An English artist travels to a remote Irish island for the summer to paint the cliffs. Also travelling to the island is a French linguist wanting to record the traditional language of the island. Not only is there conflict between the two visitors, there is conflict between them and the island people. Interspersed throughout the book, the shocking events of the 1979 Northern Ireland conflict are documented.

Imagine that, said Mairéad. A Frenchman and an Englishman squabbling over our turf.

This book passes the test described in The Guardian: “the only test worth applying to any novel: when it’s over, you find yourself thinking about it.” The writing is “fluent and imaginative” (Newtown Review of Books), and I loved the way humour is infused into the characters’ conversations. Shocking events are documented in separate chapters about the “Troubles”, which the islanders hear about on the radio, and which is in contrast to the visitors’ interpretation of the island as unspoiled. The main theme of the book is colonisation, giving the reader much to think about.

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