Summary

The first chapter, like the rest of the novel, is narrated in the past tense, third person, but it is focused through the perspective of Hannah, who is 11 and the youngest of the family. Often this means that details and backstory go unexplained, because Hannah herself does not understand the complexities of the family dynamic.

In this chapter, the reader is introduced to the Madigans, an Irish family with four children. The mother of the family is a Considine, and in this chapter the reader learns that the Madigan and Considine families do not usually get along.

The story opens with Hannah. Hannah's mother asked her to get a prescription for Solpadine from Hannah's uncle's pharmacy in town. Hanna's walk from their farm, which was called Ardeevin, to the pharmacy introduces the reader to the town and the setting, County Clare...