Mark O'Connell (born 23 June 1979) is an Irish author and journalist. His debut book, '' To Be a Machine'', was published in 2017, followed by '' Notes from an Apocalypse'' in 2020. His third book, ''A Thread of Violence'', was published in 2023. He has written for publications including ''

The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. It was founded on February 21, 1925, by Harold Ross and his wife Jane Grant, a reporter for ''The New York T ...

'', ''

The New York Times Magazine ''The New York Times Magazine'' is an American Sunday magazine included with the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times''. It features articles longer than those typically in the newspaper and has attracted many notable contributors. The magazi ...

'', ''

The New York Review of Books ''The New York Review of Books'' (or ''NYREV'' or ''NYRB'') is a semi-monthly magazine with articles on literature, culture, economics, science and current affairs. Published in New York City, it is inspired by the idea that the discussion of ...

'', and ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

''. He is also the author of the Kindle Single ''Epic Fail: Bad Art, Viral Fame, and the History of the Worst Thing Ever'' (Byliner/The Millions), as well as an academic study of the novels of

John Banville William John Banville (born 8 December 1945) is an Irish novelist, short story writer, Literary adaptation, adapter of dramas and screenwriter. Though he has been described as "the heir to Marcel Proust, Proust, via Vladimir Nabokov, Nabokov", ...

Education and personal life

O'Connell was born in

Kilkenny Kilkenny ( , meaning 'church of Cainnech of Aghaboe, Cainnech'). is a city in County Kilkenny, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region, Ireland, South-East Region and in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinst ...

, Ireland, in 1979, and grew up there. His father worked as a pharmacist. O'Connell has an older brother and a younger sister. He studied English at

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

(TCD), completed a PhD on the novels of

, and graduated in 2011. He lives in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

Major works

In 2017, O'Connell published '' To Be a Machine''. Described by ''

The New York Times Book Review ''The New York Times Book Review'' (''NYTBR'') is a weekly paper-magazine supplement to the Sunday edition of ''The New York Times'' in which current non-fiction and fiction books are reviewed. It is one of the most influential and widely rea ...

'' as "a gonzo-journalistic exploration of the

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

techno-utopians' pursuit of escaping mortality", it is an investigation of

transhumanism Transhumanism is a philosophical and intellectual movement that advocates the human enhancement, enhancement of the human condition by developing and making widely available new and future technologies that can greatly enhance longevity, cogni ...

. It was the winner of the 2018 Wellcome Book Prize, and the Rooney Prize in 2019. O'Connell's second book, published in 2020, is '' Notes from an Apocalypse''. A book about apocalyptic anxieties, it was described by ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentleman ...

'' as "deeply funny and life-affirming, with a warm, generous outlook even on the most challenging of subjects." His third book, ''A Thread of Violence'', about the Irish murderer Malcolm Macarthur, was published in 2023. ;Essays O'Connell has written essays for ''

'' on the subjects of pessimism and parenthood, and the TV show ''

Game of Thrones ''Game of Thrones'' is an American Fantasy television, fantasy Drama (film and television), drama television series created by David Benioff and for HBO. It is an adaptation of ''A Song of Ice and Fire'', a series of high fantasy novels by ...

'', and for ''

'' on turning 40, and the benefits of isolation. He is also an opinion columnist for ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It was launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is Ireland's leading n ...

''.

Awards

O'Connell has been awarded the

Wellcome Book Prize Wellcome Book Prize (2009–2019 — paused) is an annual British literary award sponsored by Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 ...

and the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature. His debut book, ''To Be a Machine'', was a finalist for the 2017 Royal Society Insight Investment Science Book Prize and was shortlisted for the 2017

Baillie Gifford Prize The Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction, formerly the Samuel Johnson Prize, is an annual British book prize for the best non-fiction writing in the English language. It was founded in 1999 following the demise of the NCR Book Award. With its ...

Adaptations

In 2020, it was announced that a theatrical adaptation of '' To Be a Machine'' was to be performed as part of the Dublin Theatre Festival. Titled ''To Be a Machine (Version 1.0)'', the adaptation by theatre company Dead Centre saw O'Connell's character played by Jack Gleeson. Owing to the

Covid-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, the performance was online only.

Bibliography

Book

* * *

Short work

* Online version is titled "Cartoon Saloon and the new Golden Age of animation".

Notes

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:OConnell, Mark 1979 births Living people 21st-century Irish writers The New Yorker people