From Publishers Weekly A 240-pound Dublin housewife with five children and an abusive husband takes refuge with a bevy of nuns in this boisterously cheery and raunchy first novel by Irish theater director Sheridan. Pining for a fresh start， Philo shrugs off her responsibilities and plops herself on the doorstep of the Sacred Heart convent in the crumbling North Wall neighborhood of Dublin. The nuns are startled at first—particularly Sister Rosaleen， who's put in charge of swearing， smoking， tattooed Philo—but Philo soon makes herself indispensable， entertaining the senior citizens at the convent's Day Centre with games of bingo and Blind Date. Among other good deeds， she reunites Cap and Dina， two Day Centre regulars who've been feuding for 40 years over the neighborhood's vegetable trade. Still， Philo's future as a nun seems unlikely， and Philo longs to be reunited with her children， who've been dumped at an orphanage by their shiftless father， Tommo. Tommo pronounces himself ready to turn over a new leaf， but Philo's been burned before. Will they ever be a family again—and is that what Philo wants? Sheridan aims to deliver rollicking good fun with a darker edge， and despite some strained humor， for the most part he succeeds. Copyright © Reed Business Information， a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist Irish playwright Sheridan provides an absolutely delightful slice of Dublin life in his suitably quirky debut novel. Weighing 240 pounds and sporting both a variety of tattoos and a saucy attitude， Philomena Nolan initially appears to be an unlikely heroine. Verbally and physically abused by her loutish husband， Philo reluctantly abandons her five children to buy herself some much needed time to figure out how to restore her battered self-esteem and retool her seemingly hopeless future. Landing on the steps of the local convent seeking asylum， she proceeds to charm both the nuns and the members of the senior day-care center run by the good sisters. Drawing out the elderly residents of her crumbling dockside neighborhood， Philo gives them back their lives， rediscovering her own self-confidence in the process. Poignant， humorous， and featuring an irresistible cast of eccentric characters， this novel will captivate readers while restoring their faith in the unquenchable power of the human spirit. Margaret FlanaganCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved See all Editorial Reviews