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Review by Louella Moreland
Few novels written for young readers
can bring out the heartbreak and hunger of the Irish potato famine
as poignantly as Giff's 2003 release. Meant as a companion to her
prior book, "Nory Ryan's Song," "Maggie's Door" is still a very
stand-alone story.
Rich with Gaelic language patterns,
this novel certainly highlights the whimsical thinking and
traditions most Irish descendants may remember from their own
families. Even with the black and gray book cover, the subtle
symbolism of a red hair ribbon completes the circle so essential to
Celtic life. The red hair ribbon follows Nory through the difficult
journey to the New World as it is passed from one main character to
the other throughout the story.
We meet up with Nory Ryan as she leaves
her home in Maidin Bay after the failure of the potato crops in
1845. The rest of her family has gone ahead to the ships that will
carry them to America. Nory's 4-year-old brother, Patch, left a few
days before with neighbors, the Mallon family. Nory is in hope of
catching up with them along the road to Galway. Their destination is
Maggie's door, 416 Smith St., New York. Maggie is Nory's sister, and
she has already emigrated to America with her husband, who is Sean
Mallon's brother.
Nory carries only ship papers, a single
coin, a few bags of herbs, a hard biscuit and two pieces of brack
(hard, flat bread). We as readers become fellow travelers,
experiencing ourselves that almost impossible journey: one hill, one
bend in the road and one footstep at a time. We feel Nory's
weariness, her pain. We experience her hunger and loneliness, with
only her memories for comfort. Most of all, we empathize with her
feeling that the task is just too great for a young girl to handle.
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this review]
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 "Mam" Mallon, Sean Red and Nory's
brother, Patch, are also traveling the coast road to Galway. Their
troubles begin quite soon. The three meet an Englishman who sends
Sean to his groom at the manor house to request another horse.
Refusal to do an Englishman's bidding is not an option. Since Sean
is reluctant to leave his elderly mother, young Patch and the cart,
the English gentleman bribes him with the promise that his cook will
give the starving travelers food. When Sean is finally able to
return, his mother, Patch and the cart are gone. Once again we as
readers are guided to understand that a poor Irish youth is subject
to the English gentleman's every whim, regardless of the hardship it
means to himself and his family.
Giff's story continues with Nory and
Sean telling us bits and pieces along the road. While heartbreaking
and sometimes cruel, Nory and Sean's struggles were those faced by
many Irish immigrants of early 19th century. Just as Nory and Sean
on their long journey are reunited with some loved ones, while
losing others, so reads the story of many families forced to leave
their homes and countries for a new beginning. The image kept in
their hearts and minds was always the same: All would be well when
they stood at Maggie's door… in America.
To read this
book and others by Patricia Reilly Giff, visit us at the Lincoln
Public Library, 725 Pekin St.
[Louella Moreland, youth services librarian,
Lincoln
Public Library District] |
