Alice McDermott's SOMEONE-Not Appealing for Some

Alice McDermott is Amer. writer who is highly regarded & honored.  Among the many awards McDermott has received are the Nat'l Book Award, Amer. Book Award & a Pulitizer Prize Nom. for fiction.  McDermott's writing skills are never less than exceptional.  Her character's become indelible, the imagery crystalline and her observations on life both affecting & heartfelt.  SOMEONE's heroine, Marie, along with her older brother Gabe, are born to Irish immigrants.  We are introduced to Marie at age 7 living in a neighborhood of mostly working class Irish immigrants.  McDermott's characters are mostly Irish/Catholic lower class, struggling to make a better life for their children.  Often times, their struggles involve alcoholism and reconciling with their religious convictions.  SOMEONE is typical in these respects & her lyrical writing is in keeping with her honed craft.  The story of Marie's life are told at different ages.  She becomes a young woman during WWII.  Gabe abandons the priesthood.  He tells his sister "The damn church is blind to life sometimes," and "Brutal & cruel is the way of all flesh."  Marie's sense of purpose came from giving birth, "The child's need for me, for my vigilance had made my life valuable."  There is much to praise in the storytelling.  Nonetheless, the tale itself is not riveting.   Reading McDermott's writing is always worthwhile but alas, reading SOMEONE is not worth the while.