‘Heart, Be at Peace’ by Donal Ryan named the An Post Irish Book of the Year 2024

‘Heart, Be at Peace’ by Donal Ryan has been announced as the overall ‘An Post Irish Book of the Year 2024’.

The book was among six titles competing for the accolade, all of which were category winners at the recent 2024 An Post Irish Book Awards. The six books were shortlisted for the An Post Irish Book of the Year on the principle that they secured the highest number of votes during the shortlist voting process across all categories.

Donal Ryan’s book was unveiled as the An Post Irish Book of the Year during a one-hour special television show aired on RTÉ one this evening hosted by broadcaster Oliver Callan. The title won the ‘Eason Novel of the Year Award’ at the recent An Post Irish Book Awards and was chosen as the overall An Post Irish Book of the Year 2024 winner by a distinguished panel of judges.

The six nominated titles competing for the An Post Irish Book of the Year award were category winners of the Eason Novel of the Year, the Specsavers Children’s Book of the Year (Senior), the Ireland AM Popular Fiction Book of the Year, the Irish Independent Crime Fiction Book of the Year, the Eason Sports Book of the Year and the Dubray Biography of the Year:

• Heart, Be at Peace – Donal Ryan (Doubleday, Penguin Random House)
• Fia and the Last Snow Deer – Eilish Fisher, illustrated by Dermot Flynn (Puffin, Penguin Random House Children’s
• Frankie – Graham Norton (Coronet)
• A Stranger in the Family – Jane Casey (Hemlock Press)
• Obsessed: The Autobiography – Johnny Sexton with Peter O’Reilly (Penguin Sandycove)
• Nature Boy: A Journey of Birdsong and Belonging – Seán Ronayne (Hachette Books Ireland)

Described by the Irish Times as an “absorbing, emphatic story of a community in trouble”, Donal Ryan’s Heart, Be at Peace received a chorus of positive reviews upon publication. Told in twenty-one voices, Heart, Be at Peace is a heartfelt, lyrical novel that delves into themes of grief, healing, and the complexities of human emotions. It can be read independently, or as a companion to Donal Ryan’s multi-award-winning novel ‘The Spinning Heart’.

Donal Ryan is an award-winning author from Nenagh, Co. Tipperary, whose work has been published in over twenty languages to major critical acclaim. The Spinning Heart won the Guardian First Book Award, the EU Prize for Literature (Ireland), and Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards in 2012. It was also shortlisted for the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, longlisted for the Man Booker Prize and the Desmond Elliot Prize, and was voted ‘Irish Book of the Decade’ by the Dublin Book Festival. His fourth novel, ‘From a Low and Quiet Sea’, was longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award 2018, and won the Jean Monnet Prize for European Literature. Donal Ryan lectures in Creative Writing at the University of Limerick, and lives with his wife Ann Marie and their two children just outside Limerick City.

The overall ‘An Post Irish Book of the Year 2024’ winner was decided by the following judging panel:

• Maria Dickenson, Judging Chair - General Manager of Dubray and Board Member of the An Post Irish Book Awards

• Madeleine Keane – Literary editor of the Sunday Independent, lecturer at University College Dublin and Chair of Children’s Books Ireland

• Cyril McGrane – A certified public accountant by profession, Cyril has worked with An Post for the last 27 years, holding a succession of senior roles in retail, operational and logistics management. Cyril is An Post’s key liaison lead with IPC and UPU and he is leading An Post’s Customs 2020 and Brexit programmes

• Elaina Ryan – CEO of Children’s Books Ireland and Co-Artistic Director of Tower and Tales Children’s Books Festival in Co. Wexford

• Alex Clark – A critic, journalist and broadcaster, Alex is patron of the Cambridge Literary Festival and has judged many literary awards, including the Booker Prize

Maria Dickenson, Chair of the Judging Panel, said:

“Heart, Be at Peace was the unanimous choice of the judges from among the fantastic array of titles shortlisted this year. Donal Ryan’s writing has earned him a place among the greatest names in Irish literature and this lyrical novel speaks to the very heart of modern Irish society. Weaving twenty one voices together, Ryan portrays the passions, frailties and sorrows of one Irish town with compassion and clarity. Heart, Be at Peace is a masterful achievement and we congratulate Donal warmly on winning this award.”

In case you missed it, you can now watch the

‘An Post Book of the Year’ TV programme on the RTÉ player