themes。 。。。more
Grace Tierney
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I enjoy Roddy Doyle's work and own many of them， but this one didn't rock my world。 Short story collections can be tricky。 A single story can dazzle but a collection has to work in a special way。 Here he tries to look at our experience of the pandemic from different angles and explore its influence on everyday people。 That's probably a good thing as many writers shied away from it and this may be interesting to future historians。The problem is that he aimed for "our experience" and actually gave I enjoy Roddy Doyle's work and own many of them， but this one didn't rock my world。 Short story collections can be tricky。 A single story can dazzle but a collection has to work in a special way。 Here he tries to look at our experience of the pandemic from different angles and explore its influence on everyday people。 That's probably a good thing as many writers shied away from it and this may be interesting to future historians。The problem is that he aimed for "our experience" and actually gave us the experiences of various white 60 year old men， many of them grumpy。 One seeks his estranged son， one contemplates leaving his old life， one struggles with job loss， one rages against the loss of his mother， one has his wife sick in hospital。 Yes， to be fair， one story is about a female nurse losing a patient， but most are from a male POV。I don't mind a male perspective， of course， but an entire collection grew tiresome and certainly isn't representative and yes， Ireland in lockdown was way more diverse than that and given his work with encouraging new Irish writers from various backgrounds， I expected more。What about parents coping with working and homeschooling？ People unable to see overseas family？ New mothers？ Dissenting voices who rejected science？ Lonely elders？ Women？While the stories are written in his trademark sparse style with observant dialogue， I hope I enjoy his next work more。 。。。more
Maggie
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Good， but not sure I understand it completely。
Kevin
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This is a collection of short stories about life in the pandemic lockdown。 Of course， because it's Roddy Doyle， all these stories are set in Dublin。 Some of the tales are outstanding; some are ordinary。 Overall， a good read and I would have preferred to award 3。5 stars but I have to round it one way or the other。 This is a collection of short stories about life in the pandemic lockdown。 Of course， because it's Roddy Doyle， all these stories are set in Dublin。 Some of the tales are outstanding; some are ordinary。 Overall， a good read and I would have preferred to award 3。5 stars but I have to round it one way or the other。 。。。more
William
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This a very short book of very short stories and， in short， is exactly average。 Worth reading if you are a fan of short stories or Roddy Doyle。 I am a fan of the latter ， not so much the former。 Hence the average marking， all written with Doyle’s highly accomplished manner， just not for me thanks。
Linda
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Not his best collection of short stories。 I enjoyed a few but some were just not that interesting。 Such a shame as I normally love Doyle's work。 Not his best collection of short stories。 I enjoyed a few but some were just not that interesting。 Such a shame as I normally love Doyle's work。 。。。more
Carolyn Drake
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This is probably the first book I've read that overtly deals with Covid （specifically the period of strict lockdown）。 Being a collection of Roddy Doyle stories it is of course about much more: marriage， parenthood， love， loss， community， loneliness， and hope。 Y'know， the small stuff。 It's full of Doyle's trademark conversational gold， conveying huge emotions in spare， seemingly throwaway comments。 The penultimate tale， Worms， floored me。 This is probably the first book I've read that overtly deals with Covid （specifically the period of strict lockdown）。 Being a collection of Roddy Doyle stories it is of course about much more: marriage， parenthood， love， loss， community， loneliness， and hope。 Y'know， the small stuff。 It's full of Doyle's trademark conversational gold， conveying huge emotions in spare， seemingly throwaway comments。 The penultimate tale， Worms， floored me。 。。。more
Caroline Noonan
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A great reminder of what lockdown life is like。
Conny
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I always love Roddy Doyle， but this just feels too soon。 That’s a matter of taste， I know， and not a critique - but I don’t want to read about lockdowns when I’m self isolating in my room。
Sue
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Short stories set in the pandemic in Ireland。 Stories of ordinary families。 Perhaps too cose in time when we're effectively still living through it they were a good read。 Short stories set in the pandemic in Ireland。 Stories of ordinary families。 Perhaps too cose in time when we're effectively still living through it they were a good read。 。。。more
Joe O'Donnell
