The old world dying on its feet, a new one struggling to be born . . .
'Stunning' -- Emily St. John Mandel
'A timely, exquisite and unputdownable reminder of love and compassion in the smallest room where women are giving birth and other women are dying and yet love - in all its joy and complexity - still finds a place' -- Rachel Joyce, author of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry
Dublin, 1918. In a country doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city centre, where expectant mothers who have come down with an unfamiliar flu are quarantined together. Into Julia's regimented world step two outsiders: Doctor Kathleen Lynn, on the run from the police, and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney.
In the darkness and intensity of this tiny ward, over the course of three days, these women change each other’s lives in unexpected ways. They lose patients to this baffling pandemic, but they also shepherd new life into a fearful world. With tireless tenderness and humanity, carers and mothers alike somehow do their impossible work.
In The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue tells an unforgettable and deeply moving story of love and loss.
From the bestselling author of The Wonder and Room
Guardian's 'Brilliant Books to Transport You This summer'
Cosmopolitan's 'Best Books to Read this summer'
Stylist's 'Best summer Reads
In Dublin, 1918, a maternity ward at the height of the Great Flu is a small world of work, risk, death, and unlooked-for love, in 'Donoghue's best novel since Room' (Kirkus Reviews)
In an Ireland doubly ravaged by war and disease, Nurse Julia Power works at an understaffed hospital in the city center, where expectant mothers who have come down with the terrible new Flu are quarantined together. Into Julia's regimented world step two outsiders -- Doctor Kathleen Lynn, a rumoured Rebel on the run from the police , and a young volunteer helper, Bridie Sweeney.
In the darkness and intensity of this tiny ward, over three days, these women change each other's lives in unexpected ways. They lose patients to this baffling pandemic, but they also shepherd new life into a fearful world. With tireless tenderness and humanity, carers and mothers alike somehow do their impossible work.
In The Pull of the Stars, Emma Donoghue once again finds the light in the darkness in this new classic of hope and survival against all odds.
Full Tilt is the inspiring true story of Dervla Murphy's 1963 journey from Ireland to India on an Armstrong Cadet bicycle and the trials, landscapes and cultures she encountered along the way. The route takes her through the valleys and snowy mountain passes of Europe and India to the scorching deserts of Afghanistan and Pakistan, where the metal of her bicycle, Rozinante (named after Don Quixote's steed), becomes too hot to touch. She travels alone, without luxuries, sleeping on the floors of teahouses or on blankets outdoors, vulnerable to wild animals, insects and thieves. However, she is often met with generosity and kindness, and shares many meaningful encounters with the locals. Her portrayal here gives a fascinating insight into the unique communities of the Middle East in the early 1960s.
As she drives her mobile-library van between the villages of Ireland's West Coast, Hanna Casey tries not to think about a lot of things.
Like the sophisticated lifestyle she abandoned after finding her English barrister husband in bed with another woman. Or that she's back in the rural Irish town she walked away from in her teens, living in the back bedroom of her overbearing mother's retirement bungalow. Or, worse yet, her nagging fear that, as the local librarian and a prominent figure in the community, her failed marriage and ignominious return have made her the focus of gossip.
But now that her teenage daughter is off traveling the world and her relationship with her own mother is growing increasingly tense, Hanna is determined to reclaim her independence by restoring a derelict cottage left to her by her great-aunt. But then the threatened closure of the Lissbeg Library puts her personal plans in jeopardy, and Hanna finds herself leading a battle to restore the heart and soul of h er fragmented communit
Penguin presents the unabridged, downloadable, audiobook edition of The Secret Sisters Keep, read by Karen Cogan, Emma Lowe and Alison McKenna.
The Devlin sisters rely on each other - but some things are just too painful to share, even when your sisters are your best friends . . .
Mum-of-four Julie thought that if her family had more money, life would be easier. But now that they've inherited a fortune, her problems are only starting. Lawyer Louise is used to having life go exactly as she wants it to. So accepting that she cannot control the most important thing in her life is beyond her. And former model Sophie can just about cope with getting older - that's until her ex-husband finds a younger model.
All three women think that some battles are best fought alone. Maybe they need to think again . . .
