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Paul Lynch
Paul Lynch was born in Limerick, Ireland, in 1977 and grew up in County Donegal. He made his debut in 2013 with the novel »Red Sky in Morning«, a story set in 1832 about a man who has killed the wrong man and is now pursued by his avenger – from Ireland across the Atlantic to Pennsylvania.
This was followed by »The Black Snow« (2014) and »Grace« (2017), the first of Lynch’s novels to be published in German translation. In 1845, 14-year-old Grace is sent away from home in men’s clothes to find work. Her younger brother Colly follows her. Together they experience a journey through the suffering but also the beauty of Ireland during the Great Famine. The novel won the Kerry Group Novel of the Year Award.
The author’s fourth novel, »Beyond the Sea«, was published in 2019. Partly based on true events, it tells the story of two South American fishermen who get caught in a heavy storm and are swept out into the Pacific Ocean. »With only the sea as a backdrop, Lynch has the gift of transforming the story of this shipwreck into a breathless existential quest. A powerful epic in the beyond«, was the verdict of »Le Monde«.
Lynch’s most recent work, »Prophet Song« (2023), was awarded the Booker Prize 2023. The dystopian novel centers on scientist and mother of four Eilish Stack, who witnesses the collapse of society under a totalitarian regime. »…a literary manifesto for empathy for those in need and a brilliant, haunting novel that should be placed into the hands of policymakers everywhere«, said the »Observer«. Paul Lynch was appointed Distinguished Writing Fellow at Maynooth University in 2024 and elected to Aosdána, an association of Irish artists who have achieved excellence in their field.
Paul Lynch lives in Dublin.
As of April 2024
Red Sky in Morning
Quercus
London, 2013
The Black Snow
Quercus
London, 2014
Grace
Quercus
London, 2017
German Translation:
Grace
Verlag Freies Geistesleben
Stuttgart, 2021
[Ü: Christa Schuenke]
Beyond the Sea
Oneworld
London, 2019
Prophet Song
Oneworld
London, 2023
German Translation:
Das Lied des Propheten
Klett-Cotta
Stuttgart, 2024
[Ü: Eike Schönfeld]