Ein Geist in der Kehle

This is a female text. Two female writers, centuries apart: In her unusual prose debut, Doireann Ní Ghríofa combines essay and autofiction to explore the inner lives and deep connections between two writing women from different eras. It is a celebration of life, love, and the proper handling of suffering. In the 18th century, an Irish noblewoman drinks a handful of her husband's blood upon learning that he has been murdered and composes an extraordinary poem that will become a national myth. In the present, a young mother narrowly escapes a tragedy and comes across a poem she had read as a schoolgirl. Obsessed with the parallels to her own life, she embarks on a quest to uncover the hidden remainder of the events. A grand story about a woman who frees her voice by delving into the past and discovering that of another.