"The Master" a novel by Colm Toibin

"The Master" a novel by Colm Toibin.





After reading Colm's novel, "Brooklyn", I was very interested in reading something else of his, so I chose this novel. It is possibly the only novel that I have ever read that has been so thoroughly researched by an author, he listed EVERY book he read on the entire James family.




I am not sure that I would have found Henry a very nice person, one of America's best writers of his time, although he chose to live abroad in England, Paris, Rome and Venice.

Henry was born into a very wealthy family 20 years before the American Civil War, rubbing shoulders with many of America's most intellectual names in our country's history, maintaining relationships with most throughout his life, but not necessarily being friends with them.



One person in particular became a very "dear" friend of his, Constance Fenimore Woolson (niece of James Fenimore Cooper). More about Constance in another blog.


Colm's portrayal of Henry James is extremely well-done, showing a self-absorbed, lonely, sometimes intolerant figure. It was a great tragedy when his friend, Constance, died, yet Henry refused (much to the consternation of his friends) to attend her funeral. Henry chose a most bizarre way to dispose of Constance's clothes, and this event sheds an unusually disturbing personality trait.


With all of Henry's faults, he still stands out as an excellent writer. I did enjoy this book very much, and have already handed it off to a library patron, will be interesting to hear her thoughts on the book.


Hope you will consider it.

"Brooklyn" novel by Colm Toibin

Brooklyn, a novel by Colm Toibin.

I had never read anything written by this author before, so I had no idea if I would enjoy his writing or the story, I was pleasantly surprised by the writing and the story.

Starts out in Ireland, in a small town after WWII, Eilis Lacey is a skilled bookkeeper, but jobs in this town are few and far between for her skills. A Brooklyn based Irish priest, Father Flood, convinces Eilis' mother and sister that Eilis' skills would be well used, if she were to travel to Brooklyn, NY. So, with not much say in the matter, Eilis is shipped (literally) off to the New World..... Father Flood is there to meet her when the ship arrives, and proceeds to take her to the boarding house owned and operated by Mrs. Kehoe, from Wexford, Ireland. Mrs. Kehoe has very strict ground rules for her female boarders. Eilis is able to obtain a position at Bartocci's Dept Store, working hard, and proving to her superiors that she is capable, she eventually moves up in the chain. She is encouraged to take further bookkeeping courses at the local college, where she mets Italian (good looking) Tony. After a whirlwind romance the two marry, but this is not going to be happily ever after, as Eilis receives heartbreaking news from her family, so she must return to Ireland, promising Tony to return as soon as she can get things taken care of, however, her family has other plans for her. Trying to keep the peace with her family, Eilis never reveals that she is married, especially to an Italian. Eilis lets her life unravel, to the point that she starts dating a boy she had known before she left for Brooklyn, Jim Farrell, things become very sticky, and Eilis in her heart knows that she must either return to Tony and Brooklyn, or divorce Tony and stay in Ireland. Of course, being Catholic, Eilis has many roadblocks before her.

I enjoyed Colm's writing, his storytelling was very interesting.

Hope you might consider this one. Have placed a hold on one of his other books, hope it will be as enjoyable as this. Other library staff at my branch have read this one, and we have all come away with a positive experience.