[.ca] Home Turf (ISBN 0856407356)

Experience rural Ireland through all five senses:
If your idea of Irish culture is wearing a cardboard leprechaun hat while drinking green beer on St. Patrick's Day, you might learn a thing or two by reading MJ Quinn's "Home Turf". It is the story of a harried New Yorker who discovers the beauty of his ancestral home and its inhabitants. The author does a spectacular job of describing this experience through the eyes, ears, nose and tastebuds of Tom McDermott, a New York City magazine editor of Irish origin. From the sounds of the Atlantic to the peat smell and woody taste of Irish whiskey, the reader is whisked away to a land of simplicity and natural beauty. MJ Quinn captures the essence of extended-family values through characters like the assortment of aunts, uncles and very interesting cousins who assist Tom in adapting to the type of life his father often spoke of. Tom's bonds to his homeland are further strengthened by the discovery of his supernatural abilities which some of his kin are already very familiar with. It slowly becomes obvious that in many ways, Tom is more like the family members he has just met than the ones that he has grown up with. The dillema of where Tom McDermott belongs is one of substance versus mundane existance with a few complicating factors thrown in. The book should appeal to any reader who is familiar with fast paced life in Metropolis and even more so to a person who loves to travel and explore new places. I would stress that this book is not a travel guide, rather a very intriguing piece of fictional literature with terrific characters in a desirable setting.