Really, who would care about a family like theirs? Theirs were ordinary human failings, tragedies too routine to be of note.
Summary - Set mostly in the early 1990s, it tells the story of the Greens, a family of Irish immigrants who have moved to London in the hope of escaping the social stigma of daughter Carmels teenage pregnancy and her brother Ritchies escalating alcoholism. Judged reclusive and odd by their new neighbors, the Greens are easy scapegoats when trage visits their estate.
On the surface this book is about a murder but when you embark its pages you learn it is about so much more. It is one of my favorite types of books: a character stu about the members of the Green family and the intergenerational trauma they carry. It was a sad but beautifully told story best saved for a dark and gloomy day.
Recommended format: I couldn’t start solely with audio, the Irish accent is hard for me unless I can sit and listen with the physical book for a good portion to get situated. Once I did though, I was able to solely listen and it truly brought this story to life.
If you like dark, moo Irish stories I highly recommend this book.
Find Ordinary Human Failings at the publisher →
Toni Rocchetti is a copy editor helping authors strengthen their narratives, deepen character arcs, and find the story that is already in the draft. She reads 80+ books a year across literary fiction, memoir, and nonfiction — and writes about what she is learning along the way. Work with Toni →
