Agnes Browne Trilogy Boxed Set: The Mammy, The Chisellers, The Granny

Agnes Browne #1-3

by Brendan O'Carroll

The Agnes Browne Trilogy

* The Mammy
* The Chisellers
* The Granny

Genres: Fiction, Ireland, Irish Literature, Humor, Comedy

Paperback

First published October 1, 2001

About the author

Brendan O'Carroll is an Irish BAFTA-winning writer, producer, comedian, author, actor and director. A popular comedian in Ireland since the early 1990s, O'Carroll is best known internationally for portraying the foul-mouthed Irish matriarch Agnes Brown in Mrs. Brown's Boys. O'Carroll has written seven novels, including The Mammy (1994), The Chisellers (1995), The Granny (1996), The Scrapper (originally published as "Sparrows Trap", 1997) and The Young Wan (2003); a number of these have been translated into 12 languages and have been best sellers worldwide. He has also written four films and nine comedy shows. These include The Course (1995), Grandad's Sure Lilly's Still Alive (1997), The Last Wedding (1999), Mourning Mrs. Brown (2000), Mrs. Brown Rides Again (2004), For the Love of Mrs. Brown (2007), How Now Mrs. Brown Cow? (2009), and Good Mourning Mrs. Brown (2011).

Reviews

[Kathy]

Brendan made me fall in love with the Browne family. My parents and I read them all, traded off and basically had our own private book club with this series. Excellent reading.

[Nicole Overmoyer]

An absolutely enchanting trilogy of books that will leave you in tears; from crying and from laughing. O'Carroll is a master of setting the stage of a typical family and making the everyday, mundane seem extraordinary.

Agnes Browne is everywoman. You can't help but like her, feel for her, and root for her.

From her discussions of whether or not she ever had an "organism" when she got pregnant with her seven children, to the way a tissue gets stuck in her dentures when a French pizza shop owner flirts with her, to her willingness to go without so her children can have something... you'll like Agnes.

I've read these books, a happy find a used book sale, five times and they never get old.

[Deborah]

You must, you must, you must read the books. Set in the poorest neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, the trilogy follows the life of Agnes Brown. It is a life we cannot imagine, yet it contains all the laughter, heartache, love and caring of family. You will laugh and you will cry. Lovely, lovely books!

[A. Mary]

These three novels make light reading, which can be very satisfying, but where they disappointed me was that when O'Carroll raises a very difficult subject, because he wants to keep his stories light, he doesn't deal with them. The son-gone-bad is a prime example. O'Carroll knows no family is without internal struggles and sorrows, and he gives the Brownes a significant problem, but then he shies away from it. He does that to such an extent that I wish he hadn't brought it up in the first place. My other complaint is that he makes Agnes a caricature in her naivete--makes her plain old dumb. He doesn't need to do that to her. One or two of her misunderstandings would have gone a long way and been charming. Still, the novels have a well-drawn backdrop, and they follow the Brownes through a decade or so at a workable pace. They're nice stories, but they aren't intellectually gripping. They're not taxing reading, and sometimes, that's a nice thing.

[Wendy]

If I could hang out with any fictional character for a day, I'd have to pick Agnes Browne. This Irish widow has just lost her S.O.B husband, and she's delighted that he's gone. She's now off to raise her brood of children solo. The juxtaposition of Agnes's progressive self-image against her actual niavety brings the character to life.

While you're reading this laugh-'til-you-cry book, you'll fall head-over-heels in love with Agnes, whose constant shananigans are a hoot! Enjoy the ride. And if you love it, you'll be happy to hear that there are two more books in the series.

[Diane]

I've read two of the three books in this trilogy...and will read the third next. What a hoot they are! Definitely not the typical type of book I'd read, but I'm really enjoying them.

Update: Just finished the third book in this trilogy...it was wonderful! I really enjoyed this tale of an Irish family and how through each book the family aged and grew up with the times. The voice of the story (the dialect/brogue) was easy to get used to reading and was amusing!

[Suzanne]

Fabulous! Read my daughter's copies and then bought it for my mother. The film version of "The Mammy" is entitled "Agnes Brown" and Angelica Huston just owns the part. If you are reluctant to read it, rent the DVD and then you'll be a fan for life. One of the few times a film is as good as the book.

[Merrill]

A funny and poignant trilogy about a single mother raising seven children in abject poverty. Fast reads. Read "The Young Wan" first for much-needed background on Mrs. Agnes Browne and how she became the spitfire seen later in the trilogy. Then after reading the trilogy, look for the movie "Agnes Browne" starring Anjelica Huston.

[Jacqueline]

These are without doubt the funniest books i,ve ever read,real laugh out loud books.They are set in dublin,and there is a film called Agnes Brown,but as usual book is better,I would recommend everyone read these if your feeling a bit low and in need of a good laugh and cry.

[Gail]

Read these in order to appreciate the growth of the Browne family.
So funny in parts, I had to put the book down, I was laughing so hard, while the more somber moments made me mist up.
If you enjoy Frank McCourt, you'll enjoy this series.

[Harriett M]

Enjoyed listening (great reading with Dublin accent) to library copy of The Chisellers. The cover has an apt description.... anyway, it was light and funny but realistic, so sometimes characters have serious challenges and unhappy results.

[Megan]

Quick reads at around 160 pages each, these three books follow the story of Agnes Browne as she raises her wild but charming brood of seven. The quirky plot is full of humor and you would be hard pressed to keep the smile off of your face while reading this tongue in cheek series.

[david]

there's nothing like irish humor...i love it. this trilogy is a bit lighter than angela's ashes and i found it to be quite a treat. check out the movie "agnes brown" as well. it's very entertaining.

[Ellen]

I got all three at the library and enjoyed each one.
Ellen

[Betty]

Laugh-out-loud funny.

[Bill]

Not so tragic as Angela's Ashes but an even better read- all 3. Each is a 1 day read.

[Marie]

The whole series is wonderful!

[Tim]

FANTASTIC!

[MavaMarie Vandervennet]

This is a great series. Short quick books about Ireland that are really wonderful to read. I usually don't want to re-read a book; however, I may with this series

[Deborah]

I loves this book, full of laughter, joy and sadness. Life was tough but it didn't keep Agnes Browne down for long! I truly enjoyed this story! A must read!

[Sunnie]

What a great set of books....I did not want this story to end.

[Ann]

Fantastic series -- I listened to them on tape and thoroughly enjoyed all three plus the prequel, The Young Wan

['jacqui kennedy]

very very funny check the programme Mrs Browns Boys on BBC iplayer hilarious x

[Ellen]

Very funny books! At times I laughed so hard I cried!

[Theresa]

These books are incredibly funny! I have recommended them over and over to friends. A must read for all of you Irish and even those who wish to be Irish!

[Gayle]

I enjoyed these three books so much. So full of humor and love.

[Jackie]

If you're Irish, you'll love these books! Very easy reading, lots of humor.

[David]

You can't read these in public. You will bark out loud from the abrupt hysterical humor. These are rich beyond belief describing a by-gone era of Dublin.

[Brian]

These three books are heartwarming and hilarious. I had tears in my eyes at the end.

[Patricia Rose]

Loved these books! I laughed and cried through each. The protagonist, Mammy, is someone I'd like to meet.