I was astounded, and not a little chuffed, to receive an email from Scottish crime writer Denise Mina, giving a long, thoughtful and generous critique of my latest book, Learning to be Irish. I was curious as to how she found my book, published by Siglum, an indie press. Like most small press publications, it has reached a small readership.
Denise Mina writes:
A few indie press publications from my bookshelves
‘Learning to be Irish caught my eye precisely because it was published by Siglum. I try to keep a close eye on independent presses; they’re consistently doing some of the most exciting, emotionally rigorous publishing around, and Simon Barrow [Siglum editor] has a fantastic eye for work that dips beneath the surface.’
As a former indie publisher, and as an indie author, I have to agree. My latest Substack is In Praise of indie publishing. Some of my favourite reads this year are from indie authors, indie publishers.
With Denise Mina’s permission, I share some of the comments from her email below:
What struck me immediately was the tension between identities that are never entirely stable or complete. The book seems deeply aware of what it means to grow up belonging partially to several worlds while never feeling fully claimed by any of them. That experience of being shaped by stories, loyalties, silences, and contradictions inherited from others felt painfully recognizable.
I was especially moved by the domestic details woven throughout the description, the women gathered in the kitchen, the rebel songs, the showbands, the family stories hovering somewhere between truth, performance, and survival. Those kinds of memories often carry more emotional and cultural weight than official histories ever can. They become a form of education in themselves.
The line about “learning to be English after the IRA bombs two pubs in Guildford” stayed with me in particular. It captures, in very few words, the sudden pressure placed upon identity when politics and violence alter how a person is perceived publicly. There is something heartbreaking in the idea that belonging can become conditional so quickly.
What I admired most was the sense that the book does not appear interested in neat conclusions. Instead, it seems willing to remain inside uncertainty, inherited silence, fragmented memory, and the possibility that some truths about family and identity may never fully resolve themselves. That emotional honesty gives the work real depth […]
I mainly wanted to say that I admired the emotional restraint and honesty suggested by the work. Books about identity often become overly declarative, but yours seems more interested in the quieter reality of living inside contradiction.
You can order Learning to be Irish directly from me, or from the usual online retailers. For UK orders only, copies are £12 plus £2.40 p&p. Email me, and I can send a Paypal invoice: maria[at]medwaymaria.co.uk
I have a few copies left of my story collection, As Long as it Takes, for £12.40 inc p&p. Again, email me at: maria[at]medwaymaria.co.uk
