Small Things Like These
by Claire Keegan
Reviewed by Renata
Keegan’s small, crystalline stories conjure worlds beyond their size. Focused on the life of an individual, a family, or a community, her stories effortlessly evoke the wider fault lines echoing through Irish history and culture. Here, the stifling repression and violence of the Catholic Church forces a smalltown coal merchant to a moment of crisis, and as he grapples with his conscience, nothing less than his soul is at stake. But what is remarkable about Keegan is that the intensely emotional dramas she explores never devolve into melodrama or heavy-handed sentiment. This is restrained, nuanced storytelling at its best.
Now a film starring Cillian Murphy – read the source material first!
