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New(ish) Book

 "The Queen of Dirt Island" is about raising a child, so it's a novel that immediately has an "in" with me.


Eileen marries in a way that displeases her family; she sets off on her own. Right after she has her first child, her spouse is involved in a fatal car accident. As a single mom, Eileen doesn't always think clearly. For example, there is a moment when the daughter (Saorsie) is revealed to be pregnant. Saorsie's frenemy wrongly concludes that the baby is a product of unsisterly "boyfriend-stealing." When the frenemy screams allegations--on the sidewalk--Eileen has the option of drawing the curtains. But instead she (lightly) physically assaults the frenemy. 

Eileen also second guesses her own choice of baby-name--"Saorsie," or Freedom--because the priest thinks a more traditional "Mary" would be better. And Eileen's sororal/fraternal messiness spills into Saorsie's life. One day, Saorsie finds her uncle close to murdering her mother; the dispute is about money. It's easy to feel for Eileen each time she makes a misstep.

Ryan's novel has other memorable ne'er-do-wells. Saorsie gets entangled with a family friend; we can all see that this friend is bad news, which makes him no less "effective" in his seduction of Saorsie. My favorite character, a jealous sister-in-law, seems harmlessly "dotty" right until her madness morphs and becomes *homicidal* lunacy.

I felt I knew Ryan's characters, and though they often surprised me, the surprises felt consistently plausible. I recommend this book.
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