Dermot Bolger

Dermot Bolger (born 1959) is an Irish novelist, playwright and poet born in Finglas, a suburb of Dublin.

His work is often concerned with the articulation of the experiences of working-class characters who, for various reasons, feel alienated from society. Bolger questions the relevance of traditional nationalist concepts of Irishness, arguing for a more plural and inclusive society. In 1977 Bolger set up Raven Arts Press, which he ran until 1992, when he co-founded New Island Books. In May 2010 his wife, Bernie, died.

(Each year links to its corresponding "[year] in literature" article.)

Night Shift (1985 in literature|1985)

This is Bolger's first novel (or novella?). The central protagonist is Donal, a young man from Finglas who works the night shift in a local factory. Donal's girlfriend, Elizabeth, is pregnant and they both live in a caravan at the foot of her parents' garden. Needless to say, her parents are hardly thrilled at the situation and Donal works hard to improve the life he shares with Elizabeth. This is a complex narrative, containing meditations on the prospects for young people in 1980s Ireland and the rupture between tradition (as represented by Elizabeth's family and those in authority) and the future (as represented by Donal and Elizabeth). Whilst the ending is not what one could describe as happy, it is hopeful in that Donal begins to achieve a degree of clarity about his life, including his relationship with Elizabeth, his relationship with society, and, ultimately, what it will mean to be Irish in the latter part of the 20th century. This novel introduces many of the themes that will resurface in much of Bolger's later writing.

The Journey Home (1990 in literature|1990)

The Journey Home was originally published by Penguin and was a controversial Irish bestseller. It was later re-issued by Flamingo/HarperCollins. Eighteen years after its publication, it was published in the United States of America by The University of Texas Press and received the lead front cover review on the New York Times Book Review section. The Irish Times said of it: "All 1990s life is there – drink, drugs, political corruption – all the words which have been repeated so often now that they have lost their power to shock. Here, they shock."

The Family on Paradise Pier (2005)

The Family on Paradise Pier starts in the tranquil idyll of a Donegal village in 1915 and follows the journeys of one Irish family through the War of Independence, the General Strike in Britain, the dangerous streets of 1930’s Moscow, the Spanish Civil War and on to Soviet gulags, Irish Internment camps and London during the Blitz. The Goold Verschoyle children are born into a respected freethinking Protestant family in a Manor House alive with laughter, debate and fascinating guests. But the world of picnics and childish infatuations is soon under threat as political changes within Ireland and the wider world encroach upon their private paradise.

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Wikipedia