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A review by casebounder
Days Without End by Sebastian Barry
3.0
Last week I figured it was finally time to read Days Without End, the much-lauded, Irish-authored, queer-featuring American western novel long-listed for the Man Booker and awarded the Costa Book Award in 2016. And it was an experience! I found the writing - a feverish almost stream-of-consciousness - to be a challenge to dip into while commuting on the train, but each time I did get into the rhythm of the novel, it was fascinating. Barry's pacing leads you barreling through not one but two wars, all the while following the love shared between two men.
Barry's Irish immigrants make for interesting windows into the racial violence during the Native American "war" and the American Civil War. These closeted queer characters feel their "otherness" in their sexual orientation, gender expression, and racial discrimination, and are therefore more apt to empathize with those who are being murdered, pushed out of homes, and forced into warfare. Which is not to say they don't participate. They are complicit. But there are moments of strange beauty amongst their part in the harsh American story.
Overall I rated this one four stars, slightly lower than my Goodreads friends who've raved at five stars. So if this book tickles an interest for you, I recommend it.
Barry's Irish immigrants make for interesting windows into the racial violence during the Native American "war" and the American Civil War. These closeted queer characters feel their "otherness" in their sexual orientation, gender expression, and racial discrimination, and are therefore more apt to empathize with those who are being murdered, pushed out of homes, and forced into warfare. Which is not to say they don't participate. They are complicit. But there are moments of strange beauty amongst their part in the harsh American story.
Overall I rated this one four stars, slightly lower than my Goodreads friends who've raved at five stars. So if this book tickles an interest for you, I recommend it.