Irish family in exile
A Long Way from Heaven. By Sheelagh Kelly. Century Hutchinson, 1985. 539 pp. $22.85.
Sheelagh Kelly wrote this novel after researching into her own ancestry and is working on a sequel. In her t tale of \ the trials and tribulations of Patrick Feeney she vividly depicts the squalor and hardships which the refugees from the potato famine in Ireland must have encountered. '• ■
Patrick and his young wife set off for England, like so many of their compatriots. After walking from Liverpool to York the Feeneys make a life of sorts in the slums of Walmgate. But further tragedy strikes; Patrick’s wife dies. He struggles on, remarries, and later faces up to more trials: Insolvency, prison, the illness of his younger son, marital problems. Despite all this, the novel manages to end on a hopeful note. Although this is a long novel and there are lyrical descriptions which border on purple prose, it is easily read and will appeal to lovers of historical novels and those who seem to enjoy the gloomy side of Irish life in exile.—Ngalre Orlowski.
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Bibliographic details
Press, 26 July 1986, Page 22
Word Count
182Irish family in exile Press, 26 July 1986, Page 22
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