Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

An interesting subject, 31 Aug 2006
Too much emphasis on lyrical descriptions and a confusing structure spoilt a novel that had the potential to be fascinating.
It is based on the true story of a young girl who caused uproar in Ireland and the Catholic church because she wanted to travel to England for an abortion.

Mary is under 14 when her father rapes her and she concieves his child. Her bewilderment and shame are well described as the whole of Ireland gets involved in the case. Both the pro and anti abortion lobies are represented, although those advocating the baby's right to live are painted in an extreme and fairly unsympathetic light.
The other main character, the father, is a weak man; expert with animals and proud of his daughter, yet unable to curb his sexual needs. I didn't feel much sympathy for him, only anger.

The story was thought provoking, but I would not recommend the book because it lacked flow and 'readability'.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

An interesting subject, 31 Aug 2006
Too much emphasis on lyrical descriptions and a confusing structure spoilt a novel that had the potential to be fascinating.
It is based on the true story of a young girl who caused uproar in Ireland and the Catholic church because she wanted to travel to England for an abortion.

Mary is under 14 when her father rapes her and she concieves his child. Her bewilderment and shame are well described as the whole of Ireland gets involved in the case. Both the pro and anti abortion lobies are represented, although those advocating the baby's right to live are painted in an extreme and fairly unsympathetic light.
The other main character, the father, is a weak man; expert with animals and proud of his daughter, yet unable to curb his sexual needs. I didn't feel much sympathy for him, only anger.

The story was thought provoking, but I would not recommend the book because it lacked flow and 'readability'.

a wonderful introduction........, 06 Dec 2002
........ to the greatest writer of the twentieth century. most biographies are way too long. edna o'brien distils the essence of joyce's genius in under 200 pages, and does so in a way which makes you genuinely understand the nature of joyce's inspiration, and what it must have been like (not easy) being him. a novelist herself, she is particularly good at giving the flavour of ulysses, and her comments on finnegans wake, though necessarily brief, are equally illuminating on that forbidding if deeply humane, funny and touching masterpiece. highly recommended as an introduction (or refresher course) on this irishman of genius.

Excellent read, 22 Nov 2000
I'll keep in brief, A wonderful read both in terms of it's literary content and the detail on Joyce. If I had not got so many books piled up I'd read it again!

Superb short biography, 17 Oct 2000
Another superb short biography in the new "Lives" series. We follow the artist as a young man in Dublin, appalled by his family's slow slide into poverty and disgrace. James, determined to escape but observing and remembering everything for his work to come. His mother's darling, he was educated by Jesuits, but soon lost his faith and began to visit brothels and pubs. He ran off to Trieste and Geneva before finally settling in Paris, where Sylvia Beach helped him to deliver "Ulysses" to an astonished world. O'Brien is especially good on Joyce's two great and tortured love affairs: with Dublin, the city he fled but revisited endlessly in his writing, and with Nora, the country girl who followed him into exile but never even finished reading "Ulysses." This is an excellent introduction to the man Orwell called "a kind of elephantine pedant," the great lover of words and stories who towers over 20th century English writing. It ends with a call to readers to tackle Richard Ellman's masterful long biography from 1965. Not to mention the works themselves: there are only four, and the first three at least are masterpieces.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

An interesting subject, 31 Aug 2006
Too much emphasis on lyrical descriptions and a confusing structure spoilt a novel that had the potential to be fascinating.
It is based on the true story of a young girl who caused uproar in Ireland and the Catholic church because she wanted to travel to England for an abortion.

Mary is under 14 when her father rapes her and she concieves his child. Her bewilderment and shame are well described as the whole of Ireland gets involved in the case. Both the pro and anti abortion lobies are represented, although those advocating the baby's right to live are painted in an extreme and fairly unsympathetic light.
The other main character, the father, is a weak man; expert with animals and proud of his daughter, yet unable to curb his sexual needs. I didn't feel much sympathy for him, only anger.

The story was thought provoking, but I would not recommend the book because it lacked flow and 'readability'.

a wonderful introduction........, 06 Dec 2002
........ to the greatest writer of the twentieth century. most biographies are way too long. edna o'brien distils the essence of joyce's genius in under 200 pages, and does so in a way which makes you genuinely understand the nature of joyce's inspiration, and what it must have been like (not easy) being him. a novelist herself, she is particularly good at giving the flavour of ulysses, and her comments on finnegans wake, though necessarily brief, are equally illuminating on that forbidding if deeply humane, funny and touching masterpiece. highly recommended as an introduction (or refresher course) on this irishman of genius.

Excellent read, 22 Nov 2000
I'll keep in brief, A wonderful read both in terms of it's literary content and the detail on Joyce. If I had not got so many books piled up I'd read it again!

