~ The Godforsaken Daughter, by Christina McKenna ~
McKenna writes novels set in Ireland, and The Godforsaken Daughter is one in a trilogy; the other two are The Misremembered Man and The Disenchanted Widow. Her writing is charming – she indicts the bigoted, the overzealous religiously inclined, the self-righteous, the narcissistic, the hypocritical, but with gentle humour, letting them show themselves up as comic and absurd.
The Godforsaken Daughter’s protagonist is Ruby Clare, who is presented to the reader as a size 16, 30 year old, with lovely auburn hair. She has just lost her beloved father, Vincent, who was her protector in their family, and with whom she worked their farm. Upon her father’s death, her mother sold the farm, consigning the farm-loving Ruby to being a household drudge, and dependent on her mother financially. Ruby’s younger twin sisters, May and June (so named because born in those months!) at first seem rather a horror, sniping, demanding, mean to Ruby; but they are not as villainous as they first appear. In fact, no one in the book is. Even the annoying Ida Nettles – well named! – and Ruby’s unkind, hyper-critical and controlling, self-absorbed mother, are not quite Cruella Devilles.
The other key story lines in this novel are that of Dr Henry Shevlin, a psychiatrist, whose wife has mysteriously gone missing all of a sudden, and Jamie McCloone, a farmer, who has leased the Clares’ land, and is consulting Dr Shevlin, and so all the storylines begin to tie together in this small community, where everyone knows everyone else’s business.
One of the most enjoyable things about McKenna’s novels is the cadence of her characters’ speech: the distinctive rhythmic re-emphasis at the end of sentences, for instance:
“Busy as usual, Ida, so I am”
“Com’on, Paddy. We can’t keep the sergant waitin’ so we can’t”
There is also the lovely way people express common, everyday sentiments:
“I’ll not be a minute”
“how are you, yourself?”
There is a huge amount of comedy in some of the exchanges, for instance, between Ruby and a shopkeeper:
“Now who did you say had the knees?”
“Me mother, Doris.”
“Och, aye, yer poor mother. But at least she’s got her ears. […] D’you know, between me ears and me knees, I’m nearly kilt…”
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Or when Jamie struggles with a revolving door, which he has never encountered before:
“Ah Jezsis! What sort of a bloody thing is this?”
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Jamie’s accent is particularly delicious:
“Aw, well, y’see, I can explain that, I came that wee bit earlier ‘cos it’s the Fair Day in Tailorstown and I have a couple-a heifers tae sell, and they’ll be coming up for auction at a quarter to ten. So I thought I’d get this wee appointment with the doctor over afore the auction, and kill two burds with the wan stone, as they say”
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The spelling of words as they may be heard is part of the charm of the dialogues:
“Come here, Mrs Clare, and take yer daughtur home. She’s a bloody liability, so she is”
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As is the exclamations and little colloquialisms:
“Away with you, Martha! Put poor Jamie McCloone outta the field…and him so lonely now without his dog and all”
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This is a fun, rollicking read, where the reader has no real fear for the lovely protagonist, Ruby, because it is the kind of novel where all will end well, of that, the reader is assured all along. The lightness is by no means frivolous, but it is an easy, swift, page-turning read. So many of the characters are real delights, particularly one Rose McFadden – what a treasure! Everyone should have a Rose McFadden in their lives!
Shall definitely be looking forward to reading The Disenchanted Widow and completing this charming trilogy. (They all stand as independent reads, but are of the same community, and very similar in tone and style. )
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