Dalkey Archive Press is an American publisher of

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

, foreign translations and

literary criticism A genre of arts criticism, literary criticism or literary studies is the study, evaluation, and interpretation of literature. Modern literary criticism is often influenced by literary theory, which is the philosophical analysis of literature's ...

specializing in the publication or republication of lesser-known, often

avant-garde In the arts and literature, the term ''avant-garde'' ( meaning or ) identifies an experimental genre or work of art, and the artist who created it, which usually is aesthetically innovative, whilst initially being ideologically unacceptable ...

works. The company has offices in Funks Grove, Illinois, in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, and in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. The publisher is named for the novel '' The Dalkey Archive'', by the Irish author Flann O'Brien. It is owned by nonprofit publisher Deep Vellum. Founded in Elmwood Park, Illinois in 1984 by John O’Brien, Dalkey Archive Press began as an adjunct press to the literary magazine '' Review of Contemporary Fiction'', itself founded by John O'Brien, John Byrne, and Lowell Dunlap and dedicated to highlighting writers who were overlooked by the mainstream critical establishment. Initially, the press reprinted works by authors featured in the ''Review'' but eventually branched out to other works, including original works that had not been published. Until 1988, Dalkey Archive was a two-person operation: O’Brien and office manager/typesetter Shirley Geever. That year O’Brien hired Steven Moore as managing editor. Later editors include Chad Post (who went on to found Open Letter Books), and authors Martin Riker, Danielle Dutton, and Jeremy Davies. In 1992, the press accepted an invitation to move from suburban Chicago to

Illinois State University Illinois State University (ISU) is a public research university in Normal, Illinois, United States. It was founded in 1857 as Illinois State Normal University and is the oldest public university in Illinois. The university emphasizes teachin ...

in Normal, Illinois. In December 2006, Dalkey Archive relocated to

University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC, U of I, Illinois, or University of Illinois) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Champaign–Urbana metropolitan area, Illinois, United ...

to be part of the university's commitment to global projects that complement the press's commitment to translations. Modeled on such publishers as Grove Press and New Directions, Dalkey Archive's emphasis is decidedly upon

literary fiction Literary fiction, serious fiction, high literature, or artistic literature, and sometimes just literature, encompasses fiction books and writings that are more character-driven rather than plot-driven, that examine the human condition, or that are ...

, usually of a

modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emphasized experimentation, abstraction, and Subjectivity and objectivity (philosophy), subjective experience. Philosophy, politics, architecture, and soc ...

postmodernist Postmodernism encompasses a variety of artistic, Culture, cultural, and philosophical movements that claim to mark a break from modernism. They have in common the conviction that it is no longer possible to rely upon previous ways of depicting ...

bent. In the publisher's own words, Dalkey Archive "place a heavy emphasis upon fiction that belongs to the experimental tradition of Sterne, Joyce, Rabelais, Flann O'Brien, Beckett, Gertrude Stein and Djuna Barnes." One of the publisher's primary goals is to keep all of its books in print, regardless of their commercial success, in the interest of maintaining the availability of works that it deems culturally and educationally valuable. In 2011, Dalkey founder John O’Brien was awarded the Ivan Sandrof Lifetime Achievement Award by the

National Book Critics Circle The National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) is an American nonprofit organization (501(c) organization, 501(c)(3)) with more than 700 members. It is the professional association of American book review editors and critics, known primarily for the N ...

. In 2015, O’Brien was appointed Chevalier in the Ordre des Arts & des Lettres in recognition of his significant contribution to French arts and literature by the Minister of Culture and Communication of France; its authors and translators have been recipients of many major awards, including the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

, the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize, the Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize, the Vondel Prize, and the Premio Valle-Inclán award. Founder and publisher John O’Brien died on November 21, 2020. He left behind 7 dogs, daughter Kathleen O’Brien, sons Emmett, William, and Kevin, brothers Chip and Eddie, and many other family and friends. Shortly afterward, Dalkey Archive Press was acquired by Deep Vellum.

Offices

Dalkey Archive Press has multiple offices, which are located in McLean, Illinois; Dutch House in

; and the Trinity College Centre for Literary Translation in

.Contact
" Dalkey Archive Press. Retrieved on October 18, 2016.

Selected publications

Dalkey Archive has published a variety of books and authors from many countries. In some cases, the publication of certain books by Dalkey Archive has led to a resurgence in their author's popularity, particularly in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, as happened with Felipe Alfau and Flann O'Brien. Some notable books and authors published by Dalkey Archive are listed below. * Felipe Alfau, '' Chromos'' and ''Locos: A Comedy of Gestures'' * Djuna Barnes, '' Ryder'', '' Nightwood: The Original Version and Related Drafts'' * Roger Boylan, ''Killoyle, An Irish Farce'' * Anne Carson, '' Eros the Bittersweet'' * Joshua Cohen, '' Witz'' *

Robert Coover Robert Lowell Coover (February 4, 1932 – October 5, 2024) was an American novelist, Short story, short story writer, and T. B. Stowell Professor Emeritus in Literary Arts at Brown University. He is generally considered a writer of fabulation ...

