Join co-hosts Anne Moore and Chris Stacey for an innovative, exciting, and passionate approach to world literature. Our current country is Ireland during "The Troubles." For our first meeting we discuss the novel A Star Called Henry by Roddy Doyle.

Born at the beginning of the twentieth century, Henry Smart lives through the evolution of modern Ireland, and in this extraordinary novel he brilliantly tells his story. From his own birth and childhood on the streets of Dublin to his role as soldier (and lover) in the Irish Rebellion, Henry recounts his early years of reckless heroism and adventure. At once an epic, a love story, and a portrait of Irish history, A Star Called Henry is a grand picaresque novel brimming with both poignant moments and comic ones, and told in a voice that is both quintessentially Irish and inimitably Roddy Doyle’s.

There are 4 Club Member seats left as of June 12, 2026.

There 0 Non-Club Members on the Wait list.

Club Member Registration: The book club is exclusively for club members. Here is a list of club members: CUCC Club Members.

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Non-Club Members Wait List: All registrants who are not club members are placed on a wait list. You are contacted if any seats are available after club member registration.

Date: Thursday, August 6, 2026

Social Hour: 5:00pm

Book Club: 6:00PM Central

Location: Private room. Club on Michigan Avenue.

Reviews

"Throughout, Doyle manages the virtually impossible feat of mingling Ireland’s dark and bloody early modern history with his brilliantly imagined protagonist’s own amazing story:  never for a moment do we feel we’re being given a history lesson, nor does Henry’s forthright amorality relax its firm hold on us. Absolutely extraordinary."  Kirkus Reviews

"The novel's greatest triumph is to recreate this world in Doyle's distinctive shorthand, without any creaky historical set pieces, and make it utterly convincing...Doyle's technique and influences are worth close analysis, however, because this is a very clever performance." Roy Foster, The Guardian

Photo Credit: Penguin Random House, Promotional Materials, Public Domain