''Night in Tunisia'' was the first book by Irish writer

Neil Jordan Neil Patrick Jordan (born 25 February 1950) is an Irish film director, screenwriter, novelist and short-story writer. His first book, ''Night in Tunisia (short story collection), Night in Tunisia'', won a Somerset Maugham Award and the Guardian ...

in 1976, containing ten stories and was published by The Irish Writers Co-operative (Co-op Books) in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

. The story's title is a jazz standard composed by Dizzy Gillespie. It won a

Somerset Maugham Award The Somerset Maugham Award is a British literary prize given each year by the Society of Authors. Set up by William Somerset Maugham in 1947 the awards enable young writers to enrich their work by gaining experience in foreign countries. The awa ...

and in 1979 it won the

Guardian Fiction Prize The Guardian Fiction Prize was a literary award sponsored by ''The Guardian'' newspaper. Founded in 1965, it recognized one fiction book per year written by a British or Commonwealth writer and published in the United Kingdom. The award ran for 33 ...

and was then published by Writers and Readers in the UK and by

George Braziller George Braziller (February 12, 1916 – March 16, 2017) was an American book publisher and the founder of George Braziller, Inc., a firm known for its literary and artistic books and its publication of foreign authors. Life and career Braziller ...

in the US.

Stories

*"Last Orders" - In

Kensal Rise Kensal Green is an area in north-west London. It lies mainly in the London Borough of Brent, with a small part to the south within London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Kensington and Chelsea. Kensal Green is located on the Harrow Road, a ...

a young

hod carrier A brick hod is a three-sided box for carrying bricks or other building materials, often mortar. It bears a long handle and is carried over the shoulder. A hod is usually long enough to accept 4 bricks on their side. However, by arranging the br ...

from Dublin commits suicide by slashing his wrists in the local Victorian

bath house Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...

surrounded by other

navvies Navvy, a clipping of navigator ( UK) or navigational engineer ( US), is particularly applied to describe the manual labourers working on major civil engineering projects and occasionally (in North America) to refer to mechanical shovels and ea ...

. *"Seduction" - Every August the narrator meets his friend Jamie in an Irish seaside resort where they talk about girls, as their sexuality reveals itself. *"Sand" - On a beach a boy is offered a half-an hour ride on a

tinker Tinker or tinkerer is an archaic term for an itinerant tinsmith who mends household utensils. Description ''Tinker'' for metal-worker is attested from the thirteenth century as ''tyckner'' or ''tinkler''. Some travelling groups and Romani p ...

's donkey on a beach in exchange for the tinkers 'go' on his nearby sister Jean. He accepts but doesn't realise what the tinker really meant when he hears his sister's screams. *"Mr Solomon Wept" - He runs an amusement arcade in

Laytown Laytown () is a village in County Meath, Ireland, located on the R150 regional road and overlooking the Irish Sea. Historically it was called ''Ninch'', after the townland it occupies. Together with the neighbouring villages of Mornington a ...

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

where his wife left him a year ago on the anniversary of the Laytown Races. He now realises his depth of his love for her. *"Night in Tunisia" - The narrator's father plays jazz on the

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

Butlins Butlin's is a chain of large seaside resorts in the United Kingdom. Butlin's was founded by Billy Butlin to provide affordable holidays for ordinary British families. Between 1936 and 1966, ten camps were built, including one in Ireland and o ...

and pays his son to learn to play the alto saxophone. The narrator is more fascinated by the changes of his sisters body and by that of a local tennis-playing women wearing a yellow cardigan... *"Skin" - An Irish housewife in

had prepared dinner and re-reads about 'Swedish Housewive's Afternoon of Sin'. She then drives to

Howth Howth ( ; ; non, Hǫfuð) is an affluent peninsular village and outer suburb of Dublin, Ireland. The district as a whole occupies the greater part of the peninsula of Howth Head, which forms the northern boundary of Dublin Bay, and includes ...

and paddles in the sea where she notices a man watching her. *"Her Soul" - A drunk woman looks at the shadows then meets a man on the stairs at a party and has a drink with him. *"Outpatient" - A young wife returns from a catholic retreat to her husband, together they plan to move to house near

Portmarnock Portmarnock () is a coastal suburban settlement in Fingal, Ireland, with significant beaches, a modest commercial core and inland residential estates, and two golf courses, including one of Ireland's best-known golf clubs. , the population was ...

. *"Tree" - John cannot drive or step out of a car, the narrator believes she sees a whitethorn tree but John tells her that it cannot. As they leave a pub they then have a row and she walks away from the car and sees another whitethorn with rags tied to the branches and faded pictures nailed to the trunk with pleas on them. *"A Love" - During the funeral procession of

Éamon de Valera Éamon de Valera (, ; first registered as George de Valero; changed some time before 1901 to Edward de Valera; 14 October 1882 – 29 August 1975) was a prominent Irish statesman and political leader. He served several terms as head of govern ...

a young man meets his old girlfriend and talks about their early relationship.

Reception

From

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the book is praised:scribd
Retrieved 6/2/2022. *"His fiction is poetic in the best sense of the word, which is to say that he manipulates certain images skillfully without using more words than necessary. This is an exciting book by the kind of writer who makes you curious about what he'll do next." - ''

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large na ...

'' *"''Night in Tunisia'' is my book of the year...Jordan's precise control of tone, style and narrative deserves comparison with other Irish masters of the short story form - O'Connor, O'Faolain, and Joyce. Here's to the Jordan to come." - '' Time Out'' *"Bristling with talent and promise." - ''

Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

References

{{Guardian Fiction Prize 1976 short story collections Irish short story collections Debut books 1976 debut works Books by Neil Jordan