Superb short biography, 17 Oct 2000
Another superb short biography in the new "Lives" series. We follow the artist as a young man in Dublin, appalled by his family's slow slide into poverty and disgrace. James, determined to escape but observing and remembering everything for his work to come. His mother's darling, he was educated by Jesuits, but soon lost his faith and began to visit brothels and pubs. He ran off to Trieste and Geneva before finally settling in Paris, where Sylvia Beach helped him to deliver "Ulysses" to an astonished world. O'Brien is especially good on Joyce's two great and tortured love affairs: with Dublin, the city he fled but revisited endlessly in his writing, and with Nora, the country girl who followed him into exile but never even finished reading "Ulysses." This is an excellent introduction to the man Orwell called "a kind of elephantine pedant," the great lover of words and stories who towers over 20th century English writing. It ends with a call to readers to tackle Richard Ellman's masterful long biography from 1965. Not to mention the works themselves: there are only four, and the first three at least are masterpieces.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

Irish novelist Edna O'Brien is again the centre of controversy with her latest novel In the Forest. Forty years ago her first six novels were banned but times have changed.

She also wrote The Country Girls in 1962 and was vilified in Ireland. Taking as her subject matter the actual murders of a young mother, her toddler son and a priest in 1994 in County Clare, she is accused of exploiting grief, of gross insensitivity, of being motivated only by financial gain and of portraying Ireland as timeless and primitive. Her comeback is that "the novelist is the psychic and moral historian of his or her society. So it's about that part of Ireland I know very well...and the darkness that still prevails".

Not surprisingly this "true crime" novel makes for sombre and uncomfortable reading. O'Brien is unquestionably skilled at deploying language to create a highly charged atmosphere: even Cloosh Wood, where much of the action unfolds, takes on its own sinister personality where "the light [becomes] darker and darker into the chamber of non-light".

In tightly written chapters each with a change of narrator--the murderer himself, his sister and father, the murdered young woman, Eily Ryan, her sister, the priest, Father John, neighbours, the police--the effect is of accumulating tension and foreboding, despite our knowing (or because we know?) the terrible outcome. But in making the voices of her numerous characters so fragmented as to suggest a society in the grip of terror, O'Brien fails to make them resonate as individuals, except for the killer, the young psychotic, Mich.

Brutalised at home, abused by his priests and his peers, he becomes the feared "kindershcreck". In his late teens he is released from jail for a string of crimes, and returns to his old turf. Stalked by the brutality of his past, he in turn stalks Eily Ryan, a hippy-ish figure, living with her three-year-old son in a ramshackle cottage that Mich had seen as his own lair. Eily becomes to him "all-mothering, all-sinning. She-devil...Now the ultimate flood of rage that has been waiting is loosed from the wrenched and bloodied sockets of his fucked life as he tears her clothing in an ecstasy of hate, as though tearing limb from limb all womankind". With these terrible deaths and the hunting down of Mich, O'Brien suggests that the crimes are not Mich's alone: fear, bigotry, misogyny, repression and silence permeate the culture. And out of this, such evils come. --Ruth Petrie

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

An interesting subject, 31 Aug 2006
Too much emphasis on lyrical descriptions and a confusing structure spoilt a novel that had the potential to be fascinating.
It is based on the true story of a young girl who caused uproar in Ireland and the Catholic church because she wanted to travel to England for an abortion.

Mary is under 14 when her father rapes her and she concieves his child. Her bewilderment and shame are well described as the whole of Ireland gets involved in the case. Both the pro and anti abortion lobies are represented, although those advocating the baby's right to live are painted in an extreme and fairly unsympathetic light.
The other main character, the father, is a weak man; expert with animals and proud of his daughter, yet unable to curb his sexual needs. I didn't feel much sympathy for him, only anger.

The story was thought provoking, but I would not recommend the book because it lacked flow and 'readability'.

a wonderful introduction........, 06 Dec 2002
........ to the greatest writer of the twentieth century. most biographies are way too long. edna o'brien distils the essence of joyce's genius in under 200 pages, and does so in a way which makes you genuinely understand the nature of joyce's inspiration, and what it must have been like (not easy) being him. a novelist herself, she is particularly good at giving the flavour of ulysses, and her comments on finnegans wake, though necessarily brief, are equally illuminating on that forbidding if deeply humane, funny and touching masterpiece. highly recommended as an introduction (or refresher course) on this irishman of genius.

Excellent read, 22 Nov 2000
I'll keep in brief, A wonderful read both in terms of it's literary content and the detail on Joyce. If I had not got so many books piled up I'd read it again!

