Absorbing, tense, and often very funny, The Anatomy School recreates the high anxieties and deep joys of a boy’s quest for his place in the world. This is the story of Martin Brennan and his growing up – a troubled boy in troubled times, a boy who knows all the questions but none of the answers. Before he can become an adult, Martin must unravel the sacred and contradictory mysteries of religion, science and sex; he must learn the value of friendship; but most of all he must pass his exams – whatever the cost.
A book that celebrates the desire to speak and the need to say nothing, The Anatomy School moves from the enforced silence of Martin’s Catholic school retreat, through the hilarious tea-and-biscuits repartee of his eccentric elders, to the awkward wit and loose profanity of his two friends – the charismatic Kavanagh and the subversive Blaise Foley – as we follow Martin from the initiations of youth to the devoutly wished consummation of the flesh.