THE LIBRARY Great Books By Irish Authors and Great Books As Gaeilge - 2020

The books, recommended for ages 12-18, meet the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading for teens by Irish authors, Irish translations of great novels agus leabhair Ghaeilge.

The list comprises a wide range of genres and styles, including contemporary realistic fiction, fantasy, horror and science fiction.

It is not meant to be viewed as a definitive selection.

All are available in the St. Andrew’s College Library.

Banville, John The Book Of Evidence

The book is narrated by Freddie Montgomery, a 38-year-old scientist who murders a servant during an attempt to steal a neighbour’s painting. Freddie is an aimless drifter, and though he is a perceptive observer of himself and his surroundings, he is largely amoral.

Barry, Sebastian Days Without End

2016 Costa Book Of The Year

A novel of duty and family set during the American Indian and Civil Wars.

Thomas McNulty flees Ireland during the Famine and signs up for the U S Army. With his brother in arms, John Cole, Thomas goes on to fight in the Indian Wars and the Civil War. Orphans of terrible hardships themselves, the men find these days to be vivid and alive, despite the horrors they see and are complicit in. Thomas and John must decide on the best way of life for them all in the face of dangerous odds.

Black, Benjamin (pseudonym of John Banville) The Quirke Mystery Series (Christine Falls, Elegy for April, The Silver Swan, A Death in Summer and Vengeance).

The pathologist and detective anti-hero, Quirke, works in 1950s Dublin at Holy Family Hospital. In a series of atmospheric murder mysteries he seeks to uncover the truth about apparent suicides, altered death certificates, child abuse and church corruption.

The novels have been made into a TV series.

Suitable for senior students.

Boyne, John. The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas

Nine-year-old Bruno knows nothing about the Holocaust. His family has moved from a comfortable home in Berlin to a house in a desolate area where there is nothing to do and no one to play with. There he meets Shmuel, a boy who lives on the other side of a wire fence and who, like the other people there, wears a uniform of striped pyjamas. CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

If you liked this you should try The Boy At Top Of The Mountain and Emil And Karl by Yankev Glatshteyn

The Heart’s Invisible Furies - Catherine Goggin finds herself alone and pregnant at sixteen. She knows she has no choice but to believe that the nun she entrusts her child to will find him a better life. The novel tackles the hypocrisy of 20th century Ireland.

Carey, Anna The Making Of Mollie

Spring 1912 - 14-year-old Mollie lives in Drumcondra with her parents, her older sister Phyllis, her spoiled older brother Harry and her little sister Julia. Mollie thinks her life is boring - until she discovers that Phyllis is a secret suffragette. After attending a suffrage meeting, Mollie wants to do something for the movement too – and she soon convinces her best friend Nora to join her. At last, they have some excitement in their lives!!!

If you liked The Making Of Mollie you’ll probably like her ‘Rebecca’ series

Carroll, Sarah The Girl In Between

Sam and her ma take shelter in an abandoned mill in central Dublin from life on the streets. The windows are boarded up and the floorboards falling in, but for Sam these things don’t matter. It's The Castle - a home of her own like no other, and a place of safety. But hard as she tries to hold on to her world, things are starting to change. As the men in yellow coats close in on their refuge, and her ma spins further out of control, Sam finds herself seeking friendship in the ghosts of the mill - and questioning who is really there.

Moving story of family and homelessness

Colfer, Eoin. Artemis Fowl Series.

A 12 year old criminal mastermind plots to restore his family’s fortunes with a little kidnapping and corruption. Fairy kidnapping to be more precise!

The other novels in the series are in the Library. The graphic novel adaptation of ‘Artemis Fowl’ is also available.

Airman - historical fantasy set in 19th century Ireland at the beginning of flight. Conor Broekhart overhears a plot to murder the king, but is discovered and then framed for the murder. Sent to prison in a high tower, Conor uses his knowledge of flying to create a machine that will help him escape

Also have a look at Once Upon A Place a collection of short stories located in the non-fiction section of the Library at 808.83

His graphic novel Illegal tells of one boy’s journey across Africa to Europe. His sister and brother have left. Now it’s his turn to go. His epic journey takes him across the Sahara Desert to the dangerous streets of Tripoli and onto a boat in the Mediterranean. But with every step he holds on to his hope for a new life and a reunion with his sister. The story gives

a first person perspective on the terrible obstacles faced by migrants and refugees. It won the CBI Judges’ Special Award.

Collins, Orlagh No Filter

Emerald has grown up in a privileged world – but her family has its secrets. She finds her mum unconscious on the bathroom floor and is sent off to stay with her grandmother in Ireland. Her Grandma's big, lonely house set back from the beach, with no phone signal or wifi. It's going to be a long summer ... until she meets Liam.

When you're falling in love, it's hard to tell someone everything. And when secrets and lies are all you're used to, how do you deal with real love - brave and true - with no filter?

Perfect for fans of John Green, Rainbow Rowell and Stephen Chbosky

All The Invisible Things - Vetty's family is moving back to London, and all she can think about is seeing Pez again. They were inseparable when they were small - roaming the city in the long summers, sharing everything. But everyone's telling her it'll be different now. After all, a boy and a girl can't really be friends without feelings getting in the way, can they? Vetty thinks differently - until Pez tells her she's 'not like other girls'. But what does that even mean? Is it a good thing or not? Suddenly she's wondering whether she wants him to see her like the others - like the ultra-glamorous March, who's worked some sort of spell on Pez, or the girls in the videos that Pez has hidden on his laptop. How can she measure up to them? And who says that's what a girl is supposed to be like anyway?

