One City One Book Launch The Launch of Whatever It Takes as the One City One Book by Cork Deputy Lord Mayor Cllr Kieran McCarthy took place in Cork City Library on 14 August. I discussed the book with the great poet and author Thomas McCarthy.
I’m thrilled to announce that my second book, Whatever It Takes has been chosen as the Cork, One City One Book choice for 2020. I’m so grateful to Cork City Libraries for this great honour. The One City One Book project transforms Cork into a citywide book club, with individuals, groups, and organisations reading one selected book, in turn building a sense of community, promoting reading and literacy.
My second novel, Whatever It Takes was published by the Mercier Press on August 5th, 2020. This is a contemporary crime novel set in Cork city, featuring a Garda detective, Collins, who goes to war against a professional criminal.
I really enjoyed being interviewed by Marjorie Brennan for the Irish Examiner talking about Whatever it Takes, winning the Cork One City One Book award and all things writing. We talked about my first book, The First Sunday in September and sports fiction, too.
In her list of books to read during the summer of 2020, Marjorie Brennan includes Whatever It Takes among some heavyweights like Anne Tyler, David Mitchell, Robert Harris and others. The best fiction books for the beach and beyond this summer.
I was delighted to have a piece published in the Irish Times. In this article I have more questions than answers about bringing out a book in a time of crisis. My Covid-19 anxieties come to the fore. Written in the style of Donald Barthelme’s Concerning the Bodyguard.
I was delighted to have my sports essay Hurt published in The42.ie as part of their Bylines Series. I am number 2 of 12 Irish writers (following no less than Donal Ryan) to be part of this series, which will be published as a book in 2021.
I’m delighted to announce I’m working with the legendary Cork dual-star Denis Coughlan on his biography, to be published by Hero Books later in 2020 as part of the Legends Series. Denis contested no less than 81 county, provincial and All-Ireland finals at all grades during his fantastic career.
Great to see my forthcoming novel Whatever It Takes listed in Books to Watch Out For in 2020 by the Irish Times. 59 books to watch out for in 2020 – all from independent publishers In some heady company, lovely to have the book mentioned at the beginning of 2020.
My essay ‘Five Moments in Sport’ was published in the 2019 issue of The Holly Bough. This sports essay is mostly about my father and why I write. The Holly Bough is Cork’s foremost Christmas publication, since 1897, with over 250,000 readers worldwide. Click here to subscribe.