Superb short biography, 17 Oct 2000
Another superb short biography in the new "Lives" series. We follow the artist as a young man in Dublin, appalled by his family's slow slide into poverty and disgrace. James, determined to escape but observing and remembering everything for his work to come. His mother's darling, he was educated by Jesuits, but soon lost his faith and began to visit brothels and pubs. He ran off to Trieste and Geneva before finally settling in Paris, where Sylvia Beach helped him to deliver "Ulysses" to an astonished world. O'Brien is especially good on Joyce's two great and tortured love affairs: with Dublin, the city he fled but revisited endlessly in his writing, and with Nora, the country girl who followed him into exile but never even finished reading "Ulysses." This is an excellent introduction to the man Orwell called "a kind of elephantine pedant," the great lover of words and stories who towers over 20th century English writing. It ends with a call to readers to tackle Richard Ellman's masterful long biography from 1965. Not to mention the works themselves: there are only four, and the first three at least are masterpieces.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

Gripping from the start, 25 Jan 2008
Based on true events where a young mother, her child and a local priest were brutally slain in Ireland, In the Forest tells the story of a perturbed young man, who has spent most of his life in juvenile institutions and prison.
O'Brien skilfully paints the picture of a lonely child, seriously distraught after his mother's death, whose wild actions start as pranks but become more serious as he grows into manhood, until he commits the ultimate crime. By revealing the perpetrator's background and life experience the reader is somewhat forced to view him perhaps not with sympathy, but certainly as a human being.
I could not put this book down. Reading it was rewarding for its beautiful and remarkable prose, but it was first and foremost agonizing, as I could not help feeling horrified, distraught and sad at the victims' agonizing deaths.


Creepy but great characterisation, 14 Nov 2007
I found the first chapter a bit disturbing, how it was written but you relaly got a sense of why Kinderschrek became the sort of deranged individual he became. I felt so sorry for him, and the disappointments he had to deal with in his life, it was heartbreaking to read all that rejection and cruelty. His menace was so well depicted and his mounting frustration and obsession almost claustraphobic. The other characters were believable and the tension built nicely. Overall I found it a depressing tale of a suppressed community. Very believable and opressive.

Dark Beauty, 20 Aug 2007
This was the first book I had read by Edna O' Brien and it was sensational. Chapters in first person interchange with those in third person. The first person is not always the same character. This makes for a clever and enjoyable read. The subject matter is very dark but the cleverness of the writing keeps you engrossed. I have subsequently read more of her books but this one is outstanding

Kinderschreck., 24 Aug 2006
A boy, robbed off his mother's love at the age of ten. Refusing to believe she is dead, clinging to the idea that she was buried alive while she was sleeping, digging a hole into the ground near her grave in order to speak to her. A loner who, then and there, decides to become "a true son of the forest," as his mother in a dream apparition has told him to be. (Or was that an early delusion?) An adolescent, locked up in juvenile homes, boarding schools, prisons and other institutions, abused by a priest, neglected, ignored, and locking himself off against the outside world in response. Putting to practice the one lesson he has learned from Lazlo, the boys' schizophrenic leader in the first such institution; Lazlo who heard voices and who has taught him that the one thing that counts is to hate "them" (the grown-ups, those that stand for authority and society as a whole) with a worse hate than they have for him. A young man, unable to show any feeling other than that long-practiced hatred; acting out his suppressed emotions in violence whenever he is not locked up, unable to escape the voices now talking in his head more and more often, just as they were once talking in Lazlo's.

And a young woman with long red hair. Maddie's mother, raising her young son alone, breaking off all relationships with men as soon as they get to close for comfort. An outsider, only recently moved to the village. A teacher. An artist. Mistress of ceremonies at a Celtic festival, performing pagan rituals. Druidess. Mystery woman whom nobody knows with complete intimacy, maybe not even her sister Cassandra and her best friend Madge. Raped and murdered by a young man trapped between insanity and emotional deprivation, for whom she is the realization of everything he associates with the idea of the female - simultaneously fairy queen, virgin, angel, object of his sexual fantasies, whore, confidante and most importantly, mother. This is the couple which, in the deadly dance at the heart of Edna O'Brien's "In the Forest," is locked together by fate; a fate prompted by the murderer's delusions and rage as much as by society's inability to deal with him. And this first murder is only the starting point of a killing spree which will demand several more victims before the young man is apprehended.

