Brooklyn: A Novel (Eilis Lacey Series)

This is a wonderful novel. It is about a young woman, Eilis Lacey, who unexpectedly finds herself transplanted from her home in Ireland to living in a boarding house in Brooklyn, with other Irish young women, and working as a salesgirl on a shop floor. What I found surprising was how Toibin managed to make me care so much about what would happen to Eilis, even though he does not let us see her inner emotions at all, at least in the beginning. Eilis is reserved, accepting her mother's and sister's arrangement for her to travel alone to the U.S., where she has no friends or relatives but where employment prospects are bright. Eilis has an old-school determination to make the best of her situation, including living with a nosy and controlling landlady and suffering through a serious bout of homesickness.

Yet Eilis has ambitions and stamina. She resumes the bookkeeping courses she began in Ireland, and finds romance with an Italian-American young man. As we see Eilis grow into womanhood with the assurance and confidence it brings, Toibin brings us a bit closer to her emotional core, though still at a remove.

The high drama of the story is near the end, where a family tragedy brings Eilis back to Ireland, secretly married to her boyfriend Tony. Back home, Eilis discovers feelings for both her homeland and for another man she would never have imagined existed. The decision she makes about her future leaves you turning the pages faster and faster.

I loved this book, but the ending left so many unanswered questions. I need to find out if there is a sequel.

I loved this book. Just a nice, simple read. I felt right away like I knew Eilis and couldn't wait to see how her life unfolded. As one description says, there's no high drama here, but just a young woman's story. Bittersweet.

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A really lovely novel with beautifully written characters. It's a quick and enjoyable read.