Eggshells

Vivian doesn’t feel like she fits in-never has. She lives alone in a house in North Dublin that her great-aunt left her. She has no friends, no job and few social skills. She knows she is different. Before they died, her parents used to tell her she was a ’changeling’ who belonged to another world. Each day, she walks the streets of Dublin, looking for a way to get there, but she never finds one. After all, Dublin has a certain charm, but no actual magic. Instead of a way out, will Vivian find a way to feel like she belongs here in this world? Rooted in Dublin’s Northside, Eggshells is a whimsical, touching story about loneliness, friendship and hope.

’Delightfully quirky... Vivian’s voice alone is enough to keep us reading, charmed by her unique brand of manic, word-hoarding wit.’- Irish Independent.

’A wonderful debut, funny and touching, with skillful wordplay at work.’- Irish Examiner.

’Highly original, Lally has a unique voice as a writer.’- Sunday Independent.

’A fairy tale of contemporary Dublin. Edgy and eloquent, a remarkable debut.’- Declan Kiberd.

’The book’s style calls to mind The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. Engaging and humorous. The perfect gift to send to expats of Dublin.’ -Dublin Inquirer.

’Eggshells expresses a Joycean sense of the ordinary. A brilliantly realized first-person narrative... a memorable debut.’- Totally Dublin.

REVIEWS

“In Vivian’s poignant mission to “find my way home”, she is reminiscent of a WG Sebald character – a lost soul sentenced to wander the streets in search of a home that no longer exists. In Vivian’s case, home never did exist – yet she persists. Always thwarted, and yet somehow never crushed, she whispers “safe safe safe” to herself and gets on with her quest. To sustain such an odd voice is a difficult task. Lally pulls it off by being inventive, funny and, ultimately, rather moving.”
Claire Kilroy, The Guardian

“Lally has created a character which will remain forever etched in my mind. Vivian is a woman who many would cross the road to avoid, yet could enrich the lives of others. Her idiosyncrasies may seem extreme and would make you wonder if such a character would survive without access to cash on a regular basis (not really touched on in the novel)… Eggshells is such a clever read, using the protagonist as a way of making the reader question the accepted ’norms’ of our everyday lives… It is full of sincerity, spacial awareness, a reverse view of today’s expectations and an massively memorable character. Highly recommended for lovers of Irish literary fiction...”
BleachHouseLibrary

“…Catriona Lally has created a character of almost maddening originality… in Eggshells Lally has managed to create something truly unique, and it will interesting to see where she goes from here.”
Carolyn Percy, Wales Arts Review

＂Lally’s novel doesn’t reimagine Dublin, as some critics have asserted, but rather views it differently, reading the geographical marginalia while others, less adventurous, are content traversing the main text. I’m looking forward to Lally’s next.＂
Wormwoodiana

＂A gorgeous and highly original debut, shifting and weaving around the idea of fairy changelings... I only hope that Lally’s next novel is as marvellously weird and offbeat as this one.＂
Strange New Horizons

＂I loved this book – its humour and quirkiness and pathos and the way it carried me along. It is right at the top of the pile in my favourite books this year.＂
The TBR Pile