Like two of O'Brien's previous novels, "Down by the River" (addressing incest, abortion and society's inability to deal with either, as expressed in the trial of a girl who went to England to abort the child conceived from her own father) and "House of Splendid Isolation" (inspired by the Irish "troubles"), "In the Forest" is based on a series of real events which deeply shook the Irish society in the mid-1990s, and which occurred in the county which O'Brien, before moving to London, used to call her home. But here as there, the author is less interested in the hard, cold facts as such but rather, in the psychology involved and society's response to the unspeakable horror of the crimes committed; in "man and the intentions of his soul," as she once said in a newspaper article, quoting Leonardo da Vinci. And like the great painter, with an unrelenting eye for detail she takes the reader into the killer's mind; a mind inexorably spiraling, spiraling, spiraling into a dark abyss from which soon there is no way out. At the same time, the reader experiences the terror of the abduction felt by his victims; the slow and chilling realization that there is no escape, that this last walk into the somber depth of the forest is the way into certain death, to be preceded by a suffering dreadful beyond imagination. Yet, the tale is not solely told from the perspective of Michen O'Kane, the killer and rapist, the "Kinderschreck" and bogeyman who holds an entire county at gunpoint; nor only from that of his victims, Eily Ryan and her son, and the others that will follow them within a matter of days. Thread by thread, Ms. O'Brien weaves the voices of all those involved in the events - the vicitims' relatives, the killer's family, the police, neighbors, women of the community and the psychiatrist who treated O'Kane at trial - into a fabric of rage, helplessness, despair and desolation; symbolized by the vast, dark, threatening forest where the first murders have taken place, that "chamber of non-light" which "lost its old name and its old innocence in the hearts of the people" when a dead goat "decomposed and stank" in a wooden hut at the farthest entrance to the forest.

In her native Ireland, Edna O'Brien was severely criticized for "In the Forest," even before the novel was published, and accused of exploiting a gruesome crime for the sake of selling a story. The families of the victims of the incidents on which the novel is based reportedly spoke out against the book. But while it is undoubtedly difficult for them to deal with those events, the reaction of others only demonstrates the accuracy of Ms. O'Brien's analysis. Yet again, the woman who to many seems to be a literary "Kinderschreck" herself, whose first six (!) books were banned because of their daring stance on women's role in the Irish society (and society in general), and who moved to London years ago to "escape from those fields, gates, trees, woods, winds, sleet, priests, nuns and family, all of whom seemed to overwhelm [her]," as she wrote in the above-mentioned article, has held up a mirror before her fellow men; and yet again, some do not like what they see. That criticism, however, reflects more on those articulating it than on the author herself or her book. "In the Forest" is as brilliantly written as it is necessary - as shown by nothing better than by the reactions it provoked. A deeply disturbing book, but under no circumstances to be missed.

Kinderschreck., 04 Mar 2005
A boy, robbed off his mother's love at the age of ten. Refusing to believe she is dead, clinging to the idea that she was buried alive while she was sleeping, digging a hole into the ground near her grave in order to speak to her. A loner who, then and there, decides to become "a true son of the forest," as his mother in a dream apparition has told him to be. (Or was that an early delusion?) An adolescent, locked up in juvenile homes, boarding schools, prisons and other institutions, abused by a priest, neglected, ignored, and locking himself off against the outside world in response. Putting to practice the one lesson he has learned from Lazlo, the boys' schizophrenic leader in the first such institution; Lazlo who heard voices and who has taught him that the one thing that counts is to hate "them" (the grown-ups, those that stand for authority and society as a whole) with a worse hate than they have for him. A young man, unable to show any feeling other than that long-practiced hatred; acting out his suppressed emotions in violence whenever he is not locked up, unable to escape the voices now talking in his head more and more often, just as they were once talking in Lazlo's.

And a young woman with long red hair. Maddie's mother, raising her young son alone, breaking off all relationships with men as soon as they get to close for comfort. An outsider, only recently moved to the village. A teacher. An artist. Mistress of ceremonies at a Celtic festival, performing pagan rituals. Druidess. Mystery woman whom nobody knows with complete intimacy, maybe not even her sister Cassandra and her best friend Madge. Raped and murdered by a young man trapped between insanity and emotional deprivation, for whom she is the realization of everything he associates with the idea of the female - simultaneously fairy queen, virgin, angel, object of his sexual fantasies, whore, confidante and most importantly, mother. This is the couple which, in the deadly dance at the heart of Edna O'Brien's "In the Forest," is locked together by fate; a fate prompted by the murderer's delusions and rage as much as by society's inability to deal with him. And this first murder is only the starting point of a killing spree which will demand several more victims before the young man is apprehended.

