Colin Barrett is from County Mayo, Ireland. In 2009 he was awarded the Penguin Ireland Prize, and his debut collection Young Skins won The Rooney Prize, The Frank O'Connor International Short Story Prize, The Guardian First Book Award and was a National Book Foundation "5 Under 35". In 2018 he was announced as the Rolex Arts Initiative Literary Protege, mentored by Colm Toibin. His stories have appeared in New Yorker, The Stinging Fly, New Statesman, Harper's and on BBC Radio 4.
Praise for Homesickness: A Best Book of the Year from the New York
Times and Oprah Daily
A New York Times Editors' Choice"Shot through with dark humor,
pitch-perfect dialogue and a signature freshness that makes life
palpable on the page...Homesickness is graced with an original,
lingering beauty." -- Stuart Dybek, New York Times Book Review"With
dark humor and lyrical expansiveness, Barrett's second collection
of stories captures the weirdness and beauty of seemingly ordinary
lives." -- New Yorker, Best Books of 2022 So Far"Many a writer
claims mastery of technique, but few deliver at the level of Colin
Barrett, whose roving perspectives, lopped-off endings and Kevin
Barry-esque dialogue dazzle in his second collection...Barrett is a
doyen of the sentence; each snaps and sings like a bullwhip. We
know these people because we hear and see them in perfect
clarity--they're not homesick so much as sick of home." -- Oprah
Daily"Superb...[T]here is an utterness to his attention, a devotion
to the lives of his characters, that shifts the work into some more
lasting place. Barrett is already one of the leading writers of the
Irish short story, which is to braggingly say, one of the leading
writers of the short story anywhere. He means every word and
regrets every word. He just kills it." -- Guardian"Colin
Barrett...owns the domain of the short story....He writes what he
knows, but he also writes to discover what he doesn't know, a
simple but crucial distinction you can sense instinctively, no
matter how many of his compatriots you've already read." -- Los
Angeles Times"A beautiful and moving collection, from one of the
best story writers in the English language today." -- Financial
Times"Homesickness is another finely crafted collection, again set
largely on Barrett's home turf of County Mayo, portrayed once more
as a cauldron of alarming violence and simmering disappointment.
Crisply told, fond of an eye-catching flourish... the stories draw
energy from the rhythms of west of Ireland small talk, added to
Barrett's eye for striking detail...The scenarios are richly
layered, with punchy payoffs." -- The Observer"The eight sparkling,
minimally plotted tales in [Barrett's] latest...foreground humour,
and their author's uncanny ear for dialogue and Irish vernacular."
-- Globe & Mail"Barrett's stories are, without exception,
beautifully written, full of arresting imagery." -- Booklist
(starred review)"Bittersweet and chiseled...From gritty realism to
oddball noir, this assured collection demonstrates the talent of a
distinctive writer." -- Publishers Weekly"Richly descriptive...This
sharply observant collection resists pigeonholing its recalcitrant
characters." -- Kirkus Reviews"If there is any concern about the
health of the short story in the next generation of Irish writers,
Colin Barrett's Homesickness: Stories, his second collection,
should help put that to rest. Like novelist Sally Rooney, Barrett
is well-attuned to the attitudes and preoccupations of mostly
younger Irish men and women, though his subjects are markedly
dissimilar to the highly educated, intensely verbal characters in
Rooney's work.... Characters like these may be humble, but there's
nothing unimpressive about their portrayal in these thoughtful,
well-wrought tales." -- Shelf Awareness"Barrett's mostly dogged
characters live hardscrabble lives, and in this strong second
collection--not a repeat act--readers become involved in the simple
but crucial issue of how they will manage." -- Library Journal"This
is a mesmerizingly powerful book, full of the strangeness and
beauty of life. I've learned so much from Colin Barrett's work as a
reader and writer, and I think these stories are his best yet."--
Sally Rooney "A masterwork--by turns hilarious and heart-breaking,
these stories shimmer. No story writer at work today thrills me
more than Colin Barrett, whose characters feel immediately so
familiar and true in their capacity to maim and love. What fierce,
tender stories. Totally unforgettable."-- Brandon Taylor"Something
struck me as I read these beautifully crafted, desperately sad, but
often very funny stories: there is now a branch of English called
the Colin Barrett."-- Roddy Doyle"The stories in Homesickness are
crafted with skill and flair. Colin Barrett anchors the work with
emotional accuracy and careful delineation of character, and then,
using metaphors and beautifully made sentences, he lets his
narrative soar."-- Colm Tóibín "These are addictive, stylish and
violently funny stories, with riches on every page--an outstanding
collection."-- Kevin Barry"With a sharp eye for the absurd in the
ordinary, Barrett's stories impart gritty and touching realisations
about life as it really is. Edgy, sharp and utterly original,
Homesickness is an utterly compelling collection and Barrett is
meticulous."-- Elaine Feeney"Homesickness presents us with a set of
characters forever losing things: other people's dogs, girlfriends,
the will to live...Between the comedy, and the pure thrill of the
language, there's a lot of sorrow and mental illness here, but the
afterglow of the stories, which settle and stay with you, is one of
moving regard for the flaws and wants we battle, flee, and bargain
with every day of our lives."-- Chris Power
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