Jamie O'Neill (born 1 January 1962) is an Irish author. His critically acclaimed novel, ''

At Swim, Two Boys ''At Swim, Two Boys'' (2001) is a novel by Irish writer Jamie O'Neill. The title is a punning allusion to Flann O'Brien's ''At Swim-Two-Birds''. The book is written in a stream-of-consciousness style, which has led to favourable comparisons to J ...

'' (2001), earned him the highest advance ever paid for an Irish novel and frequent praise as the natural successor to

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

Flann O'Brien Brian O'Nolan ( ga, Brian Ó Nualláin; 5 October 1911 – 1 April 1966), better known by his pen name Flann O'Brien, was an Irish civil service official, novelist, playwright and satirist, who is now considered a major figure in twentieth cen ...

and

Samuel Beckett Samuel Barclay Beckett (; 13 April 1906 – 22 December 1989) was an Irish novelist, dramatist, short story writer, theatre director, poet, and literary translator. His literary and theatrical work features bleak, impersonal and tragicomic expe ...

. He is currently living in Gortachalla in

County Galway "Righteousness and Justice" , anthem = () , image_map = Island of Ireland location map Galway.svg , map_caption = Location in Ireland , area_footnotes = , area_total_km2 = ...

, having previously lived and worked in England for two decades. O'Neill's work follows the imaginative route in Irish literature, unlike his realist contemporaries such as

Colm Tóibín Colm Tóibín (, approximately ; born 30 May 1955) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, essayist, journalist, critic, playwright and poet. His first novel, '' The South'', was published in 1990. '' The Blackwater Lightship'' was shortlis ...

John McGahern John McGahern (12 November 1934 – 30 March 2006) was an Irish writer and novelist. He is regarded as one of the most important writers of the latter half of the twentieth century. Known for the detailed dissection of Irish life found in wo ...

. Terry Pender commented on ''At Swim, Two Boys'': "With only this work O'Neill can take his rightful place among the great Irish writers beginning with Joyce and ending with

Roddy Doyle Roddy Doyle (born 8 May 1958) is an Irish novelist, dramatist and screenwriter. He is the author of eleven novels for adults, eight books for children, seven plays and screenplays, and dozens of short stories. Several of his books have been ma ...

Background and education

O'Neill was born in

Dún Laoghaire Dún Laoghaire ( , ) is a suburban coastal town in Dublin in Ireland. It is the administrative centre of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown. The town was built following the 1816 legislation that allowed the building of a major port to serve Dubli ...

in 1962 the youngest of four children and was educated at Presentation College,

Glasthule Glasthule ( ; ) is a suburb of Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is along County Dublin, County Dublin’s south coast, between Dún Laoghaire and Dalkey. Amenities Sandycove and Glasthule are served by a number of businesses and ameni ...

County Dublin "Action to match our speech" , image_map = Island_of_Ireland_location_map_Dublin.svg , map_alt = map showing County Dublin as a small area of darker green on the east coast within the lighter green background of ...

, run by the

Presentation Brothers The Congregation of Presentation Brothers is an international Catholic congregation of laymen founded in 1802 in Waterford, Ireland, by a local Irish businessman, Edmund Ignatius Rice, now Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice. Presentation Brothers live ...

, and (in his words) "the city streets of London, the beaches of Greece." He was raised in a home without books, and first discovered that books "could be fun" when he read ''

Ivanhoe ''Ivanhoe: A Romance'' () by Walter Scott is a historical novel published in three volumes, in 1819, as one of the Waverley novels. Set in England in the Middle Ages, this novel marked a shift away from Scott’s prior practice of setting st ...

'' by

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels '' Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

, a copy of which he had received as a Christmas gift. It took him two weeks and was the first book he ever finished. O'Neill was unhappy at home; he had a very difficult relationship with his father and ran away at age 17. He was raised a Catholic and has admitted to a fondness for the language of the Catholic Church, saying, "I like the words, the distinctions they have for sins. For example, "morose delectation." Beautiful. It's the dwelling on pleasure from sins already committed. I kind of admire something that's seen so far inside the soul that it can work out names for these things. Of course, I don't believe a word of it". O'Neill lists as his favourite books: ''

Ulysses Ulysses is one form of the Roman name for Odysseus, a hero in ancient Greek literature. Ulysses may also refer to: People * Ulysses (given name), including a list of people with this name Places in the United States * Ulysses, Kansas * Ulysse ...

