The Long Gaze Back: An Anthology of Irish Women Writers - Tapa dura

It is impossible to mention all of the stories here. The feisty, fabulously angrily funny Lisa McInerny doesn't disappoint; neither does deep dark Nuala Ní Chonchúir. Ní Chonchúir's story overcomes my usual suspicion of historical settings she took me there to paraphrase the title of Niamh Boyce's strangled heart-breaker. Mannion's story is one of the quieter ones, but its pitch-perfect pulse really stayed with me ... It is a great pleasure to come across the likes of Éilís Ní Dhuibhne, Anne Devlin, Evelyn Conlon and Christine Dwyer Hickey, who have been writing their fine stories since it was neither popular or profitable ... The Long Gaze Back is a substantial harvest, a seriously comprehensive and celebratory volume. --The Irish Times

'There's nothing girly about these stories; there are no cliches, no Mr Rights, no wedding bells, no evenings with Chardonnay. Instead, this collection represents the richness of women's lives, past and present. The joy, the compassion, the anger, the sadness. It s all there. --Sunday Independent

'The overwhelming majority of stories in this collection are vibrant, profound and absorbing strong evidence of what Gleeson calls a palpable energy in Irish writing, and proof that, despite their exclusion from the anthologies of the bad old days, women writers have always been, and remain, at the heart of the Irish literary tradition. --Sunday Business Post

The Long Gaze Back, edited by Sinéad Gleeson, is an exhilarating anthology of thirty short stories by some of the most gifted women writers this island has ever produced. Taken together, the collected works of these writers reveal an enrapturing, unnerving, and piercingly beautiful mosaic of a lively literary landscape. Spanning four centuries, The Long Gaze Back features 8 rare stories from deceased luminaries and forerunners, and 22 new unpublished stories by some of the most talented Irish women writers working today. The anthology presents an inclusive and celebratory portrait of the high calibre of contemporary literature in Ireland. These stories run the gamut from heartbreaking to humorous, but each leaves a lasting impression. They chart the passions, obligations, trials and tribulations of a variety of vividly-drawn characters with unflinching honesty and relentless compassion. These are stories to savour.