RaveThe Irish Independent (IR)There is a menace in the air in Barrett\'s story. He doesn\'t have Barry\'s linguistic exuberance and energy, but he has a power all his own. The centrepiece of Young Skins is a 73-page novella, \'Calm With Horses,\' which deals with the aftermath of an attempted sexual assault ... On the surface, it\'s about how a small-town drugs operation falls apart, but it\'s the characterisation that makes it so memorable and affecting ... Barrett\'s use of language is powerful and surprising ... These stories are moving and memorable and show a writer who understands people, place and the effects of porter on the human psyche.
