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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
Spare prose, three beautifully written stories and an unforeseeable conclusion. Very good
This is a beautiful novel. The first three parts of the book tell the stories of three men with very different lives and experiences. And the fourth unexpectedly weaves them together in surprising ways. The portraits, monologues, of the three men explore their lives with care and detail and they are each allowed to be very different from each other. Trees share nutrients and messages among themselves using a poorly understood symbiosis with fungi and is it so very different with humans after all?
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Irish are amazingly good at telling stories. As Ryan writes in this short novel, "Some stories a man can glory in. Some stories were told for kudos or for laughs." Donal Ryan tells us three separate stories of men who are trying to puzzle a life together after the loss of loved ones that have left them with a wounded heart; a Syrian refugee, a young nursing home attendant, and a dishonest accountant. We hear these stories first hand from each man and not until the final section do we learn how the three are interconnected and it will take you by surprise. The writing is beautifully crafted and spellbinding.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my first Donal Ryan book and honestly I was expecting for more. It started well and on the whole it’s a well written look into the lives of three men in a contemporary setting that tries to deal with pressing issues. It’s split into four parts: the first three following a man in the third person (Farouk, Lampy and John) and then how their lives are all interconnected in the finale.
I’d say Farouk’s was my favourite where he tells of life in war-torn Syria with his family, the dangerous nature of being trafficked and life as a migrant. I loved the way he and his wife tell their daughter fairy tale-like stories and this runs throughout his section. The second part centres on the young Irishman Lampy as he prepares to go to work at a care home shuttling residents. Whilst this is happening he muses back over his past: growing up without a father (his grandad ‘Pop’ taking over alongside his mother), his aspirations and missed opportunities at a better life, what’s in store for his future and also love for a girl called Chloe who rejected him for Dublin life so has ‘settled’ with another. Thirdly, John is an older man who’s making a confession as his end is near, in it he reflects on his past, about the premature death of his older brother and feelings of inadequacy to his family, the tension present at home after this, life as a lobbyist making sure things went his way despite the consequences, an affair and the repercussions of his actions.
Like I said before, the writing is good and I’d classify this in the ‘literary’ genre, there’s plot but is outweighed by the character analysis and their complexity. But this leads into my criticism… none of them are likeable or really that interesting which leaves me feeling disconnected. I could see others having relatability with them but personally there was none. The female characters here are soooo one dimensional! Most are just reduced to their looks, mistreated without consequence and I just couldn’t stand it. Another thing I hated and think was very unnecessary for a book published in 2018 was the fatphobia. In each section there’s at least one character we come across who’s described as fat (or other synonyms) and done so in a negative light, it’s a bullying tactic in John’s part and I just felt enough is enough here.
Audiobook: phenomenal performance! It’s multi-cast with each actor putting his all into the narration, you feel the emotion and what Ryan was trying to put across. If you do read this I’d certainly recommend the audiobook but as a whole I didn’t really enjoy the book. I’m interested to give Ryan another chance as I believe he could be a 5 star potential author but we’ll see.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing, Fatphobia
Minor: Death, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Violence, Xenophobia, Grief, War
Probably the best book I have read in the last 5 years
4+! Nydelig bok, fantastisk innlest, lyttet fra Audible. Foreløpig Booker-favoritt!
Structured in the style of three short stories with an ultimate connection, sadly, this book was a miss for me. With a compelling mix of protagonists, the refuge from war-torn Syria to the heartbroken and troubled young man in small-town Ireland, to the old man at the end of his days recounting his life and regrets, there’s so much possibility in these stories. So badly I wish I had loved it. However, they felt distant, lacking depth, and when I think back, I’m not struck by the novel’s ending but by the thought of how potent the ending could have been if the rest of the novel had been better laid.