Life in the Celtic Tiger
In 鈥�Paula Spencer,鈥� Roddy Doyle鈥檚 last novel, his characters reflect on the changes that have come to Ireland, their country.
To them it seems that they went to sleep one night in the old familiar Ireland and woke up the next day in the strange new Celtic Tiger.
For her birthday, Paula (the protagonist of the title) treats herself to a visit to a new Italian cafe. When she and her neighbor, Rita, pass a store named 鈥淧ride and Joy,鈥� Rita says that she knew the country was changing when the first kids鈥� clothing shops opened.
鈥淭hey were the proof, said Rita. - People had more money than they needed. It鈥檚 great. I noticed them before all the new cars, said Rita. - And the talk about house prices. Even all the cranes.鈥� And while 10 years ago Paula cleaned offices with other Irishwomen, today she works with 鈥渕en from Romania and Nigeria.鈥�
These new images of Ireland are at the heart of 鈥淭he Deportees,鈥� Doyle鈥檚 latest collection of stories.
Ireland is now the land of immigrants and not too surprisingly there鈥檚 a certain amount of friction between the new and old residents.
鈥淭oday, one in every ten people living in Ireland wasn鈥檛 born here,鈥� writes Doyle. It鈥檚 a phenomenon worth studying and that鈥檚 exactly what Doyle鈥檚 stories do. To see Heller McAlpin鈥檚 review of 鈥淭he Deportees,鈥� click here.
