Boom Road by Shawn Lawlor

If I was to recommend one book to other people to help them make sense of the Miramichi, it would be Boom Road by Shawn Lawlor. I’ve mentioned in another review of a Miramichi staple that I’ve been missing Miramichi since I moved away in December 2023, but nothing has encapsulated my time there like Boom Road has, even though it’s set in 1982 (I lived there more than 30 years later), it’s about a sawmill worker who lives on Boom Road in North Esk (I was a hospital librarian who lived in Chatham, and only drove out past Boom Road when my hairdresser was in Halcomb), and it bears no resemblance to anything that happened there to me. And yet. Boom Road is the most Miramichi book I’ve ever read, and I say that with deep affection.

Boom Road is the most Miramichi book I’ve ever read, and I say that with deep affection.

Jackie O’Connor of Boom Road lives a simple life. He works hard, he means what he says, and he’s there for his friends and family. So he plays a part in his friend Mike’s bootlegging business, what of it? And his friend Donny was mad at him about not having a front step, since Donny fell down and hurt himself. Jackie wants to watch the Expos and live a happy life. He canoes on the river in the summer and skates in the winter. Jackie is the Miramichi in a character.

Over a transformative and devastating year, Jackie’s values and friendships are put to the test, as his best friend dies, his wife dies, and he is beset with a sudden windfall of money. And still, Jackie stays the same, as everything shifts around him.

Lawlor is a Miramichier writing about the Miramichi, and so I was not surprised to find the characterization, the slang, and the speech patterns bang on. I could hear his characters in my head. It was like eavesdropping on conversations in line at the Superstore (see, you can tell I’m not from there because I called it by its proper name). It was like giggling to the stories on the radio of the mischief around town. It was like going to a funeral there, even today. I knew exactly where everything was that Lawlor referenced because Miramichi hasn’t changed that much, despite things like amalgamation and the building of new schools and the new hospital. The liquor store is still on Pleasant Street. A pivotal scene set there was one I saw in my mind’s eye, with me driving my own car out of that parking lot. Boom Road is unapologetically Miramichi, and unapologetically New Brunswick. I was gripped to it from start to finish.

Shawn Lawlor is originally from Miramichi, New Brunswick, and currently lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia with his wonderful family.

Publisher: Galleon Books (May 15, 2024)
Paperback 8″ x 6″ | 234 pages
ISBN: 9781998122073

Alison Manley

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Alison Manley has ricocheted between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia for most of her life. Now in Halifax, Nova Scotia, she is the Cataloguing and Metadata Librarian at Saint Mary's University. Her past life includes a long stint as a hospital librarian on the banks of the mighty Miramichi River. She has an honours BA in political science and English from St. Francis Xavier University, and a Master of Library and Information Studies from Dalhousie University. While she's adamant that her love of reading has nothing to do with her work, her ability to consume large amounts of information very quickly sure is helpful. She is often identified by her very red lipstick, and lives with her partner Brett and cat, Toasted Marshmallow.