In A Nutshell
Brooklyn by Colm Toibin is the coming-of-age story of Eilis Lacey. Eilis is a young woman who leaves her small Irish town of Enniscorthy and moves to America in 1951 when an Irish priest from Brooklyn offers to sponsor her trip. She leaves everything behind, her mother, her friends, and her glamorous and admirable sister, Rose.
When she arrives in Brooklyn, Eilis’s true journey begins. She works in a department store on Fulton Street and attends Brooklyn College to become an accountant. As she navigates her way through life, she falls in love with an Italian man named Tony.
At the height of their romance, Eilis receives devastating news from Ireland that her sister Rose has died suddenly. Eilis must leave Tony and Brooklyn behind to visit her family in Enniscorthy. While in Ireland, she falls for a guy she used to know named Jim.
Eilis is torn between two lives and two men. While trying to figure all of this out, Eilis figures out a lot about herself. Be prepared for an emotional rollercoaster.
Why Should I Care?
Are you a sucker for emotional rollercoaster novels? Don’t worry I am too. I’m also a sucker for romance stories. There’s something that warms my heart about an Irish girl moving to America after World War II who finds love and finds herself. Eilis is a girl who learns to overcome countless battles. She loses hope only to find it again. She changes and grows up.
Who even is Eilis Lacey? Is she the Irish girl in Enniscorthy or the Irish girl in Brooklyn? Who will she choose, Tony or Jim? What kind of person does Eilis become? Keep reading and find out.
BROOKLYN 