1901. Cork can sound very similar to New York to
foreign ears and tired brains, so it's no surprise that Ruth's family -
Jewish refugees fleeing the European pogroms - mistakenly disembark
from their tramp steamer to America a few stops and a few countries too
soon. Still, her father can spin a story like pure silk, so surely
Ireland's just a layover till he writes his great play and they can
continue their journey west. 1958. He's still not spoken. It's been
years since Shem was struck mute at his Bar mitzvah, forcing his mother
to hand him over to the care of Catholic nuns. There aren't too many of
his kind in Ireland let alone in the sanatorium, so it's a lonely
existence, but at least his secret is safely locked up in his mouth and
behind closed doors, where it can never hurt the one person he loves.
2015. Aisling came to London to escape the Irish recession and
concentrate on her career, not to fall in love with a part-time
magician. She would marry him in a heartbeat, if only he didn't insist
that the ceremony should be in a synagogue. Unsure whether to give up
her own heritage for some else's, Aisling looks to the past - from a
rootless girl who never saw America to an outcast boy who never spoke
again - to see if she can decide on her future.
