Niall Williams

Niall Williams (born June 8, 1958 in Dublin) is an Irish writer.[1] Having started as a non-fiction writer and playwright, he is most well-known as a novelist. His novels have received critical acclaim and widespread commercial success. He is known for his poetic style and evocative imagery of the west of Ireland. His work has been translated into over twenty languages.[2]

For New Zealand sportswoman, see Niall Williams (rugby union).
Niall Williams
Born (1958-06-08) June 8, 1958
Dublin, Ireland
OccupationNovelist, playwright, screenwriter
NationalityIrish
Alma materUniversity College Dublin
GenreFiction, literary fiction, magic realism, historical fiction
Notable worksFour Letters of Love (1997)
As It Is In Heaven (1999)
John (2008)
History of the Rain (2014)
This is Happiness (2019)
SpouseChristine Breen
ChildrenDeirdre, Joseph
Website
www.niallwilliams.com

Biography

Williams was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1958. He attended Oatlands College, a boys’ school in Stillorgan, County Dublin.[3] He studied English and French Literature at University College Dublin, where he met his wife, American writer and editor Christine Breen. He graduated with an MA in Modern American literature in 1980. After a year lecturing at the Université de Caen in Normandy, he moved to New York. He worked briefly at Fox and Sutherland’s bookstore in Mount Kisco, New York, near his wife’s home town of Katonah before becoming a copywriter at Avon Books.[4]

In 1985, Williams moved to Kilmihil, County Clare, in the west of Ireland. Here he co-wrote four non-fiction books with Christine about their experiences of rural life in the cottage that Christine’s grandfather had left almost a century before.[4] Williams and Breen have two adult children, Deirdre and Joseph. They live in County Clare.[1]

Writing career

Non-fiction and drama

His first four books were non-fiction chronicles of rural life in County Clare in the decade prior to the Celtic Tiger, co-written with Breen.

In 1991 Williams’ first play, The Murphy Initiative, was staged at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.[5] His second play, A Little Like Paradise was produced on the Peacock stage of the Abbey Theatre in 1995.[5] His third play, The Way You Look Tonight, was produced by Galway’s Druid Theatre Company in 1999.[5]

Early novels

Four Letters of Love, Williams' first novel, was published in 1997. It went on to become an international bestseller and has been published in over twenty countries.

As It Is In Heaven was published in 1999 and short-listed for the Irish Times Literature Prize.

The Fall of Light is Williams’ first foray into historical fiction. Set in the mid-nineteenth century, it chronicles the fate of the Foley family.

Only Say the Word was published in 2003 and is a contemporary novel dealing with the theme of loss.

Expanse into different styles

In 2006, Williams’ novella, The Unrequited, was published as part of the Picador Shots series.

Williams wrote two young adult novels, Boy in the World, published in 2007, and Boy and Man, published in 2008. These novels follow Jay, a boy who is given a letter from his dead mother and embarks on a journey from rural Ireland to London and later Africa, learning about his past and finding his place in a changing world.

In 2008 Bloomsbury published John, Williams’ fictionalised account of the last year in the life of the apostle John, now an old man, blind and frail, on the desolate island of Patmos.

Faha novels

Since 2014, Williams has begun writing novels set in a fictional village in the west of Ireland called Faha. Similar to Macondo in the works of Gabriel García Márquez, Faha is a rural village steeped in magic realism which acts as a backdrop for Williams’ stories.

History of the Rain was published in 2014[6] and recounts the saga of a family from the perspective of Ruth Swain, a bed bound teenage girl. It was longlisted for the 2014 Booker Prize.[7]

Williams’ ninth novel, This is Happiness, was published in September 2019. It tells the story of rural electrification and the changes to a small, isolated community, recounted from the perspective of Noe, a 78 year old man recalling his youth in the late 1950s.[8]

Recognition

Four Letters of Love
  • Notable Book of the Year, The New York Times Book Review, 1997[9]

As It Is In Heaven
  • Shortlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, 1999[10]

The Fall of Light
  • Longlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, 2000[11]

History of the Rain
  • Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, 2014[7]

This is Happiness
  • Washington Post Best Books of the Year, 2019[12]
  • Shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book Awards, Best Book of the Year, 2019[13]

Novels
  • Four Letters Of Love (1997)[9]
  • As It Is In Heaven (1999)[14]
  • The Fall of Light (2001)[15]
  • Only Say the Word (2005)[16]
  • The Unrequited (2006)[17]
  • Boy in the World (2007)[18]
  • Boy and Man (2008)[19]
  • John (2009)[20]
  • History of the Rain (2014)[6]
  • This is Happiness (2019)[8]

References
  1. "Niall Williams - Biography". Retrieved 13 August 2014.
  2. Four Letters of Love. 2015-11-03. ISBN 978-1-63286-318-8.
  3. "Famous Alumni". A brief history of Oatlands College. 2016-11-04. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  4. "Niall Williams - Irish Writer from Kiltumper, Ireland". www.niallwilliams.com. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  5. team, Code8. "Niall Williams". Peters Fraser and Dunlop (PFD) Literary Agents. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  6. Bloomsbury.com. "History of the Rain". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  7. "Longlist 2014 announced | The Booker Prizes". thebookerprizes.com. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  8. Bloomsbury.com. "This Is Happiness". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  9. "Miracles Happen". The New York Times. 9 November 1997. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  10. "100 Books chosen for Literary Award". The Irish Times. 10 October 1998. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  11. "Niall Williams - Irish Writer from Kiltumper, Ireland". www.niallwilliams.com. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  12. Bloomsbury.com. "This Is Happiness". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  13. "An Post Irish Book Awards » Shortlist unveiled for the An Post Irish Book Awards 2019". Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  14. "Novel of the week". New Statesman. 5 July 1999. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  15. Sweeney, Eamonn (13 October 2001). "Gaelic revival". The Guardian. London, UK. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  16. Fiona Hamilton, Sean O'Neill (16 January 2005). "Fiction: Only Say the Word". The Sunday Times. London, UK. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  17. "The Unrequited by Niall Williams". www.fantasticfiction.com. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  18. "Into the mystic". Irish Independent. 3 March 2007. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  19. "In a realm of higher purpose". The Irish Times. 7 July 2008. Retrieved 30 April 2011.
  20. Bloomsbury.com. "John". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
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