Burning Books Ireland

John O’Donnell’s fiction has been published in Counterparts (The Stinging Fly Press), The Hennessy Book of Irish Fiction ,  The Sunday Tribune ,  The Sunday Independent , The Stinging Fly ,  Books Ireland , The Irish Times , and RTÉ’s The Book on One .  Awards include the Hennessy Award for Emerging Fiction and Cúirt Festival of Literature New Writing Prize for Fiction. He has also published four...

Niamh MacCabe tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire. Niamh Mac Cabe is an award-winning writer of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, and hybrid prose. She's also a visual artist, and a lecturer on the Degree in Writing & Literature, the Degree in Performing Arts, and the Masters in Creative Practice programmes at ATU Sligo. Her debut short story collection Four Night...

Danielle McLaughlin tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire.  Danielle McLaughlin's debut collection of short stories Dinosaurs on Other Planets was published in Ireland by The Stinging Fly Press in 2015 and her first novel The Art of Falling (John Murray) was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award in 2022. In 2023 she was a recipient of a Markievicz Award. Her late...

Charleen Hurtubise tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.  Charleen Hurtubise is a novelist, essayist, and artist. She is author of The Polite Act of Drowning, published in Ireland and the UK by Eriu/Bonnier in 2023.  She holds an M.Sc . from Trinity College Dublin and an MFA in creative writing from University College Dublin, where she has facilitated creative writing s...

Author Gerard Beirne tells Ruth McKee which books he would save if his house was on fire.  Gerard Beirne is a novelist, poet, and short story writer, and curates the online magazine The Irish Literary Times. His work includes the novels The Eskimo in the Net (Marion Boyars, 2003), Turtle ( Oberon, 2009), Charlie Tallulah (Oberon, 2013), and The Thickness of Ice (Baraka Books, 2024). He currently t...

Tanya Sweeney tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.  Tanya Sweeney is a journalist and Weekend magazine columnist at the Irish Independent and is a regular contributor on Irish radio & TV. Her work in the music, film & TV industries helped inspire her debut novel, Esther is Now Following You (Penguin), a funny, fresh and deeply affecting story about celebrity fa...

Annemarie Ní Churreáin tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.  Annemarie Ní Churreáin is a poet from the Donegal Gaeltacht, Ireland. Her books include Bloodroot (Doire Press, 2017), Town (The Salvage Press, 2018), The Poison Glen (The Gallery Press, 2021), and Hymn to All the Restless Girls (The Gallery Press, 2025).  She is a recipient of the Irish Arts Council’s Next G...

Elaine Feeney tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.  Elaine Feeney is an acclaimed novelist and poet from the West of Ireland. Her debut novel, As You Were , was shortlisted for the Rathbones Folio Prize and the Irish Novel of the Year Award, and won the Kate O’Brien Award, the McKitterick Prize and the Dalkey Festival Emerging Writer Award. How to Build a Boat was also...

Audrey Whitty talks about the importance of place, an early passion for history, and the mystery of time as she tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire.   Audrey Whitty is an Irish archaeologist, librarian and curator, and the director of the National Library of Ireland. 

Gill Perdue talks about fairytales, the Sue Barton series, her experience of boarding school and much more as she tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.  Gill Perdue is the author of bestselling crime novels If I Tell, When They See Me , and most recently The Night I Killed Him , all published by Penguin. 

Éilís Ní Dhuibhne tells Ruth McKee about the books which have been important in her life, through childhood, love, and loss—and talks about how her writing practice has evolved.  Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, The Laureate for Irish Fiction, writes in both Irish and English. A member of Aosdána, she is Writer Fellow at UCD, where she teaches MA-level Creative Writing. She has been the recipient of many litera...

Brendan Mac Evilly talks about  Jean Paul Sartre, Dermot Healy, the art world and the artist as he tells Ruth McKee which books he’d save if his house was on fire.  Brendan Mac Evilly is director and co-editor of Holy Show, an annual arts journal and production company. He is the 2024/25 Emerging Curator in Development at Kilkenny Arts Office. His debut novel, Deep Burn , is published by Marrowbon...