Like two of O'Brien's previous novels, "Down by the River" (addressing incest, abortion and society's inability to deal with either, as expressed in the trial of a girl who went to England to abort the child conceived from her own father) and "House of Splendid Isolation" (inspired by the Irish "troubles"), "In the Forest" is based on a series of real events which deeply shook the Irish society in the mid-1990s, and which occurred in the county which O'Brien, before moving to London, used to call her home. But here as there, the author is less interested in the hard, cold facts as such but rather, in the psychology involved and society's response to the unspeakable horror of the crimes committed; in "man and the intentions of his soul," as she once said in a newspaper article, quoting Leonardo da Vinci. And like the great painter, with an unrelenting eye for detail she takes the reader into the killer's mind; a mind inexorably spiraling, spiraling, spiraling into a dark abyss from which soon there is no way out. At the same time, the reader experiences the terror of the abduction felt by his victims; the slow and chilling realization that there is no escape, that this last walk into the somber depth of the forest is the way into certain death, to be preceded by a suffering dreadful beyond imagination. Yet, the tale is not solely told from the perspective of Michen O'Kane, the killer and rapist, the "Kinderschreck" and bogeyman who holds an entire county at gunpoint; nor only from that of his victims, Eily Ryan and her son, and the others that will follow them within a matter of days. Thread by thread, Ms. O'Brien weaves the voices of all those involved in the events - the vicitims' relatives, the killer's family, the police, neighbors, women of the community and the psychiatrist who treated O'Kane at trial - into a fabric of rage, helplessness, despair and desolation; symbolized by the vast, dark, threatening forest where the first murders have taken place, that "chamber of non-light" which "lost its old name and its old innocence in the hearts of the people" when a dead goat "decomposed and stank" in a wooden hut at the farthest entrance to the forest.

In her native Ireland, Edna O'Brien was severely criticized for "In the Forest," even before the novel was published, and accused of exploiting a gruesome crime for the sake of selling a story. The families of the victims of the incidents on which the novel is based reportedly spoke out against the book. But while it is undoubtedly difficult for them to deal with those events, the reaction of others only demonstrates the accuracy of Ms. O'Brien's analysis. Yet again, the woman who to many seems to be a literary "Kinderschreck" herself, whose first six (!) books were banned because of their daring stance on women's role in the Irish society (and society in general), and who moved to London years ago to "escape from those fields, gates, trees, woods, winds, sleet, priests, nuns and family, all of whom seemed to overwhelm [her]," as she wrote in the above-mentioned article, has held up a mirror before her fellow men; and yet again, some do not like what they see. That criticism, however, reflects more on those articulating it than on the author herself or her book. "In the Forest" is as brilliantly written as it is necessary - as shown by nothing better than by the reactions it provoked. A deeply disturbing book, but under no circumstances to be missed.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

A Relentlessly Grim Waste of Time, 19 Aug 2008
The characters are either victims or bullies, and the story is so mercilessly, one-notedly grim that I wanted an anti-depressant after reading it. I actively hoped for the murder of one character, and prayed for the protagonist to grow a spine at some point, but she never did. I kept hearing about Edna O'Brien's humor, and searched for in these pages in vain. I can't share the litany of miseries Caithleen endures without spoiling the story for anyone who might want to read it, but I will settle for saying that I won't be bothering with the rest of the trilogy.

An interesting subject, 31 Aug 2006
Too much emphasis on lyrical descriptions and a confusing structure spoilt a novel that had the potential to be fascinating.
It is based on the true story of a young girl who caused uproar in Ireland and the Catholic church because she wanted to travel to England for an abortion.

Mary is under 14 when her father rapes her and she concieves his child. Her bewilderment and shame are well described as the whole of Ireland gets involved in the case. Both the pro and anti abortion lobies are represented, although those advocating the baby's right to live are painted in an extreme and fairly unsympathetic light.
The other main character, the father, is a weak man; expert with animals and proud of his daughter, yet unable to curb his sexual needs. I didn't feel much sympathy for him, only anger.

The story was thought provoking, but I would not recommend the book because it lacked flow and 'readability'.

a wonderful introduction........, 06 Dec 2002
........ to the greatest writer of the twentieth century. most biographies are way too long. edna o'brien distils the essence of joyce's genius in under 200 pages, and does so in a way which makes you genuinely understand the nature of joyce's inspiration, and what it must have been like (not easy) being him. a novelist herself, she is particularly good at giving the flavour of ulysses, and her comments on finnegans wake, though necessarily brief, are equally illuminating on that forbidding if deeply humane, funny and touching masterpiece. highly recommended as an introduction (or refresher course) on this irishman of genius.

Excellent read, 22 Nov 2000
I'll keep in brief, A wonderful read both in terms of it's literary content and the detail on Joyce. If I had not got so many books piled up I'd read it again!

