Genre: Contemporary Urban Fiction
Publisher: Self Published
Publication Date: April 26, 2021
The writer, Eoghan Brunkard, found me on an online book distributor site where authors can submit their books to reviewers. I usually do not accept books from this site because, in my opinion, they tend to offer low quality novels. (Yes, I can be a book snob). In the author’s request, he wrote, “Clementine Lane is a humorous, often empathetic, look at ordinary peoples’ lives in contemporary Ireland.” This caught my interest so I figured I’d give it a try. I am glad that I did because I found the novel to be well-written, poignant, and laugh-out-loud funny. “Clementine” reminded me of the movie, “The Commitments,” which also took place in Dublin’s working-class inner-city. Like in the film, there are colorful, foul-mouthed, fast-talking, and loveable characters. “Phyllis and Shane were good people and raised their children with interest, but they also raised them as they were raised.” Phyllis finds her 8-year-old son outdoors at night. “What are you doing out at this fucking time?!” Yet later in the tale, she complains about her 14-year-old daughter’s language. “With that foul mouth of yours? God forgive me, I don’t know where you get it from.”
The heart of the tale begins in an abandoned warehouse when Phyllis’s daughter befriends an adult male who is a homeless alcoholic. She asks him, “how did you end up like this, anyway?” He replies, “I have been asked that a lot…I have an answer already pre-prepared like a job interview.” His silly answer to the girl answers nothing. This is how the author cleverly reminds us, without preaching, that addiction can happen to anyone. The story’s tension derives from a drug rehab that has been granted permission to open up a center in the lane. The residents take a ‘Not In My Backyard’ stand. We get an ugly and honest front row look on the stigma faced by those struggling with addiction. “We’ll be terrified that a junkie will have a go or try to sell shite to the kids.”
The author sets his stage with vivid descriptions of the neighborhood, which include cottages meant for a small family. “However, liberal lust mixed with conservative Catholicism meant they usually housed a larger one.” As the lane widens, you will find rows of flats. Between them lies a basketball court with no hoops in a perpetually locked playground, “an amenity that the locals cannot be trusted with.” There is a former nunnery, where God must still be looking down on them because outside the building sits a thriving, “beautiful cherry blossom, which in April fills the dreary urban landscape with pink petals.” And, in the evenings, the “silver serpent street lamps slowly hissed to life outside Cartigan’s pub.” It could be said that in today’s apostate times the pub is more religiously frequented than St. Luke’s Church. But, don’t worry about the residents’ souls because Father Thomas can usually be found there too since the church closes at nighttime. “The wrong type tended to pray at 9.pm on a Friday night.”
“Clementine” should be read with a pint of ale or cider in hand. Still, while remaining in a comedy-parable style, empathy and the “importance of community in an increasingly isolating and individualizing world” is the recurring theme. A minor character who is a journalist visits the lane and decides to write an article, which he will call “Forgotten Pieces.” His motivation comes from “watching a couple aged by heroin, though they were probably just in their 40s.” Weaved into the plot is a children-scaring nun mystery that has haunted the lane for a century. It is an amusing side plot that does not distract from the story but it is not necessarily needed. It may be overkill. My funny bone did not need further tickling. The novel is peppered with “Irish Speak.” A glossary is included for non-Irish readers like myself. After the glossary, there is an “About The Author” page where he shares that in real life he has worked on inner-city community development projects. When one of his characters says, “We must remember not to lose sight of the human in the addiction,” it is fair to guess that is the author’s sentiment as well. Without resorting to too much sentimentality, “Clementine” is a fun, moving tale that is wiser than it initially lets on.
I received this Advance Review Copy (ARC) novel from the author at no cost in exchange for an honest review.
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