Conlon-McKenna, Marita. Under the Hawthorn Tree.

Ireland in the 1840s is devastated by famine. When their parents die, Eily, Michael and Peggy are left to fend for themselves. Starving and in danger of being sent to the workhouse, they escape. Their one hope is to find the great aunts they have heard about from their mother. They set out on a journey that will test their strength, love and loyalty.

The Library stocks the other novels in the ‘Children of the Famine’ series.

Connolly, John The Book Of Lost Things

Brilliantly creepy coming of age novel.

Twelve-year-old David mourns the death of his mother, with only the books on the shelf of his attic bedroom for company. But the books have begun to whisper to him in the darkness. Angry and alone, he takes refuge in his imagination and soon finds that reality and fantasy have begun to blend. While his family falls apart around him, David is propelled into a world that is a strange reflection of his own - populated by heroes and monsters and ruled by a faded king who keeps his secrets in a mysterious book - The Book of Lost Things.

Looking for a good horror story about the struggle between good and evil? Then try The Gates. Boo!

Crossan, Sarah. The Weight Of Water

A novel in verse.Armed with a suitcase and an old laundry bag filled with clothes, Kasienka and her mother head for England. Life is lonely for Kasienka. At home her mother's heart is breaking and at school friends are scarce. But when someone special swims into her life, Kasienka learns that there might be more than one way for her to stay afloat. The Weight of Water is a brilliant coming of age story, it also tackles the alienation experienced by many young immigrants. One - Grace and Tippi are conjoined twins. No longer able to afford homeschooling, they must venture into the world - a world of stares, sneers and cruelty. But can they find more than that at school? Can they find real friends? And what about love? Just as Tippi and Grace have begun to live like normal teenagers, Grace gets sick, so sick separation might be the only option left open to them. But separation could mean spending the rest of their lives in wheelchairs. Separation could mean death. And whatever happens, it means being torn apart. CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

You might also like Apple & Rain, Breathe, We Come Apart and Moonrise.

Crossley-Holland, Kevin. Heartsong

Carnegie award winning author

A short novel based on the life of Vivaldi

Abandoned at the orphanage in Venice as a baby, Laura is mute. Her life is transformed when the composer, Vivaldi, unlocks her passion for music. 

Donoghue, Emma Room.

Jack has never been outside. He lives with his mother in a single room. He is a happy, smart 5-year-old, but his Mother knows that the time has come to escape.

The Wonder - Lib Wright is an English nurse who has been brought to Ireland to watch over a new patient - 11 year old Anna O'Donnell whose parents claim she has not eaten anything since her last birthday, four months ago. Lib and a nun work in shifts to observe the girl - trying to discover how she has managed to survive without food. Is there something underhand going on?

This novel would be suitable for senior students.

Dowd, Siobhan. The London Eye Mystery.

Ted and Kat watch their cousin get on the London Eye, but he doesn’t get off with everyone else. The police are unsuccessful in their search, so Ted (who has Asperger’s) and Kat follow a number of clues across London to find Salim.

The Pavee And The Buffer Girl – a beautifully written graphic novel. Jim and his family have halted by Dundray and the education authorities have been round mouthing the law. In school the Traveller kids suffer at the hands of teachers and other pupils alike, called 'tinker-stinkers', 'dirty gyps' and worse. Then the punches start. The only friendly face is Kit, a settled girl who takes Jim under her wing and teaches him to read in the great cathedral chamber in the cave below the town.

Solace of the Road, A Swift Pure Cry and Bog Child would be suitable for senior students.

Siobhan Down won the CBI Book Of The Year Award in 2008 and 2009

Doyle, Catherine The Storm Keeper’s Island

Fionn and his older sister Tara have been sent to stay with their grandfather on the remote island of Arranmore for the summer. Though Fionn has never met his grandfather - an eccentric old man who lives in a tiny cottage filled to the brim with candles - he knows he comes from a long line of brave lifeboat men, who wear the sea behind their eyes. Fionn is scared of the sea. He has no interest in adventure or shipwrecks or the restless wind that rustles through the island, as though in search of something. But an old magic is stirring deep inside the layers of Arranmore, and it is calling out to Fionn.

Combines fantasy, adventure and myth

Doyle, Roddy. The Barrytown Trilogy (The Commitments, The Snapper, The Van)

This very funny trilogy tells of the adventure of the Rabbite family from Dublin. "The Commitments" traces the rapid rise and even more rapid fall of Jimmy Rabbite Jr's unusual soul band. In "The Snapper", Sharon's pregnancy sparks off intense speculation among her friends and family, but she is determined to reveal the identity of the father in her own time. "The Van" is set during Ireland's 1990 World Cup attempt, follows the fortunes of Jimmy Sr and his friend Bimbo as they launch their travelling fish'n'chip shop on an unsuspecting Barrytown. Another great read is A Greyhound of a Girl which deals with death, love and loss. Twelve year old Mary's beloved grandmother is near the end of her life. Letting go is hard - until Granny's long-dead mammy appears at Mary's door, returning to help her dying daughter say goodbye. But first she needs someone to drive them all on a visit to the past.

Reluctant readers might like to read Wilderness

Enright, Anne The Gathering

Winner Man Booker Prize

The nine surviving Hegarty children gather in Dublin for their brother’s wake. His sister collects the body and keeps the dead man company, guarding the secret she shares with him - something that happened in their grandmother’s house in the winter of 1968. It’s a novel about love, disappointment, how memories warp and secrets fester, and how fate is written in the body, not in the stars.

