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The Language of Remembering by Patrick Holloway
"Holloway is a rare and immense talent. The Language of Remembering is full of the grit and texture and sweetness of life, the sorrow of loss, the wonderful, terrible mystery of our humanity. The characters feel real, their voices sing from the page and the writing is sublime. I loved every line of this novel, readers are going to love it too - it will soar."
—Donal Ryan, author of The Spinning Heart and From a Low and Quiet Sea, Booker Prize longlisted
"The Language of Remembering is a deeply moving novel about the bonds between a mother and son, and how memory shapes love and loss. When Oisín reconnects with his mother, Brigid, he finds himself piecing together the fragments of her past, and Holloway's writing tenderly weaves seamlessly through her history. A beautiful meditation on family, love, and the fragility of remembering - this novel is a testament to the enduring power of compassion and care."
—Elaine Feeney, author of How to Build a Boat, Booker Prize longlisted
"Tender and humane, this is a novel that examines the stuff lives are made of: language, love, memory. A lyrical and open-hearted debut."
—Seán Hewitt, author of Open, Heaven and All Down Darkness Wide
About the Book
Returning from Brazil with his wife and daughter, Oisín is looking to rebuild a life in Ireland and reconnect with his mother, Brigid, who has early onset Alzheimer's. As her condition deteriorates she starts to speak Irish, the language of her youth, and reflect on her childhood dreams and aspirations.
Mother and son embark on a journey of personal discovery, and as past traumas are exposed they begin to understand what has shaped them and who they really are.
The Language of Remembering asks how we connect to the people we love and how we move on from the past to find meaning in the present.
About the Author
Patrick Holloway is an Irish writer of fiction and poetry and is an editor of the literary journal, The Four Faced Liar. He completed his Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow, before moving to Porto Alegre, Brazil, where he completed his PhD in Creative Writing. He is the winner of the Bath Short Story Award, The Molly Keane Creative Writing Prize, The Flash 500 Prize, the Allingham Fiction contest and he was the recipient of the Paul McVeigh Residency in 2023. His work appears in The Stinging Fly, The London Magazine, Poetry Ireland, The Moth, Southword, The Ilanot Review, Carve, The Irish Times and The Irish Independent. The Language of Remembering is Patrick's debut novel.
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