Handy Andy: A Tale of Irish Life. Volume 2

Samuel Lover's 1842 novel is a riotous portrait of Irish life, centering on Andy Rooney, a lovable servant whose good intentions always land him in catastrophic trouble. When not bungling his master's business, Andy stumbles into the thick of local election intrigue, where rival factions plot to intercept coaches carrying opposing voters. The night-time capers of Dick and Murphy, with their schemes to disrupt the poll, kick off a cascade of comedic misunderstandings that only Andy's particular genius could escalate. Lover, a Dublin Renaissance man who wrote songs, painted miniatures, and collaborated with Dickens, peoples his Ireland with gossiping neighbors, scheming politicos, and colorful peasants whose lives are equal parts mischief and heart. The book endures not for its plot but for its voice that captures Irish humor at its most essential: generous, self-deprecating, and perpetually on the verge of chaos. Lover writes with the affection of an insider who knows that the real comedy lives in the gap between intention and outcome. Those who love comic novels of manners, or anyone curious about how the Irish saw themselves before the famine years reshaped everything, will find here a snapshot of a people laughing at themselves.