The Heart's Invisible Furies

Very readable. Very sad.

Ik ben erg blij dat ik niet in katholiek Ierland ben geboren...

Levensverhaal van een Ierse (geadopteerde) jongen die al vroeg verliefd wordt op het zoontje dat een keer met de advocaat van zijn vader meekomt. Het begint allemaal best vrolijk:

“You mean your parents don't sleep together?” he asked. “Oh no”, I said. “Why, do yours?” “Of course they do” “But why, Don't you have enough bedrooms?”

maar hoe ouder hij wordt hoe zwarter de situatie voor hem wordt in het in- en in-katholieke Ierland.

Bijrolletje voor Amsterdam, en de hoofdstructuur van het boek (iedere zeven jaar een hoofdstuk) is een beetje te gekunsteld.

A tragically heartwarming read which is bound to make you feel all those strong emotions and bring out a lump in your throat!

John Boyne has written a brilliant story that spans nearly a century. Starting off in Dublin of 1945 and ending in Dublin of 2015, this is one beautiful tale of love, friendship and societal stigmas. It also explores Dublin, Amsterdam and New York during this period.

The book's protagonist narrates his story of growing up homosexual in an adoptive family. The story took me through streets of Dublin which made it even more fun to read as I'm living and have walked along these streets. The book sheds light on human emotions and what it means to be human and to accept oneself and others, with your whole heart, in a society that's trying its best to trap you into its ambiguity and depravity.

One strong character that stood out for me is Catherine Goggin, the mother of the narrator. I was hooked throughout the whole story and the end was satisfying indeed!

Surely worth reading! John Boyne writes is a great storyteller and I would love to explore his other works!

This book follows Cyril Avery (who isn't a real Avery) and his life. It almost felt like I was Cyril and living his life through him and seeing it all from his eyes. We grew with him and even nearing the ending, when he was trying to recall memories the past, I also was trying to recall them (and had forgotten some of them).

I loved the talk about homosexuality and the difficulties of being gay in the 1940s,50s,60s,70s e.t.c and living in Ireland (a very catholic and conservative country at that time).

For once, I read a book that didn't feel too much of a heartache, I kept waiting for the insufferable pain to come, although it did in a different kind of pain, it wasn't as heart wrenching, but it's still beautiful. The life of Cyril Avery was something. It's painful and sad but I was amazed on how he bravely put up with it. He had his misfortunes and heartbreak but other than that one point of his life when he was forced to do the one thing he didn't want, he wasn't really the type to end things, and I really loved that part of this book. Here we have a gay man experiencing all the hardships, but was still looking forward to the next day. This book was so beautiful I enjoyed his journey literally from the day he was born up to the day the forever closed his eyes. It was all so cruel and peaceful at the same time.

I liked this book from the beginning but it just continued to grow on me as I read it til by the end I loved it

I would love to see this book made into a mini-series. Cyril Avery is such a beautifully written character. I also would love a companion book to follow the rest of Catherine Goggin's life. I think my favorite part of this book was following her and then when Cyril was a boy in the Avery house. I love the way this story was told. The author displays the harrowing situations Cyril goes through in a way that is impossible not to empathize with. With the current political climate in the US, I feel like this book should be mandatory reading.
Did anyone else picture Mr. Denby-Denby as Rumplestiltskin from Shrek but with blonde hair instead of red? Because same. I think the balance of real issues and humor was perfect. Though, I feel so bad for Alice. I wasn't ready for Julian's death, let alone Bastian's right after. So many tears. I love that Cyril and Catherine kept going in and out of each other's lives and finally found out who they were to each other. I loved reading this book.

This book is a masterpiece, plain and simple. It feels so real, I actually looked up the characters, becoming convinced I was reading someone's memoirs, and I was surely not the only one. Maybe the characters from the book are not real, but the story definitely is. This could be the story of anyone, maybe not exactly the same, but pretty darn close. Anyone who was gay and living in Ireland at the time could have went through all this. And speaking of, I loved how fiction blended with real life, that played a huge role into me thinking this was someone's memoirs, that Cyril Avery is a real person.

I can't think of a single thing I didn't like. The characters are perfect in the way that they are flawed, they make mistakes and they are all the shades of grey. They feel very real and there are few things I love more in a book. Sometimes it was challenging to like them, especially the main character, but I stuck around. It was hard not to anyway, this book simply can't be put down once starting to read it.

I also liked all of the conversations, all of the details, the way it did not rush things. Thinking about it a while after reading the book, it felt almost like a diary, it all developed very naturally and there was no artificial or over the top description to set the reader into the timeline. Really, the way this book is written is simply brilliant.

Reading The Heart's Invisible Furies I felt joy, I felt amusement, relief, worry, pain, so much pain, anxiety, resignation, calm, happiness. It took me through all of the human emotions and even now I'm actually a bit devastated. It feels so damn real and I feel for the characters so much.

Having said all that, I still can't do this book justice, it is an experience and the only way to get it is to go ahead and read it.

every book should end in the fashion this one does.
the second half is monumentally better than the first. the remainder is both blessed and (more so) cursed by the youthful idiocy of our protagonist, which works to an extent but just ended up as an annoyance. while the converging plot threads and extreme levels of drama made it feel like something out of a soap opera, the second half is honestly beautiful. gave me “a gentleman in moscow” vibes and that's like the highest praise I can give a work of writing. it still has its flaws but damn good book :D

highly recommend. epic

I loved this book, Capital L. It felt a lot like a Dickens book - a lot of vignettes about the same character. I laughed out loud a lot, and also got teary-eyed at parts. The dialogue is so sharp and witty, and it deals with serious topics in a real way without being preachy. Just an all around well written book that I didn't want to put down.

