The Emperor of Ice Cream
by Brian Moore
On This Page
Description
During the Second World War, Gavin Burke defies his nationalist family to join the Air Raid Precautions unit in Belfast, his rebellion against the religion and politics of his father. The War offers Gavin a new life, war was freedom, freedom from futures, and freedom from the suffocating society of his youth. He makes new friends, discovers poetry and new experiences. Then the War comes to Belfast and Gavin is thrown into a devastating air raid where he must prove himself if he is to escape show more his fathers world. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
An excellent coming-of age novel that is set in Belfast in the early years of World War 2. The attitudes among Ulster's citizens to the distant war are as unique as we might expect them to be. Brian Moore is a champion writer with a canny ability at producing intelligent story-telling.
It is now two months since I read the book and the reason why this review is so delayed is that I’m disappointed that it’s not joining the list of my reads. On the back of the review available on TheMooreTheMerrier I starting reading the latest in my Mooreathon with the highest of expectations, completely and utterly expecting myself to be blown away. It didn’t happen, which is not to say that THe Emperor of Ice Cream isn’t an excellent read. I think I was expecting something to grab me in the same way as “The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne” did. I don’t currently have much empathy with adolescent male leads - and the stupidity of this one made my blood boil in places. (Interesting that this novel is the most show more autobiographical of Moore’s output - suggesting that while I admire the author, I wouldn’t have got on with the man?) But while I was alienated from the personal drama, I was fascinated by the historical, completely amazed at the mindset that couldn’t wait for the second world war to hit Belfast. And didn’t it just, when the Luftwaffe got its sights in! I realise the foregoing sounds rather ambivalent but let me stress that The Emperor of Ice-Cream is still a read and far superior to much contemporary fiction. I agree with John Self that it is a travesty that it is out of print. Here’s hoping that Faber will find it and republish .. show less
Loved this coming of age story set during WWII in Belfast. I laughed and came as close to shedding a tear as I have with a book.
Good novel about a directionless young man who finds a purpose in life when Belfast is bombed.
Ratings
Members
- Recently Added By
Published Reviews
ThingScore 75
Though this novel is not his strongest one to date, it is his most optimistic one.
added by Shortride
Lists
New Canadian Library
191 works; 7 members
Author Information
31+ Works 5,937 Members
Brian Moore, 1921 - 1999 Brian Moore was born in Belfast on August 25, 1921 to Doctor James Bernard Moore and Eileen McFadden. He attended St. Malachy's College, a Catholic school, where the students where beaten on the hands daily. He left the college without a School Leaving Certificate because he failed Math. In 1941, a bomb damaged the family show more home, so they moved to a house on Camden Street. A year later, his father died. In 1942, he joined the National Fire Service, but knew that he wanted to be a writer. Moore knew some French, so he was hired by the British Ministry of War Transport to go as a port official to Algiers, North Africa. Afterwards, he traveled to Italy, France, and after the war, Warsaw (1945), Spain, Canada (1948), the United States and England, finally settling in California. Moore immigrated to Canada in 1948, where he worked as a proofreader and reporter for the Montreal Gazette. In 1951, he published his first story in the Northern Review and married Jacqueline Sirois, a fellow journalist. His only child, Michael, was born on November 24, 1953. He split with his wife in 1964 and then married Jean Denney, who he stayed married to until his death. Moore published "The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne" (1955), "The Feast of Lupercal" (1957) and "The Emperor of Ice Cream" (1966), which is his most autobiographical novel. He recounts his school experiences, as well as what is was like during the bombing. In the 1990's, he wrote political fables and four novels. "Lies of Silence" is a thriller set in Belfast and was a more political statement than the previous novels. It was nominated for the Booker Prize and was his bestselling book. Several of his books were made into films such as "The Luck of Ginger Coffey," "Catholics," "The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne" and "The Temptation of Eileen Hughes" was adapted for television. Moore received many awards, which included the Governor General's Award in 1961 for "The Luck of Ginger Coffey" and again in 1975 for "The Great Victorian Collection," which also won the James Tait Black Award in England. He was short listed for the Booker Prize in 1987 for "The Colour of Blood" and again in 1990 for "Lies of Silence." In July 1987, he conferred an honorary doctorate by Queen's University, Belfast. His film "Catholics" received the W.H. Smith Award in 1973 and the Peabody Award in 1974. In 1999, Brian Moore died at his home in Malibu, California. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Awards and Honors
Distinctions
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
New Canadian Library (154)
Work Relationships
Has the adaptation
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 1965
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 127
- Popularity
- 255,866
- Reviews
- 4
- Rating
- (3.69)
- Languages
- Czech, English, German
- Media
- Paper
- ISBNs
- 9
- ASINs
- 3
