Last Night on Earth by Kevin Maher

Last Night on Earth

Kevin Maher

Central to Jay’s affections is his daughter Bonnie. Bonnie's traumatic birth has consequences for everyone involved, and his relationship with her mother Shauna breaks down. Young Jay is also taunted by his ailing mam and her religious assertions. Through a drug-fuelled haze, he finally sees the light just before the dawn of the new Millennium. Irishman Jay is a likeable character who had me championing his cause silently from the sidelines.

Extract
You must tell Bonnie sorry, so many sorries from me. Tell her sorry that I never finished her story, but that it ends beautifully, and when I see her next I’ll tell it, and describe how Penny the polar bear girl is saved, and not a minute too soon, by the sudden shock reappearance of the dadda polar bear who, all this time, has been recovering quietly in the polar bear den, bullet-wound healing, heart on the mend.
Parallels
  • The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards
  • N-W by Zadie Smith
  • Christ's Entry into Brussels by Dimitri Verhulst