Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile

Welcome to Litsy!

Litsy is a place to share and discover your favorite books with your favorite people.

Litsy is available on the web, for iOS and Android.

It’s fun.  It’s simple.  It’s all about the book. Sign up and get a little Litsy.

To respect member's privacy and keep things awesome, most of Litsy is hidden from Google. We let humans see and share pages, but not machines. Find out more.
This page is: Hidden

Trending Hashtags

See More
#readaway2024
20 users recently
#serieslove2024
29 users recently
#LitsyLove
25 users recently
#SpringSkies
25 users recently
#5joysfriday
47 users recently
#motivationalmonday
31 users recently

Trending Books

See More
Untitled
Untitled
Untitled
48 users recently
Zorrie
Zorrie
Laird Hunt
9 users recently
Shades of Milk and Honey
Shades of Milk and Honey
Mary Robinette Kowal
8 users recently
Ready or Not
Ready or Not
Cara Bastone
5 users recently
The Familiar
The Familiar: A richly imagined, spellbinding new novel from the number one bestselling author of Ninth House
Leigh Bardugo
12 users recently
About | Help / FAQs | Privacy | Terms | Press | Resources
The Blackwater Lightship
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
10 posts | 12 read | 21 to read
It is Ireland in the early 1990s. Helen, her mother Lily, and her grandmother Dora have come together, after a decade of estrangement, to tend to Helen's beloved brother, Declan, who is dying of AIDS. Under the crumbling roof of Dora's old house, Declan's two friends join the women as each waits for the end. The six of them, from different generations and with different beliefs, are forced to plumb the shoals of their own histories and to come to terms with each other. The Blackwater Lightship is a beautifully written, deeply resonant story about three generations of an estranged family reuniting to mourn a tragic, untimely death. In spare, luminous prose, Colm Tibn explores the nature of love and the complex emotions inside a family at war with itself. His fourth novel is about morals and manners, and the clashes of culture and personality. But most of all, it is a novel about the incomparable capacity of stories to heal the deepest wounds.
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
review
TrishB
TrishB
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image
Pickpick

This was an absolutely wonderfully written book, with fantastic, real characters. Mistakes have been made and no one wants to say they‘re wrong. And Declan is dying.
My last #booked2022 read for #mclivingwithaids

tagged users iconCinfhen, BarbaraTheBibliophage, alisiakae
BarbaraBB Great review. He is such a great author but I haven‘t read this one. 1y
TrishB @BarbaraBB well worth a read. It‘s my first by him 🤷‍♀️ and he‘s been the chancellor of my work Uni for the past 5 years! 1y
BarbaraBB Really? That‘s cool. I hope you‘ll give him another go! 1y
See All 20 Comments
MicheleinPhilly Why do you get all the cool people at your job??? 1y
TrishB @BarbaraBB definitely will now! 1y
TrishB @MicheleinPhilly Brian May was the chancellor of my previous work Uni! Colm is finishing this year and we‘re waiting for the announcement on the new one. 1y
LeahBergen I haven‘t read him before but I did see him at an author reading years ago. 1y
MicheleinPhilly The new one will probably be Paul McCartney. 1y
TrishB @LeahBergen cool 👍🏻 1y
TrishB @MicheleinPhilly Paul‘s not allowed elsewhere as he‘s at Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts 😁 which is Liverpools Fame School, lol. 1y
MicheleinPhilly Oh my gosh, I was kidding! I get idiot politicians, you get rock and literary gods. 😒 1y
Cinfhen He‘s such a great writer!! Congrats on completing #Booked2022 🙌🏻 just tagging @BarbaraTheBibliophage to remind her we need the final quarter form 🤓Thanks B, you‘re a rock star 🫶🏼 1y
Cinfhen Liverpool might be the coolest place on earth 🌍 @MicheleinPhilly is right 😁 1y
TrishB @MicheleinPhilly @Cinfhen lol! Of course I agree 😁 1y
Centique Loved this one too. And also my first Colm Toibin 🙌 1y
batsy I find that cover so lovely and melancholy, in some way. Great review. I haven't read him and I'm tempted to start with this one. 1y
TrishB @Centique I saw you didn‘t like the ending. Whereas I thought it made it a bit gentler. 1y
TrishB @batsy that‘s a lovely description of the book ❤️ (edited) 1y
Centique @TrishB I do see why he did it that way. I just loved Declan so much and didn‘t want to say goodbye yet. A position much like the sister really… 1y
Cathythoughts Great review ! Stacked 👍🏻 1y
98 likes4 stack adds20 comments
review
Centique
Centique
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image
Pickpick

My first experience of Colm Toibin (apart from the movie Brooklyn) and wow, he can write very believable, complex characters! It‘s the 90s and Helen‘s busy family life is suddenly split open with the news that Declan, her brother, is dying of AIDS. In rushing to his side she is forced to reunite with her estranged mother and grandmother in her old home town. Old wounds come to the surface. I loved that Toibin doesn‘t have any easy answers but ⬇️

Centique …I so wanted to stay with Helen and stay with Declan that the abrupt ending was hard to accept. I‘m sure it serves the authors intentions but not mine! 5 stars but I feel hard done by 😥 2y
Reggie That 2%!!!!!! Strikes again. 2y
Centique @Reggie I feel like I left a friend alone in hospital - feeling book character guilt in the last 2% 2y
Reggie Big oof! 2y
71 likes2 stack adds4 comments
review
Elias1
Elias1
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image
Pickpick

🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

8 likes
review
LaviniaG
LaviniaG
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image
Pickpick

Early '90s. Declan is dying and Tóibín masterfully brings together the women in his life (sister, mother, grandmother), forces them to cope with him being gay and having AIDS, throws in a couple of best friends and delivers an absolutely amazing story of hardship, friendship and loss. I love this guy to the moon and back.

3 likes2 stack adds
blurb
MrsMalaprop
MrsMalaprop
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image

Whilst not strictly speaking a lighthouse, there is a lightship in this beautiful novel by Colm Toibin. Any other Toibin fans out there? #Marchintoreading Day 7: #lighthouses.

tagged users iconRealLifeReading
Abailliekaras He's fabulous! Love his sense of humour. 😊 7y
Libby1 I loved this book. 7y
Reviewsbylola I loved Brooklyn but couldn't quite muster up enthusiasm for Nora Webster. Those are the only two I've read. 7y
Jeg I think I like him! 😊😊😊 7y
38 likes3 stack adds4 comments
blurb
elliemcc11
elliemcc11
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image

Precious reading time ☺📖☕

4 likes
blurb
elliemcc11
elliemcc11
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image

And when she took the child to her bed he of course wasn't content for her to sleep in her own space. She had to sleep exactly where he wanted.

Kids! 😂 Sound so like mine and my home life. Just this opening couple of pages made me want to read more 😊

elliemcc11 And yes, I'm having a 🛀 on my own #happymummy 😂 8y
2 likes1 comment
blurb
elliemcc11
elliemcc11
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image

This really made me smile...she sounds like me 😂

1 like
blurb
elliemcc11
elliemcc11
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image

#currentlyreading Really like it so far. Toibin is a great writer.

2 likes
review
KVanRead
KVanRead
The Blackwater Lightship | Colm Toibin
post image
Pickpick

#booksetbythesea This is one of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors. The sea features prominently in many of his books and stories. My search for an image (since this was a library book) led to the discovery it was made into a TV movie- I'll have to look for it! #somethingforsept #septphotochallenge @RealLifeReading

40 likes1 stack add