Not many writers can lay claim to comparisons to James Joyce and Raymond Carver, but Roddy Doyle--armed with a lively literary style and comedic flair--has found himself in that happy position. His novels, which focus on working-class families in modern Ireland, rely heavily on dialogue. The books are peppered with the language of the author's native north Dublin: idiot becomes "eejit," Jesus becomes "Jaysis," and expletives abound. Rhoda Koenig of New York writes that "Doyle's novels are full of energy and have no time for sentiment." Although Doyle's background is more middle- than working-class, he treats his characters with great affection. Doyle is particularly sensitive to the telling details of their lives--such as the quiet thrill of receiving one's first letter or entering a library for the first time--that punctuate the drab and seemingly constricted lives of his protagonists.

Doyle initially made his living teaching school at Dublin's...