One by One in the Darkness, by Deirdre Madden (Faber & Faber, £6.99 in UK)

The everyday life of an "ordinary" Catholic family in Northern Ireland can be anything but ordinary, as this eloquent, elegiac…

The everyday life of an "ordinary" Catholic family in Northern Ireland can be anything but ordinary, as this eloquent, elegiac little tale of three sisters quietly demonstrates. Cafe is a successful journalist in London; Helen an overworked solicitor in Belfast; Sally is the one who stayed at home to be a teacher and look after her mother. At the centre of the book, as you might expect, lies a violent narrative explosion. but the strength of Madden's writing lies in her refusal to sensationalise; she prefers to focus on the way the pieces of a life are carefully, sometimes doggedly put back together rather than on the force which splatters them apart.

Arminta Wallace

Arminta Wallace

Arminta Wallace is a former Irish Times journalist