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The Dark

Cillian Murphy: 'One of the greatest Irish writers’
By John McGahern
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Brief Description
With a new foreword by Colin Walsh, this is one of the most volatile, vital, and unsafe novels in Irish literature, banned by the censor for obscenity in 1965 - and just as explosive today. He was coming and there was nothing to do but wait... Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2799
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With a new foreword by Colin Walsh, this is 'one of the most volatile, vital and unsafe novels in Irish literature', banned by the censor for obscenity in 1965 - and just as explosive today.

With a new foreword by Colin Walsh, this is 'one of the most volatile, vital and unsafe novels in Irish literature', banned by the censor for obscenity in 1965 - and just as explosive today.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

With a new foreword by Colin Walsh, this is one of the most volatile, vital, and unsafe novels in Irish literature, banned by the censor for obscenity in 1965 - and just as explosive today.

He was coming and there was nothing to do but wait and grow hard as stone and lie.

Mahoney grows up in fear of his father: of his beatings with the heavy leather strap; of the nights he wants love. Seeking to escape the claustrophobic family farm, he contemplates a future in the priesthood, but battles with his tortured conscience amidst adolescent lusts. After winning a scholarship, he takes a stand against the household's toxic violence - and begins a journey towards an understanding that may mean peace.

A master. Kevin Barry

Timeless. Sinéad Gleeson

Extraordinary. Colin Walsh

Blew me away. Colin Barrett

A great writer. Sebastian Barry

Exquisite. Andrew Michael Hurley

Elegiac and graceful. David Mitchell

One of the greatest writers of our era. Hilary Mantel

The Irish novelist everyone should read. Colm Tóibín

The preeminent Irish writer of his generation. Anne Enright

I'm grateful for every sentence he left in this world. Donal Ryan

One reads McGahern for the textures of time and space, through which each of us travels, often alone. Yiyun Li

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780571399505

Publisher: Faber & Faber

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 30 July 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Faber & Faber

Edition: Main - Re-issue

Contributors:

  • Introduction by Colin Walsh

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 0g

Pages: 208

Collections

Coming Soon in Fiction Fiction General Fiction John McGahern Literary Fiction Pre-order Books Pre-order General Fiction Pre-orders Pre-orders by Release Date

About the Author

John McGahern was born in 1934 and raised on a farm in the West of Ireland. He became a primary school teacher in Dublin but was dismissed when his novel The Dark was banned in 1965 for 'obscene' content. The author of six acclaimed novels and four story collections, McGahern was shortlisted for the 1990 Booker Prize and awarded the Irish PEN Award, the Prix Ecureuil de Littérature Étrangère and the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He died in 2006.

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