In the latest in our weekly book series, author ROISIN MEANEY tells SOPHIE GRENHAM about her love of Nabokov’s Lolita, Valentia Island and why she CAN’T WAIT FOR CHRISTMAS …
It will come as no surprise to many that Roisin Meaney has been hailed as the late Maeve Binchy’s successor on more than a couple of occasions. For over a decade, fans have been addicted to the Listowel-born scribe’s delightful storytelling and relatable heroines, starting with hit debut The Daisy Picker in 2004. So far, Roisin’s books have been translated into Spanish, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, German and Italian, and she has effortlessly charmed the American market. She has also written books for teens, including See If I Care (2007).
Roisin’s latest novel I’ll Be Home for Christmas (2015) is our third visit to Roone, a charming fictional island located off the west of Ireland. This time the protagonist is Australian teenager Tilly, who travels across the globe to seek the advice of a woman she has never met. The two previous outings in the series are One Summer (2012) and After the Wedding (2014).
On her home town
I’m based in Limerick city, my main place of residence since the age of eight. I live about ten minutes’ walk from my parents in one of Limerick’s oldest areas. My house is a little detached bungalow at the bottom of a quiet cul-de-sac. We’re so tucked away that even taxi drivers have a hard job finding us. My local pub is on the bank of the river Shannon, directly across from King John’s Castle, so in the summer I can sit outside and watch the water flowing by.
On her work space
I write at the table in the lovely bright space that is my kitchen/dining room. It spans the width of the house and has windows to the front and rear. My house is about two feet from a wonderful old stone wall that marks the boundary between me and my neighbour Mike, a nature lover who has planted a mini forest in his large garden. In the springtime I’m deafened by birdsong – my kind of music – and in the winter I can hardly keep my bird feeders filled. It’s a fabulous placid space in which to write: if I could have ordered the perfect writing environment I couldn’t have done better.
On her local book seller
My favourite bookshop is O’Mahony’s, Limerick’s oldest retail business, run by the O’Mahony family since 1902. I have practically all my launches there, and they make me feel like a proper VIP every time. At the launch of I’ll Be Home for Christmas my mother asked one of the staff members to call her a taxi to bring her home, and the taxi was paid for by the shop – now there’s customer service.
On her treasured reads
One of my favourite books of all time is Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita. We read it in college as part of our English literature syllabus and I just devoured it, and subsequently everything else he wrote. Another is Anne Tyler’s Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, which I read in Zimbabwe while I worked there as a high school English teacher. It was my first Anne Tyler book, and since then I’ve gone through the rest. Her writing has been a big inspiration: I adore her quirky characters and warm style. I was compared to her in a review once: it absolutely made my day.
On the festive season
I love Christmas. It starts around October, when I make the cakes for various relatives and friends. This year I made six. I’m not very organised in any other respect. I usually leave the present buying until the panic sets in, despite my resolutions every year not to leave it so late, but it’s all part of the fun. For the past few Christmases I’ve cooked the dinner for my parents and whichever brothers are around, but this year one of the brothers says he’ll do it, so I’m on chef’s assistant duties – chopping, washing up – which will be wonderful.
On Valentia
Roone is based on Valentia Island, which I visited in 2011. I rented a place for the month of November, during which time I came up with the plot for One Summer. Valentia was quiet, with most of the businesses shut for the winter, but I loved tramping along the deserted roads, and the locals I met were lovely.
I never intended writing a sequel, but Valentia must have had more of a hold over me than I realised, because two years later I wrote After the Wedding, and this year, I’ll Be Home for Christmas made up the trio.
If you want to visit Valentia, I’d recommend late spring, before the summer tourists descend, when the days are long, and the weather (hopefully) fairly clement. You can climb Geokaun mountain and get a breathtaking panoramic view of the whole island, check out the Tetrapod imprints and the slate quarry, go bird and dolphin-watching, or take a boat trip to Skellig Michael.
I’ll Be Home for Christmas (€17.99) is published by Hachette and available from bookshops nationwide.
Image by Eva Birdthistle Photography
Sophie Grenham
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