Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín (2009)

Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín (2009)

The story of a young Irish immigrant’s journey to and time in America.

Laura’s Rating: 2/5 Stars

Plot: The book follows Eilis Lacey, a young Irish woman who emigrates to America in 1951. Despite being content to stay in Ireland, her mother encourages her to travel to New York, where she finds work at a department store and meets a boy. 

Opinion: I assume this book is supposed to be an accurate portrait of immigration at the time but it’s a boring read, especially towards the beginning. It’s also presented as a romance but the main character doesn’t even interact with a boy until halfway through the book. There’s also some weird scenes that I suppose show the awkward encounters that young people (especially those in an unfamiliar country) might have, but it didn’t really work for me.

The second half of the novel is more eventful but overall it reads as a (boring) slice of life. Brooklyn is definitely not my favorite historical fiction and I think you can pass on it.