Superb short biography, 17 Oct 2000
Another superb short biography in the new "Lives" series. We follow the artist as a young man in Dublin, appalled by his family's slow slide into poverty and disgrace. James, determined to escape but observing and remembering everything for his work to come. His mother's darling, he was educated by Jesuits, but soon lost his faith and began to visit brothels and pubs. He ran off to Trieste and Geneva before finally settling in Paris, where Sylvia Beach helped him to deliver "Ulysses" to an astonished world. O'Brien is especially good on Joyce's two great and tortured love affairs: with Dublin, the city he fled but revisited endlessly in his writing, and with Nora, the country girl who followed him into exile but never even finished reading "Ulysses." This is an excellent introduction to the man Orwell called "a kind of elephantine pedant," the great lover of words and stories who towers over 20th century English writing. It ends with a call to readers to tackle Richard Ellman's masterful long biography from 1965. Not to mention the works themselves: there are only four, and the first three at least are masterpieces.

Dull with a plot that goes nowhere, 10 Feb 2008
I bought this book believing that it might be an entertaining coming of age story with some humour and interesting plot twists and characters. I was sorely dissapointed. The main character is boring, weepy (constantly!) and immature and doesn't seem to learn anything throughout the entire book. Her friend was vile most of the time; her Dad said horrid things about her at one point, which she miraculously forgot about and by the end of the book I couldn't tell what sort of character the leading man was. Too be honest I couldn't have cared by then. I'm amazed I managed to struggle on to the end as I got fed up with the lack of plot development fairly early on in the book, it was completely unrealistic and would have no bearing in this day and age.

Dated and poorly written, 30 Jan 2008
This is the story of Caithleen, a young Irish girl who defies the conventions of her time to have a sexual relationship with an older, married man. Yet the word 'defies' is too strong - Caithleen seems to drift along, constantly influenced by others and afraid of everyone she meets. We hear nothing but fear and worry from her, and no-one in the book inspires any affection in the reader. The writing style is very bland, of the 'and then...and then....' school with little introspection or insight. Published in 1962, this book has not dated at all well, and a modern readership will find it dreary and unenlightening.

A truly moving book., 08 Sep 2000
I read this book when I was 19 which was 13 years ago and yet when one of my friends asked me to recommend my top ten books, I immediately thought of this book. Its warm and yet stark, funny and yet sad. It isn't just about growing up in Ireland, its about growing up.

Gripping from the start, 25 Jan 2008
Based on true events where a young mother, her child and a local priest were brutally slain in Ireland, In the Forest tells the story of a perturbed young man, who has spent most of his life in juvenile institutions and prison.
O'Brien skilfully paints the picture of a lonely child, seriously distraught after his mother's death, whose wild actions start as pranks but become more serious as he grows into manhood, until he commits the ultimate crime. By revealing the perpetrator's background and life experience the reader is somewhat forced to view him perhaps not with sympathy, but certainly as a human being.
I could not put this book down. Reading it was rewarding for its beautiful and remarkable prose, but it was first and foremost agonizing, as I could not help feeling horrified, distraught and sad at the victims' agonizing deaths.


Creepy but great characterisation, 14 Nov 2007
I found the first chapter a bit disturbing, how it was written but you relaly got a sense of why Kinderschrek became the sort of deranged individual he became. I felt so sorry for him, and the disappointments he had to deal with in his life, it was heartbreaking to read all that rejection and cruelty. His menace was so well depicted and his mounting frustration and obsession almost claustraphobic. The other characters were believable and the tension built nicely. Overall I found it a depressing tale of a suppressed community. Very believable and opressive.

Dark Beauty, 20 Aug 2007
This was the first book I had read by Edna O' Brien and it was sensational. Chapters in first person interchange with those in third person. The first person is not always the same character. This makes for a clever and enjoyable read. The subject matter is very dark but the cleverness of the writing keeps you engrossed. I have subsequently read more of her books but this one is outstanding

Kinderschreck., 24 Aug 2006
A boy, robbed off his mother's love at the age of ten. Refusing to believe she is dead, clinging to the idea that she was buried alive while she was sleeping, digging a hole into the ground near her grave in order to speak to her. A loner who, then and there, decides to become "a true son of the forest," as his mother in a dream apparition has told him to be. (Or was that an early delusion?) An adolescent, locked up in juvenile homes, boarding schools, prisons and other institutions, abused by a priest, neglected, ignored, and locking himself off against the outside world in response. Putting to practice the one lesson he has learned from Lazlo, the boys' schizophrenic leader in the first such institution; Lazlo who heard voices and who has taught him that the one thing that counts is to hate "them" (the grown-ups, those that stand for authority and society as a whole) with a worse hate than they have for him. A young man, unable to show any feeling other than that long-practiced hatred; acting out his suppressed emotions in violence whenever he is not locked up, unable to escape the voices now talking in his head more and more often, just as they were once talking in Lazlo's.

