Broken Brooklyn

I recently listened to Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín. It's a novel that takes place shortly after the end of WWII. Eilis and her sister live at home with their mom in Ireland. She is unemployed, but hopeful to get office work. She is somewhat ambushed with a job offer in America. Her mother and sister are very insistent that she take this opportunity. A Father from Brooklyn, played golf with her sister and bam, moving to Brooklyn. She sets off to America, does her work, distracts herself with night school, and gets a boyfriend. She ends up going back to Ireland after a family emergency. Her boyfriend begs her to come back, the get married quick before she leaves. When she's back in Ireland, she gets lost in her life back home, trying to figure out what life would be like if she stayed.

*SPOILER ALERT*
I am genuinely disgusted with how this book ends. I'm actually surprised by how many books I pick up that had adultery in it. I guess life will keep bringing up what you try to avoid or shut the door on, until you face it. The last portion of the book just annoyed me. I bristled. It was like she tried piecing her life together back in Ireland. It seemed like her biggest issue was how to get a divorce in 50s Ireland and also that spiteful old lady knowing she was already married. Then on the boat ride home, she was like. I'll read all my husband's letters on the ride home so it won't seem like I left them unread while I ran around with another guy; pretty much just trying to sweep it under the rug and pretend that it didn't happen.

I guess we all have our sins that we don't know exactly why we do it, we just do it. Then we're left afterward thinking what possessed us to do such a thing. Maybe that's what she felt. It didn't seem like she had much guilt over her cheating. I don't know if the author wanted it that way. Overall, I was really interested in the book.