What do you think?
Rate this book
Better Angel
Dans un collège irlandais, deux jeunes gens, John G. Moore et Godfrey Temple, font connaissance. Entre le fils du propriétaire terrien et l'aristocrate désargenté va rapidement se nouer une amitié trouble, alimentée par le désir fasciné de Moore pour un Godfrey Temple aux faux airs rimbaldiens. Au-delà du sentiment amical, mais aussi pris dans la vie quotidienne, dans les règles de sa société rigide, Moore cherchera avant tout à conserver la présence de son ami, jusqu'à monnayer cette relation. Jeune et brillant romancier irlandais, Frank Ronan trace avec justesse deux lignes, deux destins, dont on sent à tout moment qu'ils pourraient ou se fondre ou diverger irrémédiablement.
- GenresFiction
Paperback
First published March 1, 1992
14 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 17, 2025
(Note for some reason Goodreads treats all of Frank Ronan's novels as if they were originally written in French, in the case of 'The Better Angel', or Portugese or Italian in the case of his others. He writes in English and is an Irish author).
Frank Ronan is a wonderful author who between 1989 and 2002 produced six novels and a collection of short stories. Although he continues to write a monthly column in 'Gardeners Illustrated' he has produced no fiction for over twenty years and, even in Ireland, is in danger of being forgotten. If you want to know more there is an excellent interview with him at:
https://www.estudiosirlandeses.org/wp...
The 'Better Angel' was Mr Ronan's first novel, though not his first published one. It is so much more than any synopsis, even that on the novel itself, says. It is a novel about John G. Moore who at seventeen is afraid of the dark, of madness and abandonment, all with good reason as we learn, and who still slept in the same bed as his father for comfort and Godfrey Temple who comes to John G.'s school in their final year. Godfrey Temple's grandness, cultural superiority and world weariness for a time offers John G. a lifeline to survive, escape and overcome his demons, only gradually does John G. learn that Godfrey Temple is as much in need of saving as he is.
This is a novel about friendship, family, class, money, land and so much more. This is not a novel about adolescent boys fumbling with each other's todgers (nor is there anything suspect between John G. and his father). Although John G. and Godfrey by the end of the novel understand that they love each other but 'love' doesn't mean anything more or less, then simply that and I am not concealing or avoiding anything. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
There are moments of exquisite humour in the novel, such as when John G. notes:
"...(Godfrey) gave me 'Le Grand Meaulness' to read, and then I thought that France must be a place full of tiny roads and wedding feasts in decaying manors. A bit like Wexford but colder."
It is possible that only I will find that this resonates but as a schoolboy in Ireland I read George Bernanos and Francois Mauriac and thought there was a great deal of what happened in France profonde that was similar to Ireland profonde.
The 'Better Angel' is a wonderful novel about growing up and finding yourself and losing something as well. Godfrey Temple is, in part, every glamorous schoolfriend you ever had who seemed to have everything, know everything, be on top of everything and more grown up, sophisticated, then you could ever imagine being but who never makes it. It is as if being too sharp, too self possessed, too soon is actually a curse.
I don't want to elaborate because to do so reduces an immensely subtle and moving novel to a plot which tells everything but means nothing. This is a novel to love and return to as it haunts you, like 'Le Grand Meaulness', but which maybe always remains just the other side of complete or simple comprehension.
Frank Ronan is a wonderful author who between 1989 and 2002 produced six novels and a collection of short stories. Although he continues to write a monthly column in 'Gardeners Illustrated' he has produced no fiction for over twenty years and, even in Ireland, is in danger of being forgotten. If you want to know more there is an excellent interview with him at:
https://www.estudiosirlandeses.org/wp...
The 'Better Angel' was Mr Ronan's first novel, though not his first published one. It is so much more than any synopsis, even that on the novel itself, says. It is a novel about John G. Moore who at seventeen is afraid of the dark, of madness and abandonment, all with good reason as we learn, and who still slept in the same bed as his father for comfort and Godfrey Temple who comes to John G.'s school in their final year. Godfrey Temple's grandness, cultural superiority and world weariness for a time offers John G. a lifeline to survive, escape and overcome his demons, only gradually does John G. learn that Godfrey Temple is as much in need of saving as he is.
