"McNelly gives us unflinching familial and emotional honesty..."

• ASIN: ‎ B08NZ3NTLT
• Publisher: ‎ Virtualbookworm.com Publishing (November 20, 2020)
• Publication date: ‎ November 20, 2020
• Language: ‎ English
• Print length: ‎ 371 pages
• Genre: Military & War Biographies

The BookViral Review:

Moony McNelly gives us a wholly unique read with his release of ‘Goin’ Through the Motions: Last Renderin’s from a Quester and Rounder, which in keeping with stream-of-consciousness novels employs the narrative techniques of interior monologue.

Masterfully conveying warmth, atmosphere, and personality, using a no-frills narrative approach, whilst enriching his prose with insightfully chosen dialogue McNelly gives us reflective vignettes that come to life as we enter the mind of John Henry Shields.

As is traditional with stream-of-consciousness novels McNelly refuses to be bound by narrative convention, instead creating a juxtaposition between free writing and internal dialogue to create an interesting illusion of familiarity, and continuous development of the theme, whilst butting against traditional form.

In this way, ordinary artefacts of John Henry Shields’ life are charged with great significance on one hand and treated with almost a throwaway air on the other as McNelly expands snapshots of John Henry Shields’ life to round out significant characters and his relationship to them. This in turn leaves us with a deep and lasting impression of his life’s journey, the choices he made and the regrets on which he came to reflect.

A journey of discovery that is deeply reflective of the demographics of macro society within the US, but is also about the spaces between people, the words they speak and snowballing connections between unlikely people as life evolves against a backdrop of authentic Americana. Though the true power of Goin’ Through the Motions: Last Renderin’s from a Quester and Rounder with all of its twists, turns and intricacies, is its unflinching familial and emotional honesty as it relates to the legacy of war.

A powerful read that will linger in your memory long after the last page is turned ‘Goin’ Through the Motions: Last Renderin’s from a Quester and Rounder’ is unreservedly recommended.