Midwinter Break

by Bernard MacLaverty

Gerry, once an architect, is forgetful and set in his ways. Stella is tired of his lifestyle and angry at his constant undermining of her religious faith. Things are not helped by memories that resurface of a troubled time in their native Ireland. As their vacation comes to an end, we understand how far apart they are - and can only watch as they struggle to save themselves.

Bernard MacLaverty is a master storyteller, and this is the essential MacLaverty compassionate observation, elegant writing, and a heartrending story. It is also a profound examination of human love and how we live together - a chamber piece of resonance and power.

Genres: Fiction

Audible Audio

Published August 22, 2017

About the author

Bernard MacLaverty was born in Belfast in 1942 and lived there until 1975 when he moved to Scotland with his wife, Madeline, and four children. He has been a Medical Laboratory Technician, a mature student, a teacher of English and, for two years in the mid eighties, Writer-in-Residence at the University of Aberdeen.

After living for a time in Edinburgh and the Isle of Islay he now lives in Glasgow. He is a member of Aosdana in Ireland and is Visiting Writer/Professor at the University of Strathclyde.

Currently he is employed as a teacher of creative writing on a postgraduate course in prose fiction run by the Research Institute of Irish and Scottish Studies at the University of Aberdeen.

He has published five collections of short stories and four novels. He has written versions of his fiction for other media - radio plays, television plays, screenplays. Recently he wrote and directed a short film 'Bye-Child'

Reviews

[Ernie · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I were still living in London, would I take a midwinter break in Amsterdam? Hell, no; so why write or read a book about it? However, the Booker judges encouraged my curiosity and I’m glad I read such a well crafted, engaging novel. Moreover, it suits my age group as the couple, retired from a life in Belfast and past traumas, find their current life reduced to the less demanding problems of the first fall, the height of toilet seats in hotel bathrooms and the impossibility of manipulating the taps to give an even flow of hot water when showering. Despite Stella and Gerry devising various routine diversions such as the compulsory kiss in an empty lift and restricting one ‘ailment hour’ a week for their organ recital of aged health complaints, Stella is ‘tired of living the way we do’ and proposes the trip. When Gerry questions, she suggests that if he doesn’t come, they might end up living in different places, so he goes with her.
Maclaverty carried me into this marriage problem for old couples plot and soon overcame my doubts with his skilful observations of the relationship and his characters’ changing moods, especially Stella’s motivation in seeking out a better solution to life in the last quarter. He balances the serious tone of Stella’s yearning for a more satisfying life with a humorous observation of the couple in negotiation of the more trivial daily difficulties all of us ‘elders’ share, interspersed with their memories of trauma in the Belfast war which left physical as well as mental scars.
Having visited Amsterdam several times I was familiar with most of the places visited in the novel, such as the canals, the red light district and the Rijksmuseum with Rembrandt’s wonderful painting of The Jewish Bride, easy to contemplate because all the other tourists were crowded in front of The Night Watch. There is a key event in the Ann Frank House and the Begijnhof women’s house.
So, another Irish writer to enjoy and explore his other publications. You don’t have to be over 65 to appreciate Midwinter Break but those of us who are, will surely share more of the humour.

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written though quite sad

[Kathleen Celmins · Rating 4 out of 5]

No one can write sadness like the Irish and the Scots. This was an excellent book, and a quick read, but it made me not very fun to be around.

[Jo Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t really care for the writing style. This book made me very sad. I’d give it a 3.5

[Susan Taylor]

Barely a 3. So melancholy. Stella is so unhappy in her marriage. Gerry drinks too much and does not possess the same religious beliefs as Irish Catholic Stella. In retirement Gerry feels alls fine but Stella just can’t take it anymore. She plans a vacation in Amsterdam, the only saving grace for me in the story; having just returned from there. This vacation does not help with the distance. At the end we find out a secret that Stella has hidden her adult life & the struggle she has lived.