Book Review | Milkman by Anna Burns

Hey my lovelies! Make sure you grab a cup of coffee and a biscuit (or few) whilst I take you through a whistle-stop tour of Milkman by Anna Burns.

Anna Burns' widely-acclaimed Milkman, winner of the 2018 Man Booker Prize for Fiction, 2018 National Book Critics Circle Award and 2019 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, is set in a dystopian, 1970's Belfast, Ireland at the height of the Troubles. It was also shortlisted for the 2019 Women's Prize for Fiction and Burns is the first ever Northern-Irish author to be awarded the Man Booker prize, so it goes without saying there is something special about this novel. The novel is narrated by an Irish, female teenager, trying to navigate her way through a nameless city with anonymous citizens - a notion we will return to later in this review.

The novel gets it's name from the Milkman, a male, paramilitary figure (i.e. republican terrorist) who throughout the course of the novel, stalks the protagonist in an attempt to force her into entering a relationship with him. As the novel is most likely set during the times of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, I would suggest doing some background reading surrounding the political tensions at the times before entering a discussion about the novel. Central to the story is rumours, gossiping, and their consequences. Without giving too much away, the protagonist suffers the consequences of a society driven by rumours, which makes the novel perfect for school syllabuses as it teaches valuable lessons on these consequences which translate into the non-fiction world. The novel also explores paranoia and suffocating fear caused by political tensions, which resonates in today's current political climate. 

Returning to the notion of a nameless city and anonymous citizens, rather than the use of forenames/surnames, characters in the novel are referred to by their place in the story. For example, the protagonist's "third sister" and "third brother-in-law", and the real "Milkman" who delivers the milk and the protagonist's "almost a year maybe-boyfriend". The same happens for groups of people, such as the "traditional women", which suggests Burns is trying to say something about gender and traditional gender roles within the novel. Places within the community are also referred to in the same way, such as the "ten-minute area" (a derelict buffer zone) and "the parks and reservoirs", which can often make the novel difficult to follow. This links to Burns' writing style, which can be described as a meandering, stream of consciousness, where the narrator often digresses from the original story-line to somewhere else entirely. For me, a reader who is not often a lover of the 'stream of consciousness' style, I did find this tedious at times and difficult to persevere with. It can also make the protagonist quite frustrating, as she never outright says what she feels/believes. For me, the first half of the book was very slow-paced, and the dense paragraphs and long chapters mean the book demands concentration. I read one review which suggested Milkman may have been better as a short story, which I do agree with to a certain extent, however I do think this may have limited the in-depth, psychology that Burns explores as the novel progresses.

Other readers have described Burns' style of writing as 'extraordinary' and 'innovative', of which I have to agree. From around Chapter 4/p. 166 onwards, the novel really picks up pace, and despite Burns' sometimes 'difficult' writing style, the lyricism to her writing results in some beautiful, meaningful passages that comment on humanity and what it means to be human. On p. 89, Burns seems to be commenting on the fragility of life and inability of humans to accept love:

'They killed it because it liked them, because they couldn't cope with being liked, couldn't cope with innocence, frankness, openness, with a defencelessness and affection and purity so pure, so affectionate, that the dog and it's qualities had to be done away with'.

Similarly, Burns comments on gender and politics, and how these two themes interact, where on pages 161-162, she raises questions regarding rape, domestic violence, abortion (particularly relevant in Northern Ireland), and sexual harassment, which all translate to the modern day. The mixed-bag reviews on this novel suggest that those who did not get along with it struggled with the wordy, otherworldly, nameless aspects, but these are arguably what makes the novel so special, as the wordiness and lack of naming add to the gossipy tone of the novel. The best way to read this novel is to let the lyricism and rhythm of Burns' writing carry you through the story and the protagonist's mind. 

It would take 1000's of words to go into great depth about this novel which, in my opinion, definitely makes it well worth a read. From reading other reviews of this book, you are either going to love it or hate it, but I think it showcases both the best of what literary fiction has to offer, and possibly what puts people off. For me it is not so much an enjoyable read but definitely important and astonishing to think the things that Burns was writing about (in 2018 and even 4 years prior to the novel's publication) resonate so much with what is happening in the wold today. The novel is certainly prescient, given the current climate of hate-driven politics, social media surveillance, and threats to Irish stability and border resulting from Brexit. For all those soon to be/newly qualified English teachers this is definitely one to add to the list as I think we'll soon be seeing this appear on literature syllabus' as a modern-day, female authored 1984, which certainly would make a nice change. 

So there we have it, Faith, Trust and Lots of Books' first book review! I hope you guys enjoyed it and it has inspired you to add Milkman to your 'to read' lists. I have a huge back-log of book reviews ready and waiting to be published (I have managed to make a substantial dent in my own 'to read' list over the past month) so I cannot wait to get these out to you over the coming weeks and share my thoughts about those books with you. Sending you all lots of well wishes wherever you may be!

Lots of love xoxo