Theo Dorgan talks about Doris Lessing, Robert Graves, observation and imagination as he talks to Ruth McKee for the latest episode of Burning Books. Theo Dorgan has published ten collections of poetry, and is also a translator, editor, essayist, novelist, broadcaster and documentary screenwriter. Volumes of his work have been published in Spanish, Italian, Greek and French, while among his own tra...

Gráinne O’Brien talks about moving to California, the influence of music in her life and work, and how she became a bookseller and writer as she tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire. Gráinne O'Brien is a bookseller and the founder of Rontu Literary Service, which is dedicated to supporting writers of fiction for children. She is the author of the children’s book  A Lime...

Rosemary Jenkinson talks about not being able to find the university library, living up to her Wikipedia page, and her experience in Ukraine, as she tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire. Rosemary Jenkinson is an award winning author who writes plays, short stories, and recently a collection of poetry. Now she has published her debut novel, The Memorisers, with Arlen...

Claire Hennessy talks about Malory Towers, Wonder Boys, Rachel’s Holiday and all kinds of everything from depression to editing as she tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire. Claire Hennessy is a writer, editor and creative writing facilitator. Best known as an author and reviewer of YA fiction, In the Movie of Her Life (Doire Press) is her debut collection of short s...

Patrick Holloway talks about acting, language, and art as a deeper way of communication as he tells Ruth McKee which books he would save if his house was on fire. Patrick Holloway’s debut novel, The Language of Remembering, is out now with Époque Press.

Ashwin Chacko talks about Curdie and the Goblin, Lord of the Rings, The Shack by Paul Young, the Bible and more as he tells Ruth McKee which books he’d save if his house was on fire. Ashwin Chacko is an author, illustrator, and motivational speaker who specialises in positively playful, visual storytelling. His books include Keep At It, Little Optimist, Everybody Feels Fear, and his most recent, W...

Julianne Mooney Siron talks about growing up in Greystones, her travels after college, and returning to Ireland and the Dublin Book Festival as she tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire. Julianne Mooney Siron has been programming the Dublin Book Festival since 2010. Alongside the festival, she has worked at The Ark, is author of The Time Out Guide to Ireland and was Read...

Poet Jessica Traynor talks about The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Linda Gregg’s All of it Singing, and Mary Ruefle as she explores growing as an artist, a time of loss, and the joy of mystery in poetry as she tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.   Jessica Traynor is the author of Liffey Swim (Dedalus Press), The Quick ( Dedalus Press), and Pit Lullabies (Bloodaxe Books...

Eoghan Smith talks about the influence of philosophy, learning the piano, and staying curious in his reading and work as he tells Ruth McKee which books he’d save if his house was on fire. Eoghan Smith is the author of The Failing Heart ,  A Provincial Death , and A Mind of Winter (Dedalus Books).

Cauvery Madhavan talks about Mulk Raj Anand, Amitav Ghosh, Khalil Gibran and more as she talks to Ruth McKee about starting school early, a tragedy in her life, and moving to Ireland when she was 23. Discover the books she’d save if her house was on fire in the latest episode of Burning Books.   Cauvery Madhavan was born in India and moved to Ireland thirty-three years ago. She is the author of Pa...

Michael Magee talks about his early life, finding the path to becoming a writer, and the influence of Hemmingway and Chekhov—and much more—for this special live recording of Burning Books at the West Cork Literary Festival. Michael Magee ’s debut novel Close To Home won the Rooney Prize for Literature, the Nero Book Award for Debut Fiction and the Waterstones Irish Book of the Year in 2023.

Sarah Webb talks about her early days in Waterstones, how she doesn’t write for the market, and learning to give time to what’s important, as she tells Ruth McKee which books she’d save if her house was on fire.   Sarah Webb is an award-winning Irish children’s writer and creative writing teacher. She is also the events manager at Halfway up the Stairs children’s bookshop in Greystones, Co Wicklow...

Catherine Dunne talks about her childhood in Clontarf, an inspiring teacher, and what led her to write her new novel as she tells Ruth McKee which books she would save if her house was on fire.  Catherine Dunne is the author of several award-winning novels, essays, and one work of non-fiction. She received the 2018 Irish PEN Award for Outstanding Contribution to Irish Literature and is a member of...