Pure Gold: Stories

by John Patrick McHugh

Two boys set fires while their worlds fall apart. A couple drive out to the hills in a last-ditch effort to save their marriage. A horse crashes a house party. Set on an imagined island off the west coast of Ireland, John Patrick McHugh’s debut collection of stories draw a complete community of characters – misdirected, posturing and self-deceiving. But in his fidelity to and compassion for their faults, McHugh embeds us in the moments on which these lives twist and turn, probing unflinchingly what most of us would rather ignore.

Pure Gold heralds the arrival of a vibrant new literary voice.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Irish Literature, Ireland, Literary Fiction

256 pages, Paperback

Published February 10, 2021

Reviews

[Peter Boyle · Rating 4 out of 5]

The conveyor belt of Irish writing talent shows no signs of stopping. In the past year alone, the likes of Naoise Dolan and Megan Nolan have published debut novels to much acclaim. And with this superb first collection, the name of John Patrick McHugh can be added to the burgeoning list of gifted authors.

These eight stories are set on the fictional island of Keel, off the coast of Mayo. And they capture the atmosphere of rural Ireland so well: the air of menace that sometimes lingers beneath the countryside's beautiful facade, the community's reliance on alcohol as a social lubricant, a place where everybody knows your business whether you like it or not.

Bonfire tells the story of a couple of young pyromaniacs, who "hunted after the cocky spark and clunk of the lighter, the peacock-ruffle of a catching blaze, the flame and all its bold promises." The title tale is about two teenagers who meet up one morning with a terrible hangover, "glue-lipped, dangling on the border between the horrors and the thirst". After deciding that the only course of action is for more beer to take the edge off, their drinking plans are interrupted by some unwelcome guests.

To be honest, I enjoyed every story in the book, but two stood out in my mind. Howya, Horse is about an eventful house party, one that I feel like I have been to many times in my wilder days. It's funny and surprising, but it's also incredibly perceptive about young relationships, in the same kind of way Sally Rooney has been noted for. And I loved Twelve Pubs, about three men who embark on annual Christmas drinking ritual in the local village. Over the course of a few pages, McHugh imparts so much wisdom about friendship, masculinity and peer pressure, among other subjects.

I also thought of Colin Barrett and Kevin Barry while reading this collection. It shares their darker vision of rural Ireland, shot through with devilish humour. But it's unfair to draw too many comparisons to other authors. John Patrick McHugh has a literary voice all of his own, and I'm already looking forward reading more from this exciting new talent.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short story collection blurbed by and compared to Sally Rooney and Colin Barrett. McHugh's prose is incredible (a stunning blend of more colloquial Irish English and super interesting descriptions and metaphors) and the way in which he structures his stories impeccable - but this was so very, very bleak, featuring many sad and unlikable characters, many of which where teenaged boys - a demographic I am not always interested in reading about.

I received an ARC of this book courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up

Oof - John Patrick McHugh is one to watch. Having seen strong reviews from fellow Goodreads users I was impelled to request a copy of this collection of short stories centring around a cast of young people living on a fictional island off the coast of County Mayo.

With cover quotes from Sally Rooney, Roddy Doyle and Lisa McInerney, and having previously had stories featured in The Stinging Fly (the Irish literary magazine for which Rooney was an editor - at least two of McHugh's stories can be found online if you're interested) this book had a lot to live up to, and for this reader it (mostly) delivered.

It took me a little while to settle into the rhythm and style of the stories, but once I'd done this it felt like each story was better than the last. Themes of young men coming of age and struggling with everything this entails prevail (particularly when it comes to dating), and I found that the writing perfectly captured how it feels to grow up in an isolated rural area where everyone knows each other.

Fans of Irish literature (and - dare I say it - taut, Rooney-eseque short stories) will find much to enjoy here. Recommended!

Thank you Netgalley and 4th Estate for the advance copy, which was provided in exchange for an honest review.

[Nat K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eight short stories in this collection, which cover a range of emotions. I loved the writing, it's fresh, raw & real.

One of the stories did not work for me at all, and if it hadn't been included, would've made this even more impressive for a début.

Buddy read with the wonderful, talented Mr. Neale-ski.

Full review to come, as he's not finished yet, and we still have to chat about the last few stories first.

