Description
Early one October morning, Grace’s mother snatches her from sleep and brutally cuts off her hair, declaring, “You are the strong one now.” With winter close at hand and Ireland already suffering, Grace is no longer safe at home. And so her mother outfits Grace in men’s clothing and casts her out. When her younger brother Colly follows after her, the two set off on a life-changing odyssey in the looming shadow of the Great Famine.
To survive, Grace will become a boy, a bandit, a penitent and finally, a woman. A meditation on love, life and destiny, Grace is an epic coming-of-age novel, and a poetic evocation of the Irish famine as it has never been written.
WINNER OF THE KERRY GROUP IRISH NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2018
SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTION, THE WILLIAM SAROYAN INTERNATIONAL PRIZE FOR WRITING 2018 & FRANCE’S PRIX LITTERATURE MONDE (2019)
SELECTED AS A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017 BY THE GUARDIAN AND ESQUIRE
Winter is closing in and Ireland is in the grip of famine. Early one October morning, Grace’s mother snatches her from sleep, brutally cuts her hair and tells her: ‘You are the strong one now.’
Her mother fits her up in men’s clothes and casts her out, as she is no longer safe at home. With her younger brother Colly in tow, the two set off on a remarkable journey against the looming shadow of their country’s darkest hour.