A review by hatseflats
Carry Me Down by M.J. Hyland

4.0

An early blooming, eleven-year-old Irish boy from a small town who stands at 5'10" at the start of the story, but is nonetheless still a little boy, emotionally speaking. Lives with his da and mammy in his grandma's house. Believes he has the innate ability to detect lies and writes to Guinness Book of World Records in hopes that they will test his ability and put him in their yearly as the human lie detector. This is a lovely story that explores the fragility of a family who are very much dysfunctional and doing their best to cope with their imperfections as seen through the eyes of a young child. At turns hilarious, at turns poignant, but always eloquently sincere in the writer's level of human observation. Certainly deserving of its Booker shortlist status.