, ''A Night at the Movies'' * Jean Echenoz, ''Chopin's Move'' *

Jon Fosse Jon Olav Fosse (; born 29 September 1959) is a Norwegian author, translator, and playwright. In 2023, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for his innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable." Fosse's work spans over se ...

, '' Melancholy'', '' Melancholy II'' * Kass Fleisher, ''Talking out of School: Memoir of an Educated Woman'' * Carlos Fuentes, '' Terra Nostra'' * William Gaddis, '' J R'' and ''

The Recognitions ''The Recognitions'' is the 1955 debut novel of American author William Gaddis. The novel was initially poorly received by critics. After Gaddis won a National Book Award in 1975 for his second novel, ''J R'', his first work gradually received ...

'' * William Gass, '' The Tunnel'' *

Henry Green Henry Green was the pen name of Henry Vincent Yorke (29 October 1905 – 13 December 1973), an English writer best remembered for the novels ''Party Going'', ''Living (novel), Living,'' and ''Loving (novel), Loving''. He published a total of n ...

, '' Concluding'' * Aidan Higgins, ''Flotsam and Jetsam'' and ''Bornholme Night Ferry'' * G. Cabrera Infante, ''Three Trapped Tigers'' * Hugh Kenner, ''Flaubert, Joyce, and Beckett: The Stoic Comedians'' * Danilo Kis, '' A Tomb for Boris Davidovich'' * António Lobo Antunes, ''Knowledge of Hell'' * Yuri Lotman, ''Non-Memoirs'' * Ben Marcus, '' The Age of Wire and String'' * David Markson, '' Wittgenstein's Mistress'' * Harry Mathews, ''My Life in CIA'' * Nicholas Mosley, '' Natalie Natalia'' * Dan O'Brien, ''A Story That Happens'' * Flann O'Brien, '' At Swim-Two-Birds'' and '' The Third Policeman'' * Patrik Ouředník, ''Europeana: A Brief History of the Twentieth Century'' * Raymond Queneau, ''Pierrot Mon Ami'' * Ann Quin, ''Berg'' and ''Passages'' *

Ishmael Reed Ishmael Scott Reed (born February 22, 1938) is an American poet, novelist, essayist, songwriter, composer, playwright, editor and publisher known for his Satire, satirical works challenging American political culture. Perhaps his best-known wor ...

, '' Yellow Back Radio Broke-Down'' * Arno Schmidt, '' Bottom's Dream'' *

Viktor Shklovsky Viktor Borisovich Shklovsky ( rus, Ви́ктор Бори́сович Шкло́вский, p=ˈʂklofskʲɪj; – 6 December 1984) was a Russian and Soviet literary theorist, critic, writer, and pamphleteer. He is one of the major figures asso ...

, ''Theory of Prose'' and ''Energy of Delusion'' * Gilbert Sorrentino, ''Blue Pastoral'' and '' Mulligan Stew'' * Boris Vian, '' Heartsnatcher'' * Douglas Woolf, ''Wall to Wall'' *

Philip Wylie Philip Gordon Wylie (May 12, 1902 – October 25, 1971) was an American writer of works ranging from pulp science fiction, mysteries, social diatribes and satire to ecology and the threat of nuclear holocaust. Early life and career Born in Bever ...

, '' Generation of Vipers''

References

*Dennis Barone. "What's in a Name? The Dalkey Archive Press." ''Critique'' 37.3 (Spring 1996): 222–39. *Steven Moore. ''Dalkey Days: A Memoir''. Zerogram Press, 2023.

External links

*
Interview with Martin Riker
nthWORD Magazine Shorts
Interview with John O'Brien, publisher, and founderA Conversation with Nobel Laureate in Literature Claude Simon
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140206112456/http://www.dalkeyarchive.com/a-conversation-with-claude-simon-by-anthony-cheal-pugh/ , date=2014-02-06
A Conversation with Raymond QueneauA Conversation with Richard PowersA Conversation
with

David Foster Wallace David Foster Wallace (February 21, 1962 – September 12, 2008) was an American writer and professor who published novels, short stories, and essays. He is best known for his 1996 novel ''Infinite Jest'', which ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine ...

Finding aid to Dalkey Archive Press at Columbia University. Rare Book & Manuscript Library.
Book publishing companies based in Illinois Publishing companies established in 1984 Companies based in Champaign County, Illinois