So Late in the Day

This was my first Keegan work. Over time, I've seen so much praise about her stories and writing so I knew I had to read her work soon. I read this short story in less than half an hour and as someone who doesn't read a lot of short stories, this took me by surprise!So Late in the Day opens on a friday in Cathal's life. As he leaves office for the weekend and goes home to his cat, he thinks about what this day could have and should have been. Cathal reminisces about his past relationship with Sabine and how his actions affected their relationship.The story was originally published under the french title of "misogynie" and both the titles hold the gist of the story. While the title in use is much more metaphorical, the original title directly alludes to the theme of the story. Claire Keegan with this little story shows the ingrained misogyny and patriarchy in a common man of Dublin and how his actions affect his relationship with Sabine and completely change the significance of this day in his life.So Late in the Day is a representation of the repercussion of a lack of generosity and empathy in a person and how that damages one's relationships. This was a great sample of Claire Keegan's writing and it has made me want to explore more of her worksThank you so much @penguinindia for sending this my way 💖

Best writer I’ve read in a long time. Perfect.

A portrait of Ireland's lonely macho men. A man experiences the total vacuity of a life in Dublin's commuter belt who has denied himself the chance to live a more fulfilling life by refusing to share it with a woman who would fill it with light and colour and joyfulness. Thoroughly saddening.

I love the writing of Claire Keegan, she’s currently one of my favourite authors. Her writing is so sparse and yet she is able to convey so much in so few words. She is a genius. So Late in the Day, another great story which will take only about an hour to read and yet it says so much. Such powerful writing. Would thoroughly recommend, as I would all her writing, and especially Small Things Like These.

All her stories are little gems to brighten the way.

La situation décrite est relativement ordinaire mais traitée avec force et originalité, et un style simple et percutant . Un petit bijou ! J’aime beaucoup Claire Keegan, j’ai lu tous ses recueils de nouvelles. Celle-ci est une des meilleures