In August 2024, Guardian journalist Kate McCusker visited Dublin to find out why Ireland “punches so far above its weight when it comes to literature”. She talked about our four Nobel literature laureates and six Booker Prize winners, the over-representation of Irish writers on prize lists and “the cultural dominance of Sally Rooney”. The article mentions libraries, festivals, magazines, publishers, bookshops and funding structures. And yet, with the exception of the My Little Library Book Bag scheme, there is no mention of children’s literature from Ireland.
My intention is not to point fingers at the journalist for this omission, or at those within the literature sector who were interviewed for the piece. It correctly identifies some of the elements which contribute to the ecosystem of Irish literature: supportive funding structures, passionate and informed publishers and booksellers, a grá for the chat, whether in book clubs or on shop floors. But Rooney and the multitudes of other writers and illustrators in Ireland don’t appear fully formed at 26 and take the world by storm. They have experiences with books and reading as children which shape them.
Writer and Laureate na nÓg Patricia Forde remembers “reading The Hobbit and the Narnia books, and being blown away by the idea that there were other worlds at the edges of our own.” Laureate for Irish Fiction Éilís Ní Dhuibhne was similarly spellbound by books: “I wanted to be like Enid Blyton, whom I loved.” Anne Enright describes herself as “an Alice in Wonderland child”. Rooney herself recalls being a “disorganised, unsystematic reader”, who followed her own impulses and intuitions, a luxury every child and teenager should be afforded.
All that is to say, in response to the question “How do you build a nation of readers and writers whose reputation is world-renowned?”, perhaps we ought to talk about giving our children a rich variety of books to choose from.
For decades, Irish children’s literature has been transforming and expanding its boundaries. Now, when we hold it to the light, we can see it for the multifaceted gem it is, bursting with brilliant non-fiction, verse novels, comic-style graphic novels, fiction that reflects Ireland today or whisks readers away through time and space. We have many new voices creating books as brilliant and varied as the children who will read them.
The judges for the KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards in 2025 read a record-breaking 169 books by Irish and Irish-based authors and illustrators, more than double the amount submitted only six years before. And the quality has not suffered with the increase in quantity: only last year, the judges for the same awards insisted on publicising a longlist for the first time ever, in order to recognise the extent of truly excellent titles submitted.
With art of this calibre being created in Ireland for young audiences, I could ask why these award-winning writers and illustrators aren’t being lauded in the same way as their counterparts who make work for adults. Can the average Irish Times reader name a book by recent Book of the Year Award winners Eilish Fisher, Dermot Flynn, Clara Kumagai, Ellen Ryan or Shona Shirley Macdonald? New research published by Children’s Books Ireland this year shows that just under half (47 per cent) of all children in Ireland have at least some books written by Irish authors, according to their parents/carers. 26 per cent of parents reported that their child has “a few” Irish books with only 7 per cent reporting that they had none. Almost one in five, 19 per cent, did not know whether they had any books by Irish artists in the home, indicating that there is still work to do to increase awareness of children’s writers and illustrators in Ireland.
With the relentless barrage of parenting advice available for families, reading to and with children may seem like just another thing we should be doing, another job on the list, rather than something to savour together. Children’s literature is often viewed by people as less important, easier to create, less intellectual or meaningful – all of which I would strongly refute. But for me, and for Children’s Books Ireland, the most important question is: how can we change this perception?
There is an undeniable “green wave” of culture happening worldwide, from Paul Mescal and Nicola Coughlan on screen to Aisling Bea and Sharon Horgan in comedy to Fontaines D.C., Kneecap and CMAT in music – Irish creatives are in the limelight and rightly being celebrated. But children’s authors and illustrators in Ireland too often fly under the radar.
For these artists, Children’s Books Ireland’s role is to support and champion their brilliant work. Our job is to tell you that Tarsila Krüse’s A Little Birdie Told Me would make a great birthday present for younger readers, and that My Sister is a Treasure by Yasmeen Ismail and Tracy Darnton is ideal for big siblings welcoming new arrivals to the family. I could rave about Níl Éisc le Trust, also published as Don’t Trust Fish, a hilarious picturebook by newcomer Neil Sharpson and American illustrator Dan Santat.
For the comic-lovers, I could tell you there are new instalments in the Evil Duck (Chris Judge), Pablo and Splash (Sheena Dempsey) and Nina Peanut (Sarah Bowie) series, as well as a brand new title, Squid Squad, from Aoife Dooley. Fans of the Mirabelle and Emerald series will love Ellora McGee, Trainee Banshee: the New School, by Sinéad O’Hart and Úna Woods. Young adults looking for love stories can find new books from Méabh McDonnell and Jenny Ireland, as well as the second book in Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper series now translated into Irish by Eoin McEvoy. And that’s just for starters.
The Best Irish Books of 2025 has just been published – just in time for Culture Night (and dare we say it, the other occasion beginning with C that is just around the corner). It’s packed with 100 reviews of brilliant Irish books for 0–18-year-olds, and 100 “read also” recommendations for further inspiration. We’ve printed 30,000 copies, which you can pick up free of charge at your local library and in 90 participating bookshops island-wide. You can also download it, absolutely free, from childrensbooksireland.ie and check out the many other reviews while you’re there.
For Culture Night this year, why not make a resolution to find one great read for a young reader in your life – we guarantee it’ll be one of the best Irish books of 2025!