What's New at O'Brien Press

Design A Book Cover Competition Following the huge success of our cover design competition last year, we teamed up with Children's Books Ireland with a competition to interest and challenge Ireland's young artists, and to celebrate the Children's Book Festival. A brand new edition of Sam McBratney's classic title The Lough Neagh Monster is due for publication in spring 2010 and we asked readers around the country to design the cover. We were really impressed by the talent out there and judging all of the entries was a very difficult job. But now we're delighted to announce the results! In first place is Sophie Courtney (10) from Carysfort N.S. in Co. Dublin, whose bold illustration and inspired concept for the title text will be featured on the front cover of the new edition of The Lough Neagh Monster. Congratulations Sophie! In second place is Ciára Taggart (12) from Dominican College in Co. Antrim, who's clever incorporation of both monster characters and brightly coloured lettering will be used for the back cover. And the three runners-up whose designs will be used on the inside covers are Stephen Kissane (14) from Salesian's College in Co. Kildare, Christina Jefferson (13) from Downshire School in Co Antrim and Orla Donoghue (15) who entered through her local library in Tallaght, South Dublin. This great new edition of The Lough Neagh Monster will be available from bookshops in Spring 2010. In the meantime, all five winners will also receive a hamper of O'Brien Press titles and special certificates commemorating their fantastic achievement. A big congratulations to everyone who took part, and to Children's Books Ireland who helped make the Design A Cover Competition a great success! Check out all the winning cover designs here: Design-A-Cover Competition
In The Blood launched at Punchestown Anne Holland's new book In The Blood was launched at Punchestown races by film director, and race-horse owner, Jim Sheridan. This photo is by Pat Healy of Healy Photography, who feature in the book: a loving look at all those involved in Irish horse-racing, from jockeys and owners to commentators, stable lads ... And photographers!
Alice and Megan get their own website! We are very excited to announce the launch of Alice and Megan's new website, with extracts of all the books in the series, extra content not found in the books, a chance to review and comments on the books and much more! Why not explore for yourself?
Reading Association of Ireland Awards: OBP wins! The Poison Throne, the first book in the internationally-acclaimed Moorehawke Trilogy by Irish author Celine Kiernan, was announced as this year’s winner of the prestigious Reading Association of Ireland Award, at the 33rd annual Reading Association of Ireland Conference, held in St. Patrick’s College, Drumcondra on 24th September this year. The Moorehawke Trilogy continues with The Crowded Shadows which was published in September 2009. Fellow O’Brien Press author Conor Kostick won the Reading Association of Ireland Special Merit Award in recognition of his latest book, Move, and for his overall body of work and contribution to science-fiction writing for children in Ireland. The O’Brien Press had an unprecedented five books in the awards shortlist of six titles including Hal's Sleepover by Maddie Stewart, in the Panda Cubs series, Wild Dublin by Eanna Ní Lamhna, and the award-winning best-seller The Story of Ireland by Brendan O’Brien - already an award-winner, this multi-layered, beautiful book is now available in a fantastic new mini-edition. Congratulations to all of our authors!
Irish Book Awards nominations The O'Brien Press were thrilled to have received three nominations in the Irish Book Awards. No wins, unfortunately, but you can't win them all! Alice and Megan Forever by Judi Curtin was nominated in the Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year (senior) category The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan got two nominations in the Dublin Airport Authority Irish Children's Book of the Year and International Educational Services Ltd Best Irish Newcomer of the Year categories
Bookseller of the Year 2009 Congratulations to David O'Callaghan of Eason & Son, the deserving winner of this year's O'Brien Bookseller of the Year Award. The award is to recognise outstanding achievement or an invaluable contribution to the book trade made by an individual bookseller. THE AWARD The Elements, a bronze perpetual trophy sculpted by Rowan Gillespie. The winner also receives a framed commemorative certificate and a specially selected piece of art to keep. JUDGING THE WINNER of the 2009 award was decided by the following jury: Conor Hackett, Publishers’ Agent Vivienne Lavery, Publishers’ Agent Tony Purdue, Harper Collins Ivan O’Brien, The O’Brien Press THE CITATION He brings a freshness, frankness and sense of fun to all aspects of his work. Highly respected at home and abroad, he has always had a unique approach, and instinctively spots and champions new authors. In a rapidly-changing environment he constantly finds new ways to transfer his unquenchable enthusiasm for books to children.
