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The Dowry: A Novel of Ireland
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Product Description
Meanwhile, wealthy pub owner Austin Glynn has more than enough money to offer a substantial dowry, if only someone would take an interest in his daughter Aideen. Kieran’s feckless older brother Martin volunteers to take Aideen’s hand, though the rest of the village suspects he’s interested more in Austin’s dowry than in his daughter.
When Martin disappears after his proposal and is believed to be dead, the parish priest Father Donovan sets in motion a plot to see Brideen and Kieran wed. After all, so what if the dowry might change hands a few more times than is entirely usual, as long as the couple can tie the knot?
In The Dowry, Walter Keady spins a winsome tale in the best traditions of Irish literature, applying a wealth of charm and graceful wit to this story of love, money, and marriage.
Product Details
- Amazon Sales Rank: #260591 in Books
- Published on: 2007-03-20
- Released on: 2007-03-20
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Binding: Hardcover
- 224 pages
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
The young people of Coshlawn Crann in rural Ireland simply aren't marrying and properly propagating in the hardscrabble postwar 1946. It's all about the economy, and Father Donovan isn't above using the power of his collar to lean on two locals who can get something done: rich skinflint farmer Tom McDermott and publican Austin Glynn (some of whose wealth comes from bank robberies long ago in the Bronx). Tom's older son, Martin, the town Lothario, soon finds himself engaged to Austin's daughter, Aideen, a good-hearted girl with a face "like the back of a bus." Biking home from popping the question, Martin runs into Barney Murphy's donkey on the bridge, tumbles into the river and is believed drowned. He quickly decides to stay dead and slips off to London—where he soon wearies of actually having to work and starts dreaming about Aideen's dowry. Ex-priest Keady (The Altruist) writes with authority about matters of the church. He's also a sharp plotter, and his characters shine: from Brideen Conway, the comely schoolteacher Father Donovan loves a little too much, to strap-happy schoolmaster Alphonsus Finnerty, who secretly writes romances as "Laura Devon." The multiple happy endings may be inevitable, but they're earned. (Mar.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
In writing about postwar Ireland, Keady's style resembles those of postwar novelists--good news for those who find the postmodern novel too opaque to enjoy. The cleverly plotted story describes the constricted life of the young in 1940s rural Ireland, when the Celtic tiger wasn't even a kitten. In those days, a lad lived long into middle-age with his ma, waiting for his da to die and provide a farm-based living for a new generation. Bouncing Brideen wants to marry lusty Kieran, but there's no way for them to make a living at home because the ne'er-do-well older son is set to inherit. Just when it seems she'll have to follow her beau to sinful England, Brideen comes up with a deliciously deceptive plan that involves trading a dowry among several eager-to-wed brides. Meanwhile, the handsome new parish priest has ideas of his own, some scandalous even to himself. It all winds up neatly, with strong men siring healthy children on buxom colleens, the better to populate the new Irish state. A vivid, easy-reading period piece. Patricia Monaghan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Review
“Keady’s folksy, conspiratorial tone is truly irresistible.” ---Washington Post Book World
“Ex-priest Keady writes with authority about matters of the church. He’s also a sharp plotter, and his characters shine.”---Publishers Weekly
“Keady, who grew up on a farm in the west of Ireland, clearly knows his territory.” ---The New York Times Book Review
“Keady is a refreshing new voice in Irish fiction.”---Library Journal
“Keady is a true storyteller, with an absolute command of the English language and a gift for communicating beautifully in both regional lyricism and slang.” ---St. Petersburg Times
“Keady paints an entertaining portrait of life, love, and Catholic guilt.”---Boston Sunday Herald
“Keady . . . has written of human beings, their wants and needs and sorrows and joys, in a manner that is universal.” ---Irish Echo
Customer Reviews
A delightful light comedy
"The Dowry" is a delightful light comedy set in rural, post WWII Ireland - County Mayo, to be exact. It paints a realistic picture of the time and place and situations the younger generation faced with regard to marriage and making a living, issues that were wholly interdependent. Engaging characters, suspense, and continual unexpected twists make it an enjoyable read. Highly recommended for a bit of Irish history and culture as well as a bit of craic!
Not a comedy or customs book as stated.
This book took me longer to read than normal. It just did not have a driving plot. While it is an easy read, it did not go into the customs or why the customs exist regarding marriage ( other than some politian) in Ireland.
