Finished Read Jenna's October Book Pick“An Irish Farewell” by Heather Aimee O'Neill?
The novel, which marks O'Neill's debut, follows three sisters who return home for Thanksgiving and face the aftermath of a fatal accident that continues to haunt them into adulthood.
“They come back for Thanksgiving weekend to have everyone under one roof, and as families know better than anyone else, old patterns come out,” Jenna previously told TODAY. “We learn about the tragedy that rocks these sisters, but it is also full of love, hope and humor.”
Author O'Neill recommended reading five books as a continuation. Like An Irish Farewell, they explore family trauma and repairing broken relationships through beautiful prose.
Meet Francis Gleason and Brian Stanhope, two new NYPD recruits who are also neighbors in the New York City suburbs. Their friendship and 30-year loyalty are put to the test after one shocking night. Filled with heartbreak and redemption, this novel paints an intimate picture of marriage and forgiveness.
A woman recalls her childhood in a wealthy enclave on Long Island. This place was chosen deliberately: her parents believe that her best chance for a good future will be if she marries a rich man.
At 14, Teresa spends her summer as a nanny. Everything changes when her little cousin Daisy comes to visit and Teresa learns what it's like to look after someone.
This book is about two sisters, Nora and Teresa Flynn, from Ireland who move to Boston. After moving in, Nora, the shy and responsible sister, becomes engaged to a man she may not love and comes up with a plan for the more outgoing Teresa to become pregnant.
Fifty years later, Nora has a huge Catholic family of which she is very proud, and Teresa is a nun in a monastery in Vermont. Sudden death brings the two of them together to face the important life choices they have made.
What if you could escape to another place or life? Well, in Binchy's novel The Road of Tara it is possible. The novel follows Ria, who lives in Dublin, Ireland. Riya has the perfect life with her dashing husband and two children – until her husband tells her he is leaving her for someone younger.
Through a chance phone call, Ria became friends with Maryland, a grieving mother from New England. A friendship develops between them, which forces them to switch houses for the summer. Both women find themselves in completely different worlds filled with love, secrets and, most importantly, friendship.
Suspense and comedy take over this novel, which tells the story of a family who once thought they knew everything, only to discover that nothing is as it seems.
Sullivan family members Gretchen, Jane and Teddy face career setbacks and setbacks as they navigate a world that once seemed familiar to them.