This is a novel about friendship, family, class, money, land and so much more. This is not a novel about adolescent boys fumbling with each other's todgers (nor is there anything suspect between John G. and his father). Although John G. and Godfrey by the end of the novel understand that they love each other but 'love' doesn't mean anything more or less, then simply that and I am not concealing or avoiding anything. Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
There are moments of exquisite humour in the novel, such as when John G. notes:
"...(Godfrey) gave me 'Le Grand Meaulness' to read, and then I thought that France must be a place full of tiny roads and wedding feasts in decaying manors. A bit like Wexford but colder."
It is possible that only I will find that this resonates but as a schoolboy in Ireland I read George Bernanos and Francois Mauriac and thought there was a great deal of what happened in France profonde that was similar to Ireland profonde.
The 'Better Angel' is a wonderful novel about growing up and finding yourself and losing something as well. Godfrey Temple is, in part, every glamorous schoolfriend you ever had who seemed to have everything, know everything, be on top of everything and more grown up, sophisticated, then you could ever imagine being but who never makes it. It is as if being too sharp, too self possessed, too soon is actually a curse.
I don't want to elaborate because to do so reduces an immensely subtle and moving novel to a plot which tells everything but means nothing. This is a novel to love and return to as it haunts you, like 'Le Grand Meaulness', but which maybe always remains just the other side of complete or simple comprehension.
May 26, 2008
Definitivamente, o melhor livro deste autor.
March 28, 2013
I really enjoyed this when I read it about 20 years ago.
September 24, 2025
Crítica de Pedro Jesus:
Frank Ronan apresenta-nos as vidas de John Moore e de Godfrey (Smallgods) Temple, que se conhecem no seu último ano de ensino secundário e que estabelecem entre si uma ligação que será acompanhada num espaço de três anos. Este é um período de profundas mudanças para estes dois jovens, já que se trata da época de traçar as primeiras escolhas para os seus futuros. Se John necessitava de um verdadeiro companheiro que o fizesse desviar das suas fobias relacionadas com a solidão e com a loucura, Godfrey precisava de um amigo pleno, alguém que não fizesse caso da sua arrogância e que não se inibisse com a sua postura citadina, que contrastava com os mais rígidos padrões rurais. A cumplicidade que se estabelece entre eles, é o tema central do livro, que demostra ainda a importância que esta terá nas suas vidas e na vida das suas famílias e companheiras. Todavia, a narrativa não se esgota na amizade dos jovens, pelo que nos é apresentado um retrato social e humano das várias personagens que fazem parte das vidas de John e Godfrey.
Obtido em:
https://urbi.ubi.pt/000418/cultura/li...
Post de Maria Rosário Pedreira sobre Frank Ronan:
Há alguns escritores que fazem furor em determinada época e, de repente, desaparecem para sempre como se nunca tivessem existido.
https://horasextraordinarias.blogs.sa...
Frank Ronan apresenta-nos as vidas de John Moore e de Godfrey (Smallgods) Temple, que se conhecem no seu último ano de ensino secundário e que estabelecem entre si uma ligação que será acompanhada num espaço de três anos. Este é um período de profundas mudanças para estes dois jovens, já que se trata da época de traçar as primeiras escolhas para os seus futuros. Se John necessitava de um verdadeiro companheiro que o fizesse desviar das suas fobias relacionadas com a solidão e com a loucura, Godfrey precisava de um amigo pleno, alguém que não fizesse caso da sua arrogância e que não se inibisse com a sua postura citadina, que contrastava com os mais rígidos padrões rurais. A cumplicidade que se estabelece entre eles, é o tema central do livro, que demostra ainda a importância que esta terá nas suas vidas e na vida das suas famílias e companheiras. Todavia, a narrativa não se esgota na amizade dos jovens, pelo que nos é apresentado um retrato social e humano das várias personagens que fazem parte das vidas de John e Godfrey.
