Review
VI Whitehead is moved by this examination of a difficult Father-Son relationship.
- Under His Roof
- Summer Palace Press
Father and Son
The last sentence of Under His Roof, journalist Malachi O’Doherty’s memoir of his father, encapsulates the complex relationship between father and son.
As he carries his father’s coffin Malachi reflects that
‘It was the first time he had ever been at my shoulder without telling me that, whatever I was doing I was doing it wrong.’
The book describes, with O’Doherty’s trademark candour and humour, life in a working class Belfast family. From the 50s when father, Barney was struggling to provide for his six children on a barman’s pay, until his death from chronic alcoholism aged 87. There are hardships and misunderstandings in plenty but this is no misery memoir. The book sings with vigour and energy. The Troubles provide the backdrop but it is family life that occupies centre stage.
Short episodes describe a life where money is in short supply, praise is seldom given and blame is directed at everyone but Barney himself.
Malachi breaks all the rules Barney lives by. He asks questions, seeks out the hidden truths behind Barney’s reticence and tells his story to the world. His love for his difficult, often drunken father shines through his exasperation with their failure to find common ground or express feelings other than anger or derision. Barney is a man who has to have the last word and that word is usually designed to prick the self-confidence of his children. Malachi explores his father’s identity and in doing so defines his own. Under His Roof is by turns surprising and moving. I first read it in one sitting but it is in the rereading that the subtleties and complexities of the relationship between father and son are revealed.
Malachi O’Doherty read from Under His Roof at The Wild Geese Festival at Strangford this month and conducted a workshop on memoir writing.
For further details of upcoming literary events in the area contact or phone 02844613301
VI Whitehead