Finn, Mary. Anila’s Journey.

When Anila Tandy's guardians, the Hickeys, decide to leave Calcutta, they ask her to accompany them, but she refuses to go just in case her long-gone Irish father returns as he promised many years ago. Anila is left to fend for herself in the city. She applies for a position that is clearly not meant for her. But, the talented “Bird Girl of Calcutta” has never shrunk from a challenge. The voyage up the Ganges might be just the thing to help Anila in her search for her father, missing for years and presumed dead.

The story is set in eighteenth century colonial India.

Fitzgerald, Sarah Moore. Back To Blackbrick

Cosmo's brother died when he was ten years old. His mum works all the hours God sends and Cosmo lives with his grandparents. They've been fun days as his Grandfather buys him a horse and teaches him all he knows about horses. But the good times come to an end as Cosmo realises his Grandfather is losing his mind. His Grandfather gives him a key to Blackbrick Abbey and urges him to go there. Cosmo is dropped off at the crumbling gates of a huge house. As he goes in, the gates close, and when he looks back they're padlocked. Cosmo finds himself face to face with his grandfather as a young man, and questions begin to form in his mind: can Cosmo change the course of his family's future?

Try her other novels A Very Good Chance; The Apple Tart Of Hope (what a title!!) and The List Of Real Things

Fitzpatrick, Marie-Louise. Dark Warning

Taney has the gift of second sight. She knows that she must keep her gift a secret. She is teased and isolated by the local children for being strange. As Taney grows older, she has more and more questions. Why is her father so terrified of her gift? What happened to her mother?

Then she meets the mysterious Billy. Charming and attentive, Billy is the first person with whom she can simply be herself; with whom she can share her strange burden.

But then the visions come and as Billy begins to withdraw further into himself, Taney must ask herself who to trust - her only friend, or the visions that torment her dreams?

This would be suitable for senior students.

Hagwitch - 16th-century London. Flea Nettleworth, apprentice to a playwright, watches as his struggling master's fortunes turn, and all of a sudden London is in his thrall. But soon Flea's master can no longer tell where the imagined world ends and the real one begins. Could the arrival of a mysterious Faery Elder trunk hold the answer? Modern day, Lally lives on a barge, roaming the canalways and performing shows with her puppeteer father. Then, after Lally's father pulls an ancient piece of wood from the canal and fashions it into a puppet, his success seems unstoppable. As her father's obsession with his puppet grows and his plays become darker, Lally begins to wonder if there is something rather sinister, dangerous even, about the wooden doll. CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

Flegg, Aubrey. Wings over Delft (The Louise Trilogy)

Louise Eeden belongs to a wealthy Dutch family. When her father commissions a famous artist to paint her portrait, she reluctantly agrees. But lately things have started to move too fast in her life. Somehow everyone believes she is engaged to Reynier de Vries; a marriage that will bring about the merger of two respected businesses. In the studio with Master Haitink and his gangly apprentice, Pieter, Louise unexpectedly finds the freedom to be herself.

But someone has been watching her every move, and her deepening friendship with Pieter has not gone unnoticed. Behind the scenes, a web of treachery and deceit is gradually unravelling. Will there be another surprise for Louise?

Forde, Patricia. Wordsmith

In the city of Ark, speech is limited to five hundred sanctioned words. Speak outside the approved list and face banishment. The exceptions are the Wordsmith and his apprentice Letta, the keepers and archivists of all language in their post-apocalyptic, neo-medieval world. 

On the death of her master, Letta is suddenly promoted to Wordsmith, charged with collecting and saving words. But when she uncovers a sinister plan to suppress language and rob Ark’s citizens of their power of speech, she realizes that it’s up to her to save not only words, but culture itself

Fowley-Doyle, Maria All The Bad Apples

On Deena's 17th birthday, the day she finally comes out to her family, her wild and mysterious sister Mandy is seen leaping from a cliff. The family is heartbroken, but not surprised. The women of the Rys family have always been troubled - 'bad apples', their father calls them - and Mandy is the baddest of them all. But then Deena starts to receive letters from Mandy, claiming that their family's blighted history is not just bad luck or bad decisions, but a curse, handed down to the Rys women through the generations. Mandy has gone in search of the curse's roots, and now Deena must begin a frantic cross-country hunt for her sister, guided only by the letters that mysteriously appear in each new place.

French, Tana. In The Woods.

When he was twelve years old, Adam Ryan went playing in the woods one day with his two best friends. He never saw them again. Their bodies were never found, and Adam was discovered with his back pressed against an oak tree and his shoes filled with blood. He had no memory of what had happened. Twenty years on, he is a detective in Dublin. He's changed his name. No one knows about his past. Then a little girl's body is found at the site of the old tragedy and he is drawn back into the mystery. Knowing that he would be thrown off the case if his past were revealed, Rob takes a fateful decision to keep quiet but hopes that he might solve the twenty-year-old mystery of the woods. The Library stocks her other novels in the very enjoyable Dublin Murder Squad series. Try her latest The Wych Elm

Gallagher, Brian Pawns

In a time of war, how much would you risk to help a friend? Johnny Dunne works hard at Balbriggan's Mill Hotel, but still finds time to enjoy life with his friends, Alice and Stella. Though the three come from different backgrounds - Johnny had a harsh childhood in an orphanage, Alice is the daughter of the hotel owner and Stella the daughter of the Commanding Officer at the nearby RAF Gormanston. - they're inseparable, living at the hotel and playing together in the town band. But with the War of Independence raging, the friends face difficult decisions. Stella is pro-British, Johnny is pro-independence, and Alice is somewhere in between. Then Johnny's secret role, spying for the IRA on the Crown forces, puts him in danger. And Stella and Alice have hard choices to make - choices that threaten their lives.

