Waterstones Irish Book of the Month for July 2023
From the award-winning,Booker longlisted author of the number one bestseller,Strange Flowers,a searing,jubilant novel about four generations of women and the love and stories that bind them.
The Aylward women are mad about each other,but you wouldn't always think it. You'd have to know them to know - in spite of what the neighbours might say about raised voices and dramatic scenes - that their house is a place of peace,filled with love,a refuge from the sadness and cruelty of the world.
Their story begins at an end and ends at a beginning. It's a story of terrible betrayals and fierce loyalties,of isolation and togetherness,of transgression,forgiveness,desire,and love. About all the things family can be and all the things it sometimes isn't. More than anything,it is an uplifting celebration of fierce,loyal love and the powerful stories that last generations.
Publisher: Transworld Publishers LtdISBN: 9781804991077Number of pages: 256Weight: 178 gDimensions: 198 x 127 x 16 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'(A) master storyteller. The most vivid characters,so full of life. You read each short chapter wondering how he's crammed in so much heart and wonder,while the story itself ramps up to its quietly devastating and marvellous conclusion.'- Kit de Waal
'This is a generous mosaic of a novel about the staying power of love and pride and history and family. While Donal Ryan is never afraid of "all the meanness and sorrow of the world," he also manages to excavate the thrilling beauties that hold us together. He manages,with wit and grace,to illuminate the anonymous corners of human experience and get at the underworld of our souls.'- Colum McCann
'Donal Ryan is one of the finest novelists writing today and this is a gem of a novel. Full of humanity,humility,humour,drama and mystery,his characters are so vivid you feel they are sitting outside,waiting for him to conjure them to life. He writes with grace and precision,with love indeed,about who we are and why,about family history and the ghosts we carry. A haunting,exquisite masterpiece.'- Rachel Joyce
'I was thunderstruck by this exquisitely beautiful and powerful novel. This is writing of shimmering truthfulness,empathy and authority by the most consistently brilliant Irish writer of his generation.'-Joseph O'Connor
'Beautifully poised,sad,poetic and human....I loved every single line.'- Ian Rankin
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