Charming Billy, Alice McDermott (Farrar, Strauss & Giroux,1998) ***

This novel won the National Book Award in 1998, surprising some critics when it beat out Tom Wolfe's highly publicized (and long awaited) novel, A Man in Full. The story takes place in Long Island, NY and tells the story of a lovable Irish-American who drank too much after losing the woman he truly loved, and how good intentions can go so terribly awry. It is told in a series of (sometimes confusing) flashbacks, dating from World War II up to the 1990's. Much of the story is told from the point-of-view of the daughter of Billy's cousin and closest friend.

Billy and his cousin Dennis meet two young Irish nannies while restoring a beach house on Long Island just after the war. Billy falls in love with one of them, Eva, but she must return to Ireland. Billy takes two jobs and sends her money so that she can return and they can marry but after the passage of some time and numerous unanswered letters, Billy is told that she has died from pneumonia. He never recovers from the loss but eventually he marries a woman he does not love. He begins to drink more heavily and eventually the drinking leads to his death.

It's hard to develop much sympathy for Billy after his initial loss, and in fact he is not a major player in this story--possibly because the story begins with his death. But as his story is revealed, there are several interesting surprises, the most important of which is revealed long before the ending. However, it is the description of the people and the places that make this book such a good read.