The ''Aisling'' (sometimes referred to as OMGWACA) series of novels are five adult fiction books by Irish journalists and authors

Emer McLysaght Emer McLysaght (born 1980) is an Irish journalist and co-author of the ''Aisling'' series of novels. Background McLysaght is from Kill, County Kildare. After secondary school, she attended Trinity College Dublin, where she studied biology for a ...

and Sarah Breen. The series began with ''Oh My God, What a Complete Aisling The Novel'', based on an Aisling (or Ais) character archetype created by the authors and discussed in the "oh my god what a complete aisling"

Facebook group Facebook Platform, Facebook is a Social network, social-network service website launched on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg. The following is a list of software and technology features that can be found on the Facebook website and mobile ...

. To date there are five books in the series. They are published by

Gill Books Gill is an independent publisher and distributor based in Dublin, Ireland. History In 1856, Michael Henry Gill, printer for Dublin University, purchased the publishing and bookselling business of James McGlashan, and the company was renamed M ...

and

Penguin Books Penguin Books Limited is a Germany, German-owned English publishing, publishing house. It was co-founded in 1935 by Allen Lane with his brothers Richard and John, as a line of the publishers the Bodley Head, only becoming a separate company the ...

. The series was optioned as a film before being worked into a yet-to-be-produced TV series.

Description

Aisling began as a stock character type, a "

culchie Culchie is a term in Hiberno-English for someone from rural Ireland. The term usually has a pejorative meaning directed by urban Irish against rural Irish, but since the late 20th century, the term has also been reclaimed by some who are proud o ...

" from "Ballygobackwards" (BGB), up in the "big smoke"

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 ...

. Other stock characters, Mad Tom Deddeh, Memmeh, Niamh and Fionn, all from "Across The Road" (FATR) were used by users in posts to describe Aisling's life and eccentricities. About Aisling,

Sarra Manning Sarra Manning is an English writer and journalist. She attended the University of Sussex and took an English with media studies degree. She became a freelance writer after submitting her work to '' Melody Maker''. She worked as the entertainmen ...

, of

Red Online Hearst Corporation, Hearst Holdings Inc. and Hearst Communications Inc. comprise an American multinational mass media and business information conglomerate owned by the Hearst family and based in Hearst Tower in Midtown Manhattan in New York ...

, wrote that readers "laugh with her, never at her ... dmiringher for the same traits that we don't necessarily value in ourselves. We love her because she's a complete Aisling and we wouldn't have her any other way". To date, the series contains five books: *''Oh My God, What a Complete Aisling The Novel'' (August 2017) * ''The Importance of Being Aisling'' (September 2018) * ''Once, Twice, Three Times and Aisling'' (September 2019) * ''Aisling and the City'' (October 2021) * ''Aisling Ever After'' (August 2023)

Reception

Actress

Tara Flynn Tara Flynn (born 1969) is an Irish actress and writer. She was a member of The Nualas. Career Flynn has written three satirical books: ''You're Grand: The Irishwoman's Secret Guide to Life'', ''Giving Out Yards: The Art of Complaint, Irish Styl ...

, writing 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 ...

'', thought that it would have been easy to make a book of lists about the characters, but that the first novel gave "Aisling the flesh and bones she deserves, and a story that licks along at a pace". Flynn hoped for a movie adaptation, and suggested she might portray Memmeh. Síle Ní Choincheannain, of Mary I College has described the series as having "deftly captured a unique Irish archetype and modern heroine". TheJournal.ie described the first book as a "publishing phenomenon". ''The Importance of being Aisling'' won the

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

"Popular Irish Fiction" category at the

Irish Book Awards The Irish Book Awards are Irish literary awards given annually to books and authors in various categories. It is the only literary award supported by all-Irish bookstores. The primary sponsor is An Post, the state owned postal service in Ireland ...

, with ''Once, Twice, Three Times an Aisling'' winning the same prize in 2019, and ''Aisling in the City'' in 2021.

References

{{reflist Book series introduced in 2017 Book series