THE MERMAIDS SINGING

On Inis Muruch, the island of mermaids, off the Irish shore, Cliona and Grainne, grandmother and granddaughter, are drawn together by the haunting beauty of this seashore after Grace (the mother) dies of breast cancer. Each woman tells the tale of her life and her relationship with the other women. Maxwell brings to the surface the passion and longing in their lives as each struggles to understand her inner needs. Strangely non-interactive, the women in The Mermaids Singing cannot talk to each other except in their heads, leaving the listener wondering who hears the haunting strains of loneliness and suffering in this book. M.B.K. © AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 99]