Reviews

“Battles, governments, laws, leaders-borders-come and go. but the land and its sacred places remain unmoved and unchanged in their core…There are still places on this earth that sing of all that came and left, of all that is still here and of all that is yet to come. Placed that have been touched, warmed, by the pretense of something. By its heat, by its breath, by the beat of its heart. Places that hold on to their surface of a shadow-trace left behind by something we can still sense but no longer see.” Kerri Ni Dochartaigh writes with luminous poetry and beauty in her book, “Thin Places: A Natural History of Healing and Home.” She traces Irish history from the ancient Celtic nature-centered way of life to the tumultuous violence of political, religious and sectarian conflict of the Troubles; all while narrating her personal journey as a child of Ireland and her efforts to heal. Her writing is deeply poetic, rich and conjures a gorgeously detailed portrait of the wild Irish landscape. She tackles questions of Brexit, the future of a divided island and language preservation efforts all while tying these contemporary issues to the ancient natural world of stone, sea, and “in-between places.” Liminal places, and she argues that Ireland itself, and its people exist in this liminal space through the country’s sordid, complex history.

annick's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

Chapter five was when this book finally clicked for me. Beautifully sad and heartbreaking moments of reflection.

I loved so many phrases that I took to underlining the book as I went.

I was deeply moved by the lyricism and soft/quiet of the sadness and loss she speaks of. It moved me and yet amplified my own sorrows.

The writer style is one of repeating phrases (‘I think about…’) and recurring nature themes (various birds, insects, wildlife, as well as wind, river, sea, light and shadow)

The final few chapters weren’t as strong

Content Warnings

annick's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad slow-paced

4.0

Authors voice adds resonance to the writing

ismiselaura's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

3.75

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