Description
*One Dublin One Book choice for 2022**Shortlisted for an Irish Book Award 2021*When?Nora Barnacle,?a twenty-year-old from Galway?working as a maid at Finn's Hotel, meets young James?Joyce on a summer's day in?Dublin,?she is instantly attracted to him, natural and daring in?his company.?But she cannot yet?imagine the extraordinary life they will share together. All Nora knows is she likes?her?Jim?enough to leave behind?family and home, in search of a bigger,?more exciting?life. As their family grows, they ricochet from?European?city to city, making fast friends amongst the?greatest?artists and writers of their age?as well as their wives, and are brought high and low by Jim's?ferocious ambition.?But?time and time again,?Nora?is?torn?between their intense?and unwavering?desire for each other and the constant anxiety of living?hand-to-mouth, often made worse by?Jim's?compulsion?for company and?attention.?So, while?Jim writes?and drinks his way to literary acclaim, Nora provides unflinching support and?inspiration, sometimes at the expense of?her own happiness, and?especially at?that of their children,?Giorgio?and Lucia. Eventually, together, they achieve?some longed-for?security and?stability,?but?it is hard-won?and imperfect?to the end. In?sensuous,?resonant prose,?Nuala O'Connor has?conjured?the definitive?portrait?of?this strong,?passionate?and?loyal Irishwoman.?Nora?is a tour de force, an earthy and authentic love letter to?Irish literature's greatest muse.
Binding: Paperback / softback
Binding: Paperback / softback