'', by

, ''

The Last of the Wine ''The Last of the Wine'' is Mary Renault's first novel set in ancient Greece, the setting that would become her most important arena. The novel was published in 1956 and is the second of her works to feature male homosexuality as a major theme ...

'', by

Mary Renault Eileen Mary Challans (4 September 1905 – 13 December 1983), known by her pen name Mary Renault ("She always pronounced it 'Ren-olt', though almost everyone would come to speak of her as if she were a French car." ), was an English writer best ...

, ''

Hadrian the Seventh ''Hadrian the Seventh: A Romance'' (sometimes called ''Hadrian VII'') is a 1904 novel by the English novelist Frederick Rolfe, who wrote under the pseudonym "Baron Corvo". Rolfe's best-known work, this novel of extreme wish-fulfilment developed o ...

'', by

Frederick Rolfe Frederick William Rolfe (surname pronounced ), better known as Baron Corvo (Italian for "Crow"), and also calling himself Frederick William Serafino Austin Lewis Mary Rolfe (22 July 1860 – 25 October 1913), was an English writer, artist, ph ...

(Frederick Baron Corvo), ''

The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'' is a six-volume work by the English historian Edward Gibbon. It traces Western civilization (as well as the Islamic and Mongolian conquests) from the height of the Roman Empire to th ...

'', by

Edward Gibbon Edward Gibbon (; 8 May 173716 January 1794) was an English historian, writer, and member of parliament. His most important work, ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788, is k ...

, ''

The Leopard ''The Leopard'' ( it, Il Gattopardo ) is a novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa that chronicles the changes in Sicilian life and society during the ''Risorgimento''. Published posthumously in 1958 by Feltrinelli, after two rejections by the ...

'', by

Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, 11th Prince of Lampedusa, 12th Duke of Palma, GE (; 23 December 1896 – 23 July 1957) was an Italian writer and the last Prince of Lampedusa. He is most famous for his only novel, ''Il Gattopardo'' (first publishe ...

, ''

The Siege of Krishnapur ''The Siege of Krishnapur'' is a novel by J. G. Farrell, first published in 1973. Inspired by events such as the sieges of Cawnapore (Kanpur) and Lucknow, the book details the siege of a fictional Indian town, Krishnapur, during the Indian Reb ...

'', by

J. G. Farrell James Gordon Farrell (25 January 1935 – 11 August 1979) was an English-born novelist of Irish descent. He gained prominence for a series of novels known as "the Empire Trilogy" (''Troubles'', ''The Siege of Krishnapur'' and ''The Singapore Gri ...

, '' One Hundred Years of Solitude'', by

Gabriel García Márquez Gabriel José de la Concordia García Márquez (; 6 March 1927 – 17 April 2014) was a Colombian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter, and journalist, known affectionately as Gabo () or Gabito () throughout Latin America. Considered one ...

, ''

The Third Policeman ''The Third Policeman'' is a novel by Irish writer Brian O'Nolan, writing under the pseudonym Flann O'Brien. It was written in 1939 and 1940, but after it initially failed to find a publisher, the author withdrew the manuscript from circulation ...

'', by

, ''

The Swimming Pool Library ''The Swimming-Pool Library'' is a 1988 novel by Alan Hollinghurst. Plot introduction In 1983 London, Will, a privileged, gay, sexually irresistible 25-year-old, saves the life of an elderly aristocrat who has a heart-attack in a public lavato ...

'', by

Alan Hollinghurst Alan James Hollinghurst (born 26 May 1954) is an English novelist, poet, short story writer and translator. He won the 1989 Somerset Maugham Award, the 1994 James Tait Black Memorial Prize and the 2004 Booker Prize. Early life and education H ...

, and ''

The Lost Language of Cranes ''The Lost Language of Cranes'' is a novel by David Leavitt, first published in 1986. A British TV film of the novel was made in 1991. The film was released on DVD in 2009. Plot introduction ''The Lost Language of Cranes'' was the second nove ...

'' by

David Leavitt David Leavitt (; born June 23, 1961) is an American novelist, short story writer, and biographer. Biography Leavitt was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to Harold and Gloria Leavitt. Harold was a professor who taught at Stanford University and G ...

. He was one of the Irish delegates at the European Writers Conference in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

in 2010.

