Friday 30 January 2009

"The Sea and the Silence" by Peter Cunningham

The Sea and the SilencePeter Cunningham's latest novel is set in 1945 in Monument, the scene of three of his previous books. The war in Europe has just ended and change is about to sweep away the old order. The war had adversely affected Ireland in terms of food shortages, rationing, trade and way of life. The Sea and the Silence tells the story of Iz, a beautiful young woman, as she settles down to try and make a life on the south-east coast with her new husband. Times were harsh and the circumstances that have brought her to Monument are shrouded in mystery. Iz is trapped in an unhappy, adulterous marriage, and haunted by a great love in her past. Soaring across the decades that follow Ireland’s newly won independence and through the class and land issues that once defined Irish society, The Sea and the Silence is an epic love story set amid the fading grandeur of the Anglo-Irish class. Vincent Banville says of it, 'Cunningham, a magician with words, has penned a vast panorama of a novel’, while Roddy Doyle says that ‘it's a terrific novel - moving and hugely entertaining'. Peter Cunningham will read at the Ennis Book Club Festival from 12.00 – 1.00 pm on Saturday 7th March. To book contact Glór Box Office. Tel. 065 6843103. Further festival details at www.ennisbookclubfestival.com or phone 087 2262259.

No comments: