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ronanmcd's review against another edition
5.0
These are a glorious collection from the downcast to the mischievous. I was new to O'Conaire and they were certainly a surprise. I knew many, if not most of the places within the stories (where there was a geographic basis in truth). But I was not prepared, having recently read Maupassant to find an Irish writer from a similar era doing similar work. But where Maupassant is fanciful and tells society stories, these are stories of people getting by, and as such still more more contemporary feeling now. These are still the people of Connemara.
The prose is hard-worn.
I must note that the across the stories there is a surprising modernity to the attitudes. The attitudes towards women are horrendous by today's standards, but many of the characters sense this and react accordingly. The attitude to the church was the most surprising. We are brought up to believe in a devout, obsequious past, but there is much disparagement towards the church here, between the lines, and with the licentious attitudes shown especially towards the opposite sex.
The prose is hard-worn.
I must note that the across the stories there is a surprising modernity to the attitudes. The attitudes towards women are horrendous by today's standards, but many of the characters sense this and react accordingly. The attitude to the church was the most surprising. We are brought up to believe in a devout, obsequious past, but there is much disparagement towards the church here, between the lines, and with the licentious attitudes shown especially towards the opposite sex.
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