I loved the first 1/2 of this story. It was so refreshing to read a coming-of-age story from a boy's perspective. It was refreshing, and funny and just as cheeky and punk and boys can be.

But the second 1/2 of the book fell flat for me. The introduction of new characters had none of the depth and development of that pack of boys and their wild weekend in Manchester. The only two characters that I could still feel connected to were Tully and James (perhaps intended), but it felt like the interplay between James and Tully's wife. Perhaps if Anna had been part of that original group or part of the childhood story it would have felt she belonged in the story equally as much. As it was, although ending was beautiful and touching, it missed the mark for me.

A book about male friendship, its silliness and its strength.
Part 1 - youth. Fast paced, out of breath reading. I missed a lot of the references being of a different age and setting (Canadian) but O'Hagan's words still hit true. The bravado, optimism, we-can-conquer-all attitude of young men everywhere, anytime.
I almost ditched this book at this point because it was exhausting to read but something kept me reading, and I did not regret it.
Part 2 - adulthood. Enduring personalities, solid friendship, disappointments that those of an age must contend with. Mortality, it's true is hardest for those not experiencing it.
This book will make you think about who in your life will bear the honour of walking you to death's door. Who will support your life and all that you shared.
A powerful delivery of what is important and who is important on your final trip.
Don't give up after Part 1, it's worth it so that you find out who the characters are in part 2.
There is a Tully and a Jimmy in each of us.

This book was steeped in nostalgia in the best way. Even in the modern parts, James' narration gives the book a sentimental quality. The book is an ode to the past for any reader, even those who weren't teenagers in the 1980s.

While the subject matter is difficult, it's worth it for the exploration of friendship and love O'Hagan provides. I would recommend this book to just about anyone.

I loved this book. This is a story about growing up, family and the friendships that mould us into who we become as adults for the rest of our lives. I experienced so many emotions while reading this story, love, tears, heartbreak and pure joy at what the human soul can experience in a life time. This is a book that is a rarity in that it will stay with me forever. I f you are looking for a book to touch your heart this is the one, you will not regret taking the time out to read this. I would like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity they have given me in presenting me with this book.

The book is divided into two parts, separated by roughly thirty years. The book starts out strong and we get to know James and Fully, but then descends into a self indulgent weekend in Manchester. Music,alcohol, drugs are prevalent and I didn't care for this section at all. In fact, if this wasn't a read with Angela and Esil, I might have put the book down. DON'T! The second section is remarkable and why this weekend in Manchester was so important is soon revealed.

The second part takes a tragic turn and begs the question of just how much can we ask our friends? Make our own decisions even if someone else close to us doesn't agree and is hurt by the request? When do we say enough is enough? The book turns into a book of a wonderful friendship, a closeness that supercedes all requests no matter how difficult. It is so different from the first part, even the way it is written but I'm so glad I didn't quit reading. It encompasses the full tragedy of lives fully lived.

ARC from Netgalley.

This was a bittersweet story. It’s about friendship, love, youth, adulthood, life and death.

Mayflies begins in a Scottish town in 1986 with James and Tully about to embark on a trip to Manchester with a group of friends. They are living in the moment, enjoying their youth and not thinking too much about what their futures hold. They love to have a good time by drinking, making literary, movie, and sport references. Somehow most of their arguments lead back to Margaret Thatcher. Then, fast forward to the present time, the friends have drifted apart, but James and Tully are still close. Tully reveals to James that he is terminally ill and the two embark on a new journey. In their youth Tully was like a big brother to James, and now it is James’ turn to support Tully.

Most of the music, and sports references went way over my head, so I didn’t particularly enjoy those sections in the first half of this book. In the second half, there is a marked difference in the tone of the novel, it’s a lot more adult, less chaotic.

I wish the book’s description signalled that half of it would deal with the topic of cancer and assisted death. Neither are topics I would choose to read about, but decided to push through anyway. If you don’t mind reading those themes, you may enjoy this book. The writing is beautiful, insightful, and nostalgic.

CW: death, assisted death, cancer.

Thanks to Netgalley, McClelland & Stewart (Penguin Random House) for an e-arc in exchange for my honest opinions.

I liked the beginning of this novel when we first meet James and Tully in their youth, as their friendship develops and we get to know their family circumstances. I loved their friendship and how Tully and his Mom looked out for James. I was so connected, but then I lost interest when they make a weekend trip from their town near Glasgow to Manchester for a music festival, with some other boys who are in Tully’s band. I was so disinterested that I did something I don’t often do, I skimmed for a while. I just could not tolerate the boys, and the bands and the booze and the banter. I just didn’t enjoy the craziness. Maybe it’s my age. Usually if I’m skimming, I throw in the towel, but there was something about the beginning of the novel that made me continue, something about these characters that made think there was going to be something worthwhile here. I’m so glad I did because I thought the second half of the book was very much worth reading.

This is a story that explores relationships, friendship and love, life and death issues, dealing with a terminal illness. Maybe the dichotomy between their youth and what was happening when they are in their fifties emphasizes more the realities the characters faced as adults. I still did not enjoy that earlier part of the book, though, but I understood a little more after the second half, how it cemented their friendship. The second half of the book was moving, thought provoking and made me do a little soul searching myself thinking about the fragility of life. I was captivated wondering if James would be able to do a very difficult thing that Tully asks of him. Reflections on life and death, what would you be willing to do for your best friend? The Great Gatsby is Tully’s favorite book. How could I not connect with him for that and for the person so generous with himself that he was even as a young man ? How could I not connect with James who deeply recognizes how Tully has touched his life, for standing by him. An absolutely beautiful friendship.

I read this with Diane and Esil as one of our monthly reads and I’m glad we decided to stick with this in spite of our initial reservations.

I received an advanced copy of this book from Penguin Random House Canada through NetGalley.

“Think where man’s glory most begins and ends,
And say my glory was I had such friends”
William Butler Yeats

This very apt quote opens Andrew O’Hagan’s upcoming May release Mayflies.

Oh, wow, what a book. Andrew O’Hagan has done something really special here and I’m at a bit of a loss for words. The first half of Mayflies charts a weekend in Manchester at childhood’s end for a group of Glaswegian best friends in 1986 as they dance and imbibe their way through the greatest weekend of live music of their lives. The second half finds us in 2017, and one of the friends has been diagnosed with terminal illness and asks the seemingly impossible of his loved ones.
Really, this novel is a love letter to the life giving force of friendship; the strength friends lend each other, the grace they extend each other.
It’s not an easy read as it exactly charts the definite path of the end of life, and the particular pre-grief and devastation that comes when the end has a known time and place.
I found this book so moving, and there were so many lovely quotes I’ll love to share upon pub day.

Thank you to Netgalley and Penguin Random House Canada for the arc!

MAYFLIES by Andrew O’Hagan is an absorbing novel! This is the story of a true and lasting friendship between James and Tully, two young Scottish men. The story begins with them going to a music festival in Manchester in 1986. That part made me really nostalgic for the times I went to music festivals with my friends! It was so relatable how they bonded over music. It was really interesting to read their Scottish vernacular. It was touching to read about their friendship and it was evident they had such a strong bond. This is a really good novel that explores the highs and lows of friendship.
.
Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada via NetGalley for my advance review copy!