Reviews - That They May Face the Rising Sun

58 reviews for:

That They May Face the Rising Sun

John McGahern

3.94 AVERAGE

betherflies's review against another edition

4.0

As slow-winding as a summer's evening when the sky is full of sunset for what seems like hours, as lyrical as poetry and ultimately beautiful.

michypea's review against another edition

4.5

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

tracyreaderwriterswimmer's review against another edition

4.0

A slow burn of a novel.

bengthesnowball's review against another edition

5.0

4.5 stars

There's a sense of place and time in this book that few I have read have come to match and that McGahern is exceptional at capturing. Little happens throughout That They May Face the Rising Sun nor is it meant to - instead it is designed to capture the everyday comings and going in a rural Ireland that is now, in many ways gone, and one in which my grandmother and great uncles told me many stories. In this element it is exceptional and if someone is lacking the interest in emersion of this sort, I do not think they would enjoy this book.

gail1801's review against another edition

5.0

I really enjoyed the pace of the novel and the slice of Irish agrarian village life. The subtlety of Ruttledge and Kate being a bit on the outside creates the story. The one piece I really enjoyed was what it means to be a neighbor. The world could certainly benefit from that lesson.