--- product_id: 53829670 title: "Himself: A Novel" price: "€ 27.68" currency: EUR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.at/products/53829670-himself-a-novel store_origin: AT region: Austria --- # Himself: A Novel **Price:** € 27.68 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Himself: A Novel - **How much does it cost?** € 27.68 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.at](https://www.desertcart.at/products/53829670-himself-a-novel) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description A charming ne’er-do-well returns to his haunted Irish hometown to uncover the truth about his mother in this “supernaturally skilled debut” ( Vanity Fair ) and turns the town—and his life—upside down. Having been abandoned at an orphanage as a baby, Mahony assumed all his life that his mother wanted nothing to do with him. That is, until one night in 1976 while drinking a pint at a Dublin pub, he receives an anonymous note implying that she may have been forced to give him up. Determined to find out what really happened, Mahony embarks on a pilgrimage back to his hometown, the rural village of Mulderrig. Neither he nor Mulderrig can possibly prepare for what’s in store… From the moment he arrives, Mahony’s presence completely changes the village. Women fall all over themselves. The real and the fantastic are blurred. Chatty ghosts rise from their graves with secrets to tell, and local preacher Father Quinn will do anything to get rid of the slippery young man who is threatening the moral purity of his parish. A spectacular new addition to the grand Irish storytelling tradition, Himself “is a darkly comic tale of murder, intrigue, haunting and illegitimacy…wickedly funny” ( Daily Express ). Review: Magical, Moving, Magnificent Debut Novel from Jess Kidd - ”Mulderrig is a place like no other. Here the colors are a little bit brighter and the sky is a little bit wider. Here the trees are as old as the mountains and a clear river runs into the sea. People are born to live and stay and die here. They don’t want to go. Why would they when all the roads that lead to Mulderrig are downhill so that leaving is uphill all the way?” Mahoney returns to Mulderrig, although he has no memory of being there, it was in Mulderrig he was born. Raised in a Dublin orphanage, he never knew his mother, has no memory of her or of family, or even of this place. ”She couldn’t have known it but it was then that her baby stopped crying. The void her son had fallen into without the cradle of her gaze was immeasurable. He lay as mute as a little mushroom.” He’s an adult now, old enough to search for her, for the reasons why she abandoned him. Who, and where he comes from. At first Mahoney’s presence goes mostly unnoticed by the mortal members of town, but Mahoney is aware of those beyond the realm who hover around him, teasing him with their presence. Their eyes tell so much, and nothing at all at the same time. ”For the dead are drawn to those with shattered souls”. He is aware of the others, can see them, but he can’t see her. His mother. Orla Sweeney. He has a photograph of her, where she’s holding him as an infant, given to him as he was leaving the Orphanage. Sister Veronica had left him an envelope, his real name, and the town of his birth: Mulderrig. He knows from the note that he was taken from his mother, by unknown townspeople, because his mother was “the curse of the town.” ”His dark eyes are her eyes, the shape of his face, hers. The way he stands with his weight shifted back on his heels and his nose in the air, hers.” And so, Mahoney arrives in Mulderrig in search of himself. Jess Kidd shares her story in writing that is lovely, inspired, ingenious, and quintessentially Irish in the colloquial expressions. The mysterious mystical setting revealed with enough cleverness and wit to keep the heebie-jeebies at bay. Her characters are complex, including the intimidating local priest to Mrs. Cauley, a rather unconventional, wealthy, former theatre actress who is not afraid of much, and who takes Mahoney a bit under her wing. The hairs at the back of my neck stood up often, but perhaps most often at the splendor of her prose. Still there is an element that many would consider supernatural. Creepy, even. ”It is a truth universally acknowledged that when the dead are trying to remember something, the living are trying harder to forget it. Magical, moving, magnificent debut novel from Jess Kidd. I loved ”Himself”, a uniquely beautiful blend of genres, a tale of love and loss, grief, and of secrets kept too long. Secrets that might rise from the grave under the right conditions and circumstances. With a little help. Review: “For the dead have secondhand stories to share with you, if you’d only let them get a foot in the door.” - The literary style and tone of Jesse Kidd is beautiful. I was immediately in awe of the awe inspiring writing style of this novel. The plot is intelligent and intriguing as well. I loved the supernatural elements, though I was completely unprepared for them. Mahony is a bright character who I enjoyed following throughout this tale. It beautifully dove back and forth between past and present to increase the mystery and further the reader’s ability to solve the mystery. Mahony’s romantic entanglements fell short for me and were ultimately a disappointment. They weren’t at the forefront of the plot, but they were underdeveloped and disappointing. Mrs. Cauley was beautifully crazy and I fell in love with her eccentric personality immediately. All of the characters were wonderfully written and brought the story to higher levels of realism and entertainment. This is a great mystery and it’s a wonderful read. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #274,519 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #312 in Dark Humor #816 in Ghost Mysteries #4,934 in Literary Fiction (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.2 out of 5 stars 4,327 Reviews | ## Images ![Himself: A Novel - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81dd5emfP4L.