Mary Pat Kelly

Sweeping family saga spanning six generations of an Irish Catholic family, based on the life of the author’s great-great grandmother. It is a story of the 1840s Irish potato famine, migration to America, the American Civil War, the Fenian Raids in Canada, and the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition (Chicago World's Fair). It is a fairly long book. It covers lots of ground with well-researched historical accuracy. The sights, sounds, and Irish cultural traditions are beautifully described. Irish folk tales are nicely woven into the narrative. This family faces numerous hardships, and it was easy to root for them. There is a glossary of Irish words and pronunciations in the back, which unfortunately I did not find until I finished.… (meer)

DNF at 57% then I jumped to the end and what I predicted came true. It was so ridiculous that I don't know if I should be impressed with the fact that I saw it coming in the beginning or depressed that the most cliche ending you can imagine happened.

Now, this is not a truly bad book, but I just didn't have enough care left for Nora and her BIG family. The book is sure well-researched, but much of the time it felt like reading a history book with constant name droppings. Every famous person from the 20 and forward either showed up or was mentioned. There just came a point when I felt that I had enough, and the book is so THICK almost 600 pages and it just went on and on. I couldn't take it anymore. The constant name dropping and Nora constant talked about going back to Irland and visit Peter's grave, but ALWAYS something happens.

I want to thank the publisher for approving me for this ecopy, sadly I was the wrong reader!… (meer)

This book could have gotten a higher rating from me if it hadn't been for all the name droppings and for the fact that it felt like it took forever for me to finish the book. Now, this is a book that's over 500 pages long so it's no wonder it took some time for me to finish it. But, still, it just felt like the story could have been cut down 100-200 pages or so. But then Nora Kelly would have missed all those wonderful moments of meeting every single famous person that were alive during the beginning of the 1900-century, whether it be a painter, freedom fighter, politician, actress, designer, etc.

Sorry, I will stop with my nagging now. The book was not all bad, I quite liked Nora Kelly and her family. And, it was interesting to read about her life in Paris and everything she experiences, her meeting with Peter, the man she would come to love, and everything she went through during WW1 and after. I especially liked her involvement with the moment to free Ireland and how she would, in the end, travel to Ireland and Galway where her grandmother was born. It felt like a closing of a circle since the first book Galway Bay (That I haven't read) is about Honora Keeley, Nora's grandmother that she is named after and who left Ireland together with her husband Michael and used to tell little Nora stories about Ireland.

So yes, I enjoyed the book, but alas I also felt that the story dragged now and then and that sometimes it was just too many famous people in the story that Nora just had to meet. Still, the book was well-written and well researched and I wouldn't mind reading Galway Bay.

I want to thank the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!… (meer)