And a young woman with long red hair. Maddie's mother, raising her young son alone, breaking off all relationships with men as soon as they get to close for comfort. An outsider, only recently moved to the village. A teacher. An artist. Mistress of ceremonies at a Celtic festival, performing pagan rituals. Druidess. Mystery woman whom nobody knows with complete intimacy, maybe not even her sister Cassandra and her best friend Madge. Raped and murdered by a young man trapped between insanity and emotional deprivation, for whom she is the realization of everything he associates with the idea of the female - simultaneously fairy queen, virgin, angel, object of his sexual fantasies, whore, confidante and most importantly, mother. This is the couple which, in the deadly dance at the heart of Edna O'Brien's "In the Forest," is locked together by fate; a fate prompted by the murderer's delusions and rage as much as by society's inability to deal with him. And this first murder is only the starting point of a killing spree which will demand several more victims before the young man is apprehended.

Like two of O'Brien's previous novels, "Down by the River" (addressing incest, abortion and society's inability to deal with either, as expressed in the trial of a girl who went to England to abort the child conceived from her own father) and "House of Splendid Isolation" (inspired by the Irish "troubles"), "In the Forest" is based on a series of real events which deeply shook the Irish society in the mid-1990s, and which occurred in the county which O'Brien, before moving to London, used to call her home. But here as there, the author is less interested in the hard, cold facts as such but rather, in the psychology involved and society's response to the unspeakable horror of the crimes committed; in "man and the intentions of his soul," as she once said in a newspaper article, quoting Leonardo da Vinci. And like the great painter, with an unrelenting eye for detail she takes the reader into the killer's mind; a mind inexorably spiraling, spiraling, spiraling into a dark abyss from which soon there is no way out. At the same time, the reader experiences the terror of the abduction felt by his victims; the slow and chilling realization that there is no escape, that this last walk into the somber depth of the forest is the way into certain death, to be preceded by a suffering dreadful beyond imagination. Yet, the tale is not solely told from the perspective of Michen O'Kane, the killer and rapist, the "Kinderschreck" and bogeyman who holds an entire county at gunpoint; nor only from that of his victims, Eily Ryan and her son, and the others that will follow them within a matter of days. Thread by thread, Ms. O'Brien weaves the voices of all those involved in the events - the vicitims' relatives, the killer's family, the police, neighbors, women of the community and the psychiatrist who treated O'Kane at trial - into a fabric of rage, helplessness, despair and desolation; symbolized by the vast, dark, threatening forest where the first murders have taken place, that "chamber of non-light" which "lost its old name and its old innocence in the hearts of the people" when a dead goat "decomposed and stank" in a wooden hut at the farthest entrance to the forest.

In her native Ireland, Edna O'Brien was severely criticized for "In the Forest," even before the novel was published, and accused of exploiting a gruesome crime for the sake of selling a story. The families of the victims of the incidents on which the novel is based reportedly spoke out against the book. But while it is undoubtedly difficult for them to deal with those events, the reaction of others only demonstrates the accuracy of Ms. O'Brien's analysis. Yet again, the woman who to many seems to be a literary "Kinderschreck" herself, whose first six (!) books were banned because of their daring stance on women's role in the Irish society (and society in general), and who moved to London years ago to "escape from those fields, gates, trees, woods, winds, sleet, priests, nuns and family, all of whom seemed to overwhelm [her]," as she wrote in the above-mentioned article, has held up a mirror before her fellow men; and yet again, some do not like what they see. That criticism, however, reflects more on those articulating it than on the author herself or her book. "In the Forest" is as brilliantly written as it is necessary - as shown by nothing better than by the reactions it provoked. A deeply disturbing book, but under no circumstances to be missed.

Kinderschreck., 04 Mar 2005
A boy, robbed off his mother's love at the age of ten. Refusing to believe she is dead, clinging to the idea that she was buried alive while she was sleeping, digging a hole into the ground near her grave in order to speak to her. A loner who, then and there, decides to become "a true son of the forest," as his mother in a dream apparition has told him to be. (Or was that an early delusion?) An adolescent, locked up in juvenile homes, boarding schools, prisons and other institutions, abused by a priest, neglected, ignored, and locking himself off against the outside world in response. Putting to practice the one lesson he has learned from Lazlo, the boys' schizophrenic leader in the first such institution; Lazlo who heard voices and who has taught him that the one thing that counts is to hate "them" (the grown-ups, those that stand for authority and society as a whole) with a worse hate than they have for him. A young man, unable to show any feeling other than that long-practiced hatred; acting out his suppressed emotions in violence whenever he is not locked up, unable to escape the voices now talking in his head more and more often, just as they were once talking in Lazlo's.

