Book Description:
This book documents the strong ties that bind generations together. When the author poses the question to her Irish Granny, “If you were so poor why did you have ten children?” Says she, “To be certain, there was no poverty between the sheets!” This sassy saga of a large family that is half Irish and half French Canadian captures hilarious voices and comical antics of a vibrant family that is cloaked in love. A horse theme and song lyrics are neatly knitted throughout the layers of generations.
My Thoughts:
This is a memoir of a tight knit Irish family. The author highlights many different members of the family over generations and includes cute little catch phrases and conversations amongst the members. The title of the book is a great example of those catchy phrases; “no poverty between the sheets” immediately caught my attention.
I would imagine that the author’s family enjoyed reading this book. Not all of the family members have been highlighted in the best light, but I bet it would be interesting to reflect on past events, especially as they are being told from the author’s perspective.
I’ve always thought of writing a memoir and I would LOVE to watch the faces of family members as they read the details of prior events and envision those events through my eyes.
Unfortunately, as a common reader, and clearer not a family member, I found little interest in the stories that were told.
I received this book in the mail just as my youngest went down for a nap. I picked a cozy spot on the couch, poured a glass of ice water and started reading, but the book did not capture my interest the way I expected. I enjoy reading all sorts of genres and topics, but this book was simply not my cup of tea.
I’ll be honest; I gave up on reading this book all at once time and read a chapter a day for a couple of days. I was able to finish the book but never found much interest in the stories that were told.
Meet the Author:
Pauline Kiely has been an avid student of Creative Writing her entire life. This author has consistently taken various courses and workshops offered at University of Toronto and Trent Universities. A year long memoir course with Susan Reynolds brought out this witty honest voice that shoots straight from the hip aiming for the heart.