Mothers and Sons [Paperback]

In Mothers and Sons, Irish writer Colm Toibin continues his trademark gift for presenting nuance and intimacy in this collection of nine haunting and exquisitely written short stories. Melancholy and thought-provoking, and filled with the complexities of life, Toibin introduces us to sons and mothers who are constantly grappling to understand each other and where an emotional canvas of familiaral expectation is as rich and as unexpected as life itself.

In the first story, "The Use of Reason," alcoholism lurks just below the surface as an art thief living in Dublin realizes that he may not be able to rely on the discretion of his mother as he once first thought. Having just stolen a valuable Rembrandt, he's anxious to unload the work to a pair of Dutch criminals, but unfortunately, his mother just doesn't know when to keep her mouth shut boasting in the local pub her beloved son's escapades.

In "The Name of the Game" we see a mother forced to provide for her son when after the death of her husband she inherits his supermarket, along with all of his debts. All of a sudden, faced with certain poverty, she learns to be tough and competitive and on the advice of her suppliers, she takes a risk and enlarges the store into a chip and burger shop, perhaps relying more on her own tenacity, than on the family's dwindling resources. In the process of remaking the business, she discovers that her son has a good head for numbers and comes to her aid, helping out with the accounting and preparing the way for her retirement.

Other stories cover similar themes: There's a mother's disbelief, disappointment and her decisive fear of facing the truth when she hears that her son has been arrested over accusations of sexual abuse; then there's a mother who is battling her son's depression whilst also coping with her husband, bedridden after a stroke; and a son who was abandoned as a child and then suddenly hears his mother singing in a pub; and yet another son, who after his mother's funeral, goes out partying with his mates and awakens to all things sexual one night on a beach.

Each story is infused with the myriad attributes of human emotions: the heartbreak that exists over the loss of a parent, a love that is betrayed, and the inevitable disappointments that come when you realize that your son or your mother, or even your sibling is perhaps not the person who you thought they were. While the smaller stories provide small vignettes of anticipation along with despair and even acceptance, the longer stories have a luminosity all their own and are infused with a steadily mounting tension.

The final story "A Long Winter," and set in Spain is all about yearning and defeat, and centers on a son's concern for his alcoholic mother when the needless cruelty of his father eventually leads to her disappearance into the harsh bleak Spanish winter. As the boy spends his days desperately searching for her, he battles with his hidden desires and his attraction for a good-looking police officer and then for an uneducated houseboy whom his father employs to help around the house.

Throughout these stories Toibin courageously reiterates the truth unflinchingly about love and families and the ties that inevitably bind us together. Indeed the author seems to embrace what he sees as the melancholy and sadder aspects of life. Written in Toibin's now familiar exquisite style, this collection contains many small gems, and are fine examples of the art of short story writing. In the end, Mothers and Sons is often heart wrenching, but always thought-provoking as these tales evoke the bittersweet angst of ordinary people, the "mothers and sons" that exist in us all. Mike Leonard April 07.

4.5 stars

"Sometimes they're more about the mothers, sometimes the sons, but most every story in Colm Tóibón's Irish-inflected collection is expertly woven with the threads of devotion, obligation, practical self-interest, and naked emotional need that can tether even the most distant of mothers and sons together. In his shorter tales, Tóibón can let those threads dangle awkwardly. It's only when he stretches out that Tóibón fully inhabits his characters in Story Collection, letting them breathe beyond the narrow roles prescribed by the title." Entertainment Weekly

Com Toibin has written a novel that tells stories of mothers and sons, but often one or the other are not present. This is not your usual set of stories that you would discuss on that certain second Sunday in May with your mother. Oh, no, this is the reality. There is love and comfort and caring, but there is also the mess life makes. Each character in each story has his own story to tell. The stories start in Colm Toibin's Dublin and they work their way to the coast and beyond. We feel the land and see it in mind's eye. Not one story is my favorite, the collection of them all tells the complete story of mothers and sons. The chapter headings tell us a story in itself. Nine stories and some I will mention:

'The Use of Reason'- a man who is a thief has his secrets given away by his drinking mom.

'A Song'- a mother and son who do not know each other but connect in a fashion through a song.

'The Name of the Game'- a mother left penniless after her husband['s death but she refuses to give in and leaves a legacy for her son.

'Famous Blue Raincoat'- a mother who was part of a singing group but is reluctant to tell her son the story.

'A Long Winter' a mother who drinks but will stop only in her own good time and the family who loves her but who can;pt seem to connect.

"The short story is a craftsman's form, and Toibin's craft is immaculate. Not many writers in Britain and Ireland are working at this level of intensity and seriousness, with not a slack sentence in 270 pages and nothing shoddy or easily sardonic throughout. The short story also seems an ideal form for a writer much more interested in emotion, and the slow exposing of a character, than in action or community." Pico Iyer

I picked up this book and expected something reassuring and warm, but it is part of Colm Toibin's vision to show us that mothers and sons are often not what they seem, and often have missed connections. In some way these are stories of people who are not there. There is love and devotion and hard work and jobs and anger. There is not much mentioned of the fathers, but you know they are there. These are very moving stories and will stay with me. A mother of a son, and I will take the wisdom from Colm Toibin. Highly Recommended. prisrob 1/20/07

This is an engaging collection of short stories that to greater or lesser degrees explore the relationship between mothers and sons. As with most of Toibin's work, there is a sustained emotional distance between the narrator and the characters. It's not a cold and clinical distance, but it is at times one of disinterest. The characters and all their flaws are placed on view and no authorial judgment is passed on their actions. The most successful stories in this collection are the slightly longer ones like The Name of the Game, a brilliantly realised portrayal of selfishness or self-determination, and the vignette-like The Song, a painful tale of repression that is finished just minutes after beginning it. There's not much emotional warmth in the stories, as the filial relationships are rarely peaceful or mutually satisfying, but the craftsmanship is superb and the stories are memorable for their sharply drawn characters.