Map of Ireland: A Novel [Paperback]

Stephanie Grant (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 5, 2009

Set during the desegregation of the Boston public schools in 1974, Map of Ireland is a funny and tender coming-of-age story and a brave and ambitious depiction of race relations in America. This stunning novel takes on race and sexuality with beauty, grace, and humanity. When Ann Ahern, a 16-year-old born into a tight-knit Irish-American community, begins her junior year of high school South Boston is in a tumult - Catholic mothers are kneeling in the streets blockading buses of black children from the public schools and teenagers are raising havoc. Ann, an outsider in her own world, is infatuated with her French teacher, Mademoiselle Eugenie, a woman of African descent. Spurred by her adoration for Eugenie, Ann embarks on a journey that leads her beyond South Boston, through the fringes of the Black Power movement, into love and ultimately to the truth about herself. Stephanie Grant's searing prose, powerful storytelling, and richly drawn characters bring this turbulent moment in American history into perfect focus.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Edgy and erotic, Grant's second novel (after The Passion of Alice) runs a complex story of urban racial conflict through a YA-feeling filter. The year is 1974, and 16-year-old Ann Ahern has a crush on her French teacher, the Senegalese Mademoiselle Eugenie. It is not the gender of her crush that troubles Ann—she has long known she likes girls—but rather the color of Mademoiselle's skin. The backdrop of Ann's adolescence is the desegregation of south Boston public schools, and the sight of black faces in her school fills her with equal parts resentment and lust; her response to this confusion takes the form of a light pyromania, and as racial strife worsens, it is clear that Ann has wandered into a conflict between the Black Panthers and several racist groups. When a gang of white kids torch Mademoiselle Eugenie's car, Ann embarks on an adventure that awakens her conscience and sexual identity. Grant is most successful in depicting Ann's internal coming-of-age, but the world outside Ann's head is frequently elusive, and her final acting out may crush any sympathy readers feel toward her. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

They were lovers; they were colleagues. At one point, hotshot Minneapolis lawyers Lena Grant and Nick Ward were even husband and wife. Now divorced, they find themselves in the unlikeliest of relationships. Having pulled an outrageous public-relations stunt involving 100 live lobsters, the city’s supply of road salt, and the mayor’s swimming pool—all in the cause of animal rights—Nick is committed to a local psychiatric hospital. While criminal charges are pending, the only way Nick can avoid jail time for his altruistic antics will be if Lena agrees to act as his supervisor—and Nick needs a lot of supervision. When Nick moves back into the home they once shared, Lena is reintroduced to the dozens of behaviors that caused their divorce, as well as being reminded of just why they fell in love in the first place. Poignant and outrageous, moving and profound, Evans’ delectable debut novel thrums with zesty dialogue and a memorably zany cast of irresistible characters. --Carol Haggas --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Scribner; Reprint edition (May 5, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416556230
• ISBN-13: 978-1416556237
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.2 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,479,996 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a great read, March 9, 2008

By 

Mary J. Quinn (Hastings-on-Hudson, NY USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Map of Ireland: A Novel (Hardcover)

i had read stephanie grant's previous novel "the passion of alice" and so expected "map of ireland" to be a good read. it IS a good read but so much more. the author has somehow managed to 'wrap' such weighty subjects as the hopelessness of racism in day-to-day american lives, homosexuality and irish-american culture in a compelling story - no small feat. ann ahern is the one of the most realistic fictional characters I have read and unable to put it down I read "map of ireland" in one sitting. I highly recommend this multi-faceted and thought-provoking book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fearless writer, July 18, 2008

By 

Jane Wilson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Map of Ireland: A Novel (Hardcover)

I really admired this novel. Stephanie Grant gives us a protagonist who is narrow-minded and ignorant, a product of her racist family and community, and at the same time smart, cynical, yearning for love, eager to transcend her circumstances. I found that quite brave, just as her irreverent portrayal of eating disorders was in The Passion of Alice. She is an honest and fearless writer who shakes you up and challenges you. I love that!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well-written and complex, July 6, 2008

By 

Smokey Cormier (Oakland, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Map of Ireland: A Novel (Hardcover)

Complex story of a 16 year old Irish-American, working-class girl in South Boston. Very well written. Complex story about race and class ... and being a lesbian. The characters were finely defined. Highly recommended.