Ironweed (novel)

Ironweed is set during the Great Depression and tells the story of Francis Phelan, a bum originally from Albany, New York, who left his family after accidentally killing his infant son. The novel focuses on Francis's return (after being gone twenty-two years) to Albany over the triduum of All Hallows Eve, All Saints' Day, and All Souls' Day; moreover, a surreal element is added to the narrative as Phelan sees and tries to interact with dead people from his troubled past. The novel features characters that are present in some of Kennedy's other Albany Cycle books.

Kennedy wrote the screenplay for the 1987 film version directed by Héctor Babenco and starring Jack Nicholson and Meryl Streep. Major portions of the film were shot on location in Albany. The film was nominated for two Academy Awards: Best Actor in a Leading Role (for Nicholson) and Best Actress in a Leading Role (for Streep).

In 1986, Audio Partners produced an audiobook version of Ironweed, read by Jason Robards.

In 2009, Audible.com produced an audio version of Ironweed, narrated by Jonathan Davis as part of its Modern Vanguard line of audiobooks.

The structure of the novel resembles Dante's Divine Comedy. Francis Phelan is the journeyman as Dante is the journeyman throughout The Inferno. The opening epigraph is from Purgatorio.

The 7 chapters correlate to the seven deadly sins. In order of the chapters, they are:

• Gluttony
• Sloth
• Pride
• Greed
• Wrath
• Envy

• New York Times review
• Film page at IMDB