Bolger’s rendering of the transformation of ordinary men, who have chosen a risky way of life, into truly heroic figures makes for engaging reading.
It is a full-bodied barnstormer, a coming-of-age tale of wanderlust ideal for readers aged 12 to 92. It is an ocean-going epic of sacrifice and derring-do against the backdrop of war-torn Europe. It is a paean to a fledgeling Ireland trying to find its feet as the ground moves beneath it. It is all these things…
Another masterpiece from Dermot Bolger’s pen. If you enjoyed The Family on Paradise Pier then you will certainly relish this splendidly crafted continuation which brings vividly to life the main character Eva Fitzgerald. Bolger has a luxurious and detailed approach that injects a powerful sense of realism and authenticity into all his work.
An Ark of Light is a superbly written and beautifully moving book that brought this reader to tears. Not tears of sorrow or even joy, but tears of undeniable appreciation for such a cherished depiction of human character. ‘Eva Fitzgerald is a fictional character based on the real-life Sheila Fitzgerald whose story the author first explored…
Indeed, Bolger’s novel provides the most vivid of social and cultural contexts. The world around Eva changes and grows, as feminism achieves hard-fought victories, as colonialism gasps and retreats, as Aids runs a scythe through a generation. Ireland and Dublin morph and stretch too: some of this book’s most evocative scenes are set in 1951,…
‘The house in south Dublin turns out to be a mere staging post in a life lived if not always happily, then certainly with guts and willpower. Bolger’s story spotlights colonial Kenya, where the ghastly lives of settlers, with their pet mongooses and taste for imported English marmalade, are described memorably; 1960s London and provincial…