Another return to Enniscorthy of Yesteryear

Nora Webster by Colm Toibin 

 
They believed it was time that she stop brooding and think of other things. But there were no other things. There was only what had happened. It was as though she lived under water and had given up on the struggle to swim towards air. It would be too much. Being released into the world of others seemed impossible; it was something she did not even want. How could she explain this to anyone who sought to know how she was or asked if she was getting over what happened? 

Shortlisted for the Costa best novel award as well as the Folio prize, Nora Webster is the latest novel from bestselling author Colm Toibin. This book explores the grief and despair experienced in the wake of great personal tragedy. Our title character, Nora Webster, is a middle aged widow mourning the loss of her husband Maurice whilst trying to continue raising her four children.

The story begins not long after the death of Nora’s husband, yet long enough that well meaning visitors are becoming more of a burden than a comfort. For those of you who have previously read Brooklyn, one such visitor will already be familiar to you; Eilis’ mother May Lacey. Colm Toibin quickly hints at what may have become of some characters from the previous novel during May’s conversation with Nora before moving on with the tale of Nora Webster. This is not a sequel in the sense that you need to have read Brooklyn first but I found the nod to his previous work a nice touch. I enjoyed him talking of the other characters years removed from Eilis’ original tale and was grateful that he didn’t go too much into detail, still allowing the reader to imagine what might have become of Eilis and co.

As with Brooklyn previously, I again found myself coming to care for the characters in this story very quickly. Within a very short space of time you are embroiled in Nora’s grief, mourning right beside her as she tries to come to terms with the monumental changes happening in her life. Nora is a woman who has lived for many years as a wife and mother with no real identity beyond these roles. This is the story of her trying to find her way in life as an individual, torn from the comfortable familiarity of being one half of a couple. This isn’t the story of a widow trying to find love again. This is the story of a widow trying to find herself. Everything has changed for Nora including her children who she is struggling to deal with alongside her grief.

In the early stages of this book I found it fairly heavy going. Due to the subject matter it begins as melancholy as you would imagine. The line in the extract above about living underwater and giving up on the struggle to swim towards air is a fairly accurate representation of how I felt reading the beginning of this book. It is all of the small things that you may not even have considered with somebody being widowed that begin to add up to a considerable weight that Nora is having carry with her. For a long time it feels like you are sinking along with Nora as she struggles to keep going.

However, slowly but surely, small things begin to change Nora’s life and you begin to believe that she may one day be happy again. The story spans a roughly 3 year period and takes it’s time, not rushing through the grieving period to a sunny day years down the line. This isn’t that type of book. Expect a slow but steady pace as you follow Nora’s story of rediscovery. Whilst there is no huge turning points or massive surprises this book will leave you with one main feeling, hope.

I took my time with this one, allowing myself to slowly enjoy Colm Toibin’s wonderful characters over the course of a week. I felt fully immersed in their world and enjoyed sharing in their lives. Colm Toibin has become a must read author for me and if you enjoy slower explorations of character then I definitely recommend giving him a go. As with Brooklyn, I would have to rate this as 5 out of 5. Quiet and unassuming, this is another brilliantly subtle novel from Colm Toibin.

I see so many people criticising books like this for not having any major turning points or any exciting action. These negative reviews confuse me. I’m often unsure why people believe these elements should be in these types of novel. This is a storied exploration of a widow grieving and trying to raise her children as best she can. The action is in the tender moments as Nora begins to allow herself to live again in the smallest ways. Her rebellious streak extends as far as purchasing records, a car chase or a gun fight would be most out of place! If you don’t begin with these absurd expectations then I am sure you will be sucked in to the world Toibin has created and you will enjoy every second of it.

Sometimes you can find joy in the smallest things.

A Journey to Brooklyn via the mean streets of Enniscorthy

Brooklyn by Colm Toibin

 

She would make them believe, if she could, that she was looking forward to America and leaving home for the first time. She promised herself that not for one moment would she give them the smallest hint of how she felt, and she would keep it from herself if she had to until she was away from them. 

This coming of age tale starts off in 1950’s Ireland where our main character, Eilis, is living with her sister, Rose, and their elderly mother. We follow Eilis as she emigrates to America and begins a new life in Brooklyn. The first half of this book sees Eilis navigating her way through homesickness, alienation, depression and loneliness as she tries to find her place in America. However just as Eilis is starting to settle into the American way of life a great tragedy strikes and she is left trying to decide between her new life or returning to the Irish town she left behind.

Straight off the bat let me point out that I usually steer clear of books like this. Behind the beard and tattoo’s lies a fragile emotional wreck still traumatised by the final 20 minutes of Toy Story 3. O.K so maybe I’m not that bad, but on the whole I am not a fan of investing heavily in characters, growing to love them before having my heart broken by what happens to them. I find it easier to read thrillers and crime novels where on the whole those who end up dead or hurt are characters I am not all that invested in.

I initially chose to read this book as it was set in Enniscorthy. A rather random reason perhaps, but as a child I used to visit relatives in Ireland most summers and have spent a lot of time in Enniscorthy and the surrounding Wexford area. I also had relatives who made the move from Ireland to America during the period which this book is set in so thought it could make for an interesting read. I convinced myself that I could read this without being too invested in the characters and instead I would just enjoy reading about a familiar place in a time before I knew it. I was wrong. Very wrong.

Throughout the first half I fell in love with so many of the characters despite my attempts to distance myself from them. Colm Toibin has created a very believable cast who reminded me of so many people from my own life. Far from your typical Irish caricatures, Toibin has created distinctly Irish characters in a far more subtle fashion, many of the different character traits reminded me of my Nan and her siblings.

Throughout this book there are very few major events. This is far from action packed and is very subtle throughout the majority of the story. The beauty lies in it’s making the everyday so intriguing. You want to read about these characters lives and you don’t want them to be thrown into dangerous situations or life changing dilemmas just for the sake of it. The slower pace allows you to grow very fond of these characters and so when tragedy finally strikes it definitely hits you hard. Having read the synopsis I was aware that there would be a tragedy at some point and I decided early on what I believed this would be. Yet again I was wrong. I was so convinced the tragedy was going to be something else that when it finally happened it totally shocked me. From this point on the book changes and whilst reading I wasn’t sure it was for the best. It is hard to really discuss my issues here without spoiling the book for those who are yet to read it. I think in the moment I really didn’t like the way some characters changed and where the story started going. However having finished the whole story and given it some thought I really did still enjoy this one despite the shift in the last part.

This is an excellent book which has instantly become one of my favourites and I am sure I will probably revisit it again in the future. It felt authentic both in setting and with characters which you genuinely end up caring for as though they are close friends. If you want non stop action or huge twists and turns then this probably isn’t for you but if you want to follow some great characters and immerse yourself in their world then this is definitely one I would recommend. In fact I am going to rate this one 5 out of 5! I really enjoyed it and I will now be reading Colm Toibin’s latest novel ’Nora Webster’ very soon.