The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction

This dazzling anthology, edited and introduced by Dermot Bolger, is a splendidly comprehensive and up-to-the-minute collection of the finest recent fiction from a nation of master storytellers. This collection of astonishing breadth reveals a literature of genuine global stature, as ancient as the Irish Sea. Contributors and stories include: John Banville, fromMefisto; Leland Bardwell, "The Hairdresser"; Sebastian Barry, fromThe Engine of Owl-Light; Mary Beckett, "Heaven"; Samuel Beckett, "For to End Yet Again"; Sara Berkeley, "The Sky's Gone Out"; Dermot Bolger, "The Journey Home"; Claire Boylan, "Villa Marta"; Shane Connaughton, "Ojus"; Mary Dorcey, "The Husband"; Roddy Doyle, fromThe Snapper; Anne Enright, "Men and Angels"; Hugo Hamilton, fromSurrogate City; Dermot Healy, "The Death of Matti Bonner"; Aidan Higgins, fromBalcony of Europe; Desmond Hogan, fromA Curious Street; Jennifer Johnston, fromThe Christmas Tree; Neil Jordan, "Last Rights"; Molly Kean, Patrick McCabe, fromThe Butcher Boy; Brian Moore, "The Sight"; Edna O'Brien, "What a Sky"; William Trevor, "The Ballroom of Romance"; Val Mulkerns, "Memory and Desire"; Robert McLiam Wilson, fromRipley Bogle, and many more.

Dermot Bolger is a renowned Irish poet, playwright, and novelist with over 45 works to his name. In his writing, he concerns himself with the Irish middle class and the struggles many face trying to understand the relevance of traditional national identity. Bolger’s characters often mirror his desire for a more inclusive society. His plays have earned him a number of awards, including the Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award for Best Debut Play, an Edinburgh Festival Scotsman Fringe First Award, and the Irish Times/ESB Prize for Best New Irish Play in 2004.

Introduction
For to End Yet Again	p. 3
The Man-Keeper	p. 9
The Talking Trees	p. 14
from The Killeen	p. 29
from A Curious Street	p. 36
from Black List, Section H	p. 44
from The Christmas Tree	p. 57
High Ground	p. 67
Postcards	p. 79
A Woman's Hair	p. 83
from Balcony of Europe	p. 91
Happiness	p. 95
Blood and Water	p. 113
Ojus	p. 126
from The Butcher Boy	p. 142
Villa Marta	p. 152
from Burning Your Own	p. 161
Cancer	p. 171
The Ballroom of Romance	p. 187
from Good Behaviour	p. 209
Last Rites	p. 216
Between Two Shores	p. 226
Heaven	p. 240
Memory and Desire	p. 250
The Husband	p. 265
What a Sky	p. 282
from The Snapper	p. 295
Oranges from Spain	p. 303
If Angels had Wings	p. 319
from Proxopera	p. 325
Orange Horses	p. 334
from The Journey Home	p. 348
from The Heather Blazing	p. 357
Mothers Were All the Same	p. 373
The Sky's Gone Out	p. 387
from Ripley Bogle	p. 398
from Surrogate City	p. 405
A Rock-'n'-Roll Death	p. 418
from Remembering Light and Stone	p. 425
from The Engine of Owl-Light	p. 432
The Sight	p. 442
Incident on the El Camino Real	p. 463
Men and Angels	p. 481
Counterpoints	p. 490
The Hairdresser	p. 496
from Mefisto	p. 504
The Death of Matti Bonner	p. 511
Absent Children	p. 520
Divided Attention	p. 524
Through the Field	p. 534
Biographical Notes	p. 547
Acknowledgements	p. 557
Table of Contents provided by Blackwell. All Rights Reserved.

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The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials