Máirtín Ó Cadhain (1906–1970)

I came to this story with no background which would help me understand it. I'm not a literature major, nor an Irish language enthusiast, nor an Irish history enthusiast. I like good writing, and good stories. This is both, but if you are looking for a plot, or completion with a wrapped up ending, it is not that. It is a book of conversations. Conversations of the dead who are in the cemetery.

This book was depressing in some ways for me. Imagine having to spend eternity listening to trivialities of all those in the graveyard; never do they grow or learn, it is a closed, endless, loop, like a cocktail party in Hell. It was very interesting however, to watch the writer develop the personalities of each resident to the point where the reader knew who was speaking simply by what they said. Their words defined them. There are no descriptive passages, only dialogue. One gets an idea of their lives through what they say and what their neighbors say in response.

I puzzled to find meaning in the story. What I came up with is this: It is a treatise on the ridiculous nature of humankind. It was interesting for culture, history and the craft of the writer. I won't read it again, but I'm not sorry I've read it because I find that it sticks with me and causes me to ponder about Life, the Universe and Everything.

I read the version with the title "Graveyard Clay" translated by Liam Mac Con Iomaire and Tim Robinson. Great introductory material.… (más)

I really wanted to like this book...and really struggled to finish it. I love the premise: that the dead continue to talk (and bitch and moan) just like they did before is hilarious. And that the main character does not have a gravestone and they keep dumping more bodies on top of her unmarked grave is even better.

The unidentified speakers didn’t bother me as much as it appears to have bothered other reviewers. But I did get to a point where there was just a certain sameness to what was being presented; while I wasn’t expecting “action” some manner of variation would have been nice. Or maybe it needed to be shorter...?
… (más)

The character known as N is an Irish civil servant, a radio and television commentator whose employment status may be a bit shaky. N's wife dies and he's notified while at work. Instead of going straight home he wanders the city, worried about the cost of the wake and funeral and doesn't see the need for so much ceremony. "Was it in the end any different from burying a dead mouse?"

N knows he should go home and tend to the arrangements but continues to flit about, confused and indecisive until his wallet is stolen and all the money for the funeral with it. He meets a series of people that seem to be giving N advice despite not knowing him.

Translated from the Irish, this tells the story of a man suffering from great loss, although his relationship with his wife is not directly addressed. It's unmistakably an Irish tale.… (más)