A groundbreaking collection that confirms the contribution Irish-American women have made to literature in this century. Organized chronologically from writings at the turn of the century to the present day, these 25 pieces explore the sometimes crushing love of family, the mixed blessing of faith, identity and sexuality, and serve to resurrect the image, once buried of Irish women as storytellers .
| ||||||||||||||||||
Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
Tucked away in Cabbage and Bones is a clutch of compelling, neatly polished stories published by Irish American women writing between 1938 and 1997. The earliest tale, "Noel Coward and Mrs. Griffin," is a great bit of old-fashioned, wide-eyed fun. In it, two sweetly hell-raising sisters appall sanctimonious neighbors with such exploits as burying their doll Joe in the garden on Good Friday. As their infuriated father digs it up late Saturday night, the younger girl moans tearfully, "He'll rise tomorrow and you won't have to trouble." Later stories echo different sentiments: bleak depression, black humor, and an enjoyable sentimentality that teeters on mawkishness. Binding ties of religion and family are spotlighted and politics run passionate or wry. "'Better to be a communist when you're poor, right? What's to lose?'" says the father of the 17-year-old who narrates "How Ireland Lost the World Cup."
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Irish American fiction has rarely been presented as a genre separate from Irish fiction, and in the instances when it has been, the focus is primarily on male writers. Inspired by the historical Irish women's immigration experience and the resulting literature, Kearns has compiled the first collection of Irish American women's fiction. The 24 contributions, from both well-known and obscure authors, are filled with recurring themes of family, immigration, and religion. What makes these stories memorable are the depth and variety of emotions that each writer brings to her subject matter. A true celebration of Irish American women's fiction and an affirmation of this unique perspective in American literature; highly recommended.?Dianna Moeller, St. Martin's Coll. Lib., Lacey, Wash.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Worthwhile,
By A Customer
This review is from: Cabbage and Bones: An Anthology of Irish American Women's Fiction (Hardcover)
I enjoyed many of these stories, especially "How Ireland lost the World Cup", the excerpt from "At Weddings and Wakes" (one of my favorite books ever) and "Famine Fever". One story which bothered me, however, was "the Map of Ireland" by Stephanie Grant, is set in South Boston, where I live. She apparantly is not from South Boston, because she has made geographical errors (Gate of Heaven School and church are no where near the MaryEllen McCormack housing development). Ms. Grant should be aware that there are no projects in Gate of Heaven parish, but rather it is a solid middle class urban neighborhood!! We are not poor!! I wish people would stick to writing about what they know. You can't pretend to know a life that you don't. Otherwise, the stories are great and I think it was a great idea to put together an anthology of Irish-American women.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
Suggested Tags from Similar Products(What's this?)Be the first one to add a relevant tag (keyword that's strongly related to this product).
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
