Frankie is one of those characters who is really memorable. The main character of Graham Norton’s latest novel is an elderly lady when we first meet her, grudgingly reliant on carers following a fall. Like Frankie, young carer Damian is also from Ireland and the two strike up a friendship. Frankie begins to open up to Damian and reveals much of her remarkable life.
I really liked Frankie as a character and felt so much empathy for her as a young girl married off to an older man, a man of the church but most definitely not showing caring Christian ways. The failure of the marriage, not Frankie’s failure, led her to live in London and then on to New York. I enjoyed reading about her life and her resilience. From difficult beginnings in Ireland, Frankie took advantage of opportunities offered to her and what a life she had.
The standout part of the book for me was the friendship between Frankie and Norah. Friends as children, they parted ways but in later life were incredibly close. We follow these women through the ups and downs of life and although it took them in very different directions, they were always there for each other and remained close through their lives.
Although I did enjoy the book, it isn’t my favourite of Graham Norton’s books – that would be Home Stretch. For me, the story lost its way a little in the New York section of the book. When Frankie met and married, the parts of the book relating to her husband’s art career felt like it didn’t add anything to the book for me. Having said that, I found the scenes when AIDS began to cause such fear and devastation to the gay community very moving.
I find it quite interesting that the tagline for this book is that Frankie was never the main character in her own life. I think she absolutely was the main character albeit perhaps in a quiet way. She was so central to the lives of so many of the characters. I’m glad I read Frankie’s story and although I didn’t love this book, I would certainly read more by Graham Norton again. His style of writing is insightful, often witty and very engaging.
From the back of the book
Always on the periphery, looking on, young Frankie Howe was never quite sure enough of herself to take centre stage – after all, life had already judged her harshly. Now old, Frankie finds it easier to forget the life that came before.
Then Damian, a young Irish carer, arrives at her London flat, there to keep an eye on her as she recovers from a fall. A memory is sparked, and the past crackles into life as Damian listens to the story Frankie has kept stored away all these years.
Travelling from post-war Ireland to 1960s New York – a city full of art, larger than life characters and turmoil – Frankie shares a world in which friendship and chance encounters collide. A place where, for a while, life blazes with an intensity that can’t last but will perhaps live on in other ways and in other people. But as Frankie’s past slowly emerges, her spirit and endurance are revealed as undeniable . . . and unforgettable.
About the Author
Graham Norton has written four other novels, all Sunday Times bestsellers, in the UK and Ireland. His fiction writing has won him critical acclaim from across all media and the literary community.
Holding won the An Post Irish Book Award for Popular Fiction. A Keeper was shortlisted for both the Specsavers Popular Fiction Award and the Irish Book Award for Popular Fiction. Home Stretch won the Irish Book Award for Popular Fiction and has been optioned for a major TV series. Holding was made into a high-profile ITV drama, directed by Kathy Burke, and Forever Home was shortlisted at the 2022 Irish Book Awards.
