Sunday book pick: In ‘Factory Girls’, three young friends dream big during Northern Ireland Troubles

“Maeve was unnerved by how personally her parents took [the] murders. She didn’t feel the deaths in her teeth and bones the way her parents seemed to. She suspected it was because she’d grown up in the Troubles – neighbours shooting neighbours was just the way things had always been for her. It was the older generations who were more easily disturbed.”

Michelle Gallen’s Factory Girls is a spunky coming-of-age novel of three 17-year-old girls during the 30-year-long Troubles in Ireland. Gallen, who was born in the 1970s, at the start of the Troubles, seems to have vivid memories of growing up in these turbulent times. It is this political angst, lifelong trauma, and the inescapable chaos of growing up that enliven her novel. For fans of the rambunctious Derry Girls, this is an excellent companion read.

Clocking in

Maeve Murray feels that her life in Tyrone is limited and once she clears her school-passing examinations, she’ll escape to London from her “shitty wee town.” The dream is to become a journalist with a bespoke magazine, enjoying the best of culture, honing fine taste, and finally enjoying life without the constant threats of death and bombardment. However, Maeve comes from a family that has neither name nor money. On top...

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