Summary of Cal
Cal is a sensitive young man who lives with his father as the only Catholics in a Protest neighbourhood in a Northern Irish town (likely Belfast), where he faces intimidation from hardline Protestants. One day, Cal unwillingly becomes complicit in the assassination of a Protestant reserve policeman. Overwhelmed by shame and guilt, he quits his job at the slaughterhouse and sinks into depression. A year later, he meets a woman and falls in love – only to discover she is the widow of the murdered policeman. Should he confess what he has done? Can they build a future together, or will the secrets of the past always stand between them?
Reasons to read Cal
“Cal” is a dark yet moving novella about love, guilt, and remorse set against the backdrop of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. The novel was adapted into the Irish film “Call”, for which Helen Mirren won the award for Best Actress at the 1984 Cannes Film Festival. Bernard MacLaverty, a Northern Irish writer, is also acclaimed for his novels “Grace Notes” (winner of Scotland’s National Book Award in 1997) and “Midwinter Break” (which received the Bord Gáis Novel of the Year award in 2017).
Setting: Belfast (Northern Ireland, UK)
The Northern-Irish town in “Cal” is unnamed, but Belfast – where Bernard MacLaverty grew up – is a likely setting and source of inspiration.
Original title: Cal
Year of publication: 1983
Nr of pages: 156
