Book Synopsis:
One by one, she undid each event, each decision, each choice.
If Davy had remembered to put on a coat.
If Seamie McGeown had not found himself alone on a dark street.
If Michael Agnew had not walked through the door of the pub on a quiet night in February in his white shirt.
There is nothing special about the day Cushla meets Michael, a married man from Belfast, in the pub owned by her family. But here, love is never far from violence, and this encounter will change both of their lives forever.
As people get up each morning and go to work, school, church or the pub, the daily news rolls in of another car bomb exploded, another man beaten, killed or left for dead. In the class Cushla teaches, the vocabulary of seven-year-old children now includes phrases like ‘petrol bomb’ and ‘rubber bullets’. And as she is forced to tread lines she never thought she would cross, tensions in the town are escalating, threatening to destroy all she is working to hold together.
Tender and shocking, Trespasses is an unforgettable debut of people trying to live ordinary lives in extraordinary times.
My Review:
Trespasses is a gripping, heartbreaking read that has stayed with me.
Firstly as someone who only vaguely remembers the troubles in Ireland I found it fascinating to discover more about these times. I found it shocking to realise how much everyone was affected and how much it impacted on everyday lives. No-one was safe from the hatred between the two sides with even children being targeted as they left school on a daily basis. It was awful to realise that this hatred was further spread in schools, a place that surely should have been teaching both sides of the story and been a place where peace was encouraged. The discrimination impacted other areas too with the police and the army targeting certain groups or making life very difficult for people just because they could.
I absolutely loved the main character Cushla and enjoyed following her throughout the book. I felt that in a lot of ways this was a coming of age story for her as her eyes are opened more to what is happening in her country and how other people live or feel. She’s a very sympathetic character too, I felt very sorry for her as I watched her try to deal with her alcoholic mother and her feelings for Michael while also trying to help Davy’s family. There seemed to be a fragile loneliness about her and I often wished I could reach into the book and give her the hug or be the friend I felt she needed. Her relationship with Michael was interesting to follow though it did seem a bit one sided at times. I never particularly warmed to Michael who I thought was a bit of a sleezy character and just using Cushla. It was interesting to learn more about the law through Michael though and see how people’s prejudices affected people and how some people weren’t given a fair trial just because of which group they were in.
Overall I really enjoyed this book and will be recommending it to everyone! I found the book incredibly gripping and I was soon drawn into the story, unable to put the book down. The chapters are all fairly short which made it easy to read and the uncertainty of what might happen next helped keep me turning the pages both desperate to find out but also not sure that I really wanted to. There are some quite vivid descriptions of violence and injury in this book which might not be to everyone’s taste but are in keeping with what was a violent time in Ireland’s history. There are some moments that made me laugh and others which made me tear up as I couldn’t comprehend how anyone could be so needlessly horrible to each other.
I read this as part of the book club I run for Rossiter books and I would highly recommend it as a book club read as there was lots to discuss.
About The Author:
Louise Kennedy grew up near Belfast. Trespasses is her first novel. She is also the author of a collection of short stories, The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac. She has written for The Guardian, The Irish Times, and BBC Radio 4. Before becoming a writer, she worked as a chef for almost thirty years. She lives in Sligo, Ireland.
Over The Rainbow Blog 
This has been on my wishlist ever since I heard the author read an excerpt from it and answer questions about it at a Women’s Prize for Fiction event earlier this year.
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