And a young woman with long red hair. Maddie's mother, raising her young son alone, breaking off all relationships with men as soon as they get to close for comfort. An outsider, only recently moved to the village. A teacher. An artist. Mistress of ceremonies at a Celtic festival, performing pagan rituals. Druidess. Mystery woman whom nobody knows with complete intimacy, maybe not even her sister Cassandra and her best friend Madge. Raped and murdered by a young man trapped between insanity and emotional deprivation, for whom she is the realization of everything he associates with the idea of the female - simultaneously fairy queen, virgin, angel, object of his sexual fantasies, whore, confidante and most importantly, mother. This is the couple which, in the deadly dance at the heart of Edna O'Brien's "In the Forest," is locked together by fate; a fate prompted by the murderer's delusions and rage as much as by society's inability to deal with him. And this first murder is only the starting point of a killing spree which will demand several more victims before the young man is apprehended.

Like two of O'Brien's previous novels, "Down by the River" (addressing incest, abortion and society's inability to deal with either, as expressed in the trial of a girl who went to England to abort the child conceived from her own father) and "House of Splendid Isolation" (inspired by the Irish "troubles"), "In the Forest" is based on a series of real events which deeply shook the Irish society in the mid-1990s, and which occurred in the county which O'Brien, before moving to London, used to call her home. But here as there, the author is less interested in the hard, cold facts as such but rather, in the psychology involved and society's response to the unspeakable horror of the crimes committed; in "man and the intentions of his soul," as she once said in a newspaper article, quoting Leonardo da Vinci. And like the great painter, with an unrelenting eye for detail she takes the reader into the killer's mind; a mind inexorably spiraling, spiraling, spiraling into a dark abyss from which soon there is no way out. At the same time, the reader experiences the terror of the abduction felt by his victims; the slow and chilling realization that there is no escape, that this last walk into the somber depth of the forest is the way into certain death, to be preceded by a suffering dreadful beyond imagination. Yet, the tale is not solely told from the perspective of Michen O'Kane, the killer and rapist, the "Kinderschreck" and bogeyman who holds an entire county at gunpoint; nor only from that of his victims, Eily Ryan and her son, and the others that will follow them within a matter of days. Thread by thread, Ms. O'Brien weaves the voices of all those involved in the events - the vicitims' relatives, the killer's family, the police, neighbors, women of the community and the psychiatrist who treated O'Kane at trial - into a fabric of rage, helplessness, despair and desolation; symbolized by the vast, dark, threatening forest where the first murders have taken place, that "chamber of non-light" which "lost its old name and its old innocence in the hearts of the people" when a dead goat "decomposed and stank" in a wooden hut at the farthest entrance to the forest.

In her native Ireland, Edna O'Brien was severely criticized for "In the Forest," even before the novel was published, and accused of exploiting a gruesome crime for the sake of selling a story. The families of the victims of the incidents on which the novel is based reportedly spoke out against the book. But while it is undoubtedly difficult for them to deal with those events, the reaction of others only demonstrates the accuracy of Ms. O'Brien's analysis. Yet again, the woman who to many seems to be a literary "Kinderschreck" herself, whose first six (!) books were banned because of their daring stance on women's role in the Irish society (and society in general), and who moved to London years ago to "escape from those fields, gates, trees, woods, winds, sleet, priests, nuns and family, all of whom seemed to overwhelm [her]," as she wrote in the above-mentioned article, has held up a mirror before her fellow men; and yet again, some do not like what they see. That criticism, however, reflects more on those articulating it than on the author herself or her book. "In the Forest" is as brilliantly written as it is necessary - as shown by nothing better than by the reactions it provoked. A deeply disturbing book, but under no circumstances to be missed.

Splendid story., 21 Oct 2003
This is one of the rare books in which the author "lets the story tell itself." For most of the book, there's no sense that an author is pulling strings or trying to create. She "merely" presents fully drawn characters, and they come to life on the page.

Yet at the conclusion, the admiring reader realizes that every conflict and ultimate reversal in the book has had a fine hand guiding, but never obviously controlling, it--from Josie's psychological imprisonment to McGreevy's escapes, from her frustrations in love to his satisfactions, from her experiences that life is something that happens to her to his belief that one must mobilize to work toward a higher goal, from their attitudes toward the church to their conflicted feelings about the IRA.

Somewhat extravagant in its romanticism at the end, that extravagance, nevertheless, is appropriate to its subject, its characters, and its Irish setting.