O’Brien Press & Children’s Book Ireland ‘Design A Cover’ Competition Winners have been announced! The O’Brien Press is delighted to announce the winners of the nationwide Children’s Book Festival ‘Design A Cover’ competition. Run in conjunction with Children’s Books Ireland, this competition was open to children from all over the country and thousands of entries were received. The winners will see their cover designs in the new edition of The Great Pig Escape by Linda Moller, which will be in bookshops in March 2009, and each winner will receive a fantastic Christmas hamper of books from The O’Brien Press. First place winner Holly Crowley Walsh will also spend a day visiting The O'Brien Press, where she will get to experience the publishing process first hand. All will also be invited to a special ‘Great Pig Escape’ launch in Dublin in March 2009. In congratulating the winners on their success, Ivan O'Brien, Managing Director of The O’Brien Press, said: "Everyone at The O’Brien Press was thrilled at the response, and the talent and imagination shown by all the entries. We had a very difficult, but enjoyable, time choosing the winner: We are honoured to be publishing this new edition of The Great Pig Escape, which will be hitting the shelves in March. I’d like to thank Children’s Books Ireland, for all their work with this competition, and for all their great work in advancing children’s literature in Ireland" Congratulations to everyone who took part! And, finally, here is the overall winner: Holly Crowley Walsh, age 13, from Ballinhassig, Co Cork You can see Holly's design, and the runners up, here.
The MooreHawke Trilogy triumphs Publishers around the world have been battling to purchase this year’s hot property in the international rights scene - The Moorehawke Trilogy by our own Celine Kiernan. Australian, German, Russian and Spanish rights have already been sold amid resounding praise from the publishers and just in time for Christmas, we are pleased to announce the UK/US publishing deal. Little Brown, part of the Hachette group, agreed an amazing six-figure sum in a three-book deal. Michael O’Brien, Publisher of the O’Brien Press, commented ‘The buzz surrounding the rights deals confirmed the excitement we felt at O’Brien from the moment we first read The Poison Throne. We can only compare it to when we first discovered Eoin Colfer. We feel justified in our belief now that we have conquered the international markets, despite the economic downturn' Recently released in Ireland, The Poison Throne is the first book in the trilogy. Set in a fantasy version of medieval Europe, this tale of court intrigue, adventure and romance, is, we believe, a ‘winning combination of imagination, powerful storytelling and characters whose presence will stay with the reader long after the book is finished’. But don't just take our word for it - read it yourself and we guarantee you won't be disappointed! This success story can also be seen as a testament to the importance of a good teacher, a much maligned and often overlooked group. For author Celine Kiernan was fortunate enough to have two successful Irish writers as her teachers. She dedicates the book to Roddy Doyle and Catherine Dunne with the words - ‘Though most of us never get a chance to say it, you made a huge difference to us. A great teacher is never forgotten.’ Both of these authors taught Celine in secondary school, in Greendale Community School in Kilbarrick, Dublin. She feels it was their encouragement that helped her realise her dream to be a writer and to never stop pursuing it. Roddy Doyle continued to support Celine and the book, reading an advance copy and providing a glowing quote for the cover: 'This is marvellous, vivid writing, and story-telling at its absolute best. It reminded me of the first time I read Philip Pullman - I was utterly engrossed.' Celine herself is overjoyed, with 2008 being a year she will never forget: 'At the beginning of this year I had no agent, no publisher, and a shoebox filled with the usual myriad rejection slips that all writers collect over their careers. I had spent the last few years working two jobs, as a childminder during the day and as a cashier in the local supermarket at night (plus looking after my two children). I would secretly write at night, often staying up 'til four in the morning trying to get chapters working, only to roll out of bed at seven the next day to start my work. I was exhausted, we were broke all the time, and, to be honest, I was starting to believe that I’d never get a break. It was only the unfailing support of my husband and kids that kept me going. At Christmas, knowing how low I was over my latest rejection slip, my husband wrote a note on each of my Christmas presents. They said ‘don’t give up’, ‘follow your dream’ and ‘you can make it.’ That January I received an offer of representation from my amazing agent. By March the Trilogy had been sold to the O’Brien Press. The year took off running from there, and literally hasn’t slowed down since. I’m still exhausted, but in a completely different way. It’s hard to stop smiling.' Book 2 in the trilogy, The Crowded Shadows, is completed and fans are eagerly anticipating publication late next year while Celine is currently working on the final instalment of the trilogy.