This is probably one of the best books I have ever read. I'm not one for reviews but I feel like this one deserves it. It is a sprawling, beautiful, engrossing novel that tells the story of one man's lifetime and all the trials and tribulations he goes through. My only disappointment is that it ended. I could have read another 700 pages.

I never realized the similarities between Irish storytelling traditions and the telenovela. This was a tragicomic drama with all the best and worst parts of being human. I would have replaced 100 pages of Cyril's 20's with more detail of his later years, but oh well :)

I absolutely loved this. It's rare that a book makes me smile or laugh as much as this one did. The characters are well-crafted and the storyline moves quickly. By far one of the best books I've read this year.

The wonderfully written and engaging life story of Cyril Avery, a gay Irishman, who's path we follow from birth to old age in 7 year jumps. He's surrounded by a cast of tragic yet often darkly funny characters, that keep reappearing in his life. His adoptive parents Maude and Charles Avery are especially memorable and his best friend Julian is charming in his rascal ways. And this is as much the book of Catherine, Cyril's birth mother, who receives the bookends of the story, and looms over it as the true heroine.

Despite there being a lot of sadness in the plot, Boyne's writing and especially his dialogues are cheeky and humorous, and you can laugh and cry along with Cyril and his adventures. The core fates of the book make it also a denunciation of the Irish church and the culture it helped create, that caused hardships and enabled bigotries for way too long.

A 4.5 stars read.

It's funny how books appear in your life. I'd never have picked up this book to read myself. It doesn't sound as if it would be a book I'd like. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

It may be my favorite read of the year.

It's the story of Cyril Avery, from his birth in the 1940s until today. Cyril was born to an unmarried girl in Ireland and he was quickly adopted by two oddly uninterested-in-being-parents parents, and he continues to suffer all the deep torments and struggles—with relationships, with work, with religion, with laws, with his native land—that humans have always been tormented with and struggled with.

It's thoughtful, it's deadly serious, it's grossly exaggerated, it's deeply true, it's wildly funny—it's everything you want in a good book. You are missing out if you don't read it.

The Heart's Invisible Furies??? More like The Heart's Invisible Ouchies!!!

This was such a sprawling, interconnected story about unconventional families, finding home, the ripple effects our mistakes and successes can have on ourselves and others, and the ways homophobia and sexism have changed and stayed the same over the last century.

The characters and relationships were compellingly drawn, in a way that felt so real. Even when they made bad choices, even when they were horrible to each other, I found myself feeling empathy towards them. Boyne masterfully crafted all these characters and their stories so that their actions always made sense.

I wish the ending had been a gay wedding tho!!!! It felt like that was what Boyne was setting up, and I appreciate that Catherine got to have a wedding and found someone after everything, but it would've been so nice for Cyril to see a gay wedding in his lifetime :'( Maybe Boyne felt it would've been too contrite, a story perfectly tied up in a pretty bow, but my queer heart would've appreciated it after everything it was put through with this book.

cw for: gay bashing, homophobic slurs, slut-shaming

That was absolutely breathtaking. I adored every word of it. It was funny, heartbreaking, beautiful. Definitely my favourite read of 2019 so far (yes, I know I am late to the party). If anyone has recommendations for books similar to this one, please let me know. I want to devour more.

A great read, highlighting the prejudices in society and the changes that have taken place. I really enjoyed this book and following the main character through his life, through all the heartaches, loves, losses and joyous moment. Lots of humour within the book helped to break up the seriousness of the subject matter. Would definitely recommend.

O. M. G. This book!! Just finished and absolutely adored! Such rich characters, engaging storylines, and well-crafted plotting. Well done John Boyne!

If you liked A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving and/or The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt, this might just be your next favorite read!

Now... what to read following inevitable 24-hour book hangover...

Oh goodness, this book. Funny, warm, heartbreaking, redemptive - all the emotions, on all the pages, the entire book through. I can say without reservation that Cyril Avery will forever be one of my favorite literary characters. Worth every single one of it's 582 pages. Highly recommended.

What an enjoyable read! This isn't a perfect book, but it had pretty much everything that I like...quirky and endearing characters, laugh out loud moments, grand themes about life and small quiet moments of authenticity. Would recommend to readers who enjoy character driven stories and literary fiction.

It's got an incredible open with 16 year old Catherine Goggin of Goleen Ireland in the year 1945. She's pregnant and brought before her church parish to be loudly denounced and violently cast out. Nonetheless, with head held high she boards a bus to Dublin and quickly finds work and a place to stay. Boyne is evocative in his language and brings Dublin to life. Part 1 ends in a riveting climax just before Catherine passes out delivering her son.

And suddenly it's 7 years later and we're introduced to a young Cyril Avery. He's the tortured son of Catherine, given up for adoption. Suddenly foregrounded it is Cyril we follow throughout his life, a gay man in Catholic Ireland where as recently as 1993 homosexuality was illegal.

Boyne catalogs a litany of perils growing up gay. Being closeted and in love with his best friend, growing up cruising back alleys with furtive rendezvous with rent boys, gay bashing, the Aids epidemic and a string of bad decisions in response. But Boyne is careful not to come off too angry or despairing and inserts, in an often jarring manner, points of levity throughout.

I'm a sucker for a cathartic ending but it is tinged with the awareness that as a reader I've been carefully manipulated to this point. You see the neatly constructed narrative framework where all the stray bits and pieces snap into place and the rough edges are buffed out. In the end I have to admit that's what I wanted.

Le récit magnifique de la vie d'un irlandais homosexuel, de son enfance jusqu'à la fin de sa vie. Splendide, du début à la fin.