I listened to this as read by Lorcan Cranitch and there's a man who could read the phone book and still have me entranced. I'm not sure I can speak quite so highly of the collection of stories, it felt somewhat uneven. At one point I almost stopped, listening to middle aged, middle class men moaning is not by favourite occupation. And the story about blood was vile and really disgusting. Turned my stomach.
Those gripes apart, this does have something to say about the facade behind which the middle aged, middle class man hides. IN each story the man concerned is losing something or has realised that he has lost something and can't see how, when or where it slipped away. The man who takes his elderly parents to a funeral and leaves them at the chip shop was poignant, aware of the potential loss of them or their faculties at any time and fearing they are already leaving. There's the man remembering the children's pets while dealing with being unemployed and yet not wanting to appear needy (the trick with the zebra finch called Pete was epic). There are several marriages on the rocks, men dealing with an empty or nearly empty nest and facing a different future that the past they had been used to living in.
I'm not sure that the highs in here make this worth the entire collection, the dodgy ones weigh it down just a bit too much. I also felt that the voice was very similar and became somewhat repetitive. ( )

Uneven. Consistent and interesting focus on struggles with old age. Lost interest of some of the stories. ( )

Beautifully written, universally relevant set of stories about getting older. Reflects and ruminates upon relationships, marriage, parenthood, and aging. These stories, all told from the point of view of middle aged (and older) men, are all coming to grips with the passage of time in ones life. Whether its the realities of long-term relationships, the first friends dying off, or discovering

Do yourself a favor if you're not Irish--listen to the audio. Read by Lorcan Cranitch, it really brings the whole thing alive and only enhanced my enjoyment of the work of one of my all-time favorite Irish authors. ( )

Love the Roddy! This is where he is best - short and (seemingly) simple stories about your average Irish Joe. Some of them made me squirm, others laugh out loud, but they all made me think. My favorites were Bullfighting (but haven't i read that one before?), The Dog, and Funerals. But I liked all the descriptions of the men in pubs...can't help picturing The Constitution in Westminster. (my local!) ( )

Stierenvechten is een verhalenbundel waarin kleine verhaaltjes worden afgewisseld met wat grotere maatjes. Maar alle hebben ze hetzelfde thema : de midlifecrisis (?!) van de moderne ‘Ierse’ man. Het leven van de hoofdbetrokkenen dat eens een wilde rivier was, is nu nog een voortkabbelend beekje. Eén schijnbaar onooglijk lichamelijk, geestelijk of relationeel detail zet echter het gevoel van voldane banaliteit op de helling. Het evenwicht is even zoek. Een lichte vorm van huivering of paniek treedt binnen. Eventjes maar, want dan lijkt alles weerom in de plooi te vallen. Toch is er iets veranderd.
Paddy Doyle schrijft soms heel sms-erig en dan weer wat meer met ietsje meer verfijning. Effect van de steen in de rivier. Zo was ons aanvoelen.