A review by ridgewaygirl
The Green Road by Anne Enright

5.0

This is one of those quiet, understated novels that I always have trouble reviewing. It's centered around a family of grown children and their widowed mother, and it's written so plainly and effortlessly that I suspect quite a lot of work went into the writing. The first section of the book is a collection of short stories, each centering on a different member of the family. They stand alone, except that the reader knows that each protagonist is a member of the Madigan family, and each is very different from the others. The second section of the book brings them together for a final Christmas in the family home, in which old patterns continue to hold steady, even as new conflicts arise.

The Green Road has been long listed for the Man Booker Prize and it is well deserved.