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Roddy Doyle’s works over the last decade have established him as the id of a certain type of late middle-aged Irish male。 This collection of ten short stories set during the pandemic lockdowns – and told predominantly from the perspectives of men approaching their ‘third age’ – will cement that reputation。 If there are common threads running through these ten stories， it is the effect that the 2020 lockdown had on long-term relationships， plus the sense of middle-aged drift all too common among Roddy Doyle’s works over the last decade have established him as the id of a certain type of late middle-aged Irish male。 This collection of ten short stories set during the pandemic lockdowns – and told predominantly from the perspectives of men approaching their ‘third age’ – will cement that reputation。 If there are common threads running through these ten stories， it is the effect that the 2020 lockdown had on long-term relationships， plus the sense of middle-aged drift all too common among Irish ‘aul fellas’。 Doyle really captures that weird dreamlike element to the early days of the pandemic， where time seemed to both stand still and speed up simultaneously。 As you might expect with any short story collection some of these tales are more engaging than others， and there is a certain uniformity of voice and character across the ten stories than make it challenging for a reader to discern where one ends and another begins。 。。。more
Donna Holland
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A collection of short stories linked by the pandemic 。All human life is here ;grief，love ，marriage，death and Covid ！ The usual poetic prose of Doyle is sublime and he reflects the strange times we are currently living in 。Funny ，fearless and typical Doyle 。Highly recommend
DaN McKee
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Amazingly Doyle made me nostalgic for the pandemic we’re still experiencing。 The early days。 The lockdowns and uncertainty。 The global horror of it all and the domestic impact。 These stories are a perfect snapshot of that time。
Althea
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Excellent life during Covid short stories that stick with you。
Evelyn
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These short stories express the angst of middle and working class Irish people in the time of Covid。 Some are quite polished， while others are mediocre， and some are stories that are need to be edited and/or rewritten。
Jillian Doherty
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I Loved this！ With Doyle's iconic sharp whit， he keenly captures a choir of voices that well reflect the time we live in。 It felt delightfully in line with Knausgaard's Morning Star for illustrating an extraordinary kaleidoscope of stories， cutting to the heart of how we are all navigating loss， loneliness， and blanketed with the surreal moment we're living in。Galley borrowed from the publisher。 I Loved this！ With Doyle's iconic sharp whit， he keenly captures a choir of voices that well reflect the time we live in。 It felt delightfully in line with Knausgaard's Morning Star for illustrating an extraordinary kaleidoscope of stories， cutting to the heart of how we are all navigating loss， loneliness， and blanketed with the surreal moment we're living in。Galley borrowed from the publisher。 。。。more
Odette Lattimer
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My first Roddy Doyle book， what an absolute beauty this is。 I could not put it down， beautifully written， beautifully put together， an absolute treat for my mind。。。 This will not be my last - I am off to search out the rest of his work
Keith Astbury
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Roddy has been busy during these strange times。 This is a collection of Lockdown related stories。 Not his greatest ever work but as always he sure does have a way with words x
Jane Fudger
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I am not normally a fan of short stories but I thoroughly enjoyed these。 The 10 stories were written during Covid 19 lockdown。 Each story is a portrayal of our recent times during the pandemic and told with warmth，wit，loneliness and how we all navigate loss。 As an example I particularly enjoyed "Life without Children"， "Gone" and "The Five Lamps" I am not normally a fan of short stories but I thoroughly enjoyed these。 The 10 stories were written during Covid 19 lockdown。 Each story is a portrayal of our recent times during the pandemic and told with warmth，wit，loneliness and how we all navigate loss。 As an example I particularly enjoyed "Life without Children"， "Gone" and "The Five Lamps" 。。。more
Elizabeth
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I read his book Paddy Clarke Ha Ha Ha a long time ago and really enjoyed it。 Looking forward to this one。
Bill McFadyen
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Roddy Doyle hits Covid with this book of short stories。 He really gets deep into the human condition - where is Scotland’s RD。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Life Without Children
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Life Without Children&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Life Without Children&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0