That They May Face the Rising Sun

With a new foreword by Kevin Barry, McGahern's 'timeless' (Sinéad Gleeson) novel of rural Irish life is perfect for admirers of Claire Keegan.
'I'm grateful for every sentence McGahern left in this world.' Donal Ryan
When the bells rang out for Mass, the strokes trembling on the water, they had the entire world to themselves.
Joe Ruttledge has returned to his native Ireland with his wife Kate. Leaving behind their life in London, the couple begin their new existence on a tranquil lakeside farm. Over a year, they become embedded in the rural community: entwined in the dramas of neighbours, friends and relatives, and immersed in the rhythm of the seasons, work, play, religion - and soon, their little world becomes an Everywhere: a universe in miniature, cast in light and dark.
'Extraordinary.' Colin Walsh
'The preeminent Irish writer of his generation.' Anne Enright
'McGahern's exquisite sentences capture every nuance of elegy, regret, yearning and hope.' Andrew Michael Hurley

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 Etrangère and the Chevalier de l'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. He died in 2006.