Amongst Women concentrated on the family, and the new book concentrates on a small community. The dominant units in Irish society are the family and the locality. The idea was that the whole world would grow out from that small space.

The novel is set during his last day in the school. He was the Garda sergeant of the village. His father was also the sergeant and did marry a second time although not during his time as a policeman.

John McGahern (12 November 1934 – 30 March 2006) is regarded as one of the most important Irish writers of the latter half of the twentieth century.