Irish Tweed: A Nuala Anne McGrail Novel (Nuala Anne McGrail Novels) (Hardcover)

by Andrew M. Greeley (Author)
Key Phrases: bull shite, tweed blanket, crimson jacket, Mary Anne, Nuala Anne, Dermot Michael (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
At the start of Greeley's spirited 12th Nuala Anne McGrail novel (after 2008's Irish Tiger), his feisty heroine delivers a black belt kick to the unlikable new principal's stomach in a schoolyard brawl involving all four of her children. Solving the bullying problem at St. Joe's isn't the only challenge facing Irish-born Nuala and her adoring husband, Dermot Michael Coyne. They must also figure out who beat and threw Finnbar Burke, the nice fella with whom their shy, golden-haired nanny has fallen in love, into the Chicago River. Interspersed with the present-day action is the poignant story of an Irish girl who came to America after all her immediate family died in the famine of 1875. While some readers may feel Greeley dwells too much on Nuala and Dermot's joyous sex life and overdoes the Irish dialect, few can resist the charm of these colorful, warm characters and the author's sympathetic view of the Irish of Chicago. (Feb.)
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From Booklist
Greeley follows his well-established pattern in his latest Nuala Anne McGrail novel. Although the prescient Nuala Anne and her loving—if slightly bemused—husband, Dermot Michael Coyne, are busy attempting to prevent bullies from overtaking the local parish school, they still manage to find time to solve a mystery involving their nanny’s new love interest. When it appears someone is trying to kill young Finnbar Burke, Nuala Anne and Dermot, with the able assistance of Cardinal Blackie Ryan and a host of Wabash Avenue Irregulars, quietly tackle the case. As they wrestle with figurative and literal demons, their story is juxtaposed with the tale of a nineteenth-century Irish immigrant who became one of the first female physicians in the Chicago area and helped solved a perplexing medical mystery during a smallpox epidemic. Although Greeley does a nice job illuminating some little-known facts about Irish American history as he interweaves the past and the present, his penchant for stereotyping his characters detracts from the narrative flow. Still, dedicated Greeley fans will relish another cozy, feel-good visit with the zany McGrail-Coyne clan. --Margaret Flanagan

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Forge Books; 1 edition (February 17, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765322234
• ISBN-13: 978-0765322234
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #147,773 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 12 in The Nuala Anne McGrail Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Woman's Challenge, May 25, 2009

By	W. Easley "Opa" (Colorado Rocky Mountains) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Imagine the career barriers a woman faced in 1885. Imagine the reluctance of males to allow her to be schooled in medicine and to become a doctor. Such a struggle is one of the themes in Irish Tweed.

Andrew Greeley alters his formula slightly in Irish Tweed. Usually, novels in the Nuala Anne series involve two mysteries, one current and one legendary. In Irish Tweed, Greeley presents current and ancestral stories that are not really mysteries in the classic sense. The two stories are delightful plot lines of family oriented tales where Greeley weaves an ancestral and current story together in a seamless narrative.

The modern story involves a battle within the post Vatican II Roman Catholic Church. Many people are confused. The laity knows about new church teachings, social action programs such as care for poor citizens, and lay leadership. But the clerics are not leading and the "faithful" are acting independently.

In the contemporary story, Nuala, Dermot and their four impressive children become involved in a battle over the parish school. They challenge a school principal and pastor who have misinterpreted Vatican Council teachings in ways harmful to the children. Much of the fighting is humourous, but this theme surfaces a serious parish crisis in the modern church. As usual, the interactions among the members of Nuala's family and friends are amusing and often funny.

I especially liked the "legendary" story of Angela. Angela Agnes Tierney is orphaned in Ireland and is sent to live with American cousins. Angela is a bright child and flourishes in Chicago. This theme has very likable characters, people who actually love without condition, in the manner they see God's love for them. I enjoyed seeing the development of a woman destined to be ahead of her times. Angela is a girl, in the 1880s, wanting to learn, to be schooled, and to be a physician. The manner in which she overcomes her obstacles is fascinating.

In Irish Tweed, Greeley displays his talent for verbalizing normal human feelings. He shows the anxiety couples feel through courtship; the curiosity, the reluctance, the fear of making a mistake. In the case of Angela, could the man she loves find her attractive? How could he love her since she feels inadequate. These scenes are so typical of many lovers and so well phrased that we remember how we felt. Greeley pictures the grand feelings of being in love, of having your beloved accept you and want to be with you. Greeley helps us feel the awe, the feeling of unworthiness, the fear of potential loss of the one of your dreams.

Irish Tweed is one of the better Nuala Anne stories, I recommend it.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nuala Fan, March 20, 2009

By	Marcella P. Gill (PA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

For all who love Greeley, this is a great series. Every book keeps you riveted to the end.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A little fey goes a long way, March 16, 2009

By	Deborah Haupt (Portage des Sioux, MO United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

As in all of Father Andrew Greeley's Nuala Ann McGrail novels, this one is funny, heartwarming, insightful, and romantic. He's in top form with this one, while Nuala Ann is trying to solve some evil going on in the 21st century she's also uncovering an memoir of a late 19th and early 20th century immigrant from Ireland, a young lady adopted by a Chicago family who becomes a Doctor.
There is no better storyteller than Father Greeley, his accounts of this rare Chicago family who's characters are so warm and loving and devoted to one another are top notch. And it doesn't hurt that this Chicago Irishman adds just a touch of fey to this wonderful piece of fiction. His dialogue along with his tale is what really sets this book apart from others in it's genre, he adds just enough of the West of Ireland dialect to keep it off the beaten path. His outlook on married physical love and the roles in the family must make him an excellent marriage/family counselor in his every day vocation as a parish priest.
I think any lover of great fiction would love this novel.