Big Girl, Small Town

A young woman in a small border town in Ireland, apparently autistic, working at a chip shop, and through tiny events telling the much larger story of The Troubles, and the legacy of violence and trauma that still permeates their lives. It's funny af, it's sad af, and the main character Majella is a fascinating blend of fear/fearlessness, insecurity/confidence, and weakness/strength. I loved her.I give 99% of the book five stars. The one is for the ending. It's not so much that I disliked WHAT happened at the end, as that the story just suddenly concluded as though the author had been writing to a clock and the timer went off. Was it a deliberate choice? If so, it was a terrible one. There was no real conclusion, no explanation or sense of why.  I wanted the chance to live a little bit longer with Majella, to learn how she thought and felt after the decision she made. Disappointing.

The first three pages elicited a shock of recognition and the ensuing pages a guilty realization that I, too, would like to spend my time sleeping, rewatching reruns, and eating fried food. “Not keen on Other People” also ticks a box. The backdrop of the Irish “Troubles” with its bad memories, casual cruelty, and unanswered questions feels oddly like post-Trump America. Coping is as coping does, there comes a time to take a leap, or at least a tiny step, forward.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book it did take me longer than it probably should have to finish the book. The dialogue is written as the people I’m assuming in Ireland would be speaking it therefore they were times I wasn’t sure what the word was unless I kind of set it out loud in a couple of words I had to look up because they’re used differently from what I am familiar with. However I definitely enjoyed reading this book

I bought this book as it was recommended by People MagazineI am from a border county in Ireland so I’m very familiar with the whole background and dialogue of people in the bookI was very disappointed I found it very depressing and couldn’t see the hilarity in it at all as the recommendation saidNo proper ending just a continuous depressing finalI would not recommend this book

I enjoyed the book and the story. The Irish dialogue was well done. I don't think it enticed me to read more books by this author. I'm glad I read this one though and intend to pass it on to my Irish friends.

Gallen did an amazing job with this book, conveying both the daily tedium and poverty as well as Majellah's interesting perceptions. That said, I felt it plodded along. It was refreshingly realistic, but so realistic that it nearly lacked any coherent conflict.

If I hadn't been to Ireland numerous times I'm sure the dialog would be difficult, but it wasMore than authentic of the musing and constant advice you would hear in an Irish pub.Politics, gossip and the weather their favorite subjects.A grand example of the struggles of Irish families and their repetitive lives living in aLand divided by bigotry and suspicion . I look for more from this author.

If you like Derry Girls on Netflix then you’ll love this book. A glimpse into the life of Majella is to be amused but also to discover how working at a fish and chips with meditations on what pleases/displeases her as chapters is a very original structure . Here’s a book I’ll certainly reread; the Audible with Irish dialect is also grand!

When I finished this book, my first thought was..wow. My second thought was who could I buy it for who would appreciate it and opted for my cousin in Tyrone. The dialect is that of my grandmother's area and I had never seen the words and phrases written before though I understood them fluently.The book I was most reminded of was Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata but otherwise this a unique and thought-provoking novel.Sometimes it was like looking at cartoons of local people in a sketchbook. Characters drawn with a few lines who were instantly vivid and recognisable. So many interesting themes : the drink-soaked culture of small town NI, the subtle but razor-sharp sectarian divides, the poverty of expectations, the poor diet, the poverty full stop. Even the integration of the Eastern European immigrants was deftly shown. I also loved how Majella considers the soldiers and checkpoints of her ( and mine ) 1970s NI childhood as a source of some amusement and anecdotes. Or how the local taxi driver manages to salute " every passing Catholic car " . My husband is incredulous that I can tell the religion of a car and driver in NI but like Majella, this comes quite naturally to me.I actually liked the ambiguity of the ending and the uncertainties around Majella's father and the murder of her grandmother. Northern Ireland is full of ambiguous endings and unknowns about tragedies so it fits.I am considering giving the book to my 81 year old Tyrone aunt but will pre-warn her about the vivid depictions of masturbation, casual sex and menstruation. I think she could cope.This is a great book and I hope we will hear more from Michelle. Keep her lit there, ye girl ye.

One of the most quoted reviews is that this book resembles "Derry Girls." For fans of that wonderful TV series, it doesn't.Majella is far older, coping with her own personality conditions and those of her mother. There's no solid family, and - despite being billed as a comedy - no real laughs either.The whole thing is a little grim and unrelenting, alternating between Majella's work in a chip shop, her bedroom, small excursions out of it and longer trips into her family past.It's well enough written, and the Irish dialect is a joy to work out. It adds immeasurable colour to every scene and is the main reason for reading on as you become as engaged as any other person in small town life.Not really what I expected from the reviews, interesting enough if somewhat predictable by the end. Fair play to the author.

This is a really good novel. An unexpected pleasure. Very well written and a pitch-perfect narrative voice. Majella is a well-chosen protagonist because of her personality - we have no choice but to see the world through her eyes and feel all of her pain and discomfort.The setting is a fictional town just north of the British border in Ireland. Poisonous sectarianism, mysterious disappearances, the peace process and ‘being lifted’ (by who?) is a norm. The reader has to pick out a few big murderous facts from Majella’s story but they are only part of the real tale.This is the best novel I’ve read in 2020 so far and it will take some beating... I’ve spent the weeks since I finished it wanting to know what happened next (and what really happened in the past). So fingers crossed for a sequel...

Can’t believe I got to the end while still hoping that it would start to get interesting.....what a waste of time. Edit to this review. I agree with all the 1 star listings. I read a story, not a documentation of a dirty girl with some very disgusting habits! I appreciate you who said you fancied a fish or chips.... but it put me off for good early on when I read what she did with her nasty greasy fingers. YUK is all I can say! My dada came from Belfast as did my granda, they didn’t show anything but excellent

I read this quite slowly over 4/5 days and got gradually sucked into Majella's world. As I was reading it on Kindle the ending came upon me unexpectedly and now I feel a bit lost without her. I have family just across the border in small town Donegal and I recognised so many of the characters and attitudes she finds in Bogey (although obviously we weren't hit by the troubles in the same way).This is a great book, hinting at so much and leaving the reader to draw their own conclusions but still presenting some fully rounded and very real characters - particularly Majella and her ma.