Grehan, Meg The Space Between

The story opens on New Year's Day. Beth has a mental health issue: she is deeply anxious, terrified of the world and afraid even to leave the house. Her new year's resolution is to take a year off and live all alone - with no contact with friends, family, colleagues, no phone calls or

social media: the only person she will see is the delivery man who brings her groceries once a week. One spring morning, Beth gets a visit from a friendly dog. Soon he is followed by his owner, a young woman who has moved in across the street.

Winner of the Eilís Dillon Award for a first children’s book

Heaney, Seamus. District & Circle

His beautiful lyrical poems observe the small details of the everyday life. He received the Nobel Prize for Literature 1995 "for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past". What more can we say? Beowulf: A New Verse Translation

Beowulf is an epic poem which tells of a hero’s triumphs as a young warrior and his fated death as a defender of his people. The poem is about encountering the monstrous, defeating it, and then having to live on, physically and mentally exposed in the exhausted aftermath.

Herge agus Gabriel Rosenstock Tintin Sa Tibeid agus An tOilean Dubh

Tintin's friend, Teang, has been killed in a plane crash in the Himalayas. But after a strange dream, Tintin is convinced that Teang is still alive. Together with Caiptein Haileabó he sets out on an impossible mission, an adventure high into the mountains. They must find Teang at all costs... but someone - or something else - has found him first!

Young Belgian reporter Tintin and his dog Snowy travel to England in pursuit of a gang of counterfeiters. Framed for theft and hunted by detectives Thomson and Thompson, Tintin follows the criminals to Scotland, discovering their lair on the Black Island ….

Classic graphic novels! Great for those who want a quick and easy read.

Hijmans, Alex Aiseiri

Rebekka Vogelzang, a young Dutchwoman, is fighting to save the Irish language, which she has learnt on the job in an Irish-speaking cafe in Galway. She puts her heart and soul into every scone she bakes and every cup of espresso she makes because she knows the very salvation of the language depends upon it. But who will save Rebekka?

Howard, Paul Operation Trumpsformation

ROCK’s latest adventures or should we say mishaps?? A blond wig discovered in a dusty attic, had given his father delusions of power. Suddenly, his father was running for election, promising to tear up the bailout deal and take Ireland out of Europe. And that's to say nothing of his secret plan for Ireland's second city ...

Other novels in the ROCK series are available in the Library

Joyce, James A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man

James Joyce’s first novel. This semi-autobiographical novel describes the formative years of the life of Stephen Dedalus, a fictional alter ego of Joyce and an allusion to the consummate craftsman of Greek mythology, Daedalus. Stephen questions and rebels against the Catholic and Irish conventions under which he has grown, culminating in his self-exile to Europe. 

Kenny, Padraig Tin

Graphic novel

Christopher is 'Proper' - a real boy with a real soul, orphaned in a fire. He works for an engineer, a maker of the eccentric, loyal and totally individual mechanicals who are Christopher's best friends. But after an accident, Christopher realises he isn't as Proper as he thought.

Kiely, Kevin A Horse called Eldorado.

Guerrillas come and destroy Pepe’s idyllic life at the edge of the rainforest in Columbia. Pepe and his mother must flee and he is forced to leave his favourite horse behind. His Irish grandparents offer him a home, but can thirteen-year-old Pepe go on his own to a strange, cold land? What future awaits him there? More importantly, will he ever have the chance to ride his beloved horses again?

Kiernan, Celine. Into The Grey

A fast moving novel of supernatural possession, loss and the bond between twins.

After their grandmother accidentally burns the family home down, twin brothers Patrick and Dominick move with their parents and baby sister to a small cottage by the sea. The family has spent many a happy summer there but never a winter – and against a backdrop of howling storms and wild seas, the haunting of the twins begins...

This would be suitable for senior students. CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

Kinsella, Sophie. Finding Audrey

Audrey can't leave the house. She can't even take off her sunglasses inside the house. Then her brother's friend Linus stumbles into her life. With his friendly, orange-slice smile and his funny notes, he starts to entice Audrey out again - well, Starbucks is a start. With Linus at her side, Audrey feels like she can do the things she'd thought were too scary. Suddenly, finding her way back to the real world seems achievable. Audrey learns that even when you feel like you have lost yourself, love can still find you . . .

Kinsella, Thomas (translator). The Tain.

Epic tale from the 8th century Ulster cycle describing Cu Chulainn’s adventures.

This is also available as a graphic novel.

Kuhlmann, Torben Lindberg: Sceal Luchoige A d’Eitil

A new invention-the mechanical mousetrap-has caused all mice but one to flee to America, the land of the free. But with cats guarding the steamships, trans-Atlantic crossings are no longer safe. The one remaining mouse has a brilliant idea. He must learn to fly! 

Landy, Derek. Skulduggery Pleasant.

Skulduggery Pleasant is a wise-cracking detective, powerful magician, master of dirty tricks and burglar. Surprisingly, he’s dead! So, what does he get up to?

The entire series is available in the Library.

