by Seán Lysaght
First published 1991
A scientist travels to Clare Island off the coast of Mayo to participate in a comprehensive biological survey of the remote Irish island. The researcher encounters the island's small community of residents who view the scientific expedition with a mixture of curiosity and suspicion. As the survey work progresses, cataloging the island's flora and fauna, tensions emerge between the methodical approach of the visiting scientists and the traditional knowledge of the islanders. The protagonist must navigate between two different ways of understanding the natural world while forming unexpected connections with the local people. The work reveals how scientific observation intersects with human relationships and the complex relationship between outsiders and island communities.
Genres: fiction, historical-fiction, 20th-century, adventure, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, outsider-perspective
Setting: Clare Island, Ireland, Mayo
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
47 pages · Hardcover · Gallery Press