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‘Not only haunted by death, but also by beauty and the strangeness of being alive. A deeply memorable novel’ Colm Tóibín‘... I have friends and family, I am in this wonderful country, I have money, there is nothing much wrong with me except I am dying.’Úna has little over a week left to live and wants to see Berlin for the first and last time. Her friend Liam accompanies her. As the city streets open up to them, so too do their pasts. Úna recalls her life – her lovers, her famous father, her alcoholic mother and the death of her younger brother. For Liam the weekend becomes a lesson in true living from a friend he is about to lose.
Facing a terminal diagnosis, Úna travels to Berlin for a final week of life, accompanied by her friend Liam. As she navigates the unfamiliar streets of the city, the physical limitations of her illness contrast with the expansive, often painful memories that surface. The narrative alternates between the immediate sensory experience of Berlin and the fragmented recollections of Úna’s complex family history, including her famous father and the loss of her brother. Liam acts as both a witness to her final days and a participant in her search for meaning, grounding the story in a quiet, observational framework.
This novel is widely regarded for its restrained, poignant approach to the subject of terminal illness. Critics often highlight the author's ability to balance the weight of death with the vibrancy of the setting, noting that the prose avoids sentimentality in favor of sharp, observational clarity. The dynamic between Úna and Liam is frequently cited as a core strength, providing a necessary anchor for the narrative's more reflective, melancholic passages. Readers often find the work to be a meditative experience that prioritizes the internal life of the protagonist over traditional plot progression. The book remains a notable example of contemporary literary fiction that examines the intersection of personal history and the finality of existence.
Page Count:
288
Publication Date:
2014-02-27
Publisher:
HarperCollins Publishers
ISBN-10:
0007468865
ISBN-13:
9780007468867
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