The Yellow House- Great Irish tale! | The Yellow House: A Novel

Good story | The Yellow House: A Novel | Patricia Falvey

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	• The Yellow House: A Novel Patricia Falvey Center Street, 2010 - 352 pages average customer review:based on 18 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The Yellow House

Our bookclub read THE YELLOW HOUSE and it drew more discussion than we have had over any book in the past year. This book is rich in characters and action. We were already picking the actors for the movie (Nicole Kidman in the lead!). THIS BOOK WILL MAKE A GREAT BEACH READ and I bet we will see it in many beach bags. I hope Patricia Falvey writes a sequel, I can see it as a generational story like THE THORN BIRDS.

The Yellow House- Great Irish tale!

This is a great story and a good cultural view of Ireland of days gone by.
The family story is wonderful and generational and makes an engaging story that is a great read and a nice slice of history.

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Good story

Predictable, but good historically rich story. I liked the ending even though it was transparent.

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Well-written Historical Fiction

I was brought up surrounded by family who spoke of our Irish heritage. One of my most treasured possessions is a shamrock charm that my grandfather picked out for me when I was a teenager - I still make sure to wear it proudly every St. Patrick's Day and on days when I'm feeling especially sentimental. The Yellow House offered a spectacular view of Northern Ireland in the early 1900's, while the country was in the midst of The Troubles: when Catholics and Protestants were divided between a desire for an independent Ireland and British rule. I feel as if I have a little more insight into the history of my family after having read the book.

Eileen O'Neill was brought up by her father to be a warrior, having been instilled with the stories of how her great-grandfather took back their home from the Sheridan family. The book described horrible circumstances under which Eileen had to pick herself up and ensure that the family that remained was able to stay together and was provided for. Her strength and spirit wer admirable - I loved the character that Falvey created.

The Yellow House was a story of love, perseverance and fighting for what you believe in, regardless of how others may speak of you, or of risks to your life. I was impressed how Falvey successfully wove Irish history into such a personal family story. Eileen O'Neill was a warrior in her own family, but she also symbolized many warriors throughout Ireland.

The contrasts between characters Owen Sheridan and James Conlon were remarkable. Each was on the opposite side of the political spectrum, each chose a different way to fight for what they believed in, and most importantly each man pulled Eileen's heart and soul in a different direction. I enjoyed the love triangle that was created between Eileen and the two men, but I believe more importantly that the historical backdrop of the novel would not have been successful had it not been for the ideological struggle between the men.

The Yellow House was a well-written novel - from the first page I could hear the lilt of the Irish brogue ringing through the dialogue. I highly recommend the book to lovers of historical fiction, lovers of Ireland, and lovers of strong women characters.

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Coming Home

"The Yellow House" does a credible job of humanizing the terrible political struggles in Ireland but I found the story itself disappointing. The plot was predictable, the central "secret" apparent from the beginning and the threads too neatly tied up at the end. Patricia Falvey's grasp of the heart of the struggles is solid but lost quite a bit of punch in what felt to me to be an overly simplistic, feel good story.

THE YELLOW HOUSE delves into the passion and politics of Northern Ireland at the beginning of the 20th Century. Eileen O'Neill's family is torn apart by religious intolerance and secrets from the past. Determined to reclaim her ancestral home and reunite her family, Eileen begins working at the local mill, saving her money and holding fast to her dream. As war is declared on a local and global scale, Eileen cannot separate the politics from the very personal impact the conflict has had on her own life. She is soon torn between two men, each drawing her to one extreme. One is a charismatic and passionate political activist determined to win Irish independence from Great Britain at any cost, who appeals to her warrior's soul. The other is the wealthy and handsome black sheep of the pacifist family who owns the mill where she works, and whose persistent attention becomes impossible for her to ignore. (2009)

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4

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