Scan barcode
necrabelle's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
portybelle's review
4.0
The Liberation of Brigid Dunne is the first book I have read by Patricia Scanlan and I'm not really sure why as it's exactly my kind of read. I very much enjoyed following this story of four women from the same family from the 1950s into the present day. And what a family!
First of all, we have Brigid herself. She has been a nun since the 1950s, trained as a paediatric nurse and served in the missions in Africa before returning to Ireland and becoming a Reverend Mother. Her sister Imelda is a rather bitter woman who feels that she has had a raw deal in life and resents the esteem Brigid is held in. Imelda's daughter Keelin has had an interesting relationship with the Catholic Church over the years and a difficult relationship with her mother. Her daughter Marie-Claire, who is very close to Brigid, has recently returned to Ireland from Canada following a betrayal in her relationship. At a party to celebrate Brigid's 80th birthday and retiral as Reverend Mother, Imelda's resentment boils over and more than a few secrets are revealed!
What I found particularly fascinating about this book was the way we can see the role and expectations of women changing throughout the years and how some people were more willing to accept those changes than others. With the Catholic Church forming an important backdrop to the story both in Ireland and further afield, we also get quite an insight into how the Church too has changed over the years. I think the author gave quite a balanced view showing the positive things the Church had done but not glossing over its many faults. She shows as well how keeping secrets can cause sorrow, hurt or in some cases bitterness but that it is perhaps never too late to talk about the past and try to put things right.
At over 500 pages this is a book to really get your teeth into and I loved following all the women throughout the story. It's a book about strong women who come to understand each other despite their flaws and shows the power of forgiveness. Despite the frustrations they all feel at times, and the misunderstandings, ultimately this is a warm-hearted book with a very satisfying conclusion.
First of all, we have Brigid herself. She has been a nun since the 1950s, trained as a paediatric nurse and served in the missions in Africa before returning to Ireland and becoming a Reverend Mother. Her sister Imelda is a rather bitter woman who feels that she has had a raw deal in life and resents the esteem Brigid is held in. Imelda's daughter Keelin has had an interesting relationship with the Catholic Church over the years and a difficult relationship with her mother. Her daughter Marie-Claire, who is very close to Brigid, has recently returned to Ireland from Canada following a betrayal in her relationship. At a party to celebrate Brigid's 80th birthday and retiral as Reverend Mother, Imelda's resentment boils over and more than a few secrets are revealed!
What I found particularly fascinating about this book was the way we can see the role and expectations of women changing throughout the years and how some people were more willing to accept those changes than others. With the Catholic Church forming an important backdrop to the story both in Ireland and further afield, we also get quite an insight into how the Church too has changed over the years. I think the author gave quite a balanced view showing the positive things the Church had done but not glossing over its many faults. She shows as well how keeping secrets can cause sorrow, hurt or in some cases bitterness but that it is perhaps never too late to talk about the past and try to put things right.
At over 500 pages this is a book to really get your teeth into and I loved following all the women throughout the story. It's a book about strong women who come to understand each other despite their flaws and shows the power of forgiveness. Despite the frustrations they all feel at times, and the misunderstandings, ultimately this is a warm-hearted book with a very satisfying conclusion.
mindfullibrarian's review against another edition
3.0
(free review copy) I’m always up for a story about multiple generations of women in a family, and I love stories set in countries other than the US. And this one definitely delivered on that front! However, the back cover description is pretty misleading because it mentions nowhere that the book is almost 50% about the Catholic Church in Ireland and misdeeds done by the church. I’m not upset that the book contained this content, but I might have picked it up with a different understanding of what I was getting into if the description had been more accurate.
grainne_g12's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
dja777's review against another edition
4.0
Some of the side trips into new age spirituality stuff were not terribly interesting, but they didn't detract too much from a captivating multi-generation story.
capyval's review against another edition
I'm clearly not the type of reader that this book is aiming to. I didn't like it from the beginning, but I kept reading to see if it got better: it didn't. I just finished the first part (88 pages) and there's nothing that I like about it.
My issues with this book are many, but it doesn't deserve the time of writing a long and detailed review, so to summarize: the writing style is cheesy, repetitive and slow, as the author tries to make things sound more interesting than they really are by filling her paragraphs with lots of adjectives and ready-made cliché expressions (which she repeats, indiscriminately.) The characters and situations are all boring, plain and shallow, mainly because the dialogues feel so artificial, tiresome and even forced at times. The romanticized descriptions of Ireland and France (and the people from these countries) made me roll my eyes every time. More reasons? There's a big and obvious typo very early in the book, and the capitalization of some words is very odd, which made me ask myself if this book was even proofread. And, to finish, both the cover and the first page want to forcibly convinced us how good this book is: "NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER" they repeat, as if our heads were empty, and we would care about the selling and the popularity of an author when we are considering reading one of her books or not.
