My Father In The Night
Synopsis:
My Father In The Night tells the story of three generations of men living in the North Beach section of San Francisco in an Irish-American family. Eleven year-old Pearse, his father Joe and his grandfather MJ all live apart from each other emotionally, and the ways they approach each other are those of strangers. The worlds in which they live -- Saints Peter and Paul parish in San Francisco, peopled with nuns and monsignors and the conservative faithful; Ireland before World War I, with the fearful Rising still to come; and San Francisco's North Beach in the 1950's, noisy with Beatnik excess -- give them problems they have difficulty resolving. They make mistakes. They don't do well. This novel shows them traveling through those places and, finally, helping each other find the way. Publishers Weekly said of this book, " Terence Clarke has fashioned a probing, amazingly vivid portrait of an Irish-American family seething with emotional, political and intergenerational conflict."
Book Excerpt:
Faltering, Pearse looked down. The tea was very clear, and gave a precise view of the gold-leaf design that circled the interior of the porcelain cup, just below the rim. There was nothing else to be seen. Just the intertwined meanders of gold.
Agitated by the remains of his anger, Pearse stood and moved to his father's side.
Joe brought the blanket about them both, and Pearse leaned his head against his father's chest. Joe took the cup of tea in his free hand. A swirl of steam rose into the air, making a flawed loop above Joe's fingers.
Topics/Categories:
Beatniks, Fathers and Sons, The I.R.A., The Irish in America
Type of Work:
Publishers:
Ballantine Books Mercury House
Purchase From:
Original Publish Date:
1991-06-01
ISBNs:
0-916515-93-1
Formats:
Hardcover, Paperback
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