Really great. I agree with that the most compelling character was Catherine's father. I'd rank it with Under the Volcano as one of the best books about alcoholism. It's about a lot more too. ( )

This is an unrelentingly bleak story about the failed love affair of an Irish Catholic writer, Jack, and an Irish Protestant actress, Catherine, who are separated by religion, background and an alcohol problem on either side.

The story is told by Jack in a retrospective fashion, starting at their breakup and moving back. It passes through their time together and then on to Catherine's childhood in which her father was a member of the Royal Ulster Constabulary who became the public face of brutality when he was filmed beating a protester.

The first quarter of the book...a long, drunken complaint by Jack...almost lost me. Fortunately, the middle part, which eventually tells the story of Catherine's father, arrived just in time. The switch from the account of what is, at its heart, simply an extended bender, to a look at the conflicts and turmoil of the Troubles was welcome. I came away from it sad, moved...and sorry to see it end. In the final quarter of the book, the reader sees the story circle back to join the beginning. Knowing what is coming, I felt this part held the reader suspended for too long.

In the end, I found Catherine unsympathetic and Jack even less so—but I would have loved the central story of her father bookended by a reduced version of their story. ( )

Dermot Healy is one of Ireland's leading poets and authors. His books include Banished Misfortunes (stories), Fighting with Shadows, A Goat's Song and Sudden Times(novels), The Bend for Home (memoir), and The Ballyconnell Colours (poems). He has not yet attracted the international following his work merits, perhaps because his voice is strongly Irish, its wit and turn of language linked to place, the themes of his earlier books insular. He has also written and directed plays, including The Long Swim and On Broken Wings, and wrote the screenplay for Our Boys directed by Cathal Black.

My favorite of his novels is A Goat's Song. Set in Donegal, Ireland, it's the story of a love affair between a Catholic man and a Protestant woman. Bitter family jealousies and differences of background add to the difficulties of the relationship. Yet despite all the obstacles, at the heart of the book lies a celebration of love. A great read.