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nightpath's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
Such a beautiful blend of nature writing, ancient history and memoir!
It's clear from the beginning of this book that the content is deeply reflective and personal to the author, and Dochartaigh's slow pace sets you up to respect this. Her healing is painfully slow, traumatizing and hurtful, and I liked that she didn't brush over the set backs or depth of her trauma. In short, she validated herself in the book in ways that her youngest self could never have dreamed of and that in itself is beautiful to know as you read.
In a descriptive and linguistic sense, I felt that some chapters, especially towards the end, were packed with too many adjectives and I struggled to stay focused without skipping lines. To me, the last few chapters especially, felt like one long rambling repetitive reflection which went on slightly to long at each corner. Lots of the same imagery and 'root' words are returned to around bones and blood and while this lends to the atavistic quality of the book, for me it removed any forward motion and stunted the narrative.
Nonetheless, I loved stepping into Ireland and learning about its savred beginning as well as it's extremely violent and troubled past. Dochartaigh's reflective voice and turbulent lived experience is such a valuable and grounded way to learn about the Irish Troubles and the collective Irish ontology.
It's clear from the beginning of this book that the content is deeply reflective and personal to the author, and Dochartaigh's slow pace sets you up to respect this. Her healing is painfully slow, traumatizing and hurtful, and I liked that she didn't brush over the set backs or depth of her trauma. In short, she validated herself in the book in ways that her youngest self could never have dreamed of and that in itself is beautiful to know as you read.
In a descriptive and linguistic sense, I felt that some chapters, especially towards the end, were packed with too many adjectives and I struggled to stay focused without skipping lines. To me, the last few chapters especially, felt like one long rambling repetitive reflection which went on slightly to long at each corner. Lots of the same imagery and 'root' words are returned to around bones and blood and while this lends to the atavistic quality of the book, for me it removed any forward motion and stunted the narrative.
Nonetheless, I loved stepping into Ireland and learning about its savred beginning as well as it's extremely violent and troubled past. Dochartaigh's reflective voice and turbulent lived experience is such a valuable and grounded way to learn about the Irish Troubles and the collective Irish ontology.
mushrooms_and_irishdaisies's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.5
qqjj's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
slow-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, War, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, Toxic relationship, Self harm, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Murder, Grief, Classism, Alcoholism, and Alcohol
sionainnmcdonagh's review against another edition
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
4.5
see_reads's review against another edition
I hated the writing style. It was florid, repetitive and shallow. I struggled to emphathise with Ní Dochartaigh's perspective as it felt very singular and simplistic. I didn't really feel her sketching of nature was that evocative nor moving.
onavros's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
5.0
One of the best books I've read in a long time. Anyone who had to deal with significant trauma in their life can relate to her experiences and find solace in her words.
ovenbird_reads's review
3.0
3 stars overall but with some 4 and 5 star moments. There is some beautiful writing in here and the idea of "thin places" was reverberant. I have stood in some such "thin places" myself and know the power of falling through the veil of time and history, self and ancestry. I've known that deep mix of grief, hopefulness, connection, and loss. And while I loved some pieces of this, I also struggled to finish. Much of it was deeply personal and seemed to lack the details or context that would help it live on the page. It was clearly a process of making sense of a complicated past for the author, but as a reader I wasn't always invested in the narrative. It got lost a bit or was buried in musings of deep personal significance but didn't leave a way in for the reader. I hope there will be more books by this author as she has a sharp eye and a poetic mind.