Grove House // 24 Oct // 19:00
Born in Dublin in 1958, studied English and French Literature at University College, Dublin, Niall Williams moved to New York in 1980 where he married Christine Breen, whom he had met while she was also a student at UCD. His first job in New York was opening boxes of books in Fox & Sutherland's Bookshop in Mount Kisco. In 1985, he and Chris left America to attempt to make lives as writers in Ireland. On April 1st they moved to the cottage in west Clare that Chris's grandfather had left eighty years before. They have two adult children, a dog named Finn and a cat called Thanks.
Niall’s first four books, published between 1987 and 1995, were co-written with Chris and tell of their life together in Co Clare.
In 1991 Niall’s first play The Murphy Initiative was staged at The Abbey Theatre in Dublin. His second play, A Little Like Paradise, was produced on the Peacock stage of The Abbey Theatre in 1995. His third play, The Way You Look Tonight , was produced by Galway’s Druid Theatre Company in 1999.
Niall’s first novel was Four Letters Of Love. Published in 1997, it went on to become an international bestseller and has since been published in over twenty countries. It was re-issued in 2016 as a Picador Modern Classic. His second novel, As It Is In Heaven, was published in 1999 and short-listed for the Irish Times Literature Prize. Further novels include The Fall Of Light, Only Say The Word, Boy In The World, and its sequel, Boy And Man.
In 2008 Bloomsbury published Niall’s fictional account of the last year in the life of the apostle, John.
History Of The Rain, was published by Bloomsbury in May 2014. It was long-listed for the Man Booker Prize 2015, and has since been translated into several languages, including Russian.
This Is Happiness was published in 2020 It was nominated for The Irish Books Award, The Walter Scott Prize, and was one of the Washington Post’s Books of the Year.
Time Of The Child Niall's latest book is being released in October 2024 and Westival are delighted to welcome him to read from his new book.