Discover our Monthly Spotlight for December: Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan
This month, we revisit Claire Keegan's tender tale of hope and quiet heroism. Read an extract, explore our reading guide and enter our latest competition to win a new hardback edition of the novel
There’s a chill in the air, and it can only mean one thing: our final Monthly Spotlight of the year has arrived, just in time for the winter weather. This December, what could be more fitting than to read – or reread – Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan, shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 2022.
Set in the run-up to Christmas in 1985, in a small Irish town, the novel follows Bill Furlong, a coal and timber merchant, as he delivers his rounds. But the season of goodwill is overshadowed by the complicit silences of a community controlled by the Church. Furlong, a father of daughters, must reckon with the dark truth of Ireland’s Magdalene Laundries.
‘I wasn’t deliberately setting out to write about misogyny or Catholic Ireland or economic hardship or fatherhood or anything universal,’ Keegan told the Booker Prizes when longlisted two years ago. ‘I did want to answer back to the question of why so many people said and did little or nothing, knowing that girls and women were incarcerated and forced to labour in these institutions,’ she added.
The novel, timeless and almost Dickensian in tone, is both a celebration of compassion and a stern rebuke of the sins committed in the name of religion. Small Things Like These has recently been adapted into a major motion picture, starring Cillian Murphy and directed by Tim Mielants, released last month.
Murphy, who also served as a producer, told GQ that Small Things Like These had a profound impact on him, and he set out to preserve its essence. ‘The novel is so delicate and so full of stakes, even though it’s so compact, and we wanted to make the film like that also,’ he said.
If you’d like to discover more, visit our Monthly Spotlight page to explore an extract and our reading guide, packed with discussion points and perfect for book clubs. You can also read our full interview with Claire Keegan, and don’t miss your chance to win a new hardback edition of the novel – along with a limited-edition Booker Prize tote bag.
Don’t forget to tell us if you’ll be reading along in the comments below, or join the conversation on our social channels. Happy reading!
Claire Keegan interview: 'I wasn’t setting out to write about misogyny or Catholic Ireland'
The Booker Prize-shortlisted author discusses the short story that inspired Small Things Like These, the role of restraint in her writing, and why love is at the core of her novel.
‘I know some readers see it as a story of a simply heroic character. I’m not saying that my character isn’t heroic – but I see Furlong as a self-destructive man and that this is the account of his breaking down. He’s coming into middle age, suffering an identity crisis, doesn’t know who his father is, and he’s also coming to terms with the fact that he was bullied at school. And his workaholism, which until now has kept the past at bay, is wearing thin.’
Read an extract from Small Things Like These
In the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong faces his busiest season, working tirelessly to meet the demands of winter. But beneath the festivities lies a dark truth that defines his church-dominated town. And as the season unfolds, the shadows of the past force him to confront events that many would rather keep hidden.
Discover our reading guide to the novel
Whether you’re new to Small Things Like These and have read it and would like to explore it more deeply, here is our comprehensive guide, featuring insights from critics and the author, as well as discussion points and suggestions for further reading.
Win a copy of Small Things Like These and a Booker Prize tote bag
To celebrate our Monthly Spotlight for December, we are giving you the chance to win a new hardback edition of the novel and a limited-edition Booker Prize tote bag.
To be in with a chance of winning, simply enter your details below by 12:00 GMT on Tuesday, December 31, 2024. This competition is open to readers anywhere in the world.
A brilliant book. I read it in one sitting. I also loved the movie which was perfection, exactly how I imagined the characters and setting. Foster is another great read by her and the movie The Quiet Girl based on it is also brilliant.
Couldn't agree more. The fact that both books have turned into equally emotionally engaging films is almost unique.