McCann, Colum Let The Great World Spin

2009 National Book Award Winner

New York, August 1974: a man twirls through the air between the newly built Twin Towers. Beneath him the lives of complete strangers unfold - Corrigan, a radical Irish monk working in the Bronx; Claire, a delicate Upper East Side housewife mourning the death of her son; Lara, a drug-addicted artist; Gloria, solid and proud despite decades of hardship; Tillie, a hooker who used to dream of a better life and her beautiful daughter Jazzlyn. These lives will collide and be transformed forever.

Budding writers should read Letters To A Young Writer: Some Practical And Philosophical Advice.

McGann, Oisin. Merciless Reason. (The Wildenstern Saga)

Nate Wildenstern has been on the run for the past three years, but he is about to discover that the murderous Wildensterns cannot be hidden from forever... His megalomaniac and extremely dangerous cousin Gerald has been advancing his research into intelligent particles, with the intention of creating the ultimate engimal. Can Nate return to the Wildenstern estate incognito, and take his revenge upon Gerald? The Library stocks many Oisin McGann novels.

McCaughrain, Kelly Flying Tips For Flightless Birds

After Birdie's terrifying trapeze accident, serious performer Finch and clumsy wannabe Hector must work together to save the family circus school and put on the biggest show ever. Together they learn to walk the high-wire of teen life and juggle the demands of friends, family, first love and facing up to who they are - all served up with a dash of circus-showbiz magic.

CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

McMillan, Shirley-Anne The Unknowns

Tilly is perched at the top of Belfast's largest crane. She likes to climb up high at night in order to feel free from a city which, despite the best PR, is still full of trouble and conflict. She comes back down to discover her bike is missing and in its place is a boy named Brew. Wearing eyeliner and high-heeled boots, he offers her a drink from his flask of coffee before disappearing into the night. The next morning, Tilly's bike is returned, but tucked into the spoke of the wheel is a card with Brew's number on it. As Tilly learns to trust Brew, he leads her into a world she never knew existed - a world of parties in abandoned houses, completing missions that involve break-ins, and risking everything just to help strangers in need; the world of The Unknowns.

Mcnamee, Eoin City Of Time

The moon is coming closer to the earth causing havoc with the weather, tides and other natural cycles. People fear the world will end. To discover what’s going on Cati, Owen and the Doctor travel to the City of Time, where time is bought and sold. There, Owen begins to understand his great responsibility and power as the Navigator. 

Part of The Navigator trilogy

Ni Choileain, Orna Alfi Agus An Vaimpir

Ursceal as Gaeilge

Shortlisted for Gradam Réics Carló 2012 - Children’s Book of the Year.

Marius is a vampire who lives in the garden of a young boy named Ailfí. Marius, is a decidedly odd vampire. He prefers fig rolls and cake to blood and flesh. When all the everyday troubles of life - such as ulta-violet lights and cloves of garlic - threaten this poor undead creature, it’s no wonder he becomes cranky!

Urscéalta eile sa tsraith – I Mease Vaimpiri agus Vaimpir San Ailear

O’Ceallachain, Colm I dTir Mhilis Na mBeo

Colm O Ceallachain's first collection of short stories

O’Connor, Joseph. Star of the Sea.

The ‘Star of the Sea’ leaves Ireland for New York in 1847. Disguised among the hundreds of fleeing emigrants is a murderer. The twenty-six day journey will see some lives end, while others are renewed.

Beautifully written!

This novel would appeal to senior students.

If you liked Star of the Sea you can continue with Redemption Falls.

O’Criomhthain, Tomas An tOileanach

Ursceal as Gaeilge

An account of life on Great Blasket Island off the west coast of Kerry written as the nineteenth century draws to its close  - raw, real and extremely challenging.

O’Guilin, Peadar The Call

What if you only had 3 minutes to save your own life and the clock is already counting down? Nessa, Megan and Anto know that they've been Called. Like all teenagers they know

that they'll be hunted down and despite all their training only 1 in 10 will survive. Nessa can't run because she has polio. Will she survive her Call?

Time's up! A thrilling fantasy tale full of excitement and unpredictable twists.

Continue with The Invasion

O’Neill, Louise Anne Asking For It

CBI Book Of The Year and Printz Award

Emma O'Donovan is different. She’s special - beautiful, popular, powerful. She works hard to keep it that way.

Until that night . . .

Now, she's nothing.

And those pictures - those pictures that everyone has seen - mean she can never forget.

Award-winning, bestselling novel about the life-shattering impact of sexual assault, rape and how victims are treated.

This novel would be suitable for senior students

The Surface Breaks is a re-imagining of The Little Mermaid. Deep beneath the sea off the cold Irish coast, Gaia is a young mermaid who dreams of being human - but at what terrible price? Hans Christian Andersen's dark original fairy tale is reimagined through a feminist lens.

Parkinson, Siobhan. Maitrioisce.

Ursceal as Gaeilge

Mara receives a matrioshka doll for her birthday. However, one of the dolls is missing. Mara and her friend go looking for it and make a discovery.

Something Invisible - Eleven-year-old Jake likes thinking, encyclopedias and football. And fish. Although he's not so sure about everything else--especially girls, or little sisters, or stepdads. An unlikely friendship with eccentric Stella Daly helps him figure some of it out. That is until a tragedy changes everything, even the way he thinks about himself. Something Invisible is a warm and quirky story of family, friendship, loyalty and loss.

Rocking The System: Fearless And Amazing Irish Women Who Made History 920.72

Twenty illustrated essays on Irish women, historical and contemporary, who have defied cultural norms around femininity and achieved great things. The subjects include Irish

women from Queen Medb to Eileen Gray, from Constance Markievicz to Sonia O'Sullivan, covering stateswomen, artists, writers, activists and rebels of all kinds.

