Graham Norton: ‘In a world going to hell in a handcart, Ireland is a wonderful beacon’

The chatshow host’s new novel centres on Irish lives dominated by shame and repression. Yet, after ‘decades of darkness’, the country’s legalisation of abortion and gay marriage have made him hopefulGraham Norton’s second novel, A Keeper, had not gone to press before this interview, so his publisher ran off an A5 photocopy for me. After reading the first few pages, I thought they must have sent me the wrong book. Literary fiction this strong could not be the work of a TV star whose canon of previous works comprised one novel. Whoever wrote this clearly had to be an established author.When I tell Norton this, he does a little squirm beside me on the sofa. “Oh my God, that’s incredibly nice of you. I’m not very good at taking compliments, so let’s gloss over this bit, but I’ll just say thank you very much. Seriously, that’s really, really nice.”We’ve got to thank the church for what Ireland is now, because it is a reaction to all those decades of darknessPeople get stuck in their heads about the thing that’s wrong with their life – they forget to have a lovely time Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2018-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Science Fiction for Early Readers: The Fantastic World of DINOSAUR TRAIN

Get to know the fantastic and thrilling world of the DINOSAUR TRAIN series, a shining example of science fiction for early readers. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2020-06-02 10:35:52 UTC ]
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A look at the post-apocalyptic world envisioned in the novel ‘After London’

Richard Jefferies’s book prefigures J.G. Ballard’s disaster novels like “The Drowned World.” Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-05-27 15:57:12 UTC ]
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BookExpot 2020: Rebecca Roanhorse Offers Readers a Different Fantasy World

The prolific author's latest novel, Black Sun, is an epic fantasy set in pre-Columbian America, Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-05-26 04:00:00 UTC ]
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MCB signs Riddell's world-saving poetry anthology

Macmillan Children’s Books has acquired Chris Riddell’s new poetry anthology, Poems To Save The World With, including work produced during the pandemic. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-22 05:59:03 UTC ]
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How The Publishing World Is Staying Afloat During The Pandemic

Quarantine may be a golden opportunity to finally read "War and Peace" — but it's not an easy time for the book industry. Continue reading at HuffPost

[ HuffPost | 2020-05-21 09:45:35 UTC ]
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Samanta Schweblin’s ‘Little Eyes’ envisions a world connected — and sometimes torn apart — by tiny, adorable gadgets

Cuddly devices known as kentuki are the latest trend, but the fallout from their popularity is hard to predict. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-05-19 15:58:15 UTC ]
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How I Hustled Hundreds of Dollars of Free Tacos for the Literary World

Taco Bell Quarterly is the literary magazine for Taco Bell-inspired literature. When I started it, I had heard the jokes about the looming cease and desist that Taco Bell would eventually banhammer down upon me. Rebellious and having no working knowledge of copyright laws, my motto was RIDE OR... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-19 08:49:11 UTC ]
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Granta wins auction for Hyde's Second World War debut

Granta Books has acquired lecturer Alex Hyde’s first novel, Violets, in a four-way auction. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-19 06:51:31 UTC ]
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Virtual events should 'mirror the real world', says Orion's Wilding

Maura Wilding has urged publicists and marketing teams to think about "mirroring the real world" when organising online events. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-19 01:03:37 UTC ]
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Zepf and Crossan win at KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards

Máire Zepf and Sarah Crossan are among the winners at KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards.  Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-19 00:57:46 UTC ]
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World Literature Today Announces 2020 Student Translation Prize Winners

News and Events The Editors of WLT From left to right, prose winner Jamie Lauer and writer Pía Barros, poetry winner Russell Karrick, poet Lucía Estrada. Jamie Lauer and Russell Karrick recently were named as the recipients of the third annual... Continue reading at World Literature Today

[ World Literature Today | 2020-05-18 13:29:17 UTC ]
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Essential end-of-the-world reading list offers a glimpse of the abyss

Emily St. John Mandel, Susan Orlean, T.C Boyle, Marlon James and others share apocalypse reading picks. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2020-05-13 18:56:28 UTC ]
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7 Weirdly Specific Libraries and Collections From Around the World

From hip hop to Yiddish works to sourdough starter, explore some of the most niche libraries and collections found on the globe and online. Continue reading at Book Riot

[ Book Riot | 2020-05-11 10:32:24 UTC ]
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International Spotlight: Ireland book sales’ value falls 29% in lockdown

Across the Irish Sea the books market has suffered as bookshops have been shuttered, falling by almost a third in value Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-11 04:31:29 UTC ]
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Rob Biddulph to attempt world record for largest online art lesson

Children's author and illustrator Rob Biddulph is attempting to break the world record for the largest online art lesson, in partnership with HarperCollins and global talent investor Entrepreneur First. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-05-06 15:32:05 UTC ]
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When the world was too much with me, here’s what I read for some R&R

Mysteries from the Golden Age, Arthur Conan Doyle and a helluva good book about a Texas book dealer. Continue reading at The Washington Post

[ The Washington Post | 2020-05-06 12:00:00 UTC ]
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Spotify, Wizarding World bring Harry Potter to digital audio

Daniel Radcliffe, David Beckham and Dakota Fanning are among a handful of celebrities who will be reading various chapters of “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone/Sorcerer’s Stone” exclusively on Spotify. Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2020-05-05 18:54:51 UTC ]
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Caught Between Worlds? For Elizabeth Acevedo, It’s a Familiar Feeling

“Clap When You Land,” the latest novel from the National Book Award winner, delves into the split lives that many immigrants experience. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2020-05-04 09:00:24 UTC ]
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Lois Lowry’s Ode to the Fallen in World War II

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[ The New York Times | 2020-05-01 09:00:05 UTC ]
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The Abnormalizing of the World: A Conversation On Mental Illness

Two celebrated memoirists of mental illness—Marin Sardy, author of The Edge of Every Day: Sketches of Schizophrenia, and Sarah C. Townsend, author of Setting the Wire: A Memoir of Postpartum Psychosis—discuss writing, families, and the struggle to make meaning out of madness. * Sarah Townsend:... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-05-01 08:47:51 UTC ]
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