Haven by Emma Donoghue #HistoricalFiction #Ireland

Hello readers! I’m here with a book review for Haven by Emma Donoghue. I put this book on hold at the library after enjoying The Wonder. Haven is a short book, filled with that familiar Donoghue claustrophobic atmosphere.

This story is inspired by a real island called Skellig Michael. It was used as a location in Star Wars. Its first recorded history is from 490 AD when Duach King of west Munster took refuge on the island. A monastery was founded on Skellig Michael around 600 AD. Some of the stone huts still stand today.

All of my reviews are spoiler-free. My synopsis will usually only include information from the book’s first quarter.

About The Book 📚

Title: Haven

Author: Emma Donoghue

Publication Date: August 23, 2022

Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company

Suggested Reader Age:

Genre: Historical Fiction, Ireland

Pages: 272 pages

Synopsis

“In seventh-century Ireland, a scholar and priest called Artt has a dream telling him to leave the sinful world behind. Taking two monks—young Trian and old Cormac—he rows down the river Shannon in search of an isolated spot on which to found a monastery. Drifting out into the Atlantic, the three men find an impossibly steep, bare island inhabited by tens of thousands of birds, and claim it for God. In such a place, what will survival mean?

Three men vow to leave the world behind them. They set out in a small boat for an island their leader has seen in a dream, with only faith to guide them. What they find is the extraordinary island now known as Skellig Michael. Haven has Emma Donoghue’s trademark world-building and psychological intensity—but this story is like nothing she has ever written before.”

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59801788-haven

About The Author

Born in Dublin, Ireland 1969
Youngest of 8 children
Attended Catholic convent schools
Has BA in English and French from University College Dublin
PhD from University of Cambridge
Lives in London, Ontario

http://www.emmadonoghue.com/emma-donoghue.html

My Review

› Haven begins at a monastery. Trian has been training at the monastery for six years. He was given to the monastery by his parents when he was thirteen. Cormac lost his wife and three children to the plague. He has a head injury, and his people brought him to the monastery to save him. Artt is a stranger. He’s known as a sage, claims to have read every book, can do complicated mental math and knows the paths of the stars. After a vision of an island, he decides to set out on a pilgrimage with two people to find the island (because 3 is the most sacred number).

Artt, Trian, and Cormac leave on a boat that is only the length of two men and take only absolute necessities. Artt believes they don’t need to steer the boat and says God will guide them to the island.

And so the three of them embark on a perilous journey to find the island. Will it be the haven they seek?

“Our faith stands like an island,’ he proclaims, ‘lashed by a sea of doubt.”

› I use the CAWPILE method to rate books.
0-3 Really bad
4-6 Mediocre
7-9 Really good
10 Outstanding

› Characters: 6

› Atmosphere: 7

› Writing Style: 8

› Plot: 7

› Intrigue: 10
Theme of 3 (and multiples of 3):
~ 30 monks
~ half a dozen strangers
~ three-day-old bread
~ 3 people for the pilgrimmage
~ Cormac had 3 children
Trian has had 6 years of training
~ 9 evils: pride, vanity, anger, envy, avarice, lust, gluttony, apathy (greed), sadness

› Logic: 9

› Enjoyment: 7

Average 7.9

1.1-2.2 = ★
2.3-4.5 = ★★
4.6-6.9 = ★★★
7-8.9 = ★★★★
9-10 = ★★★★★

My Rating ★★★★

› Final Thoughts
• Haven is a bleak, raw, rugged story about friendship, survival, faith, nature, depression, and fear. Some readers may find this boring, as there isn’t much plot. If you like a story that will make you wonder, then this might be for you. It reminded me of The Lure of the Labrador Wild.