The Emperor of Ice-Cream (novel)
The Emperor of Ice-Cream is a 1965 coming-of-age novel[1] by writer Brian Moore. Set in Belfast during the Second World War, it tells the story of 17-year-old Gavin Burke who, admitting “War was freedom, freedom from futures,” defies his Nationalist and Catholic family by volunteering as an air raid warden with the largely Protestant ARP.[1] The novel takes you through Gavin's journey as he realises that there are those on the other side of the city's bitter communal division whose friendships offer a wider horizon.
 First edition | |
| Author | Brian Moore |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | McClelland and Stewart (Canada) Viking Press (US) Andre Deutsch (UK) |
Publication date | 1965 |
| Pages | 250 |
| OCLC | 368948 |
| Preceded by | An Answer from Limbo (1962) |
| Followed by | I Am Mary Dunne (1968) |
Based in part on Moore's own wartime experiences,[2] he described it as the most autobiographical of his novels.[3] Moore left Belfast in 1943 to join the British Ministry of War Transport and worked himself for a period with the ARP in London.
The title taken from Wallace Stevens' poem "The Emperor of Ice-Cream."
References
- Hicks, Patrick (July–December 1999). "History and Masculinity in Brian Moore's 'The Emperor of Ice-Cream'". The Canadian Journal of Irish Studies. 25 (1/2): 400–413.
- O'Donoghue, Jo (1991). Brian Moore: A Critical Study. Montreal and Kingston: McGill University Press. pp. xii. ISBN 0-7735-0850-3.
The Emperor of Ice-Cream (novel) brian moore.
- Craig, Patricia (2002). Brian Moore: A Biography. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. p. 74]. ISBN 0 7475 6844 8.