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Fulcrum:an Irish-american Novel
A fictional neighborhood of Shamrock in the historic city of Boston is the setting for this Irish-American drama. Set in the immediate postwar period, Fulcrum portrays the lives of six teenagers who see their traditional neighborhood changing and wrestle with a response that will be true to their roots and to their conscience.
The tale is set against the backdrop of a classic Red Sox-Yankees pennant race, an old-fashioned mayoral campaign and the passion of football in autumn, all intertwined with the powerful presence, teaching and piety of the Catholic Church.
Fulcrum is an epic blend of Field of Dreams, The Last Hurrah and The Bells of St. Mary all rolled up into one, and destined to be a classic of Irish Catholic fiction.
The tale is set against the backdrop of a classic Red Sox-Yankees pennant race, an old-fashioned mayoral campaign and the passion of football in autumn, all intertwined with the powerful presence, teaching and piety of the Catholic Church.
Fulcrum is an epic blend of Field of Dreams, The Last Hurrah and The Bells of St. Mary all rolled up into one, and destined to be a classic of Irish Catholic fiction.
328 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2007
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August 13, 2015
Dan Flaherty is a well-rounded and prolific writer who has tackled a wide variety of non-fiction topics, including Notre Dame football and online dating. "Fulcrum, an Irish-American Novel," an epic story of post-WWII Irish-Catholic Boston, is his debut work of fiction.
Published in 2007 and available at Amazon in both paperback and Kindle formats, this book is a treat for any reader who's a history buff, a sports nut, or a descendent of Irish immigrants. It is especially wonderful for any proud, loyal Catholic who longs to see his Faith celebrated in print rather than denigrated and scorned, as it so often is these days. Flaherty weaves many of the Church's teachings, tenets, and traditions into his engaging tale, as well as stories about the saints, and a reader will come away with a deeper understanding of what it means to be truly Catholic. Most movingly, the author's deep devotion to the Blessed Mother--a trait shared by many of the Irish-Catholic characters who populate the book's fictional Boston neighborhood known as "Shamrock"--is ever-present. It is Mary who gives strength to Flaherty's struggling characters, holding them together like the metal links between the beads of a rosary.
This ambitious work of historical fiction evokes an era when families were big, Mass attendance was high, and religious vocations were flourishing in neighborhoods like Shamrock. It makes a Baby-Boomer Catholic like myself nostalgic for days gone by, but so much is packed into the pages of "Fulcrum" that it is sure to resonate with readers of all faiths and ages. This book includes a wholesome love story (between a pretty red-headed lass named Bridget, and Danny, an upstanding lad who is a Boston College football star), a hotly contested baseball season (Go Sox! Boo Yankees!), a fierce political battle (between an old school-style mayor and a progressive challenger), and a large cast of Irish-Catholic characters (saints and sinners all) who can trace their roots right back to the Old Sod. The well-drawn characters have hurdles to overcome and difficult decisions to make, and their Catholic Faith is what guides them.
Female readers will enjoy "Fulcrum" for a number of reasons; for me personally, it was the tender rendering of the mother-child bond throughout the novel that was most touching. But it is very much a guys' book as well, filled with a host of strong male characters and lots of detailed play-by-play football and baseball action. Male readers are sure to love Brother Dougherty, the high school football coach; he helps to mold the boys' souls through their Catechism curriculum, but also pushes them physically and drives them to excel on the gridiron.
My only beef with "Fulcrum" is that there are some unusual punctuation choices (mostly regarding quotation marks and commas) that I found somewhat distracting at first, along with other typos. But editing issues aside, Flaherty's writing is powerful--especially when he talks about matters of Faith in general, and about Mary, the Mother of God in particular.
"Fulcrum, an Irish-American Novel" is a compelling tale by a talented writer, a nice thick book you can curl up with and really sink your teeth into. Bravo, Dan Flaherty. Or as Our Lord would likely say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
Published in 2007 and available at Amazon in both paperback and Kindle formats, this book is a treat for any reader who's a history buff, a sports nut, or a descendent of Irish immigrants. It is especially wonderful for any proud, loyal Catholic who longs to see his Faith celebrated in print rather than denigrated and scorned, as it so often is these days. Flaherty weaves many of the Church's teachings, tenets, and traditions into his engaging tale, as well as stories about the saints, and a reader will come away with a deeper understanding of what it means to be truly Catholic. Most movingly, the author's deep devotion to the Blessed Mother--a trait shared by many of the Irish-Catholic characters who populate the book's fictional Boston neighborhood known as "Shamrock"--is ever-present. It is Mary who gives strength to Flaherty's struggling characters, holding them together like the metal links between the beads of a rosary.
This ambitious work of historical fiction evokes an era when families were big, Mass attendance was high, and religious vocations were flourishing in neighborhoods like Shamrock. It makes a Baby-Boomer Catholic like myself nostalgic for days gone by, but so much is packed into the pages of "Fulcrum" that it is sure to resonate with readers of all faiths and ages. This book includes a wholesome love story (between a pretty red-headed lass named Bridget, and Danny, an upstanding lad who is a Boston College football star), a hotly contested baseball season (Go Sox! Boo Yankees!), a fierce political battle (between an old school-style mayor and a progressive challenger), and a large cast of Irish-Catholic characters (saints and sinners all) who can trace their roots right back to the Old Sod. The well-drawn characters have hurdles to overcome and difficult decisions to make, and their Catholic Faith is what guides them.
Female readers will enjoy "Fulcrum" for a number of reasons; for me personally, it was the tender rendering of the mother-child bond throughout the novel that was most touching. But it is very much a guys' book as well, filled with a host of strong male characters and lots of detailed play-by-play football and baseball action. Male readers are sure to love Brother Dougherty, the high school football coach; he helps to mold the boys' souls through their Catechism curriculum, but also pushes them physically and drives them to excel on the gridiron.
My only beef with "Fulcrum" is that there are some unusual punctuation choices (mostly regarding quotation marks and commas) that I found somewhat distracting at first, along with other typos. But editing issues aside, Flaherty's writing is powerful--especially when he talks about matters of Faith in general, and about Mary, the Mother of God in particular.
"Fulcrum, an Irish-American Novel" is a compelling tale by a talented writer, a nice thick book you can curl up with and really sink your teeth into. Bravo, Dan Flaherty. Or as Our Lord would likely say, "Well done, good and faithful servant."
Displaying 1 of 1 review