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Magical, Moving, Magnificent Debut Novel from Jess Kidd *by C***S on August 22, 2017* ”Mulderrig is a place like no other. Here the colors are a little bit brighter and the sky is a little bit wider. Here the trees are as old as the mountains and a clear river runs into the sea. People are born to live and stay and die here. They don’t want to go. Why would they when all the roads that lead to Mulderrig are downhill so that leaving is uphill all the way?” Mahoney returns to Mulderrig, although he has no memory of being there, it was in Mulderrig he was born. Raised in a Dublin orphanage, he never knew his mother, has no memory of her or of family, or even of this place. ”She couldn’t have known it but it was then that her baby stopped crying. The void her son had fallen into without the cradle of her gaze was immeasurable. He lay as mute as a little mushroom.” He’s an adult now, old enough to search for her, for the reasons why she abandoned him. Who, and where he comes from. At first Mahoney’s presence goes mostly unnoticed by the mortal members of town, but Mahoney is aware of those beyond the realm who hover around him, teasing him with their presence. Their eyes tell so much, and nothing at all at the same time. ”For the dead are drawn to those with shattered souls”. He is aware of the others, can see them, but he can’t see her. His mother. Orla Sweeney. He has a photograph of her, where she’s holding him as an infant, given to him as he was leaving the Orphanage. Sister Veronica had left him an envelope, his real name, and the town of his birth: Mulderrig. He knows from the note that he was taken from his mother, by unknown townspeople, because his mother was “the curse of the town.” ”His dark eyes are her eyes, the shape of his face, hers. The way he stands with his weight shifted back on his heels and his nose in the air, hers.” And so, Mahoney arrives in Mulderrig in search of himself. Jess Kidd shares her story in writing that is lovely, inspired, ingenious, and quintessentially Irish in the colloquial expressions. The mysterious mystical setting revealed with enough cleverness and wit to keep the heebie-jeebies at bay. Her characters are complex, including the intimidating local priest to Mrs. Cauley, a rather unconventional, wealthy, former theatre actress who is not afraid of much, and who takes Mahoney a bit under her wing. The hairs at the back of my neck stood up often, but perhaps most often at the splendor of her prose. Still there is an element that many would consider supernatural. Creepy, even. ”It is a truth universally acknowledged that when the dead are trying to remember something, the living are trying harder to forget it. Magical, moving, magnificent debut novel from Jess Kidd. I loved ”Himself”, a uniquely beautiful blend of genres, a tale of love and loss, grief, and of secrets kept too long. Secrets that might rise from the grave under the right conditions and circumstances. With a little help. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ “For the dead have secondhand stories to share with you, if you’d only let them get a foot in the door.” *by J***. on July 18, 2021* The literary style and tone of Jesse Kidd is beautiful. I was immediately in awe of the awe inspiring writing style of this novel. The plot is intelligent and intriguing as well. I loved the supernatural elements, though I was completely unprepared for them. Mahony is a bright character who I enjoyed following throughout this tale. It beautifully dove back and forth between past and present to increase the mystery and further the reader’s ability to solve the mystery. Mahony’s romantic entanglements fell short for me and were ultimately a disappointment. They weren’t at the forefront of the plot, but they were underdeveloped and disappointing. Mrs. Cauley was beautifully crazy and I fell in love with her eccentric personality immediately. All of the characters were wonderfully written and brought the story to higher levels of realism and entertainment. This is a great mystery and it’s a wonderful read. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A whimsical and charming mystery *by K***Y on July 29, 2020* Rarely do I find a novel where almost all the characters, not just the main ones, deserve to star in their own stories. This is just such a book. It’s so entertaining; I didn’t want it to end. Mahoney, a young man who was left in an orphanage as a baby, is in search of his family. It is 1976, and he finds a link to his unknown mother and the town of Mulderrig, Ireland, where she lived. He goes to investigate. Mahoney has an unusual gift. He sees the spirits of people who have died. They talk to him, annoy him, plead with him, and distract him as he goes about his business. In Mulderrig, he meets the colorful inhabitants. There’s Father Quinn, whose visits to his congregants are almost always unwelcome. (He’s not the kindest of priests.) Mrs. Cauley, who is my favorite, is an elderly, bed-and-wheelchair-ridden force of nature. She adorns her balding head with outrageous wigs depending on her mood. Mrs. Cauley becomes Mahoney’s ally. Shauna is Mrs. Cauley’s landlord/caretaker, and she has eyes for Mahoney. Bridget is Father Quinn’s housekeeper, who wears a daily uniform of overalls and fedora. These are just a few of the living townspeople. Then there are the ghosts. Ida is the spirit of a little girl who follows Mahoney around when he is on his neighborhood strolls and gives him clues. Johnny is always found near Mrs. Cauley. He was a former beau and is jealous of any male giving Mrs. Cauley attention, even Father Quinn. There’s the poor collie that, even in death, refuses to leave his master’s side. (This brought me to tears.) All the townspeople seem to like Mahoney, at first. He is, after all, gifted with good looks and smooth charm. His presence, however, stirs up old secrets that some had thought long forgotten. For one thing, he is the spitting image of his mother, whom he learns was unwelcome in Mulderrig. She was considered wild and a troublemaker. Mahoney begins to suspect that there is more to his mother’s disappearance than he’s being told. And who exactly was his father? Combining mystery and whimsy, Jess Kidd has written a thoroughly engaging novel that will help you to put present troubles out of your mind for a little while. This is not a work with a serious message, but one well worth your time, especially if you like George Saunders’s and Hilary Mantel’s novels featuring sarcastic and quarrelsome ghosts. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.at/products/53829670-himself-a-novel](https://www.desertcart.at/products/53829670-himself-a-novel) --- *Product available on Desertcart Austria* *Store origin: AT* *Last updated: 2026-06-03*