In the third episode of The Irish Books Podcast, host Dr Chris Murray and guest Frances Devlin-Glass (Artistic Director of Bloomsday Melbourne & editor of Australasian Journal of Irish Studies and the online magazine, Tinteán) are discussing Eimear McBride’s sequel to The Lesser Bohemians: the visceral, ambitious The City Changes Its Face.
Set against the bohemian backdrop of mid-90s London, the novel explores a world of love after addiction, complex domestic dynamics, and unspeakable parts of the human psyche.
A Bohemian Triangle in Camden
The story follows Eily, an Irish teenager who has spent two years in a torrid relationship with Stephen, a much older actor. Their lives are upended by the arrival of Stephen’s estranged daughter, Grace, who is much the same age as Eily herself.
A Vulnerable Domesticity: The trio navigates a cramped apartment in Camden where the walls are thin, heightening the tension between Eily’s sexual neediness and the awkward reality of Stephen as a father
The Film as Apology: The narrative centres on a screening of an autobiographical film Stephen has made about his past as a drug addict - a work that serves as an apology to his daughter for the fallout of his childhood.
Experimental Style: Breaking the Sentence
True to McBride’s reputation as an "experimental" writer, the novel is defined by its linguistic gymnastics.
Linguistic Virtuosity: McBride employs neologisms and inventive adverbs like "spoon-standingly" strong or "echoly puking"
Visual Monologues: The text uses variations in font size to signify interior monologues, registering Eily’s uncertainty and lack of confidence in her relationship directly on the page
The Power of Subtext: Drawing on her acting background, McBride requires the reader to "read for subtext," often using unfinished or broken sentences to explore the limits of intimacy.
Speaking the Unspeakable
The discussion moves into the darker themes of the novel, particularly McBride's fearless approach to the legacy of abuse.
The Cycle of Trauma: The pair discuss how Stephen’s history of childhood abuse intersects with his vulnerability in the London drug scene, where he was often exploited
Creativity as Catharsis: The podcast explores whether McBride suggests that "the catharsis of creativity" through Stephen’s film and perhaps Eily’s own writing - offers a way to put trauma behind them
A "Grunge" Modernism: While McBride is often tagged as a modernist, Frances argues she is "very much of our times," using her work to speak back to power and address sexual excesses once hidden in Irish life.
Listen to the Full Discussion
Does fiction need to explain everything away, or is the mystery of Eily’s backstory more powerful left unsaid?
Listen to Episode 3 on Eimear McBride’s The City Changes its Face wherever you get your podcasts.
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