Louise Kennedy (writer)
Louise Kennedy | |
|---|---|
 Kennedy in 2023 | |
| Occupation | Writer |
| Alma mater | Queen's University Belfast |
| Notable works | Trespasses The End of the World is a Cul de Sac |
Louise Kennedy (born 1966 or 1967)[1] is an Irish writer.
Early life and education
[edit]Kennedy grew up in Holywood, County Down, Northern Ireland,[1] and, from the age of 12, in Dublin and Kildare.[2] She worked as a chef for 30 years before joining a creative writing group at a friend's insistence.[3] She has an MA and a PhD in creative writing from Queen's University Belfast.[2]
Writing
[edit]Kennedy's early short stories appeared in publications including The Stinging Fly, The Tangerine, Banshee, Wasafiri and Ambit.[2] She was shortlisted for the 2019 and 2020 Sunday Times Short Story Awards, for "In Silhouette" and "Sparing the Heather" respectively.[4][5]
Kennedy's first novel, Trespasses (2022), was shortlisted for the 2022 (inaugural) Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize[6] and the 2023 Women's Prize for Fiction.[7] Kennedy has said that it is "a star-crossed love story set in a small town near Belfast in 1975, at the height of the time known as The Troubles".[1]
She published a book of short stories, The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac, in 2023. They were described by Kirkus Reviews as "set in a contemporary Ireland divided by wealth and education".[8] The Guardian's reviewer called it a "dazzling, heartbreaking debut collection",[9] and the New York Journal of Books wrote of "deep-probing, slice-of-life stories seamlessly woven in stark vignettes without a filter".[10]
She has also written for The Guardian, The Irish Times, and BBC Radio 4.[11]
Personal life
[edit]Awards
[edit]| Year | Book | Award | Category | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Trespasses | Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Award | — | Nominated | |
| Irish Book Award | — | Won | |||
| Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize | — | Shortlisted | |||
| 2023 | British Book Award | Overall Book of the Year | Shortlisted | ||
| Début Book of the Year | Won | ||||
| Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award | — | Shortlisted | |||
| McKitterick Prize | — | Won | |||
| Women's Prize for Fiction | — | Shortlisted |
Selected publications
[edit]- —— (2023). Trespasses. London: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 9781526623324.
- —— (2023). The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac (1st U.S. ed.). New York: Riverhead Books. ISBN 9780593540923.
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Five minutes with Louise Kennedy". Women's Prize. 25 May 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
in 2014 when I was 47
- ^ a b c Reynolds, Mark (14 April 2021). "Louise Kennedy: Marks on the ground". Bookanista. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ Ciabattari, Jane (19 December 2023). "Louise Kennedy on Discovering Fiction's Complex Emotional Truths". Literary Hub. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ "The Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award Shortlist Collection 2019". Audible. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ "The Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award Shortlist Collection 2020". Audible. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ Doyle, Martin (20 July 2022). "Louise Kennedy on Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize shortlist; Margaret Atwood at Clifden festival". The Irish Times. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ Shaffi, Sarah (26 April 2023). "Three debut novels compete among Women's prize for fiction shortlist". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ "The End of the World is a Cul de Sac". Kirkus Reviews. 9 September 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ Cook, Jude (22 April 2021). "The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac by Louise Kennedy review – a dazzling debut". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ Fullerton, Claire. "The End of the World Is a Cul de Sac: Stories". New York Journal of Books. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
- ^ a b "Louise Kennedy". PenguinRandomhouse.com. Penguin Random House. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
Further reading
[edit]- Kennedy, Louise (31 March 2023). "The books of my life: 'I read Wuthering Heights twice and found it demented'". The Guardian.
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