Review by Thea Frederick -- Irma's Daughters

[Thea Frederick]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Irma's Daughters" by Jennie Linnane.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Irma’s Daughters, by Jennie Linnane, is a work of historical fiction which takes place in the mid twentieth century. It follows the lives of Irma Townsend and her daughters, Natalie, Shirley, Robyn, and her son, Joey as they live in a small house in the Australian countryside. The main theme of her story is simply life—what it was like to live as a poor family in Australia with all it’s joys and sorrows. The story is believable, realistic, and engaging, for her complex but down to earth characters have the same struggles and good times that we do. In this sense, the story is very approachable and easy to connect with.

After Irma’s abusive second husband Alex dies in a flood, seventeen year-old Natalie, the oldest, and her brother, Joey support the family, she by working as a housemaid for a rich couple and he by working for a German family. Her family, though coping with the loss, find a sense of relief and freedom in Alex’s absence, and begin to focus on other aspects of their lives. The girls, as they grow up, are on the lookout for their “soul mates” while Irma finds ways to occupy herself with such things as helping a family in distress or caring for her mentally challenged son, Joey. Throughout the book, Irma and each if her daughters take turns narrating the story, but it is predominantly told from Natalie’s perspective.

One of the more delightful aspects of this story was Jennie Linnane’s impressive repertoire of words. She avoids the use of terribly mundane verbs and adjectives and brightly colors her writing with an intriguing vocabulary. Phrases such as “imbued her with a feeling of tranquility”, “the declining sun”, “a little dismayed”, “a memorable display of ostentation”, and many more create picturesque sentences. Besides her rich vocabulary, prevalent themes in her writing such as discrimination, soul-mates, love in old age, and true happiness in life are an appealing feature of her book.

Despite these positive features, I found Linanne’s use of the term “soul mate” throughout the story was a little unappealing. I do not know how Linnane defines “soul mate” but according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary it means: “a person who is perfectly suited to another in temperament” or “a person who strongly resembles another in attitudes or beliefs.” I have no issues with this definition, but I would have appreciated a clear understanding of her working definition while reading the book. Now, in my opinion, the term “soul mate” is what some people use to justify their immoral or otherwise silly conduct, such as, leaving an already established family for the sake of imagined bliss with their soul mate or never marrying at all because of their unrealistic expectations of their future spouse, while missing out on many opportunities. With no definition to guide me I was left to my own devices and using my negative impression of the term, I enjoyed the book less than I might otherwise have.

Besides these few dislikes, I thought the story very well written and engaging. I recommend this book to people above the age of fourteen, due to the fact that there are several scenes discussing matters of sex. Younger readers may also struggle to follow the progression of time and the ages of characters throughout the story, as these were not consistently clear. Overall, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. But, to be honest, if I were able to (and I were not basing my rating on the quality of the book but, rather, my preferences) then I would give it 2.5 stars because of the annoying “soul mate” message. But as it was a well-written book and realistic, I think it definitely deserves more than only 2 stars.

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Irma's Daughters
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[Jmteachmom]

Great review! I to loved how author used words to paint a picture in this story. I didn't get hung on the soul mate references though. I felt the author was referring to the fact that Natalie had given her life over to caring for and helping others.

[Thea Frederick]

@Jmteachmom That’s very interesting that you interpreted the soul mate reference in this way. Would you be willing to expand? I would love to get a better idea of your meaning, it may help me to come to terms with it myself

[Jmteachmom]

My interpretation of soul mate is that person who you are to spend your life with as a help mate. I don't think that Natalie's soulmate was just a man. I think her soul mate was the spirit inside her to take care of those she loved. In the story, she does speak about her feelings when her sisters marry, and she has not. I see her exploring what life could have been like had she found the man meant for her, as I believe we all do at times. In Natalie's case, I think the author was trying to show her humanity. She was a person with feelings as we all are. I don't believe that Natalie regretted the choices she made in her life that meant she would take care of her family. I believe she did think about the what ifs though.

[Dentarthurdent]

I wonder why there weren't chapters in the story written from Joey's perspective, seeing as his mother and siblings all got a chance. Maybe it was that he was mentally challenged, but that doesn't stop him from working to help fend for the family. Could you please give me your perspective on this?
I personally haven't read the book, but I've enjoyed your insightful review, especially your use of examples to explain your points.

[Thea Frederick]

I wonder why there weren't chapters in the story written from Joey's perspective, seeing as his mother and siblings all got a chance. Maybe it was that he was mentally challenged, but that doesn't stop him from working to help fend for the family. Could you please give me your perspective on this?
I personally haven't read the book, but I've enjoyed your insightful review, especially your use of examples to explain your points.

I think a few chapters from Joey’s perspective would have been very interesting! Perhaps Linnane didn't do that because she didn't feel up to the challenge of writing from the perspective of someone who is mentally disabled. It seems like something like that would be very hard to do unless you have personally experienced it or perhaps have interviewed someone who has. I suppose she wanted to focus on the maturing of the girls into womanhood and maybe Joey was sort of a stock character who could add to the plot.

[Thea Frederick]

My interpretation of soul mate is that person who you are to spend your life with as a help mate. I don't think that Natalie's soulmate was just a man. I think her soul mate was the spirit inside her to take care of those she loved. In the story, she does speak about her feelings when her sisters marry, and she has not. I see her exploring what life could have been like had she found the man meant for her, as I believe we all do at times. In Natalie's case, I think the author was trying to show her humanity. She was a person with feelings as we all are. I don't believe that Natalie regretted the choices she made in her life that meant she would take care of her family. I believe she did think about the what ifs though.

Okay, I see what you are saying, that makes sense. I guess it just stuck out to me so much because of the sort of negative connections my mind makes with it.
Thank you!

[Dentarthurdent]

I think a few chapters from Joey’s perspective would have been very interesting! Perhaps Linnane didn't do that because she didn't feel up to the challenge of writing from the perspective of someone who is mentally disabled. It seems like something like that would be very hard to do unless you have personally experienced it or perhaps have interviewed someone who has. I suppose she wanted to focus on the maturing of the girls into womanhood and maybe Joey was sort of a stock character who could add to the plot.

That does make a lot of sense. I guess misrepresenting Joey's perspective would be worse than leaving it out. And I see your point about the book's theme being the girls' coming-of-age, thus his POV might have seemed a little out of place. Thanks for your thoughts!