In High Germany (Open Door Series

by Dermot Bolger

Eoin tells his son the story of Euro '88. The excitement is high for football fanatics like Eoin, Shane and Mick, who all work abroad. Now they are in Germany supporting the Irish team, witnessing the highs and the lows. For these emigrant friends, home is no longer where the heart is. Home is where the Irish team plays, and there will be many adventures on and off the pitch before the final whistle blows.
Also included is A Poet's a selection of short poems about ordinary life by the author, with his notes on how and why they were written.

Genres: Ireland, Fiction

71 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

Dermot Bolger is an Irish novelist, playwright and poet born in Finglas, a suburb of Dublin.

His work is often concerned with the articulation of the experiences of working-class characters who, for various reasons, feel alienated from society. Bolger questions the relevance of traditional nationalist concepts of Irishness, arguing for a more plural and inclusive society.

In the late 1970s Bolger set up Raven Arts Press, which he ran until 1992 when he co-founded New Island Press.

Reviews

[Seamus Mcclelland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bolger's excellent description of what it was like to be an exile Irish person living on the continent in the summer of 1988 when the European Championship took place in Germany.The title comes from the old Irish folk-song "In High Germany" made famous in Ireland and abroad by the Irish folk-group "The Dubliners". Bolger's one man play deals with questions of identity/loss of identity , emigration, cultural displacement etc. At the end of the Championship the main character, like the thousands and thousands of Irish fans who have come to Germany for the finals is also going home but his home now is not Ireland but Germany itself. An excellent account of what it was like to be Irish and be in "exile" on the continent in the summer of 1988

[Book_Worm_Jim.83 · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is Euro 88 and the excitement is high for football fanatics Eoin, Shane and Mick. They are in Germany supporting the Irish team. For years they have dreamed of this - coming home from a foreign triumph like heroes.

I read this book as it makes up part of the Open Doors Series and I want to read all the books within the series. Some books in the series I have loved, some have been ok but I had not yet found one I did not enjoy.... until I read this one.

Its safe to say I am not a football fan so was not over the mon that this was about football. I got stuck into it with the hope that it would be funny and before I know it I'd have finished reading it. I found it to be dry, dull and a bit of a chore to read. I cant say that I'd recommend it but I will be trying other books by the author to see if I can enjoy other books he has written.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

sport + emotive migrant story = exactly my jam, apparently. the depth it reaches in such a tiny space about nationhood, identity, belonging, the faultlines we stand on or cross over or are knocked off our feet by before we realise what's happening... I loved the sense of what's riding on the scoreline for eaxh fan in the stands: even personal safety. the saddest & bravest stories lurking in plain sight, inside people who leave home & can never exactly find that place again

[Lina Qari · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is titled in high Germany but it is about Irish people.

[sonataiscool · Rating 4 out of 5]

No interest in soccer really anymore but learning about past Ireland is always so fascinating and the poetry made for a serendipitous end :)

[Kellie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blah. I'm only giving this two stars because I liked the poetry section in the back. The actual story was all about Irish football, was hard to follow, and I got bored pretty fast.











Part of the Open Door Series - a program of original works by beloved authors, originally designed in Ireland to promote adult literacy.