The only reason I haven't rated this a 5 is the annoying error on the jacket - Roseanne's childhood clearly wasn't during the 1930's - but it took me about half the book to reliably create a timeline and understand that her childhood would have been during the 1910's. Perhaps this is a small matter but it spoilt my reading because I was cross referencing the history and culture to form the timeline, with help from the Internet and a knowledgeable friend - you know who you are so thanks.

Irritation aside, I really love the depth of characterisation and that the story is clearly set against an historical background. This is another book which is told from two perspectives (although actually there is a third perspective but we only find that out through the two narrators) which all draw together into a conclusion.

The subject matter of 'dealing' with those perceived undesirable in a particular culture or society is telling and reflects badly on the perpetrators of this sort of ethnic cleansing.

I look forward to reading more from Sebastian Barry. ( )

This was my first Sebastian Barry, but definitely just a beginning as a fan. The language was lyrical, evocative, and captured me right away when I first heard Roseanne's voice. Her story spans 100 years along with all the confusion of Irish history after partition.
Although her surroundings were meant to be dreary and confining, somehow she rose above them and carried me with her. She wasn't into feeling sorry for herself, so I wasn't either--just tremendous empathy and caring. She was luminous and filled with an innocent grace that was not the least bit artificial or learned. It was the way she was written, because her actions certainly didn't gain her that status. She was repressed by others, squashed, controlled, brutalized. But she must have almost absented herself to survive the way she did.
Barry through Roseanne examines the ambiguities and difficulties of remembering over a long life; they compare it to a box room, filled with stuff that gets jumbled. And though we don't know what the truth might be, as her memories compete with the statements of a local priest about her, we know we prefer her version. It's a bit like the Life of Pi--which story do you choose to believe? Does it ultimately matter?
Dr. Grene's tale is almost sadder because he and his wife both had choices, yet made each other suffer. Dr. Grene is drawn to Roseanne's story, but in a halting, 'I don't want to pry' manner strange for a psychiatrist. But she is fragile and worth caring about as he tries to decide what will become of her in the process of shutting down the mental hospital in which she's all but entombed. at age 100.
It's hard today to accept how repressive Irish Catholic society could be in the 1920s to 1940s, and a lot of my friends were somewhat troubled by her passivity, but it seemed to me to fit the times and her situation.
There are so many images that will stay with me--feathers and hammers, the Pointing Man, her near-death scene at the sea, the shuffling character of John Kane (a hospital attendant). Brilliant writing that doesn't require any effort but carries you along and perhaps is the main character along with Roseanne.
Apparently Barry has written another book about the McNulty family, The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty, and that's going to be a Must Read for me now. Barry has left me with images and lots to think about. Excellent book for group discussion--we had ours today. ( )

A beautifully written engrossing story. ( )

This is the story of 100 year old Roseanne McNulty who has spent more than 60 years in the Roscommon Regional Mental Hopital in Silgo, Ireland. The hospital is about to be demolished and her psychiatrist, Dr. William Grene must evaluate her to see if she should be transferred to the new facility or if she was wrongfully committed during the religious and political turmoil of the time period. The story unfolds through the journals of both Roseanne and Dr. Grene and there are differences in the what Roseanne remembers about her life and what Dr. Grene's research of her past uncovers.

I hardly know what to think of this book. It was short listed for the Booker Prize and it's very beautifully written and very sad, even tragic, but somehow not a book that resonated in me. It's gotten very good reviews and I felt like I should love it but I didn't. I liked it well enough and I'm glad I read it but it's not quite my cup of tea. ( )

Set in Ireland, this is the provocative and moving musings of an old lady and her Doctor. ( )