From the back cover:
"Dublin, 1918. At the end of the First World War, Lilly Bere and her sweetheart Tadg are forced to flee Ireland for America. They plan to marry and forge a new life together, in the hope that their past will not catch up with them.
Seven decades later, Lilly, mourning the loss of her grandson, tries to make sense of her own life and the lives of the people she has loved. At once epic and intimate, On Canaan's Side is a novel of memory, war, family ties and love."
Another master piece by Barry, who is one of my favourite authors. He never disappoints you. This time he tells the story of Lilly, an Irish girl who has to leave Ireland when her husband is accused of collaboration with the English. Set just after World War I, it is another enchanting story by Barry. Lilly looks back at her life and the different paths it took. Must revenge and sorrow follow you all your life? Don't you deserve a little bit of happiness?
"Because the ingredient we had missed was the actual enormous violence of it, the tearing out, the vigorous unstoppable intent, the distraction for Tadg of the portrait, me seeing the killer come, me trying to alert Tadg, and then the huge war of it, the suddenness, the completeness, the colossal ungenerosity of it, implacable eternal hatred of it, that they wouldn't let us go, forgive us our trespasses. That they wouldn't allow us to cross into Canaan, but would follow us over the river, and kill him on Canaan's side. The land of refuge itself. "
As we follow Lilly through her life, Barry lets us reflect on our destinies. Even if we try to run away from life it seems to catch up with us. Lilly is such a likeable character, true to herself all through her life, and in her contacts with other people. Such a well structured story, realistic with the hopes and wishes we have for our lives. Beautifully written, this novel stays with you long after finishing the last line.
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