Boy, I didn't like this book, huh? :p
My issues with this book are many, but it doesn't deserve the time of writing a long and detailed review, so to summarize: the writing style is cheesy, repetitive and slow, as the author tries to make things sound more interesting than they really are by filling her paragraphs with lots of adjectives and ready-made cliché expressions (which she repeats, indiscriminately.) The characters and situations are all boring, plain and shallow, mainly because the dialogues feel so artificial, tiresome and even forced at times. The romanticized descriptions of Ireland and France (and the people from these countries) made me roll my eyes every time. More reasons? There's a big and obvious typo very early in the book, and the capitalization of some words is very odd, which made me ask myself if this book was even proofread. And, to finish, both the cover and the first page want to forcibly convinced us how good this book is: "NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER" they repeat, as if our heads were empty, and we would care about the selling and the popularity of an author when we are considering reading one of her books or not.
Boy, I didn't like this book, huh? :p
mariasmusings's review against another edition
3.0
Audible.co.uk purchase and returned
Review to come
ARC received as The Family Reunion in 2021
I’m a long time fan of Patricia Scanlan as she has a wonderful way of describing her characters and writing their conversations. Her books are always multi-layered with so many elements of Irish society playing a role in the story, each often adding a sense of familiarity for the readers. In ‘A Family Reunion’ (also known as ‘The Liberation of Bridget Dunne’), the story is primarily told from the viewpoint of four female members of the same family: sisters Brigid and Imelda, Imelda's daughter Keelin, and her daughter Marie-Claire. The story starts on Christmas Eve 1953 and quickly moves to the present day, when the family are preparing to celebrate retirement (from her religious order) and eightieth birthday. This birthday will be a long-overdue reunion for the family and also the occasion when Imelda decides to reveal some startling truths. For the remainder of the novel, the four women will struggle to deal with the revelations of the past and now to accept the repercussions.
The description of novel is hugely enticing for me – a family saga, focusing on the strong, opinionated female members and their past decisions.
However, this is the first time that I have struggled with finishing one of her books. I felt little or no empathy for Imelda and her situation and had a similar reaction to Brigid, has a result, I was not quick to finish the book as I usually would. There is no doubt that the storyline is indeed interesting and there are plenty of emotional moments to catch the readers heart; especially as we read of dreams and ambitions being stolen or thwarted. Perhaps, I struggled due to the focus on the religious life but for me this was a good but not outstanding addition to the author’s work.
Review to come
ARC received as The Family Reunion in 2021
I’m a long time fan of Patricia Scanlan as she has a wonderful way of describing her characters and writing their conversations. Her books are always multi-layered with so many elements of Irish society playing a role in the story, each often adding a sense of familiarity for the readers. In ‘A Family Reunion’ (also known as ‘The Liberation of Bridget Dunne’), the story is primarily told from the viewpoint of four female members of the same family: sisters Brigid and Imelda, Imelda's daughter Keelin, and her daughter Marie-Claire. The story starts on Christmas Eve 1953 and quickly moves to the present day, when the family are preparing to celebrate retirement (from her religious order) and eightieth birthday. This birthday will be a long-overdue reunion for the family and also the occasion when Imelda decides to reveal some startling truths. For the remainder of the novel, the four women will struggle to deal with the revelations of the past and now to accept the repercussions.
The description of novel is hugely enticing for me – a family saga, focusing on the strong, opinionated female members and their past decisions.
However, this is the first time that I have struggled with finishing one of her books. I felt little or no empathy for Imelda and her situation and had a similar reaction to Brigid, has a result, I was not quick to finish the book as I usually would. There is no doubt that the storyline is indeed interesting and there are plenty of emotional moments to catch the readers heart; especially as we read of dreams and ambitions being stolen or thwarted. Perhaps, I struggled due to the focus on the religious life but for me this was a good but not outstanding addition to the author’s work.
mariasmusings's review against another edition
2.0
Audible.co.uk purchase and returned
Review to come
ARC received as The Family Reunion in 2021
I’m a long time fan of Patricia Scanlan as she has a wonderful way of describing her characters and writing their conversations. Her books are always multi-layered with so many elements of Irish society playing a role in the story, each often adding a sense of familiarity for the readers. This is certainly the case in 'A Family Reunion' as readers can recognize the local 'busybody', the 'helpful friend' (who is not really helpful) etc in the small town.