Plunkett, James Strumpet City

Set in Dublin during the Lockout of 1913. This classic historical fiction novel moves from the miseries of tenement life to that of the cultivated, bourgeois Bradshaw family. There’s a memorable cast of characters - Fitz, a hard working, loyal and abused trade unionist; the well-meaning but ineffectual Fr O'Connor; the wretched and destitute Rashers Tierney. In the background hovers the enormous shadow of Jim Larkin, Plunkett's real-life hero.

Rooney, Sally Normal People

Connell and Marianne grow up in the same small town in rural Ireland. The similarities end there; they are from very different worlds. When they both earn places at Trinity College in Dublin, a connection that has grown between them lasts long into the following years. This is an exquisite love story about how a person can change another person's life. It tells us how difficult it is to talk about how we feel and it tells us - blazingly - about cycles of domination, legitimacy and privilege.

Rowling J K Harry Potter Agus An Orchloch

Sceal as Gaeilge

Harry Potter's life is miserable. His parents are dead and he's stuck with his horrible aunt and uncle who force him to live under the stairs. His luck changes when he receives a letter that tells him the truth about himself - he's a wizard. A mysterious visitor rescues him from his relatives and takes him to his new home - Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Rudden, Dave Knights Of The Borrowed Dark

Denizen Hardwick doesn't believe in magic - until he's ambushed by a monster created from shadows and sees it destroyed by a word made of sunlight. That kind of thing can really change your perspective. Now Denizen is about to discover there's a world beyond the one he knows. A world of living darkness where an unseen enemy awaits. Fortunately for humanity, between us and the shadows stand the Knights of the Borrowed Dark. Unfortunately for Denizen, he's one of them.

Ryan, Donal The Spinning Heart

Winner of Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards 2012Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2013Winner of the Guardian First Book Award 2013Shortlisted for the Dublin IMPAC Literary Award 2014

Set during the Celtic Tiger collapse. Dangerous tensions surface in an Irish town. A construction company has gone bust leaving behind it a mess of unfinished houses, unemployed workers, debt and mental illness. A gripping plot unfolds as a series of characters from the village tell their own moving stories. All combine to tell a tale of loneliness, violence, frustration and desperation and provide a brilliant snapshot of life in 21st Century Ireland. 

Ryan, William. The Bloody Meadow

Part of the Captain Korolev series set in Stalinist Russia

Russia, 1937. In Moscow, Stalin's purges are reaching their darkest hour. Korolev, a Moscow police investigator must travel to the Ukraine - scene of some of Stalin's bloodiest crimes - to look into the mysterious death of a young woman. The victim, a beautiful film production assistant, had made both powerful friends and terrible enemies . . .

This series would appeal to senior students

Saint-Exupery, Antoine de An Prionsa Beag

Ursceal as Gaeilge

Tells the story of a little boy who leaves the safety of his own tiny planet to travel the universe, learning the quirks of adult behaviour through a series of extraordinary encounters. His odyssey finishes in a voyage to Earth and further adventures. 

Scott, Michael. The Alchemyst (The Immortal Secrets of Nicholas Flamel 1)

Nicholas Flamel was born in Paris in 1330. Nearly seven hundred years later, he is acknowledged as the greatest Alchemyst ever. It is said that he discovered the secret of eternal life. He died in 1418. But his tomb is empty and Nicholas Flamel lives. The secret of eternal life is hidden within the book he protects - the Book of Abraham the Mage. It's the most powerful book that has ever existed. In the wrong hands, it will destroy the world. And that's exactly what Dr. John Dee plans to do when he steals it. Humans won't know what's happening until it's too late. And if the prophecy is right, Sophie and Josh Newman are the only ones with the power to save the world and they are about to find themselves in the middle of the greatest legend of all time.

The Library stocks the series.

Siggins, Gerard Rugby Flyer

Eoin Madden has been selected for a special rugby summer camp where he makes new friends – and an enemy. Will he make the cut for the squad that’s headed to London? What’s the connection between a haunted house in Eoin’s home town and Twickenham stadium? A fast-paced adventure – that links Ireland, England and Russia through rugby!

The Library stocks other novels in the series.

Stoker, Bram. Dracula

The Clontarf born author’s book is regarded as a horror masterpiece.

Jonathan Harker travels to the Carpathian Mountains to finalise the sale of Carfax Abbey to Transylvanian noble Count Dracula. Little does he realise that Dracula is one of the UnDead - a centuries-old vampire who sleeps by day and stalks by night, feasting on the blood of his helpless victims. Dracula follows Jonathan back to England where he sets his sights on Jonathan's beloved Mina. To stop Dracula's evil plans, Jonathan and the legendary vampire hunter Van Helsing, embark on an adventure for which even their worst nightmares have not prepared them.

Also available in graphic novel format.

Sullivan, Deirdre Tangleweed and Brine

CBI Book Of The Year Award Winner

Retelling of thirteen classic fairy-tales with brave and resilient heroines

The Library also stocks Needlework and the Prim series

Thompson, Kate. The Last of the High Kings (The New Policeman Trilogy)

This is a wonderful fantasy story. Jenny doesn’t go to school one day, rambling about the mountainside instead. There she meets a ghost guarding a pile of rocks. When archaeologists arrive to excavate it they run into trouble. What’s going on?

You might also enjoy Creature Of The Night

The New Policeman – winner of the 2006 CBI Book

Of The Year Award

Annan Water - winner of the 2005 CBI Book Of The

Year Award

Toibin, Colm. The Blackwater Lightship.

