Flann O'Brien

Flann O'Brien can be considered the Holy Ghost within the holy trinity of modern Irish writers. Unlike Joyce and Beckett, O'Brien's works went largely unheralded during his lifetime and only recently, due to the television series, Lost, has he gained any meaningful traction with U.S. readers.

We believe a disservice has been done to O'Brien and American readers by his obscurity and hope, in our small way, to provide a remedy with our Flann O'Brien page. And we would be remiss if we didn't point out that O'Brien's works are published by the Dalkey Archive Press -- doing God's work in keeping worthy books in print.

Rebel Heart
"A powerful book,
passionate and compelling"
Beyond Consolation
"personal, poignant
and engaging"
The Rising
"the best account yet
of what it was like"
Lapsed Agnostic
"elegant, honest...
deeply reflective"
At Swim-Two-Birds
"a marvel of
imagination"
Faithful Place
"part Raymond Chandler,
part Roddy Doyle"
U2
U2
Live at the Rose Bowl
Let the Great World Spin
"Stunning...
elegiac glimpse of hope"
The Ghosts of Belfast
"dark, powerful,
insightful"
Waveriders
"The first great
Irish surf film"
Brooklyn
"A quiet masterpiece"
"Disarmingly effective"
The Secret Scripture
"most exhilarating prose
stylist in Irish fiction"

About Great Irish Books Online

Great Irish Books Online is dedicated to presenting the very best in Irish literature as well as Irish history and Irish current events. Our taste in Irish novels is eclectic, ranging from James Joyce, Samuel Beckett and Flann O’Brien to Colum McCann, Tana French and Ken Bruen. Our Irish non-fiction consists of a wide variety of Irish history and Irish current events, including the Irish famine, the IRA, the Troubles, and Irish biographies. We also have a small assortment of Irish films. We hope you enjoy our site and our selection of Irish novels, Irish crime and Irish detective novels, Irish history, Irish current events and Irish films. And if there’s any way we can improve our site, please let us know.