Franny Lynch (born Stone) is the protagonist and narrator of Migrations. When Franny was a baby, her mother Iris left her father Dominic and moved to a small house by the sea in Galway. Franny is born with “itchy feet,” an adventurous tendency exacerbated by her deep connection to the sea. After her mother’s suicide, Franny feels intense shame about her wandering instinct and fears that she will lose control over herself. The early loss of her parents leaves her feeling unmoored; she wanders through life like a migrating bird, constantly in flight from place to place. She lacks a home base and feels most at ease when in transit.

Franny’s happiest moments come from being immersed in the natural world, to which she has an instinctive connection. She understands her place as a small part of something much larger and more important than herself. Even in the face of the imminent extinction of most wildlife, Franny remains optimistic that nature will restore itself and that humans can repair their relationship to the world.

Throughout the novel, Franny struggles to reconcile her runaway instincts with her desire to find lasting love and a sense of belonging. This drives the novel’s tension.