Search results for ""author marita conlon-mckenna""

Esther Doyle is a young Irish girl growing up in a small fishing community in Connemara in the 1950s. Her life is a stable one, bound by the slow rhythms of farming life and the joy of looking after her handicapped sister Nonie. But her existence is horribly changed when she becomes pregnant and is sent to the home for fallen women in Dublin, the Magdalen Laundry...

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It's hard to pretend that everything is normal when your whole life has been turned upside down … 'She's gone!' The letter said she needed time to be herself again. But what does that mean? Greg and Lucy, at fourteen and twelve, act cool and responsible when their mother leaves. Six-year-old Grace is just bewildered. Conor, a troubled ten-year-old, takes drastic action to show how he feels. And behind it all there is hope, and the beginnings of a plan to bring their mother back.

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The No.1 bestselling novel of the Great Irish Famine from one of Ireland's most beloved writersIreland's hopes for freedom are dashed with the arrival of a deadly potato blight that strikes terror in the heart of its people.1845. Seamstress Mary Sullivan's dreams of a better future are shattered as she looks out over their ruined crop. Refusing to give in to despair, she must use every ounce of courage and strength to protect her family as they fight to survive.Dr Dan Donovan is Medical Officer to the Skibbereen Union. The arrival of 'The Hunger' soon brings starving men, women and children crowding into the town and the workhouse, desperate for assistance.Fr John Fitzpatrick's faith is tested by the suffering that surrounds him as his pleas for help fall on deaf ears.Inspired by true Irish heroes, The Hungry Road is the heartbreaking story of the Great Irish Famine told by one of Ireland's best loved writers.__________'Compelling ... An essential book' Sunday Times'Heartbreaking and powerful' Her.ie'Gripping' Business Post'Captivating' Sunday Independent'Powerful ... illustrate[s] the enormity of the tragedy' Irish Independent

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The No.1 bestselling novel from one of Ireland's most loved writers!With the threat of the First World War looming, tension simmers under the surface of Ireland. Bright, beautiful and intelligent, the Gifford sisters Grace, Muriel and Nellie kick against the conventions of their privileged, wealthy Anglo-Irish background and their mother Isabella's expectations.As War erupts across Europe, the spirited sisters soon find themselves caught up in Ireland's struggle for freedom.Muriel falls deeply in love with writer Thomas MacDonagh, artist Grace meets the enigmatic Joe Plunkett - both leaders of 'The Rising' - while Nellie joins 'The Citizen Army' and takes up arms to fight alongside Countess Markievicz in the rebellion. On Easter Monday 1916, the Rising begins, and the world of the Gifford sisters and everyone they hold dear is torn apart in a fight that is destined for tragedy.____________'Engrossing' Sunday Times'Marvellous ... A gripping read' Irish Independent'Finally, women are being written back into the history of [Ireland's] awakening' Irish Mail on Sunday

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A remarkable story of growing up in extraordinary circumstances that will touch the hearts of all readers. Katie's whole world is turned upside down when her family's home is destroyed by fire. Everything they had is gone, and instead of pulling together it seems as though her family is falling apart. They move to a new house, to a school where nobody wants to know her, and Katie wonders just how many changes she can take. In her fight for acceptance and to keep the family together, she learns a lot about herself.

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