Edna O’Brien launches memoir of pioneering same-sex couple The sophisticated Merrion Hotel was the setting for the launch of a memoir with a difference - written by two people jointly - Ann Louise Gilligan and Katherine Zappone. OUR LIVES OUT LOUD, In Pursuit of Justice and Equality, is the memoir of this pioneering couple who first came into the public eye with their case seeking legal recognition of their Canadian marriage, which was rejected by the High Court in December 2006. Guests enjoyed a cocktail reception on Tuesday, October 7th and included Pat Rabbitte TD, Ivana Bacik, Neil Crowley, CEO of the Equality Authority and many from MarriagEquality, a new initiative working for civil marriage for gay and lesbian people that grew out of an advocacy group established initially in support of the Gilligan/Zappone court case. OUR LIVES OUT LOUD details both their childhoods, how they met and fell in love, their careers, as well as their extraordinary work in education in West Tallaght, Dublin, where their organisation, An Cosán, has created huge opportunity for local people. It also documents their personal battles, from Ann Louise’s fight with cancer to their brave and monumental decision to pursue through the courts the legal recognition of their marriage in Ireland. The book was officially launched by celebrated novelist and feminist Edna O’Brien. Edna wowed the crowd with an evocative and moving speech, recalling a time when she too was at the mercy of severe censor by Irish society. But the night was stolen by Katherine Zappone’s parents, Bob and Kathie, both in their 80’s, who made the trip from the US especially for the launch. They spoke of their pride and support of their daughter and said they now considered they had two daughters, Katherine and her wife Ann Louise. There wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
Grand National greats help launch book of this most famous of horse races The great and the good from the world of Irish horse racing gathered this October to toast a new publication on that most famous of horse races - The Grand National Guests enjoyed a wine reception in the harbour town of Dun Laoghaire at Hughes & Hughes bookshop and were a veritable collection of ‘whose who’ in the glamorous world of horse racing. They included three Grand National jockeys of Irish trained winners - Barry Geraghty (2003 - Monty’s Pass), Robbie Power (2007 - Silver Birch) and Paul Carberry (1999 - Bobbyjo). All were in fine spirits and gracefully signed copies of the book. THE GRAND NATIONAL, The Irish at Aintree by Anne Holland was officially launched by Irish Field managing editor Leo Powell, whose brother Brendan Powell, is a former winner of The Grand National. Author Anne was delighted to receive a silver horseshoe presented in memory of the occasion by publisher Michael O’Brien. But it wasn’t just the jockeys who showed up in support of Anne. Trainer Willie Mullins considered by many to be ‘top-drawer Irish racing’ arrived to the pleasure of the crowd. The crowd retired for dinner and the celebrating continued into the small hours. Pictured left to right: 1. Barry Geraghty, Robbie Power, Anne Holland, Paul Carberry, Leo Powell
Display Material We have a large and varied range of display material available for the classroom and the bookshop, including a wide selection of posters and bookmarks. For more information, just email marketing@obrien.ie today.
Sales Agencies OBP exclusively handle the sales in the island of Ireland for the following publishers: Blackstaff Press, Belfast Their list includes acclaimed literary fiction, poetry, politics, history, biography, health and humour. Blackstaff's literary fiction list encompasses internationally known writers such as Michael McLaverty, Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Sam Hanna Bell as well as the fresh new voices of writers like Leo Cullen, Tara West and Annie McCartney. Blackstaff are also the publishers of the Beeline imprint which focuses on popular fiction. Blackstaff Press also publish popular TV chef Jenny Bristow and Stephen Davison's motorbike books. Osprey Publishing, a leading military history publisher. Their list covers everything from Roman Military Clothing to the tactics of modern warfare. Shire Publications, who publish inexpensive, non-fiction paperbacks on a wide range of subjects including history and archaeology.
Schools The schools section of our website, www.obrien.ie/schools, has been designed to help teachers to maximise the use of real books in their classroom, with a range of materials available. In addition to a web-only supplement to our Reading Programme, we now have interviews with authors, feedback from kids, classroom worksheets and other teaching materials. www.obrien.ie/SecondarySchools shows which O'Brien Press titles would be appropriate for use in secondary classrooms, and which teaching materials are available to back-up this study. On www.obrien.ie you will find out about forthcoming titles and have access to the full backlist, rights info, awards, series and more.