At Swim, Two Boys by Jamie O'Neill

Set during the year preceding the Easter Uprising of 1916—Ireland’s brave but fractured revolt against British rule—*At Swim, Two Boys* is a tender, tragic love story and a brilliant depiction of people caught in the tide of history. Powerful and artful, and ten years in the writing, it is a masterwork from Jamie O’Neill.

Jim Mack is a naïve young scholar and the son of a foolish, aspiring shopkeeper. Doyler Doyle is the rough-diamond son—revolutionary and blasphemous—of Mr. Mack’s old army pal. Out at the Forty Foot, that great jut of rock where gentlemen bathe in the nude, the two boys make a pact: Doyler will teach Jim to swim, and in a year, on Easter of 1916, they will swim to the distant beacon of Muglins Rock and claim that island for themselves. All the while Mr. Mack, who has grand plans for a corner shop empire, remains unaware of the depth of the boys’ burgeoning friendship and of the changing landscape of a nation.

i'm still unable to write a review for this book. i think i love it so much that i'm not sure how to express my thoughts on it without sounding like a lovefool. a couple of months ago i instigated a friend into reading it - and a couple of weeks later i decided to read it again. this review will be our stupid thoughts (not necessarily on the book itself) compiled. IT CONTAINS SPOILERS.

ramiel ??? 21/06/2023 13:52
GONNA GET AROUND AT SWIM TWO BOYS FIRST LET'S GO
spepp ??? 21/06/2023 15:47

He saw the black water and the declining sun and the swan dipping down, its white wings flashing, and slowing and slowing till silver ripples carried it home. It was a scene which seemed the heart of this land. The lowing sun and the one star waking, white wings on a black water, and the smell of rain, and the long lane fading where a voice comes in the falling night.

—Ireland, said Scrotes.

—Yes, this is Ireland.

Where to even begin? The moment I finished At Swim, Two Boys, I immediately knew I had just read something wonderful, special, and grand.

Jamie O'Neill's novel is not an easy read. Its language is challenging—not just, I suspect, for fellow ESL readers, but for anyone not born on that small isle they call Ireland. Twice, I had to give up—shelving the book for a later date—because I simply couldn't get through its dense prose without becoming utterly confused. But I'm glad I picked it up again, because as the pages flew by, it became easier and easier to understand what was going on.

Part of that is due to the friendship—and later, love—that slowly develops between two boys, Jim and Doyler. O'Neill has penned an incredibly tender relationship—so sweet and honest, you can't help but admire the ease with which these two characters are etched into your memory and heart. Truly, these two are special—yet they are only one pair amidst a large cast of wonderful characters. One of which is, of course, Ireland itself.

The struggle for Irish Ireland is not for truth against untruth. It is not for the good against the bad, for the beautiful against the unbeautiful. These things will take care of themselves. The struggle is for the heart, for its claim to stand in the light and cast a shadow its own in the sun.

I didn’t know much about Ireland's past, and consequently, the ending hit me hard. Even if you’re familiar with the events, this book offers a remarkable glimpse into the soul of a nation and is ripe with opportunities to discover something new.

There’s so much more I want to write about this novel, but I’ll save that for my eventual re-read. After all, a single read could never do it proper justice.

Without hesitation, I give At Swim, Two Boys 5 stars. It is (forgive my enthusiasm) extraordinary, stunning, and achingly beautiful.

Jim felt himself sloping like a weight was in his shoulder. His neck bristled when the arm came over and the hair of his skin felt the shock of touch as Doyler’s mop brushed against his face.