Anthony Glavin on Eggshells by Caitriona Lally: a novel that keeps its promises
I’ll confess it was with fingers crossed that I opened Caitriona Lally’s beguiling debut novel, Eggshells, of which I had previously seen the first 10,000 words as one of three judges for the Irish...
View ArticleEggshells by Caitriona Lally is new Irish Times Book Club choice
Eggshells by Caitriona Lally, described by Declan Kiberd as “a fairy tale of contemporary Dublin, edgy and eloquent, a remarkable debut”, is the new Irish Times Book Club choice. Over the next four...
View ArticleKetil Bjornstad: ‘The novel is the best weapon against multi-tasking’
Ketil Bjornstad is a Norwegian pianist, composer and author. ketilbjornstad.com What was the first book to make an impression on you? It must have been Saint Exupéry, The little Prince. My father read...
View ArticleDarragh McKeon on standing in the margins, beyond influence or affiliation
Darragh McKeon has worked as a director with theatre companies such as Rough Magic in Dublin, the Royal Court and Young Vic in London, and Steppenwolf in Chicago. His debut novel is All That is Solid...
View ArticleGunnar Staalesen Q&A: ‘Most crime writers are very nice people, although I am...
One of the fathers of Nordic Noir, Gunnar Staalesen was born in Bergen, Norway in 1947. He made his debut at the age of 22 with Seasons of Innocence and in 1977 he published the first book in the Varg...
View ArticlePeter Swanson: ‘Being lost in a book is one of the greatest feelings in the...
Peter Swanson is the author of two novels, The Girl with a Clock for a Heart, and The Kind Worth Killing (Faber & Faber, £14.99). His poems, stories and reviews have been published in journals such...
View ArticleEva Dolan on embracing rejection
Eva Dolan is an Essex-based copywriter, who was shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger for unpublished authors as a teenager. Her first novel is Long Way Home and the second book in the...
View ArticleLouise O’Neill: ‘I try and constantly cut back on the excess in my writing’
What was the first book to make an impression on you? The first book that I remember making an indelible impression on me was The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood. I’m a voracious reader so it takes...
View ArticleLiam Harte on Raymond Carver, Seamus Heaney and Edward Said
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Two books stand out: Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. What was your favourite book as a child? Island of...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Brian Conaghan on Yossarian, The Fault in our Stars and...
Brian Conaghan was born in 1971 and raised in the Scottish town of Coatbridge. He gained a Master of Letters in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow in 2007. His first novel, The Boy Who...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Kerry Hudson on the long line of Aberdonian fishwives from...
What was the first book to make an impression on you? I read To Kill a Mockingbird sitting on the steps of my council estate block when I was around 13. It portrayed a tenderness that it wasn’t...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Sinan Antoon on his literary life
Sinan Antoon is author of The Corpse Washer (Yale University Press), translated from Arabic by the author and recently longlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2014 What was the first book...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Gerald Dawe on the joy of getting a book in place and the...
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Sons and Lovers by D H Lawrence. What was your favourite book as a child? Treasure Island bought for me by my Uncle Terence when I was eight years...
View ArticleHerman Koch on being caught by Holden Caulfield
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Robinson Crusoe. I wanted to live on an island just like him. I played I did. What was your favourite book as a child? All the books that featured...
View ArticleLiam Harte on Raymond Carver, Seamus Heaney and Edward Said
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Two books stand out: Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness and JD Salinger’s The Catcher in the Rye. What was your favourite book as a child? Island of...
View ArticleGunnar Staalesen Q&A: ‘Most crime writers are very nice people, although I am...
One of the fathers of Nordic Noir, Gunnar Staalesen was born in Bergen, Norway in 1947. He made his debut at the age of 22 with Seasons of Innocence and in 1977 he published the first book in the Varg...
View ArticleGerard Lee’s motto: ‘Write something, or there’ll be no cake’
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Tarka the Otter by Henry Williamson. What was your favourite book as a child? The Boy with the Bronze Axe by Kathleen Fidler, published in 1968. I...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Sinan Antoon on his literary life
Sinan Antoon is author of The Corpse Washer (Yale University Press), translated from Arabic by the author and recently longlisted for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize 2014 What was the first book...
View ArticleBrought to Book: Gerald Dawe on the joy of getting a book in place and the...
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Sons and Lovers by D H Lawrence. What was your favourite book as a child? Treasure Island bought for me by my Uncle Terence when I was eight years...
View ArticleHerman Koch on being caught by Holden Caulfield
What was the first book to make an impression on you? Robinson Crusoe. I wanted to live on an island just like him. I played I did. What was your favourite book as a child? All the books that featured...
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