In Small Things Like These (2021), Claire Keegan tells a moving story set in a small Irish town during Christmas of 1985. Claire Keegan follows Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man, who begins to question the silence of his community after discovering disturbing truths about the local convent and the suffering of young women. Through delicate and precise prose, Claire Keegan explores themes of morality, compassion, and the quiet courage required to confront injustice in everyday life.

Claire Keegan portrays Bill’s inner conflict as he struggles between protecting his family’s stability and acting on his conscience. The novel emphasizes how small choices and acts of kindness can carry immense weight in oppressive environments. With Small Things Like These, Claire Keegan offers a powerful meditation on integrity, resilience, and the responsibility of individuals to challenge silence and complicity¹.