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A review by admacg
The Thing About December by Donal Ryan
4.0
I’d read Ryan’s previous work, the masterful ‘The spinning Heart’, so I knew he wrote beautifully, and this book is no different.
The story concerns Johnsey, a young bachelor. His is a distinctive voice, full of the local vernacular, all the richer and more vibrant for it.
He is an isolated character, quite innocent in many ways and not one to complain. He is trying to hold onto what he has, what his father and
grandfathers built before him. But he is full of grief and driven half mad by the loneliness and others are ready to pounce, jealous of what he has. I was never sure what Johnsey’s problem is, whether his parents mollycoddled him too much or he had some sort of learning disability. Or maybe a combination of the two. But he is ill prepared to deal with the vultures, an assortment of colourful locals, all with varying intentions.
The book concerns the recent period in Irish life where the ‘Celtic Tiger’ loomed large. The new found wealth transformed rural Ireland,
often not for the better. Unwittingly, Johnsey finds himself at the centre of this greed and doesn’t understand it. He yearns for the wisdom and guidance of his ancestors but the old ways are gone, maybe forever.
Ryan puts me in mind of the great John McGahern, capturing the claustrophobia and frustrations of living in small town Ireland.
He also has that quality McGahern had, where the writing will suddenly develop into something profound, expressing a truth you’ve always known. I found this is an absorbing read and every bit as good as his previous work.
The story concerns Johnsey, a young bachelor. His is a distinctive voice, full of the local vernacular, all the richer and more vibrant for it.
He is an isolated character, quite innocent in many ways and not one to complain. He is trying to hold onto what he has, what his father and
grandfathers built before him. But he is full of grief and driven half mad by the loneliness and others are ready to pounce, jealous of what he has. I was never sure what Johnsey’s problem is, whether his parents mollycoddled him too much or he had some sort of learning disability. Or maybe a combination of the two. But he is ill prepared to deal with the vultures, an assortment of colourful locals, all with varying intentions.
The book concerns the recent period in Irish life where the ‘Celtic Tiger’ loomed large. The new found wealth transformed rural Ireland,
often not for the better. Unwittingly, Johnsey finds himself at the centre of this greed and doesn’t understand it. He yearns for the wisdom and guidance of his ancestors but the old ways are gone, maybe forever.
Ryan puts me in mind of the great John McGahern, capturing the claustrophobia and frustrations of living in small town Ireland.
He also has that quality McGahern had, where the writing will suddenly develop into something profound, expressing a truth you’ve always known. I found this is an absorbing read and every bit as good as his previous work.