George O'Brien (writer)
Encyclopedia
George O'Brien is an award-winning Irish
memoir
ist, writer, and academic.
after his mother died. He was educated at St. Augustine College, in Dungarvan
. In 1962, he moved to Dublin to live with his father and stepmother. He graduated as an electronic engineer from the College of Technology, Kevin Street
and worked as an apprentice photographer. He moved to London where he worked as a barman, clerk and encyclopaedia salesman.
He continued his education at Ruskin College, Oxford
in 1968, then moved to Warwick University in 1970 where he graduated with a BA in English and American Literature in 1973, and earned a PhD in 1980.
O'Brien taught at the University of Birmingham
(1974) and at Clare College, Cambridge
(1975), then lectured at Warwick University (1976-1980). He crossed the Atlanic where he was visiting assistant professor at Vassar College
, Poughkeepsie (1980-1984), and then became associate professor, then professor of English at Georgetown University
in Washington
(1984-present).
, co-edited The Ireland Anthology with Sean Dunne
, and received the Irish Book Awards silver medal, and the John Eddeyrn Hughes Prize for The Village of Longing. O'Brien has also written occasional literary journalism for the Irish Times.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
memoir
Memoir
A memoir , is a literary genre, forming a subclass of autobiography – although the terms 'memoir' and 'autobiography' are almost interchangeable. Memoir is autobiographical writing, but not all autobiographical writing follows the criteria for memoir set out below...
ist, writer, and academic.
Life
O'Brien was raised by his paternal grandmother in Lismore, County WaterfordLismore, County Waterford
Lismore is a town in County Waterford, Ireland. It is located where the N72 road crosses the River Blackwater.-History:It was founded by Saint Mochuda, also known as Saint Carthage. In the 7th century, Lismore was the site of the well-known Lismore Abbey. It is also home to Lismore Castle, the...
after his mother died. He was educated at St. Augustine College, in Dungarvan
Dungarvan
Dungarvan is a town and harbour on the south coast of Ireland in the province of Munster. Dungarvan is the county town and administrative centre of County Waterford. The town's Irish name means "Garbhan's fort", referring to Saint Garbhan who founded a church there in the seventh century...
. In 1962, he moved to Dublin to live with his father and stepmother. He graduated as an electronic engineer from the College of Technology, Kevin Street
College of Technology, Kevin Street
The Kevin Street Campus of the Dublin Institute of Technology is located on Kevin Street, Dublin 8.-Description:This campus includes all of the Faculty of Science; some of the Faculty of Engineering including the School of Languages; and the National Bakery School.The Faculty of Science consists...
and worked as an apprentice photographer. He moved to London where he worked as a barman, clerk and encyclopaedia salesman.
He continued his education at Ruskin College, Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
in 1968, then moved to Warwick University in 1970 where he graduated with a BA in English and American Literature in 1973, and earned a PhD in 1980.
O'Brien taught at the University of Birmingham
University of Birmingham
The University of Birmingham is a British Redbrick university located in the city of Birmingham, England. It received its royal charter in 1900 as a successor to Birmingham Medical School and Mason Science College . Birmingham was the first Redbrick university to gain a charter and thus...
(1974) and at Clare College, Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
(1975), then lectured at Warwick University (1976-1980). He crossed the Atlanic where he was visiting assistant professor at Vassar College
Vassar College
Vassar College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college in the town of Poughkeepsie, New York, in the United States. The Vassar campus comprises over and more than 100 buildings, including four National Historic Landmarks, ranging in style from Collegiate Gothic to International,...
, Poughkeepsie (1980-1984), and then became associate professor, then professor of English at Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
in Washington
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
(1984-present).
Works
His memoirs include The Village of Longing: An Irish Boyhood in the Fifties (1987); Dancehall Days, or Love in Dublin (1998); and Out of Our Minds (1995). He has written studies of Irish playwright Brian FrielBrian Friel
Brian Friel is an Irish dramatist, author and director of the Field Day Theatre Company. He is considered to be the greatest living English-language dramatist, hailed by the English-speaking world as an "Irish Chekhov" and "the universally accented voice of Ireland"...
, co-edited The Ireland Anthology with Sean Dunne
Seán Dunne
Seán Dunne was an Irish Labour Party politician. He was a TD from 1948–1957 and from 1961–1969....
, and received the Irish Book Awards silver medal, and the John Eddeyrn Hughes Prize for The Village of Longing. O'Brien has also written occasional literary journalism for the Irish Times.
Resources
- O'Brien's biography at Irish Writers Online
- O'Brien's EIRData dataset entry, Princess Grace Irish LibraryPrincess Grace Irish Library-Foundation and collections:Opened in November 1984 by Rainier III in honor of Princess Grace's Irish origins, it contains the princess's personal collection of Irish books and Irish-American sheet music.The library was co-founded by the novelist Anthony Burgess....
- Out of Our Minds, book review
- Professor George O'Brien; listing at Georgetown University