Book description
Moran is an old Republican whose life was forever transformed by
his days of glory as a guerilla leader in the War of Independence.
Now, in old age, living out in the country, Moran is still fighting -
with his family, his friends, even himself - in a poignant struggle to
come to terms with the past. 'A masterpiece.' John Banville 'John
McGahern is the Irish novelist everyone should read.' Colm Tóibín 'It
is compact but not dense, spare yet rich, and brimming with tension.'
Observer 'An overwhelming experience.' The Times 'McGahern brings us
that tonic gift of the best fiction, the sense of truth - the sense of
transparency that permits us to see imaginary lives more clearly than
we see our own.' John Updike 'One of the greatest writers of our era.'
Hilary Mantel, New Statesman
John McGahern was born in Dublin in 1934 and brought up in the
Republic of Ireland. He trained to be a primary-school teacher before
becoming a full-time writer, and later taught and travelled extensively.
He lived in County Leitrim. The author of six highly acclaimed novels
and four collections of short stories, he was the recipient of numerous
awards and honours, including a Society of Authors Travelling
Scholarship, the American-Irish Award, the Prix Etrangère Ecureuil and
the Chevalier de l Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. Amongst Women, which
won both the GPA and the Irish Times Award, was shortlisted for the
Booker Prize and made into a four-part BBC television series. His work
appeared in numerous anthologies and has been translated into many
languages. In 2005, his autobiography, Memoir, won the South Bank
Literature Award. John McGahern died in 2006.