Obtido em:
https://urbi.ubi.pt/000418/cultura/li...
Post de Maria Rosário Pedreira sobre Frank Ronan:
Há alguns escritores que fazem furor em determinada época e, de repente, desaparecem para sempre como se nunca tivessem existido.
https://horasextraordinarias.blogs.sa...
February 9, 2017
Pendant quelques années, quand je vivais encore à Paris, j'avais pris l'habitude tous les deux ou trois mois de faire un tour à la librairie Les mots à la bouche pour faire le plein de bouquins sans tomber sur les best-sellers – qui m'intéressent rarement – mis en avant à la FNAC. C'est lors d'une visite dans cette boutique en plein coeur du Marais que j'ai découvert et acheté Un ange est passé, de l'auteur irlandais Frank Ronan.
Le résumé sur la quatrième de couverture avait tout pour me plaire :
Je n'ai pas été déçu : Franck Ronan nous offre une histoire magnifique sur l'amitié. John G. Moore et Godfrey Temple n'ont rien en commun, à part le fait d'être rejetés par leurs camarades de classe. L'un est fils de fermier, très terre à terre ; l'autre est un aristocrate sans le sou, bohème et épicurien. Ce sont deux garçons que tout devrait séparer mais qui se lient d'amitié envers et contre tout. Ils traversent ensuite les années et restent proches, malgré les aléas de la vie. Ils se croisent, s'éloignent, mais finissent toujours par se retrouver.
J'ai toujours eu un faible pour ces histoires d'amitié qui durent toute une vie. Celle-ci m'a particulièrement touché, parce qu'on sent qu'à tout moment ces deux destins pourraient s'éloigner irrémédiablement, et définitivement. John et Smallgods (le surnom de Godfrey) sont si différents qu'un rien pourrait les séparer. J'ai été marqué par un dialogue qu'ils répètent deux fois et qui résume tout ce que j'aime dans ce roman :
Le résumé sur la quatrième de couverture avait tout pour me plaire :
Dans un collège irlandais, deux jeunes gens, John G. Moore et Godfrey Temple, font connaissance. Entre le fils du propriétaire terrien et l'aristocrate désargenté va rapidement se nouer une amitié trouble, alimentée par le désir fasciné de Moore pour un Godfrey Temple aux faux airs rimbaldiens.
Au-delà du sentiment amical, mais aussi pris dans la vie quotidienne, dans les règles de sa société rigide, Moore cherchera avant tout à conserver la présence de son ami, jusqu'à monnayer cette relation.
Je n'ai pas été déçu : Franck Ronan nous offre une histoire magnifique sur l'amitié. John G. Moore et Godfrey Temple n'ont rien en commun, à part le fait d'être rejetés par leurs camarades de classe. L'un est fils de fermier, très terre à terre ; l'autre est un aristocrate sans le sou, bohème et épicurien. Ce sont deux garçons que tout devrait séparer mais qui se lient d'amitié envers et contre tout. Ils traversent ensuite les années et restent proches, malgré les aléas de la vie. Ils se croisent, s'éloignent, mais finissent toujours par se retrouver.
J'ai toujours eu un faible pour ces histoires d'amitié qui durent toute une vie. Celle-ci m'a particulièrement touché, parce qu'on sent qu'à tout moment ces deux destins pourraient s'éloigner irrémédiablement, et définitivement. John et Smallgods (le surnom de Godfrey) sont si différents qu'un rien pourrait les séparer. J'ai été marqué par un dialogue qu'ils répètent deux fois et qui résume tout ce que j'aime dans ce roman :
- A ton avis, je suis fou ? ai-je dit.
- Je n'en sais rien. Tu es très différent des autres. Mais il n'y a pas de mal à cela. Moi je ne t'aimerais pas si tu étais comme eux.
February 13, 2011
The 2nd book I read from this author and a really engaging story about two Irish friends.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews