Paul Lynch (born 1977) is an Irish novelist known for his poetic, lyrical style and exploration of complex themes. He has published five novels and has won several awards, including the 2018

Kerry Group Irish Fiction Award The Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award is an annual award for Irish authors of fiction, established in 1995. It was previously known as the Kerry Ingredients Book of the Year Award (1995–2000), the Kerry Ingredients Irish Fiction Award ...

and the

2023 Booker Prize The Booker Prize is an annual literary award given for the best English-language novel of the year published in either the United Kingdom or Ireland. The 2023 winner was Paul Lynch's ''Prophet Song''. The 2023 longlist was announced on 1 Augu ...

, for ''

Prophet Song ''Prophet Song'' is a 2023 dystopian novel by Irish author Paul Lynch (writer), Paul Lynch, published by Oneworld Publications, Oneworld. The novel depicts the struggles of the Stack family, in particular Eilish Stack, a mother of four who is tr ...

''.

Early life and education

Lynch was born in

Limerick Limerick ( ; ) is a city in western Ireland, in County Limerick. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region. W ...

in the southwest of Ireland in 1977; his parents and all his family are from Limerick and other parts of

County Limerick County Limerick () is a western Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West Region, Ireland, Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Reg ...

. However, when he was nine months old, his parents moved to the north of

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county of the Republic of Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is the northernmost county of Ireland. The county mostly borders Northern Ireland, sharing only a small b ...

Ulster Ulster (; or ; or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional or historic provinces of Ireland, Irish provinces. It is made up of nine Counties of Ireland, counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kingdom); t ...

, the northern

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

in Ireland, where he was raised. They settled in the north of

Inishowen Inishowen () is a peninsula in the north of County Donegal in Ireland. Inishowen is the largest peninsula on the island of Ireland. The Inishowen peninsula includes Ireland's most northerly point, Malin Head. The Grianan of Aileach, a ringfor ...

, a peninsula on the northern coastline of Ulster, with Lynch spending the rest of his childhood and teenage years at

Malin Head Malin Head () is the Extreme points of Ireland, most northerly point of mainland Ireland, located in the townland of Ardmalin on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal. The head's northernmost point is called Dunalderagh at latitude 55.38ºN ...

and, later, in

Carndonagh Carndonagh (; ) is a town on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal, Ireland, close to Trawbreaga Bay. It is the site of the Carndonagh stones. The Irish name, ''Carn Domhnach'', means "the cairn or mound of the church". Amenities The tow ...

. His parents moved to Inishowen because of his father's job with the then Coast and Cliff Rescue Service (CCRS), which later became, in 1991, the Irish Marine Emergency Service (IMES; now called the

Irish Coast Guard The Irish Coast Guard (IRCG; ) is part of the Department of Transport (Ireland), Department of Transport in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The primary roles of the Coast Guard include maritime safety and search and rescue. The ''Irish Marine Se ...

). His mother was an adult literacy teacher, and Paul is the eldest child of his parents' three children. Lynch has not lived in County Donegal since 1995. He read English and Philosophy at

University College, Dublin University College Dublin (), commonly referred to as UCD, is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland. With 38,417 students, it is Ireland's largest ...

(UCD), but did not graduate. He is a longtime resident of

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 ...

, where he was formerly both deputy chief sub-editor and chief film critic for ''

The Sunday Tribune The ''Sunday Tribune'' was an Irish Sunday broadsheet newspaper published by Tribune Newspapers plc. It was edited in its final years by Nóirín Hegarty, who changed both the tone and the physical format of the newspaper from broadsheet to ta ...

'', before he turned to writing fiction.

Writing career

His debut novel, ''Red Sky in Morning'', was the subject of a six-publisher auction in London, and won him acclaim in the United States and France, where the book was a finalist for France's ''

Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger The Prix du Meilleur Livre Étranger (Best Foreign Book Prize) is a French literary prize created in 1948. It is awarded yearly in two categories: Novel and Essay for books translated into French. Prix du Meilleur livre étranger — Novel *2022 ...

'' (Best Foreign Book Award). The novel was inspired by a TV documentary about the excavation of

Duffy's Cut Duffy's Cut is the name given to a stretch of railroad tracks about west of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, originally built for the Philadelphia and Columbia Railroad in the summer and fall of 1832. The line later became part of the Pennsylvania Ra ...

, a site near

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

where, in the 1830s, Irish emigrants, mainly from

, were discovered in an unmarked mass grave. It explores themes of emigration, racism and brutality and was described by

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

's Alan Cheuse as the work of a "lapidary young master". Lynch's second novel, ''The Black Snow'', describes the return of an Irish emigrant to his native community in

and the subsequent descent into tragedy when a byre catches fire. The novel was shortlisted for many prizes and won France's ''Prix Libr'à Nous'' for best foreign novel. In '' The Sunday Times Ireland'',

Theo Dorgan Theo Dorgan is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer, translator, librettist and documentary screenwriter. He lives in Dublin. Life Dorgan was born in Cork in 1953 being the second child born into a family of eight boys and eight girls to par ...

called the book "a significant achievement". His third novel, ''Grace'' (2017), is both a ''

bildungsroman In literary criticism, a bildungsroman () is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth and change of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood (coming of age). The term comes from the German words ('formation' or 'edu ...

'' and

picaresque The picaresque novel (Spanish: ''picaresca'', from ''pícaro'', for ' rogue' or 'rascal') is a genre of prose fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish but appealing hero, usually of low social class, who lives by his wits in a corrupt ...

set during the

Irish Famine The Great Famine, also known as the Great Hunger ( ), the Famine and the Irish Potato Famine, was a period of mass starvation and disease in Ireland lasting from 1845 to 1852 that constituted a historical social crisis and had a major impact ...

and tells the story of a young girl's struggle for survival. The novel won the

Kerry Group Kerry Group plc is a public food company headquartered in Ireland. It is quoted on the Dublin ISEQ and London stock exchanges. Given the company's origins in the co-operative movement, farmer-suppliers of the company retain a significant i ...

Irish Novel of the Year prize and was shortlisted for many awards, including The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction. In a review, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' said: "Lynch is a sure-footed tightrope walker...his lush, poetic prose n ''Grace''deliberately and painfully acts as a foil to the reality of the famine." Lynch's fourth novel, ''Beyond the Sea'' (2019), was inspired by a true event and is an existential tale involving two castaways set on a boat in the Pacific Ocean. The novel has been compared to the work of

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish writer of novels, plays, short stories, and poems. Writing in both English and French, his literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal, and Tragicomedy, tra ...

Herman Melville Herman Melville (Name change, born Melvill; August 1, 1819 – September 28, 1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance (literature), American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works ar ...

William Golding Sir William Gerald Golding (19 September 1911 – 19 June 1993) was a British novelist, playwright, and poet. Best known for his debut novel '' Lord of the Flies'' (1954), Golding published another 12 volumes of fiction in his lifetime. In 19 ...

Fyodor Dostoyevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian literature, Russian and world literature, and many of his works are consider ...

and

Pablo Neruda Pablo Neruda ( ; ; born Ricardo Eliécer Neftalí Reyes Basoalto; 12 July 190423 September 1973) was a Chilean poet-diplomat and politician who won the 1971 Nobel Prize in Literature. Neruda became known as a poet when he was 13 years old an ...

by various reviewers, and won France's Prix Gens de Mers in 2022. Lynch's fifth novel, ''

'', has been described as "a chilling study of Ireland becoming a fascist state". According to ''The New York Times'', the novel received mixed reviews in Ireland and Britain upon its initial publication. ''Prophet Song'' was described by ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' as "an impressive novel in stylistic as well as political terms", and it went on to receive the

Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a prestigious literary award conferred each year for the best single work of sustained fiction written in the English language, wh ...

for 2023. In 2024,

Maynooth University Maynooth University (MU) (), is a constituent university of the National University of Ireland in Maynooth, County Kildare, Ireland. Maynooth University was formerly known as National University of Ireland, Maynooth (NUIM; ). It was Ireland ...

honored Lynch with the esteemed title of Distinguished Writing Fellow, a role through which he will impart his literary expertise within the Department of English, contributing to the development of future writers in their MA in Creative Writing program.

Literary themes and style

Lynch's novels often focus on the trials of the human spirit and examine metaphysical and

existentialist Existentialism is a family of philosophical views and inquiry that explore the human individual's struggle to lead an authentic life despite the apparent absurdity or incomprehensibility of existence. In examining meaning, purpose, and value ...

themes in both Irish and exotic settings. His work explores topics such as alienation, displacement, suffering, reality, belief, religion, and transcendence, as well as meditations on memory and identity. Lynch's writing has been described as "bold, grandiose, mesmeric," and he has been compared to authors such as

Cormac McCarthy Cormac McCarthy (born Charles Joseph McCarthy Jr.; July 20, 1933 – June 13, 2023) was an American author who wrote twelve novels, two plays, five screenplays, and three short stories, spanning the Western, post-apocalyptic, and Southern Got ...

William Faulkner William Cuthbert Faulkner (; September 25, 1897 – July 6, 1962) was an American writer. He is best known for William Faulkner bibliography, his novels and short stories set in the fictional Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi, a stand-in fo ...

Seamus Heaney Seamus Justin Heaney (13 April 1939 – 30 August 2013) was an Irish Irish poetry, poet, playwright and translator. He received the 1995 Nobel Prize in Literature. Among his best-known works is ''Death of a Naturalist'' (1966), his first m ...

, and

. He has been praised for his ability to blend poetic language with gritty realism and for his insights into the human condition. He is considered one of the most important Irish writers of his generation.

Personal life

Lynch has two children and is separated from his wife.

Awards

* 2013: Best Newcomer at

Bord Gáis Cucerdea (, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune in Mureș County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Bord (''Bord''), Cucerdea, and Șeulia de Mureș (''Oláhsályi''). The commune is located in the southwestern part of ...

Irish Books of the Year, shortlisted * 2014: ''

'', finalist * 2014: ''

Prix du Premier Roman The Prix du Premier Roman (''First Novel Prize'') is a French literary prize awarded to an unpublished novelist between the ages of 18 and 30. The monetary reward is 3,000 Euros. The prize was first awarded in 1977. Starting with 1998 a separat ...

'', nominated * 2015: '' Prix du Roman Fnac'', nominated * 2015: ''

Prix Femina The Prix Femina is a French List of literary awards, literary prize awarded each year by an exclusively female jury. The prize, which was established in 1904, is awarded to French-language works written in prose or Verse (poetry), verse by male ...

'', nominated * 2016: Ireland Francophonie Ambassadors' Literary Award, shortlisted * 2016: '' Prix des Lecteurs Privat'', winner * 2016: ''Prix Libr'à Nous'' for Best Foreign Novel, winner * 2018: Kerry Group Irish Novel of the Year Award, winner * 2018:

Walter Scott Prize The Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction is a British literary award founded in 2010.Walter S ...

, shortlisted * 2018: William Saroyan International Prize, shortlisted * 2019: ''Grand Prix de L'Héroïne'', shortlisted * 2019: ''Prix Littérature Monde'', shortlisted * 2019: ''Prix Jean-Monnet de Littérature Européenne'', shortlisted * 2020: Ireland Francophonie Ambassadors' Literary Award, winner * 2022: ''Prix Gens de Mer'', winner * 2023:

, winner * 2025:

International Dublin Literary Award The International Dublin Literary Award (), established as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award in 1996, is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. It promotes excellence in world literature and is solely ...

, for Prophet Song, Longlisted

Novels

* * * * *

References

External links

Paul Lynch website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, Paul 1977 births 20th-century Irish male writers 20th-century Irish novelists 20th-century Irish writers 21st-century Irish male writers 21st-century Irish novelists Booker Prize winners Irish male novelists Irish novelists Living people