Summary of Call My Brother Back
When Colm’s father dies in 1918, the family leaves their home on Rathlin Island – off the coast of Northern Ireland – and moves to Belfast. There, young Colm discovers a new kind of freedom but is also drawn into the sectarian violence of the Irish nationalist struggle and the reprisals carried out by the British.
Reasons to read Call My Brother Back
“Call My Brother Back” is a classic Irish novel and a moving coming-of-age story, set in early 20th-century Belfast, around the time of the Irish War of Independence. Rather than following a conventional plot, the novel is told through a series of interconnected episodes. Michael McLaverty, a celebrated Northern Irish writer, is best known for his short stories and novels such as “Call My Brother Back” and “Lost Fields”.
Setting: Rathlin Island & Belfast (Northern Ireland, UK)
“Call My Brother Back” is set in Northern Ireland: Rathlin Island and Belfast (specifically the Beechmount ward north of the Falls Road, where the author grew up).
Original title: Call My Brother Back
Year of publication: 1939
Nr of pages: 204
