Summary of Brooklyn
Eilis Lacey is a shy young woman from Enniscorthy in Ireland, who moves to Brooklyn in the 1950s in search of a better life. She struggles to adapt to her new surroundings but gradually begins to find her place in America. However, when she temporarily returns to Ireland, she faces a difficult choice: will she return to Brooklyn and her Italian lover, or stay in Enniscorthy to care for her mother and perhaps open herself to a romance with an Irishman?
Reasons to read Brooklyn
“Brooklyn” is a touching novel about immigration and returning home, told from the perspective of a young woman caught between two worlds. Though only one third of this novel is set in Ireland (Enniscorthy) and two thirds in the USA (Brooklyn), it is in its core an Irish novel as well as an American one. The sequel to this bestseller, “Long Island”, is set almost entirely in Enniscorthy (Ireland). “Brooklyn” was adapted into a film in 2015, starring Saoirse Ronan. Colm Tóibín is one of the most renowned contemporary Irish writers. Other notable works by Toibin are “The Heather Blazing”, “The Master”, “The Magician”, and “The South”. Colm Tóibín received the Costa Book award for “Brooklyn” and the International Dublin Literary Award for “The Master”.
Setting: Enniscorthy (Ireland) & Brooklyn (USA)
Original title: Brooklyn
Year of publication: 2009
Nr of pages: 252