In ‘A Family Reunion’ (also known as ‘The Liberation of Bridget Dunne’), the story is primarily told from the viewpoint of four female members of the same family: sisters Brigid and Imelda, Imelda's daughter Keelin, and her daughter Marie-Claire. The story starts on Christmas Eve 1953 and quickly moves to the present day, when the family are preparing to celebrate retirement (from her religious order) and eightieth birthday. This birthday will be a long-overdue reunion for the family and also the occasion when Imelda decides to reveal some startling truths. For the remainder of the novel, the four women will struggle to deal with the revelations of the past and now to accept the repercussions.
The description of novel is hugely enticing for me – a family saga, focusing on the strong, opinionated female members and their past decisions.
However, this is the first time that I have struggled with finishing one of her books. I felt little or no empathy for Imelda and her situation and had a similar reaction to Brigid, has a result, I was not quick to finish the book as I usually would. There is no doubt that the storyline is indeed interesting and there are plenty of emotional moments to catch the readers heart; especially as we read of dreams and ambitions being stolen or thwarted. Perhaps, I struggled due to the focus on the religious life but for me this was a good but not outstanding addition to the author’s work.
Review to come
ARC received as The Family Reunion in 2021
I’m a long time fan of Patricia Scanlan as she has a wonderful way of describing her characters and writing their conversations. Her books are always multi-layered with so many elements of Irish society playing a role in the story, each often adding a sense of familiarity for the readers. This is certainly the case in 'A Family Reunion' as readers can recognize the local 'busybody', the 'helpful friend' (who is not really helpful) etc in the small town.
In ‘A Family Reunion’ (also known as ‘The Liberation of Bridget Dunne’), the story is primarily told from the viewpoint of four female members of the same family: sisters Brigid and Imelda, Imelda's daughter Keelin, and her daughter Marie-Claire. The story starts on Christmas Eve 1953 and quickly moves to the present day, when the family are preparing to celebrate retirement (from her religious order) and eightieth birthday. This birthday will be a long-overdue reunion for the family and also the occasion when Imelda decides to reveal some startling truths. For the remainder of the novel, the four women will struggle to deal with the revelations of the past and now to accept the repercussions.
The description of novel is hugely enticing for me – a family saga, focusing on the strong, opinionated female members and their past decisions.
However, this is the first time that I have struggled with finishing one of her books. I felt little or no empathy for Imelda and her situation and had a similar reaction to Brigid, has a result, I was not quick to finish the book as I usually would. There is no doubt that the storyline is indeed interesting and there are plenty of emotional moments to catch the readers heart; especially as we read of dreams and ambitions being stolen or thwarted. Perhaps, I struggled due to the focus on the religious life but for me this was a good but not outstanding addition to the author’s work.
shelleyann01's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. Even though there was a lot of religious aspects throughout I didn't feel preached to, this book showed both the good and the bad side of organized religion. It was very honest and I learned a lot. I found myself rooting for each character, even the flawed ones. The storytelling was believable and real. There was nothing sappy about it so I felt like I was in a land of truth and reality. The feeling each character had were heartfelt and I found myself identifying with elements of each character. I felt a vested interest with every page.
This is a wonderful novel that surrounds you with compassion and joy. Patricia Scanlan writes characters in a way that makes you immediately understand who they are. I feel like these people are my friends and neighbours, and honestly I miss them. Their problems are real, their reactions are real, their successes and mistakes are real. And you can't help understand that underneath the plot (which is a nice mix of heavy, light, heart wrenching and silly fun), this is a novel about how everyone needs a community and we all need family. We all need people who understand us. We all need to feel that our flaws aren't as destructive as they sometimes seem.
Thank you NetGalley, Patricia Scanlan and Atria Books for the complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
#NetGalley
This is a wonderful novel that surrounds you with compassion and joy. Patricia Scanlan writes characters in a way that makes you immediately understand who they are. I feel like these people are my friends and neighbours, and honestly I miss them. Their problems are real, their reactions are real, their successes and mistakes are real. And you can't help understand that underneath the plot (which is a nice mix of heavy, light, heart wrenching and silly fun), this is a novel about how everyone needs a community and we all need family. We all need people who understand us. We all need to feel that our flaws aren't as destructive as they sometimes seem.
Thank you NetGalley, Patricia Scanlan and Atria Books for the complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
#NetGalley