The Spinning Heart: A Novel
Ryan’s debut novel explores the devastating aftermath of Ireland’s recent economic collapse. In a small, predominately working-class town, a community comes apart at the seams following the failure of a crooked construction company (the town’s primary source of employment). People turn on one another as they struggle to find meaning in the new reality of material scarcity and joblessness. Bitterness and mistrust rule the day, as old scores are settled and long-simmering tensions rise to the surface. A different character narrates each chapter, and the same incidents and memories are viewed through different lenses. Woven through each chapter is the story of Bobby, a well-respected, hardworking father and husband whose current family drama is revealed in bits and pieces through the eyes of the various characters. Although the subject matter is overwhelmingly bleak, the prose is lyrical, and the voices are authentic. Flashes of humor and tenderness shine through as well, as the helplessness and frustration of an era is effectively captured through the lives of these small-town residents. --Kerri Price