Are You Somebody The Accidental Memoir of a Dublin Woman [Paperback]

You don't want the book to end; it glows with compassion and you want more, more because you know this is a fine wine of a life, richer as it ages. Frank McCourt, author ofAngela's Ashes

One of nine children born into a penniless North Dublin family, Nuala O'Faolain was saved from a harrowing childhood by her love of books and reading. Though she ultimately became one of Ireland's best-known columnists, her professional success did little to ease her loneliness and longing for a deep connection to the world.Are You Somebody?distills her experiences into a wisdom that can only come from an obstinate refusal to shrink from life.

This commemorative edition of her landmark memoir celebrates O'Faolain's remarkable life and work with a new foreword from Frank McCourt as well as additional archival materials. Strikingly vivid and starkly emotional,Are You Somebody?is, like O'Faolain herself, a singular example of courage, honesty, and bold living.

Nuala O'Faolainwas a waitress, sales clerk, and maid; a university lecturer; a TV producer; and a columnist withThe Irish Times. The author of three consecutiveNew York Timesbestsellers, her books include the memoirAlmost There, a follow-up toAre You Somebody?, as well as two novels:My Dream of YouandThe Story of Chicago May. She died in Dublin in 2008.

Are You Somebody is an extraordinary, powerful memoir. It is beautifully written, with an honesty that is both sensitive and stark. Roddy Doyle

A remarkable memoir, poignant, truthful, and imparting that quiet wisdom which suffering brings. Edna O'Brien

Are You Somebody is a moving and fascinating portrait of both Ireland and one of its most popular and respected commentators. This gem of honesty and insight had its first life as the introduction to a collection of Nuala O'Faolain's Irish Times columns that became a number-one bestseller in Irelló-