The South

By: Colm Toibin

Narrated by: Terry Donnelly

A highly acclaimed novel from the author of Brooklyn and an “immensely gifted and accomplished writer” (The Washington Post), about an Irishwoman who creates a new life in post-war Spain.

In 1950, Katherine Proctor leaves Ireland for Barcelona, determined to escape her family and become a painter. There she meets Miguel, an anarchist veteran of the Spanish Civil War, and begins to build a life with him. But Katherine cannot escape her past, as Michael Graves, a fellow Irish émigré in Spain, forces her to reexamine all her relationships: to her lover, her art, and the homeland she only thought she knew.

The South is a novel of classic themes—of art and exile, and of the seemingly irreconcilable yearnings for love and freedom—to which Colm Tóibín brings a new, passionate sensitivity.

Disappointing.

I liked Long Island and Brooklyn so much but this one did not interest me. I tried a couple listens but gave up.

Waste of time

No real storyline. Very dark. Shallow and boring characters. I only suffered through it for my book club but wish I could get that time back!

I wanted to find at least one character interesting but could not.

The best part of this book is the postscript by Colm Toibin where he talks about the areas where the book takes place: his time in the South, the towns and villages of Spain and Ireland. The book itself is tedious and the characters are too self absorbed to be worth knowing. He ends by describing how difficult it was to get the book published. I think the publishers who turned it down were right. I have liked all of Toibin’s books, but this one was pointless.