Three stories that tell of a century of Jewish experiences in Ireland from different viewpoints. One a woman from Ireland whose boyfriend would like her to convert; the other a girl whose family accidently end up in Cork rather than New York and the last a Jewish man whose selective mutism has kept him in a mental institution for decades because of something he can't tell anyone. There is also a story of love and life and it's an interesting set of stories, that interweave in ways I wasn't expecting.
It took me a while to get into it and I'm not fond of the chapters cycling between eras way of telling a story but by the end I was very curious about it all. ( )

This book made me ache. It's a glimpse into the Jewish community of Ireland throughout the twentieth century, told through three different characters in different times. Ruth is a Lithuanian immigrant at the turn of the century, accidentally calling Cork, rather than New York, her home. Shem is a mid-century teenager who has lost his voice and is locked away in one of Ireland's multitude of homes for the mentally ill. And finally, Aisling, a twenty-first century London resident dating a Jewish man who eventually tells her he can't imagine marrying a gentile woman. Gradually, their stories are woven together, an intricate tapestry weaving the past, present, and future of Irish Jews into a single narrative. This book was deeply moving and I highly recommend it.

Definite trigger warning for antisemtism, antisemetic slurs, ableism, and Ireland's frankly horrifying mental health institutions in the 20th century. Shem's story line bears the brunt of these problems; a mute Jewish boy in a Catholic institution that still views mental illness as bedevilment is never going to be a pleasant reading experience. ( )

I wish the book had been more focused on the similarities between Irish and Jewish storytelling as the conversion storylines never really rang true to this reader and son of Irish Jews. Told in three time frames that never quite cohere to make a whole book, there was still much to like here. ( )

The writing is very clever. There are five parts to the book, each with the English translation of the Jewish names of the first five books of the Bible: In the beginning, Names, And he called, In the Desert, and Words.

The connections among the three stories are gradually revealed; one link is only shown at the end. Going back to read the very beginning is useful. But two of the stories are frustratingly sad: If only Shem had talked to his rabbi or his mother about his problem; if only Ruth had introduced herself; if only . . . . If only I felt more sympathy for or closer to the characters. ( )

The American debut for Irish author and academic Ruth Gilligan. An interesting read, each chapter, written like a short story, intertwines to illuminate a relatively unknown bit of Irish-Jewish history. I didn't find it cohesive enough, my first impulse on finishing was to reread in light of the conclusions of the various streams. Lovely language, but too many bizarre lives for her characters. ( )