A Dream Unfolds: The Story of Nano Nagle

Fox starts her faltering fictionalized biography of Nano Nagle, an 18th-century Catholic educator, with her youth in rural Ireland and ends it with Nagle’s death in 1784. Slowly and unsteadily, Fox recounts an eventful life, including education in Europe, a privileged young adulthood in Europe and Ireland, and a turning towards the Catholic religious life. Nagle devoted her adult energies to the education of the poor in Ireland, beginning on a very small scale with those she could reach by foot from her family’s home in Cork. At the time, religious education for Catholics in Ireland was forbidden by law; Catholic children were supposed to attend state schools run along Protestant lines. By the time of her death, Nagle had not only established schools but brought a small house of Ursuline sisters to Ireland and created her own order. Fox covers the history of Nagle’s life with concision, but adds little narative flair to the telling. Delivered in the third person, the book never allows the reader to feel the intimacy of Nagle’s aspirations and convictions. The story of Nagle’s life is undoubtedly fascinating, but Fox’s tale lacks grounding in historical fact—when, for instance, does the opening scene take place?—and will leave readers with many nagging questions, especially if they’re unfamiliar with this era of Irish history. Fox’s too-brief bibliography proves very useful for readers who would like to learn more about Nagel than what’s included in this small volume. (Dec.y)