Despite what I read about this book from the publisher's blurb, I didn't find this story to have much humor or irony in it. In fact, I found it to be a very harsh and difficult tale, which was at the same time an extremely compelling read. You can read my full review of this book here. https://tcl-bookreviews.com/2013/12/12/not-seeing-the-trees-for-the-forest/