Small Things Like These, by Claire Keegan, is a short fiction book about a coal merchant’s difficult few weeks leading up to Christmas. Bill Furlong works delivering and selling coal and other similar commodities in a small town in Ireland in 1985, and in the weeks leading up to Christmas, he makes a terrible discovery in his town. The story takes place in those short weeks, but a large part of the book involves Furlong reminiscing on his childhood and youth, how his experiences shaped him into the man he currently is, and how he interacts with his family. The book is largely about two mysteries surrounding Furlong: his parentage and the cryptic nature of the convent located in the upper part of his small Irish town.
The book itself is very short and fairly easy to digest. Depending on the version, the book is under 150 pages. It is a quick read, but more importantly, it is an impactful read. The book focuses on Furlong, unhappy in his day-to-day life, stumbling upon a dark secret involving a sect of the church in his town and his complicit-ness surrounding it. The novel is also partly a character study of Bill Furlong, using his upbringing to place his actions during the present timeline. He meets a myriad of smaller background characters, each interaction informing the reader more about Furlong. Most notable are his wife and five daughters, who are the most important people in his life and motivate his decisions when faced with certain choices and knowledge. The tension between Furlong and his wife continues the trend of side characters pushing Furlong in a certain direction. The setting is as much of a character as Furlong in this novel, too. The description of the town creates a sense that it is just as large a character as Furlong is. The depictions of the buildings and the relationships between Furlong and other side characters help create a specific type of worldbuilding that resonates with readers.
If you enjoy shorter, less time-consuming novellas, you will definitely like this book. It is easy to follow, and the writing is not dense. The plot of the novel is short, as to be expected with the length of it, but it works well. However, if you are someone who enjoys a well-thought-out and explored plot, this book may not be for you. The length of the novel is both a strength and a weakness, as the story would most likely suffer from being over-explained, but it can also hinder the author’s ability to expand upon her world. If you are not a fan of shorter stories, the plot may seem unsatisfying by the end, but I do think this short book is worth a read. It’s a short, uplifting story about grappling with the right thing to do after unintentionally finding out about a dark secret involving the town. Since the novel is fairly short and has a heartfelt message, especially compared to other poignant holiday books, Small Things Like These is definitely worth a try.