[Joachim Stoop · Rating 4 out of 5]

8 short stories of which
2 were okay-ish
1 was good
4 were great
1 was excellent and so incredibly clever (The first real time)

[Neale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great collection of short stories with a couple of standouts! :-)

[Caoimhe White · Rating 4 out of 5]

damn son. that's what i thought

[Eleanor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book makes me feel so nostalgic for a place and time that I never really experienced myself. The writing is grounded so thoroughly in the setting that you can feel it with every bit of your being. No character is "good", in a sense that every character exhibits negative and mean traits, but that makes it so much truer to life I suppose.

My favourite ones were "Howya, Horse" and "A Short Story".

[gabriella · Rating 4 out of 5]

McHugh’s writing is gorgeous, striking. adored this collection of his work. cannot wait to read more. favourite stories: pure gold, howya horse and the first real time

[Zach Humphrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easily my favorite short story collection that I’ve read - gutting, thoughtful, funny as always, and full of gorgeous sentences - very few writers that I’m as excited to read as John Patrick McHugh

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

soooo fun to read after having read Fun & Games... that last short story clearly is the very beginning of McHugh's novel

[Jennifer Lawler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did you love Sally Rooney's 'Normal People'? I mean the book, before it became a massive TV hit?

📚 If so, then pick up a copy of McHugh's debut short story collection. The stories’ settings, tone and writing style all reminded me of Rooney’s novel.*

✏ Several of McHugh's eight short stories focus on that awkward period of life – the end of school/start of living in the real-world years.
Most are set in rural or small-town Ireland and examine the nuances of strained relationships, either between pals or lovers.

🙈 I couldn't find a single likeable character in the collection- which is actually an achievement. McHugh's storytelling doesn't rely on empathy. Instead he shines a light on the uglier side of familiar life, the destructive rivalries and crippling insecurities that bubble just under the surface.

🐴 'The First Real Time' recounts an awkward loss of virginity, 'Howrya Horse' details an ill-fated house party playing host to a young couple on the ropes, and 'Twelve Pubs' tells the tale of school friends reunited at Christmas, struggling to suppress decade-old secrets.

The final story, "A Short Story', was the standout. Or more specifically, the final three pages of the final short story when McHugh's style becomes more reflective.

✅ For me, it was the saving grace and meant that while I didn't love 'Pure Gold', I finished the collection knowing I would read more from McHugh. A solid debut

*So much so, I wasn’t at all surprised to see Rooney singled out for thanks in the author’s acknowledgements.

[Beatrice · Rating 3 out of 5]

Le mie preferite: The very first time e soprattutto Bury it.

Per il resto sì, forse mi sarebbe piaciuta una maggiore varietà in termini di temi, ma come mi ha detto la persona che mi ha consigliato il libro (ciao Bobbi <3 ) a volte è anche una questione di quanto una storia sia vicina al tuo vissuto. Insomma tutto il classico discorso alla Pavese sul fatto che nei libri in realtà non cerchiamo nulla di nuovo, ma solo legittimazione che quello che personalmente abbiamo vissuto sia stato vissuto anche da qualcun altro.
Personalmente non ho mai dato fuoco a nulla e non sono mai andata a cena da una coppia di scambisti, ma lo aggiungo al mio personale Bingo del 2025 dai.

[Mark Nangle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it. Got it for Christmas and devoured it cover to cover. Brought back memories of growing up on the island of Ireland and negotiating relationships at school, university and beyond. It's dark, surreal and humourous. Not for the faint of heart. John Patrick McHugh is a young, talented Irish writer. Can see why Sally Rooney has given her wholehearted endorsement. Now I'm looking forward to his forthcoming first novel from 4th Estate.

[Jennifer Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

Normally I am not a fan of short stories, and would actively avoid them when browsing bookshelves. This changed my mind. This collection is just such a fabulous easy read. A wonderful accomplishment; at parts I fully belly laughed out loud, I related so much to the experiences, and I flew through it- hungry for more. Such a wonderful achievement ✨🙌🏻👏🏻

[Eoin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Congrats, John. Fair play, like.

