Without my Cloak, by Kate O'Brien

I hope to write a blog about Without my Cloak, the first novel of Kate O'Brien. It won a prize - the Hawthorden Prize- and launched her on a fiction writing career. It is based loosely on her own family history. In the later Victorian era, a small minority of Catholics began to rise in the world, thanks to the removal of restrictions on Catholics and the fall in population after the Famine. There were a lot less people in Ireland and the opportunities for Catholics to rise in the world increased. They were running successful businesses and forming a new Catholic middle class, which rivalled the Protestant landed class which was beginning to lose its status. Kate's grandfather had been evicted from his home and it worked out well for him, as he moved to Limerick city and set up a sucessful business. By the time Kate was growing up, the family were less prosperous but they were middle class and still doing reasonably well. Without my Cloak is a history of the Considine family who sell fodder for horses... Their start in business was initiated by Antony Considine who stole a horse and escaped from his country home to Mellick (O'Briens name for Limerick) and founded a business. His son, "Honest John" Considine, became very well to do and had a large family. His sons became successful, one a priest, another a doctor.. and his son Anthony took over running the business. Honest John died and Anthony who now had a sizable family, also lost his young wife Molly. M/F