Annie Dunne by Sebastian Barry
Published by Faber and Faber, 2002

Annie Dunne and her cousin Sarah live and work on a small farm in a remote and beautiful part of Wicklow in late 1950's Ireland.
All about them the old green roads are being tarred, cars are being purchased, a way of life is about to disappear. Like two old rooks they hold on to their hill in Kelsha, cherishing everything. When Annie's nephew and his wife are set to go to London to find work, their two small children, a little boy and his older sister, are brought down to spend the summer with their great-aunt.
It is a strange chance for happiness for Annie. But against that happiness moves the figure of Billy Kerr, with his ambiguous attentions to Sarah, threatening to drive Annie from her last niche of safety in the world. The world of childish innocence also proves darkened and puzzling to her and she struggles to find clear ground, clear light - to preserve her sense of love and place against these subtle forces of disquiet.
A summer of adventure, pain, delight and ultimately epiphany unfolds for both the children and their elderly caretakers in this poignant and exquisitely told story of innocence, loss and reconciliation.

'Sebastian Barry's Annie Dunne, a subtle but powerful novel of a spinster's life in the Irish countryside, rises to great emotional heights without ever breaking a sweat' Max Winter, Washington Post.

'Annie Dunne is a novel in which few external dramas occur but Barry evokes superbly the inner dramas of his characters. In a society where emotions are often severely repressed and expressed only obliquely, small incidents hint at larger feelings and Barry has written a story in which these are subtly and poignantly unfolded' Nick Rennison, Amazon.

'This is a truly affecting tale. Sebastian Barry is a writer of genuine skill, weaving a magical tale that exerts a considerable grip' The Good Book Guide.

Sebastian Barry was born in Dublin. He lives in County Wicklow.

By the same author:
The Whereabouts of Eneas McNulty

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