THE HEART'S INVISIBLE FURIES

‘A bold funny epic’ – The Observer

 

With over 700 pages, The Heart’s Invisible Furies has to be worth your time and effort and live up to the reviews and endorsements – and for us in the Den it really did!  

 

Written by John Boyne, best known for The Boy in The Striped Pyjamas, this novel starts with a young pregnant Irish girl shamed and banished from her village by the local catholic priest. Alone and penniless in Dublin 1945, Catherine Goggin entrusts her baby with a nun in hope for a better life.  The baby is christened Cyril Avery but ‘he is not a real Avery’ as his adoptive parents constantly remind him – and is never treated as a child, more as a curious pet. 

 

And so the story of Cyril’s life begins – a man in search to find his place in the world. The novel revisits Cyril every seven years in each chapter of his adventurous life, which makes the reading a rollercoaster ride and it’s never a dull moment. Cyril is misguided and battered by misfortune, but he is a fighter and you can expect to find lots of heart-break and drama.  

 

Boyne cleverly combines humour and horror in this wonderful tale. Lots to discuss and debate in the Den, especially if you recognise some of the hostile scenarios or moments in our still recent history that spans the last 70 years.  

 

First published in 2017 we are not surprised the film rights were snapped up by Ridley Scott. Even if it doesn’t come to our screens this is worth its weight in trees. The Heart’s Invisible Furies is one you are sure to share! 

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Boyne fans can also consider 'A Ladder to the Sky' or his most recent novel 'The Echo Chamber' (August 2021.)

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