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alyssaddouglas's review
2.0
Too ordinary; no important plot to captivate me, no big discoveries or surprises, not even a resolution at the end. Put simply, it was a story without a storyline.
irina_maria's review
1.25
Felt severely undercooked and boring. There were some interesting themes in there ranging from funerals as rituals to families making sense of the loss of a (more or less) loved one to moving through the world as a disabled person to the social function of 'drink'. However, none of these was properly developed in the narrative. It overall just fell flat.
lianne_rooney's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
laura_n_'s review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Not one for me unfortunately. I found the story to be boring and I’m glad it was only short so I could get through it.
rudyb's review
medium-paced
picked this up on a whim and really liked it, will probably pick up some more of mcgahern’s works later.
lornasreading's review
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
hey_laura_mc's review
5.0
Characters, dynamics, dialogue, settings, the set meal at the funeral (‘hot vegetable soup, lamb chops with turnip and roast potatoes and peas, apple tart and ice cream, tea or coffee’) just pitch bloody perfect. And then blinders like, ‘The colour of laughter is black. How dark is the end of all life. Yet others carried the burden in the bright day on the hill. His shoulders shuddered slightly in revulsion and he wished himself back in the semi-detached suburbs with rosebeds outside in the garden.’
brainwatched's review
4.0
McGahern accomplishes so much in so little pages. This was the first work I read by him and it shows how expertly he weaves characters into being, how richly he illustrates Ireland, and how charming he makes even the fairly plain tale of a funeral.
literaryelephant's review
3.0
This story, originally published in 1992, features three Irish brothers who travel back to their mother's childhood home for their uncle's funeral. I tend to like morbid tales that brush against death, and indeed the brothers' reactions to the loss of their uncle are complex and compelling. The best aspect, in my opinion, is that the change in perspective that each brother undergoes throughout the course of this story also runs parallel to shifting power dynamics between the siblings.
The downside (depending on the sort of reader that you are) is that this story is largely a character study and thus has very little plot. While I did find each of the brothers interesting and enjoyed seeing their late uncle through the snippets of dialogue they share amongst themselves and the other mourners, I must admit that there were moments of boredom for me. I do tend to like character studies and don't often need much plot, but following them through the planning and hosting of this funeral just wasn't quite enough of a hook for me.
The downside (depending on the sort of reader that you are) is that this story is largely a character study and thus has very little plot. While I did find each of the brothers interesting and enjoyed seeing their late uncle through the snippets of dialogue they share amongst themselves and the other mourners, I must admit that there were moments of boredom for me. I do tend to like character studies and don't often need much plot, but following them through the planning and hosting of this funeral just wasn't quite enough of a hook for me.