Brooklyn
Colm Tóibín
This was a nice novel that I picked up while on Christmas vacation in Port Chester. The main character, Eilis Lacey, is very likeable and believable. On the other hand, the novel is very focused on her, and is short enough that none of the other characters get anywhere close to the same level of complexity. It was fun reading a historical novel about Brooklyn, and trying to identify the various locations mentioned. In terms of “books about the immigrant experience,” though, I think I prefer Jhumpa Lahiri’s more contemporary stories.