[Juliano · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Days never had acts, never dulled to a yawn, never became sticky; rather they were endless, borderless, buzzing alive until we were confronted by the full stop of night.” In Pure Gold, John Patrick McHugh crafts a one-of-a-kind short story collection, all threaded together, sharing a geography + overlapping characters, a precise and shimmering style of prose running through each story. Boys left to confront masculinity and heteronormativity, fires set, swingers hooked up with, virginities lost, pubs crawled — these are the subjects of McHugh’s dazzling stories, the mundane and earthen, people looking up or back, longing, regretful. And grief, too, a stunning glimpse at a widow determined to bury her living grief: “Sadness, yes. Buckets of tears and sleepless nights. Even some ghostly conversations. But not this sense of diminishment: lowered horizons, shorter time.” And elsewhere much humour, like in ‘Howya, Horse’, which begins: “When the horse with the lurcher face barged through the front door of the mansion on the hill, thunderously, jarringly, horsily” — that little “horsily” a perfectly absurd laugh. A story-in-reverse, a house party ends with an argument between two young lovers crashed by — yes — a horse; and while exploring toxic masculinity through an awful act at the story’s beginning/ending, it remains irreverently hilarious: “It’s a horse inside a house, Boner, [...] how could you possibly not see it?” Pure gold indeed.

[James Durkan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pure Gold / John Patrick McHugh

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

~ A love that should be fought for, tooth and claw. She knew what the Island had to say but she didn't care. It was love at first touch. Love. You had to scrap for love… ~

I had in my full intentions to read this before reading Fun And Games. I honestly did. Walked by it in the library since it’s release. Even had it bought. But alas, good things come to those who wait!

This collection read so nostalgic for me. Growing up rural it hits different. All these stories show a different masquerade of growing up, of masculinity, of how friendships are forged and lost, of sadness. Bury it is just a grim tale. While the Twelve Pubs reeks of nostalgia for a time. But this is also a bleak tribute to the West. To Mayo. A life worth remembering.

It can be said that all the stories can be interconnected by location, like I can imagine F&G being in the same location as all of them. As with collections, I reckon about 6/8 of these slapped.

Looking forward to JPMcH bringing more to the equation. The West’s Awake, and thriving.

Picked up from the TBR Pile: Graiguenamanagh
Bought from: Books At One, Louisburgh - 05/03/25

Read: 04/09/25 - 06/09/25
Release Date: 24/06/21
ISBN: 9781848407916

[Joyce · Rating 5 out of 5]

8 different short stories linked together by the stifling teenage/young adult existence in small time ireland, made even more isolated by being on a small island off the west coast. I really resonated with my own teenage angst and felt a nostalgic yearning throughout. The stories definitely seemed to build in tension for me and even though each were separate entities, I found that I became more engrossed as the book wore on. Mostly told through the male viewpoint of trying to navigate sex shamefully and trying but failing to talk openly, but did also include the female outlook. Particularly enjoyed the sibling relationship with a friend in '12 pubs'; the theme of an unexpected death and the shock and hopelessness felt in an unwanted property in 'Bury It'; and the often untalked-about theme of male body shame in 'A Short Story' - this last one was my favourite - it was so poignant and could be developed into a longer novel or novella. I look forward to reading his debut novel. Gaillimh abú!!

[John Reid · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best books I've read this year. It only misses out on 5 stars because it's a short story collection, and this means a natural variance in the quality of the stories and some pacing issues. But it deserves a 4.5 and is outstanding. The writers manages to craft a world where none of the characters are inherently likeable, and that isn't even important to the stories he is trying to tell. There have been few monologues so relatable, so crass and yet so utterly believable. The way some of the stories play out is masterful. The setting on a fictional Irish island is so tangible, and the thoughts and dreams of its residents are so authentic. It manages to achieve a kind of dreamlike resonance, whilst playing out amongst typical Irish Centra stores and in swimming baths and in pubs you'll feel you already know. The last three pages will have you genuinely soul-searching. And all this on a writing debut. Superb.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite being a newcomer, McHugh is up there with Irish literary heroes with a style similar to that of a Kevin Barry or Donal Ryan. I adored the short prose format and finished this book within a couple of hours of starting.

Set on a fictional island off the cost of Mayo ( I assumed Achill for the first few pages), McHugh tells eight individual short stories that predominantly deal with themes of masculinity, growing up, relationships and death. His descriptive language and metaphors throughout are so relatable I wonder if some of the stories are anecdotes of his life growing up in rural Ireland, in particular the last prose, aptly named ‘A Short Story’.

What I really liked about each story was how unlikeable
McHugh makes each of the characters, no easy feat. Rather than prevailing heroes, the author really focuses on the grim and mundane reality of the banality of life. Highly recommend this collection and will be keeping an eye out for future works from McHugh.

[amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

i had the pleasure of meeting john patrick mchugh at the cúirt international festival of literature back in april and i'm happy to report that he's not only a talented author, but a lovely person aswell. his writing style is raw and unfiltered in a way that feels so quintessentially irish with brilliant characterisation that i had not expected from a short story collection. mchugh is very perceptive in his exploration of masculinity, youth, relationships and all their accompanying insecurities. i may not have loved every story in this collection but i enjoyed them all nonetheless and found that each story got progressively stronger - 'Howya, Horse' and 'The First Real Time' were by far my favourites. i was lucky to snag a signed copy of mchugh's debut novel 'Fun & Games' and i cannot wait to dive into it after this impressive first collection

[Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this after SJ Norman's Permafrost.
Norman's collection is superior, in my view. Her stories gripped me in a way McHugh's didn't.
That's not to say McHugh's weren't good. His characters were deficient in many ways. They rarely celebrated victories in their often pathetic lives. In many ways, though, they exhibited the same struggles we all have: for acceptance - of ourselves, our bodies, our intelligence, our appeal to others, particularly in a romantic way.
What I liked about these stories was the range he showed with the short story form. Each story was constructed in a unique way and had a unique voice.
Moreover, this collection showcased a voice that was distinctly Irish - something I'll be seeking out more for sure.

[Brooks · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm always interested to read books from new Irish writers. Whilst I enjoyed this one and the variety of characters / scenarios involved; I did find it a bit bleak.

Many of the characters were similar - sad and not that likeable. A number of the stories were also quite disturbing (e.g. The Horse). I can't say it was an enjoyable read and I kept wondering what the next story would involve. However, very well written, probably very authentic and therefore unfortunately depressing at times.

However, I will definitely read more from this author and hopefully find them a bit more enjoyable

[Winston Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exploring Irish identity and toxic masculinity from the inside rather than the outside, and showing how both are often perpetuated by young men do to a lack of self confidence and lingering Catholic guilt. It's excellent. All stories are set on a fictional island off the coast of Galway (where I'm from) and I have to say, this is one of the most honest portrayals of what Galway is actually like, especially the final page of the book. Read it.

[Jim Fisher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Patrick Mc Hugh is obviously a very good writer and I enjoyed reading some of these stories but I found some of them hard work. I think sometimes the author tries to be too clever. Tell me a story which will amuse, inform and entertain me . All the best short story writers keep it simple . I do not like this modern style of making the story so complicated that I have to read it three times to understand what is going on.

[Ciaran McLarnon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Pure Gold by John Patrick McHugh is a collection of turbocharged short stories that will leave you in shock and awe!

Whilst these stories are set in a particular region of Ireland, the themes would be universal though some are based on local traditions. The characters are full of life and the descriptions are stunningly realistic.

McHugh has a unique skill with language that has been recognised by a number of leading authors.

[Lucky · Rating 2 out of 5]

Thanks to NetGalley and William Collins for the complimentary advance review copy of this book.
Pure Gold is a collection of short stories set in Ireland. It covers many topics, including divorce, relationships, first loves, loss, and more. It’s a well written collection, but I found some of the stories harder to engage with than others - enjoyed “Twelve Pubs” though.

[Clare · Rating 3 out of 5]

‘Pure Gold’ by John Patrick McHugh is a collection of bleak stories set on a fictional island in Ireland.
The first story ‘Bonfires’ gripped me. It is a raw story about friendship, childhood innocence and prejudice. It is about a young boy who becomes friends with a boy from the traveling community. He only realises through the attitude of others how the world views the two boys differently.

This story left me eager to read more, but unfortunately there were few of the other stories that I could connect with in the same way. Many of the people were unlikable and I could not sympathise with how they treated each other disrespectfully most of the time.
McHugh’s writing is good and full of detail, and I did want to keep reading each story but most of them fell a bit short for me after reading that strong opening story.

Many stories feature young men as main characters and the stories reflect on male roles and masculinity. Maybe I was just not the audience for which this book works best.
The book is highly praised by writers like Sara Baume, Sally Rooney and Colin Barrett so do check it out if this is a collection that you might enjoy!

Thank you to new island books for this gifted copy.

[Sarah Michaelides · Rating 5 out of 5]

McHugh in general: best writing on teenage boys, Irish teenagers, and insecurity I have ever read. Insecurity in all its monstrous, desperate desire to conceal itself. Super fresh and funny prose. Strength is writing characters. None of his characters are likeable - and they are so realistic it is stunning.