Set in Ireland in the 1990s, it tells the story of the Devereux family. Helen doesn't get on with her mother (Lily), and Lily doesn't get on with her mother (Dora). The women are forced together when they discover that Helen's younger brother, Declan, is dying from an AIDS related illness.

Brooklyn – Eilis Lacey leaves 1950s Wexford to create a new life for herself in New York. There she finds work in a department store and falls in love with Tony, an Italian-American. However, devastating news from Ireland forces her to return home. Will her future be in Brooklyn or Ireland?

Beautiful writer in the mold of Joseph O’Conor and William Trevor.

Trevor, William. The Story of Lucy Gault.

In 1921, 8 year old Lucy plots to keep her family in Lahardane, Cork. Her plan backfires with disastrous consequences. She sets off a series of tragic misunderstandings that affect Lahardane's inhabitants for the rest of their lives

One of the best short story writers in the world!

Watson, Rhiannon An Dragan Feasa

Ursceal as Gaeilge

Tá dragain go flúirseach anseo, cuid acu maith agus cuid acu olc. Tá triúr páistí óga sa scéal freisin a chaitheann dul i ngleic leis na dragain agus, níos tábhachtaí fós, leis an saol. 

Webb, Sarah. Ask Amy Green: Boy Trouble

Thirteen year old Amy Green has a lot to juggle: handling her divorced parents, minding her baby siblings and navigating the snobby cliques at school. So when her cool but crazy seventeen-year old aunt Clover lands a job giving advice for the teen mag The Goss, Amy jumps at the chance to help out as her sidekick. However, Clover, doesn’t just want to answer readers’ letters, she wants to solve their problems . . . personally. The two come up with some clever schemes that bring happiness to many unhappy girls. But when Amy falls for the

cute but aloof boy in her art class — and her own friends start snubbing her big-time — can she find a way out of her own dilemma?

The Library stocks the other Amy Green novels. Reluctant readers would love this series

Whelan, Gerard. The Guns of Easter.

A gripping adventure story set in Dublin during the 1916 rebellion. Twelve year-old Jimmy Conway sees it all as glorious and loves the British Army for which his father is fighting. But when war comes to his own streets Jimmy's loyalties are divided. The rebels occupy the General Post Office and other parts of the city and Jimmy's uncle is among them. In an attempt to find food for his family, Jimmy crosses the city, avoiding the shooting, weaving through the army patrols, hoping to make it home before curfew. But his mission is not easy and danger threatens at every corner.

The Library also stocks A Winter of Spies and War Children.

White, Maureen The Butterfly Shell

A year in the life of Marie, a twelve year old facing the challenges of starting secondary school. Everyone else seems to quickly fit in and make friends easily, but not Marie. The story involves self-harming and bullying, but deals with these issues in a sensitive way.

Wilde, Oscar The Picture Of Dorian Gray

This is the only published novel by Oscar Wilde.

Dorian Gray is the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Dorian is very handsome and is determined to keep it that way. Basil is impressed by Dorian's beauty and becomes infatuated with him, believing his beauty is responsible for a new mode in his art. Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton and embarks on a journey of sin, crime and gross sensuality. His looks remain youthful and attractive while his portrait changes day by day into a grotesque, disfigured image of evil that he must keep hidden.

The Picture of Dorian Gray is considered a work of classic gothic horror fiction with a strong Faustian theme.

Also available in graphic novel format

Wilkinson, Sheena. Grounded.

Declan loves Seaneen, but his ambition to work at a top showjumping yard is stronger than anything he’s ever felt before. So when Declan is offered his dream job in Germany, he should be thrilled. But he’s terrified: leaving Seaneen's harder than he expected; gangster Cian won't leave him alone, and when he finds a nervous, damaged horse in a derelict barn, he knows he has to help her. ‘Grounded’ is a gripping story of courage, fear, despair and joy; the sequel to the award-winning ‘Taking Flight’.

CBI Book of The Year Award Winner

If you enjoyed Grounded why not read ‘Star By Star’? This novel is a CBI Book Of The Year Honour Award For Fiction

NON-FICTION

Books are organised by author’s last name, title and Dewey number.

Bracken, Gregory. Dublin Strolls: Exploring Dublin’s Architectural Treasures. 796.51094183

Handy guide to Dublin's architecture filled with easy-to-follow walks through the city. Each walk follows on from the one before.

Browne, Noel Against The Tide 920 BRO

As a doctor, Noel Browne experienced the devastating effects of tuberculosis. Drawn to politics, he was appointed Minister for Health on his first day in the Dail at the age of thirty three. His single-minded campaign for reform of the health system, especially the Mother and Child Scheme of 1951, encountered the strenuous opposition of both the Catholic Church and the medical establishment. Abandoned by his party colleagues, he embarked on a stormy political career over the following thirty years. 

Colfer, Eoin Once Upon A Place 808.86

Stories and poetry featuring locations ranging from a graveyard in Kells to a cabin in woods in Co. Wexford.

De Barra, Micheal An Bothar Go Santiago 248.4

Dunne, Bernard Bernard Dunne: Champion Of The World

This autobiography will appeal to boxing and sports fans.

This story will appeal to reluctant and dyslexic readers

Finn, Clodagh A Time To Risk All: The Incredible Untold Story Of Mary Elmes, The Irish Woman Who Saved Children From Nazi Concentration Camps 940.531835092

Mary Elmes was an Irish woman who worked with Quaker relief organizations during the Spanish Civil War and WWII. She saved children from deportation to Auschwitz and was arrested by the Gestapo. She was awarded the "Righteous Gentile" honor posthumously after testimony from people she transported to safety. She was very modest and wanted no recognition from anyone when the war was over, hence we’re only finding out about her heroism now.

