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The
2003 Award
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That They May Face the Rising Sun by John McGahern
Nominated by:
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Publisher of Nominated Edition: Faber & Faber ISBN 0571212166 |
| the complete A-Z listing of nominated authors. |
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ABOUT
THE BOOK
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the very opening pages, we see the many memorable characters as they move
about Joe and Kate Ruttledge, who have come to Ireland from London in search
of a different life. There is John Quinn, who will stop at nothing to ensure
a flow of women; Johnny, who left for England twenty years before in pursuit
of love; and Jimmy Joe McKiernan, head of the IRA, both auctioneer and undertaker.
The gentle Jamesie and his wife Mary embody the spirit of the place. They
have never left the lake but know everything that ever stirred or moved
there. The drama of a year in the lives of these and many other characters unfolds through the action, the rituals of work, religious observances and play - an enclosed world is transformed into an Everywhere. |
| ABOUT THE AUTHOR |
| John McGahern is the author of five highly acclaimed novels and four collections of short stories, and has been the recipient of many awards and honours, including the American-Irish Award, the Prix Etrangère Ecureuil and the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Amongst Women, which won the Irish Times Award, was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and made into a four-part BBC television series. His work has appeared in anthologies and has been translated into many languages. He lives in Ireland. |
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Reader
Review
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This latest work by John McGahern is a quiet, reflective read. Although called a novel, it seems to be more a journal of the last days of a way of rural life, set in the Irish countryside. It is the chronicle of a year at the end of an era. The two main characters who carry the story, husband and wife, return from the bustle and stress of life in London to the total contrast of life in a quiet and peaceful rural Ireland. The book revolves around their daily life and its interplay with the local residents. The character of each nieghbour is accepted, one by another, with all its quirks and faults and its kindnesses. Comment is made but very little censure. Running parallel with the story of the neighbourhood and its inhabitats runs the observation of the year in nature with its descriptions of the landscape as the seasons change. The coming of the telegraph poles signals the end to the dropping in of one neighbour on another. With the new instantaneous means of communication, no longer is there a reason to walk across the fields to bring news, good or bad. There are no great highpoints or lowpoints in this work. It runs on a very even keel. It provides no excitements or denouments. It is a gentle read, and as such can be picked up and read at any time giving gentle pleasure. The author paints vivid pictures of the countryside and records the seasonal changes almost with an artist's palette. A book to be recommended for a nostalgic and soothing read. Raheny Library Readers' Group Member |
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Find out more about the author on the following websites: Guardian
review of That They May Face the Rising Sun |
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