Maura Murphy, née McNamee (6 September 1928 – 5 October 2005) was an Irish writer. Her autobiography ''Don't Wake Me at Doyles'' became a surprise hit upon its publication in 2004.

Early life

Mary McNamee was born in Clonmore, near

Edenderry Edenderry (; ) is a town in east County Offaly, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is near the borders with Counties County Kildare, Kildare, County Meath, Meath and County Westmeath, Westmeath. The Grand Canal of Ireland, Grand Canal runs along ...

County Offaly County Offaly (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. It is named after the Ancient Ireland, ancient Kingdom of Uí ...

, one of the seven children of John McNamee and Mary Ann Hannon McNamee. Her father was a labourer. She left school at age 14.

Career

Murphy worked as a domestic and in other part-time jobs; she kept a diary through much of her life, as she raised nine children. She was diagnosed with

lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma, is a malignant tumor that begins in the lung. Lung cancer is caused by genetic damage to the DNA of cells in the airways, often caused by cigarette smoking or inhaling damaging chemicals. Damaged ...

in 1999, at age 70. She began writing her autobiography ''Don't Wake Me at Doyles'' shortly thereafter. The book, though somewhat comical in tone, focuses on her life of hardship and poverty, and is critical of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

's stances on women, divorce, and contraception. It also includes diary entries by her adult children, as they visit during her illness. Murphy's autobiography was "a surprise best-seller" upon its publication in 2004. ''Publishers Weekly'' praised the book's "skillful storytelling and optimistic spirit" and called it a "hopeful, spunky sister to ''

Angela's Ashes ''Angela's Ashes: A Memoir'' is a 1996 memoir by the Irish-American author Frank McCourt, with various anecdotes and stories of his childhood. The book details his early childhood in Brooklyn, New York, but focuses primarily on his life in Li ...

''," the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

-winning autobiography of

Frank McCourt Francis McCourt (August 19, 1930July 19, 2009) was an Irish-American teacher and writer. He won a Pulitzer Prize for his book '' Angela's Ashes'', a tragicomic memoir of the misery and squalor of his childhood. Early life and education Frank M ...

Private life

Maura McNamee married John Murphy in 1953; they moved to Birmingham in 1959, where he worked in a tire factory. They had nine children born between 1953 and 1963. Though their marriage was often unhappy and they separated several times, she and her husband maintained a life-long connection. John Murphy was present during Maura Murphy's death in 2005, in Birmingham, aged 76 years.

References

External links

* Maura Murphy,
Don't Wake Me at Doyles
' (Headline Book Publishing 2005). {{DEFAULTSORT:Murphy, Maura 1928 births 2005 deaths 20th-century Irish women writers 21st-century Irish women writers Irish women autobiographers People from Edenderry, County Offaly Writers from County Offaly 21st-century Irish autobiographers