by Roddy Doyle
First published 1991
Bimbo Reeves and his best friend Larry Rabbitte are both out of work in Dublin. When Bimbo spots a battered chip van for sale, he sees their chance. The two men pool their resources and buy the van, planning to sell fish and chips around their Barrytown neighborhood. What starts as an equal partnership begins to fracture when Larry takes charge of the cooking and starts making decisions without consulting Bimbo. The van becomes successful, but success brings new problems. Larry grows increasingly domineering while Bimbo feels pushed aside from his own business. Their friendship strains under the pressure of working together every day. The chip van that was supposed to solve their unemployment becomes the thing that drives them apart. Doyle captures the humor and heartbreak of two friends discovering that business and friendship make an uneasy mix.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, humor, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, found-family
Setting: Barrytown, Dublin, Ireland
Period: 20th-century
312 pages · Hardcover · Random House UK