Personal life

Following a tumultuous relationship with his father, O'Neill left for England at the age of 17. There, he would continue to stay working at a

paracetamol Paracetamol, also known as acetaminophen, is a medication used to treat fever and mild to moderate pain. Common brand names include Tylenol and Panadol. At a standard dose, paracetamol only slightly decreases body temperature; it is inferior ...

factory for some of the time, before returning to Ireland to live in

Dalkey Dalkey ( ; ) is an affluent suburb of Dublin, and a seaside resort southeast of the city, and the town of Dún Laoghaire, in the county of Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown in the historic County Dublin, Ireland. It was founded as a Viking settlement ...

. His frequent excursions to London, though, are how O'Neill met with and began a relationship with TV presenter

Russell Harty Frederic Russell Harty (5 September 1934 – 8 June 1988) was an English television presenter of arts programmes and chat shows. Early life Harty was born in Blackburn, Lancashire, the son of greengrocer Fred Harty, who ran a fruit-and-veget ...

, who encouraged him to publish his work. O'Neill stayed with him until his death in 1988. The British tabloid press, who had run multiple exposés about Harty during his fatal illness, approached O'Neill offering him money to sell his story. Though he rebuffed all these offers, the ''Sunday Mirror'' published a nude photo from his modelling days in London. Harty's family had O'Neill, who had no legal standing in the estate, removed from the presenter's house; during this difficult period he eventually became homeless. His first novel, ''Disturbance'', was published in 1989; ''Kilbrack'' followed in 1990. O'Neill struggled to write, parted company with both his agent and publisher, and took a job as a night porter at the

Cassel Hospital The Cassel Hospital is a psychiatric facility in a Grade II listed building at 1 Ham Common, Richmond, Ham in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is run by the West London NHS Trust. History The hospital The hospital was founded ...

, a

psychiatric institution Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociative ...

Richmond, London Richmond is a town in south-west London,The London Government Act 1963 (c.33) (as amended) categorises the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames as an Outer London borough. Although it is on both sides of the River Thames, the Boundary Commiss ...

from 1990 to 2000. O'Neill was in a London pub when he noticed his dog was missing. Paddy had been found by a ballet dancer named Julien Joly. They began a relationship and Joly was instrumental in helping O'Neill put his life back together. During the ten years that followed, O'Neill wrote ''

'', which was published in 2001. The two events seemed to break the negative cycle of the author's life. When published in Britain, ''Swim'' was likened to the work of Joyce. The book allowed O'Neill to quit his job as a porter and to open his first bank account. Ten years after publication, Alison Walsh, reviewing the year 2001 for the '' Sunday Independent'', called it "a vintage one in Irish writing", specifically naming the "unforgettable" ''At Swim, Two Boys'' alongside books by

Dermot Bolger Dermot Bolger (born 1959) is an Irish novelist, playwright, poet and editor from Dublin, Ireland. Born in the Finglas suburb of Dublin in 1959, his older sister is the writer June Considine. Bolger's novels include ''Night Shift'' (1982), ''Th ...

Eoin Colfer Eoin Colfer (; born 14 May 1965) is an Irish author of children's books. He worked as a primary school teacher before he became a full-time writer. He is best known for being the author of the Artemis Fowl (series), ''Artemis Fowl'' series. I ...

and

Nuala O'Faolain Nuala O'Faolain (; 1 March 19409 May 2008) was an Irish people, Irish journalist, TV producer, book reviewer, teacher and writer. She became well known after the publication of her memoirs ''Are You Somebody?'' and ''Almost There''. She wrote a b ...

. He and Julien Joly are no longer together.Other link

On writing

Bibliography

* ''Disturbance'' (1989) * ''Kilbrack'' (1990) * ''

'' (2001)

Awards and honours

Ferro-Grumley Award
for Fiction (for ''At Swim, Two Boys'') *

Lambda Literary Award Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...

in Gay Men's Fiction (for ''At Swim, Two Boys'')

References

External links

Jamie O'Neill's personal website

The New York Times {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Jamie 1962 births Living people Irish gay writers 20th-century Irish novelists Lambda Literary Award for Gay Fiction winners Writers from County Dublin People from Dún Laoghaire Irish LGBT novelists Irish male novelists 20th-century Irish male writers 21st-century Irish novelists 21st-century Irish male writers 20th-century Irish LGBT people 21st-century Irish LGBT people