Fitzmaurice, Simon. It’s Not Yet Dark. 362.1968390092

Simon Fitzmaurice has Motor Neurone Disease. In 2008 doctors told him he had three to four years to live. He decided he didn't want to die and managed to get a ventilator to help him breathe. He was a film maker and has won several impressive prizes. He wrote this book with the help of an eye-gaze computer.

Goff, Jennifer Eileen Grey: Her Work And Her World 749.092

Biography of the Irish born, renowned and highly influential architect, furniture-maker, interior designer and photographer 

Howard, Paul I Read The News Today, Oh Boy: The Short And Gilded Life Of Tara Browne, The Man Who Inspired The Beatles’ Greatest Song 941.70823092

Tara Browne was one of the most popular faces in 1960s London. He lived fast, died young (at 21) and was immortalized in 'A Day in the Life', a song that many critics regard as The Beatles' finest. But who was John Lennon's lucky man who made the grade and then blew his mind out in a car?

Read the extraordinary story of a young Irishman who enjoyed all there was on offer in swinging London – as a racing car driver, Vogue model, friend of The Rolling Stones, style icon, son of a peer and heir to a Guinness fortune.

Ireland, Tabhair Aire Duit Fein 158.1

Cad is aireachas ann? Ta se tabhachtach stopadh i rith an lae, sos a ghlachadh agus anail a tharraingt.

Keenan, Brian An Evil Cradling 920 KEE

Brian Keenan went to Beirut in 1985. He was kidnapped by fundamentalist Shi'ite militiamen and held in Beirut for the next four and a half years. This memoir is about brutality of his captors and his loss of freedom. It’s also about resilience, friendship and never loosing hope.

Maxwell, Ian How To Trace Your Irish Ancestors 929.10720415

Helps you find your way through the maze of Irish genealogical records to trace your ancestors

McConville, Rory Brian Boroimhe Agus Cath Chluain Tarbh 941.501092

Graphic novel as gaeilge

Recounts Brian Boru’s famous victory over the Vikings at the Battle of Clontarf in 1014

McConville, Rory Big Jim: Jim Larkin And The 1913 Lockout 941.83

Graphic novel

The Dublin Lockout began in August 1913. Over the next four months, Larkin would lead Dublin workers against William Martin Murphy and the Employers Federation in a conflict that would change the face of Irish industrial relations.

O’Connell, Paul and English, Alan The Battle 796.333

The famous rugby player is known for his passion, heart and determination. Munster and Ireland legend, Lions captain in 2009 and captain of the first Ireland team to defend a Six Nations championship. O'Connell tells the story of his remarkable career.

O’Reilly, Roger Lighthouses of Ireland 387.15509415

Long before GPS, radio or radar, lighthouses served as beacons helping ships navigate Ireland's sometimes treacherous waters. Artist Roger O'Reilly's illustrated celebration of these architectural gems will be treasured by anyone who finds comfort, intrigue or excitement in the glimmer of a lighthouse through the darkness.

O’Ruairc, Con Dulra Oileain Arann 508.41728

Parkinson, Siobhan Rocking The System 920.72

Twenty illustrated essays on Irish women, historical and contemporary, who have defied cultural norms around femininity and achieved great things. The subjects range from Queen Medb to Eileen Gray, from Constance Markievicz to Sonia O'Sullivan, covering stateswomen, artists, writers, activists and rebels of all kinds.

Pizatto, Gisela Grainne Mhaol 941.5050924

Graphic Novel as gaeilge

Depicts the action packed life of the legendary pirate queen

Rooney, Brendan. Creating History: Stories Of Ireland In Art. 700.458

Companion book to The National Gallery's exhibition comprising 54 paintings spanning the 17th century to the 1930s, depicting or inspired by episodes in Irish history from the arrival of St Patrick to the establishment of the Free State

Ruane, Lynn People Like Me 920

Lynn Ruane grew up in a loving home in Tallaght. Her life began to unravel in her teens. She fell into a life of petty crime, drug use, pregnant by the age of fifteen and no longer attending school. She decided she had enough of running away from herself and set about rebuilding her life. Inspired by her daughter, she returned to education and, with the help of some brilliant mentors, slowly began to heal the hurt of her younger years. She began campaigning on behalf of the people society had left behind by developing addiction services, becoming an activist in Trinity and a senator.

Webb, Sarah Blazing A Trail: Irish Women Who Changed The World 920

Meet the remarkable Irish women who changed history in this beautifully illustrated book. From adventurers to inventors, explorers to warriors and rebel leaders to presidents, this book is a true celebration of Irish women who made changes at home and abroad.

CBI AWARDS

The CBI Book of the Year Awards are the leading children’s book awards in Ireland. The Awards are a celebration of excellence in children’s literature and illustration and are open to books written in English or Irish by authors and illustrators born or resident in Ireland and published between 1st January and 31st December each year. 

WHAT SHOULD I READ NEXT????

Have a look at Miss Ryan’s Summer Reading List 2017 (Fiction and Non-Fiction) which can be viewed on the Library Blog - https://librarysac.wordpress.com/

You should also have a look at www.whatshouldireadnext.com

Would you like to recommend your favourite authors and books to other students?

Speak to Miss Ryan and she’ll include them for you.