Brilliant Book Titles #127

You can reserve a copy online at South Dublin Libraries’ catalogue here.

Blurb:
Conor Brady edited “The Irish Times” for sixteen years between 1986 and 2002. It was a period of extraordinary change both in Ireland and in the wider world. This book reveals with intriguing detail how the paper both managed and made the news during two turbulent decades. It tells of encounters, not all friendly, with politicians, such as Charles Haughey, Dick Spring, Albert Reynolds (who sued the paper serially), John Hume, Mary Robinson, Bertie Ahern and many others. It describes the meticulous investigations – and sometimes the crises of decision making – that preceded pivotal stories, including Bishop Casey, the X Case, the Lenihan tapes, the fall of Albert Reynolds and others. It addresses the personal and corporate tensions at the heart of Ireland’s longest-established national newspaper, while providing close insights into the working of modern media with an honest recognition of the good and bad that is contemporary journalism. “The Irish Times” has been at the centre of public life in Ireland for almost 150 years. It has been lauded as the mouthpiece of the establishment and decried as subversive of public order and morality. It has always been controversial. Conor Brady likens the job of editor of a national newspaper to being the driver of an express train: ‘There is no time to dwell on the wonders of the landscape or the novelty of the events that have just passed by.’ His account of editing “The Irish Times” is a frank and engaging journey to the heart of a great Irish institution.

Most Requested #3 – October 2016

An occasional (seemingly now monthly!) series of blog posts where I discuss the most requested books in Irish Libraries. Our library managment system now caters for 17 authorities and these are the most requested books across that system.

#5

Since its publication in 2014, this Irish novelist’s debut has been almost constantly on reserve! The thriller has been dubbed ‘a swift and mesmerising read by an exciting new Irish voice’ (The Irish Times) and ‘a startlingly good debut’ (The Irish Examiner) and has proven pernially popular, currently having 206 holds, leaving many eagerly awaiting the follow-up (which appears elsewhere on this list….)

#4

Another debut novel, this time from this year, that’s made quite the splash. The Irish Times succinctly described it as a ‘provocative coming-of-age tale inspired by the Manson murders deserves all the hype’ whilst The Guardian only agrees to an extent, saying that whilst its has its strengths that ‘The Girls is far from a perfect novel’. Who’s right? Ultimately, that’s for you to decide. Although you may be waiting a while, since it currently has 213 holds. 

#3

A brand new release has flown into the top five. Donal Ryan, author of the massive bestseller The Spinning Heart is back with his third novel. The Irish Times says that the ‘novel reads compulsively and is delivered with an impressively disciplined power’ whilst again, the dissenting Guardian disagrees stating that the novel is ‘a departure for Ryan, All We Shall Know is a brave attempt at extending his oeuvre. It might just be an extension too far’. Still, despite that, others are responding well, and RTÉ calls it ‘ a curious, brave novel will have you reflecting on its topical concerns, and its challenging version of contemporary Ireland, for days afterwards’. High praise indeed, and with 227 holds, the public it seems wants to know what all the fuss is about All We Shall Know (sorry, I had to).

#2 and #1

If you read our previous two Most Requested posts, you won’t be surprised to see these two books at the top of our charts. And yes, they’re both still there, in fact, they’re more popular. Well, one of them is.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has slipped from 316 holds in September to a still respectable 246 holds. One thing that I am noticing about this book though is that there seems to be very little buzz around it. Will there still be as many holds next month, or will it have slipped even further?

Lying in Wait continues it complete domination of the charts , increasing from 494 holds in September to 554 holds this month! It’s taking the country by storm, with The Irish Independent stating that ‘since its release, Lying In Wait has become a presence in the Irish fiction charts, and is a dead cert to be remembered in end-of-year lists as “the feel-bad hit of the summer’. And one doesn’t get higher praise than that!

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Will I am Pilgrim claw its way back into our chart? Will Unravelling Oliver …unravel? (What? I’m no Ann Robinson!). Is something Lying in Wait to take the top spot from Liz Nugent? Find out next time on Most Requested. Same blog time, same blog channel!

Most Requested #2 – September 2016

An occasional series of blog posts where I discuss the most requested books in Irish Libraries. Our new library managment system now caters for 17 authorities and these are the most requested books across that system.

This month, I’ll be discussing the Top 5 Most Requested Books at the moment

#5

Coming in at number 5, with 125 holds, is Maggie O’Farrell’s most recent novel, This Must Be The Place. It’s been getting fantastic reviews with The Guardian (“audacious”) and The Irish Times (“In this tender, thoughtful novel, the lyrical writing is full of grace but never feels forced or affected. O’Farrell also has a gift for creating whole characters in just a few pages”).

#4

Beating out number five by just three holds, Terry Hayes’ I am Pilgrim with 128 holds. This thriller has been perennially popular since its publication in 2013 – and is seemingly always on hold (which is a very good sign of its popularity). It’s Hayes’ debut novel and people are now chomping at the bit for a follow-up, but Mr. Hayes seems to be taking his time (another good sign).

#3

Elena Ferrante’s four Neopolitan Novels have been hugely successful. It seems that everyone who is reading the series has read the first book, My Brilliant Friend, and have moved onto the second, The Story of a New Name, which has 137 holds (interestingly, My Brilliant Friend is not on the top 25 most requested at all at the moment). The books tell the story of two best friends, Elena and Raffaella, from childhood to adulthood, and have been a huge success, leading to a massive boost in all of Ferrante’s other novels, which have been subsequently reprinted, and a proposed 32-part television series of The Neopolitan Novels.

What I find fascinating about Ferrante, who was named this year as one of the 100 Most Influential People in 2016 by TIME Magazine, is that the name is a pseudonym and her true identity is a closely guarded secret – something that’s fascinating in this day and age where everyone knows everything about everyone!

#2 and #1

If you read, our previous installment of Most Requested, you will have read how Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Lying in Wait were the two most popular books in libraries.

When I wrote the last post, our number #2, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, had just been released and had 90 holds. A few weeks later, and more people have heard about it, and there is now a WHOPPING 316 holds. What a difference a (few) day(s) makes!

It’s a similar story with Lying in Wait. Liz Nugent’s eagerly awaited follow-up to Unravelling Oliver had 280 holds and now has a frankly jaw-dropping 494 holds. This book is clearly the hit of the summer!

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That’s all from Most Requested for this month! Will Maggie O’Farrell take down Terry Hayes? Will Elena Ferrante’s third Neopolitan novel hit the top five? Will everyone have read Lying in Wait by October? Find out next month, same book time, same book channel!