“They say that Ireland is built on her stories. Fairies and folklore inhabited Ireland much longer than the English or even Patrick and the priests.”

Irish oral tradition kept ancient Celtic and Gaelic stories alive for centuries, until the Irish literary renaissance of the 20th century built an Irish literary culture marked by history, black humor, and lyricism. Irish cultural commitment to storytelling preserved ancient and historical lore.

“But don’t let the history distract you from the people who lived it.”

Eoin’s warning to Annie about her writing plays into the novel’s historical themes. Romanticizing the past means forgetting about the real people who went through historical events. Thus, history often becomes flat myth and legend, not three-dimensional narrative. Annie can only imagine Irish history from an intellectual distance, which irritates Eoin, who lived through the events Annie romanticizes.

“I loved churches the way I loved cemeteries and books. All three were markers of humanity, of time, of life.”

Annie is passionate about history. Cemeteries, books, and churches represent a past that she can only imagine. She appreciates the way these human monuments testify to the lives and beliefs of people who came before her. Annie’s passion for history is in part a way to replace her own lack of family history.