Enright’s latest is a powerful exploration of family bonds in the wake of a father’s abandonment.
Phil McDaragh walked out on his wife when she was in bed recovering from breast cancer surgery. A celebrated Irish poet, he was famous for his beautifully sad love poetry and keen understanding of women; he wooed them with words and hurt them with words — spoken or written.The novel gives voice to Nell, his granddaughter, and Carmel, his daughter, in alternating chapters.
Nell, Phil’s 23-year-old granddaughter living in present-day Dublin, doesn’t know much about her once-famous grandfather, although she has often leafed through his books of poems. Her chapter is written in Nell’s thoughtful, lively, funny, always sincere and often self-deprecating voice.
“The Wren, the Wren” of the book title is also the title of a poem Phil had dedicated to Carmel. It is about the bird flying away from him, out of his hand: “her ascent/away from me/in a blur of love, to love/indistinguishable/… And, oh/my life, my daughter,/the far away sky is cold/and very blue.”Phil and his granddaughter are equally fascinated by the poetic beauty of birds, and equally emotionally loyal to Irish birds.
Carmel’s life is told in her own chapters but, unlike Nell’s, in the third person. While her mother and older sister continue to live in a sort of denial of Phil’s absence, Carmel rejects all forms of pretense and grows up to be fiercely independent and outspoken. She chooses to become a single mother, with a few surprising relationships, none of which are necessary for her well-being. All she needs is Nell, whom she thinks of as entirely her own.
Elena Lappin is the author of the story collection “Foreign Brides,” the novel “The Nose” and a memoir, “What Language Do I Dream In?”Delivered to your inbox every Friday, a selection of publishing news, literary observations, poetry recommendations and more from Book World writer Ron Charles.
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