Monica Connell describes her return to Donegal with a delightful clarity reminiscent of the nature writings of Kathleen Jamie; high praise. Currents of affection and family history run strong, unmissable, beneath the surface of cool observational detachment. There is no hint of the superior, but every evidence of an anthropologist (as she is) reporting from the inside. The result is fascinating not only for its content and rather brilliant storytelling but also for its style. This book has no bounds, its messages about urban-rural divides and the bleakness of the margins that exists beside human warmth and tradition are international. Its characters are universal.