Nick Laird
Encyclopedia
Nicholas 'Nick' Laird is a novelist and poet
who was born, and grew up, in Cookstown
, County Tyrone
. He studied at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
, where he attained a first
in English. He went on to work at the global law firm Allen & Overy
in London
for six years, before leaving to concentrate on his writing. Since 2004, he has been married to novelist Zadie Smith
, whom he met while at Cambridge, and as of 2009, they have a daughter, Katherine.He will also be partaking in the Bush Theatre
's 2011 project Sixty Six where he has written a piece based upon a chapter of the King James Bible
, Laird explained how travelling out of Northern Ireland for an education in Cambridge had expanded his horizons and opened him up to opportunities that he believes would have otherwise been closed to him.
"I met a Jewish person for the first time. I met a black person for the first time." He also described the freedom that moving away from Northern Ireland gave to him with respect to adopting a new, or broader, identity. "It does mean freedom in a way to reinvent."
One of the themes in Laird's writing is the interpersonal relationships forged between men and women, and in the Lopate interview, he cited Ian McEwan
and Nick Hornby
as writers whom he admired for their ability to weave this element into their work. Laird is also one of the post-Troubles young novelists from Belfast, who have emerged to articulate the identity of the generation whose childhoods were experienced amid some of the region's worst violence, but who also matured in an era of problematic reconciliation. Along with Robert McLiam Wilson
, whose novel Eureka Street was widely acclaimed, the most successful young novelists from Belfast are Glenn Patterson
, author of six novels and a collection of essays, and Colin Bateman
, a very prolific and commercially successful author of comic novels about contemporary Belfast including Divorcing Jack.
He also cited the enduring influence of acclaimed Irish poet Seamus Heaney
on his life and work, tracing his love of literature back to reading some of Heaney's early work, which he claimed "seems to be written out of the same place that you live."
One of them, Danny, grew up to be a lawyer after attaining an education in London, while the other, Geordie, works as a labourer, and did not pursue extensive studies after school. Nick Laird has described Geordie as "more feckless than Danny," and "a kind of a drifter."
The novel also explores the endemic inter- and intrasectarian political and military conflict within Northern Ireland known as The Troubles
. When asked whether or not Americans are able to comprehend and identify with the experiences of people in Northern Ireland, Laird replied that "I think they can, but I don't think they do," and cited the "low level of discourse" that he has encountered in regard to this subject when he travels to America. http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/episodes/2006/01/25
in January 2005.
in 2007. The collection further explores the concept of relationships, loosely based on the tract The Art of War
by Sun Tzu
. The book won the Somerset Maugham Award
and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize
in 2008.
The Voice also has a review. (http://www.villagevoice.com/2009-07-15/books/irish-novelist-nick-laird-goes-utterly-pug/)
. To a Fault won the Jerwood Aldeburgh Prize, the Ireland Chair for Poetry Award and the Rupert and Eithne Strong Award. It was also shortlisted for the Forward Poetry Prize
for First Collection; it was shortlisted for the Poetry Now Award
in 2006; and it was longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award
.
Laird was also the recipient of the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2005. Utterly Monkey won the Betty Trask Prize for best first novel in 2005. It was also shortlisted for the Commonwealth best first novel award, the Irish novel of the year award, and the Kerry Group Listowel Fiction prize. On Purpose won a Somerset Maugham Award and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize in 2007.
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
who was born, and grew up, in Cookstown
Cookstown
Cookstown may refer to either of the following:*Cookstown, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland*Cookstown, Ontario, Canada*Cookstown, New Jersey, United States...
, County Tyrone
County Tyrone
Historically Tyrone stretched as far north as Lough Foyle, and comprised part of modern day County Londonderry east of the River Foyle. The majority of County Londonderry was carved out of Tyrone between 1610-1620 when that land went to the Guilds of London to set up profit making schemes based on...
. He studied at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge
Sidney Sussex College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England.The college was founded in 1596 and named after its foundress, Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex. It was from its inception an avowedly Puritan foundation: some good and godlie moniment for the mainteynance...
, where he attained a first
British undergraduate degree classification
The British undergraduate degree classification system is a grading scheme for undergraduate degrees in the United Kingdom...
in English. He went on to work at the global law firm Allen & Overy
Allen & Overy
Allen & Overy is a global law firm headquartered in London, United Kingdom.A member of the UK's Magic Circle of leading law firms, Allen & Overy is widely considered to be one of the world's elite law firms, advising national and multinational corporations, financial institutions, and...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
for six years, before leaving to concentrate on his writing. Since 2004, he has been married to novelist Zadie Smith
Zadie Smith
Zadie Smith is a British novelist. To date she has written three novels. In 2003, she was included on Granta's list of 20 best young authors...
, whom he met while at Cambridge, and as of 2009, they have a daughter, Katherine.He will also be partaking in the Bush Theatre
Bush Theatre
The Bush Theatre is based in Shepherd's Bush, in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. It was established in 1972 above The Bush public house by Brian McDermott, and has since become one of the most celebrated new writing theatres in the world. An intimate venue renowned for its close-up...
's 2011 project Sixty Six where he has written a piece based upon a chapter of the King James Bible
Influences and themes
In a January 2006 appearance on The Leonard Lopate ShowLeonard Lopate
Leonard Lopate is host of the public radio talk show The Leonard Lopate Show, broadcast on WNYC. He first broadcast on WKCR, the college radio station of Columbia University—where his brother Phillip was a student—then later at WBAI, before ultimately moving to WNYC. -Biography:Lopate came to...
, Laird explained how travelling out of Northern Ireland for an education in Cambridge had expanded his horizons and opened him up to opportunities that he believes would have otherwise been closed to him.
"I met a Jewish person for the first time. I met a black person for the first time." He also described the freedom that moving away from Northern Ireland gave to him with respect to adopting a new, or broader, identity. "It does mean freedom in a way to reinvent."
One of the themes in Laird's writing is the interpersonal relationships forged between men and women, and in the Lopate interview, he cited Ian McEwan
Ian McEwan
Ian Russell McEwan CBE, FRSA, FRSL is a British novelist and screenwriter, and one of Britain's most highly regarded writers. In 2008, The Times named him among their list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945"....
and Nick Hornby
Nick Hornby
Nick Hornby is an English novelist, essayist and screenwriter. He is best known for the novels High Fidelity, About a Boy, and for the football memoir Fever Pitch. His work frequently touches upon music, sport, and the aimless and obsessive natures of his protagonists.-Life and career:Hornby was...
as writers whom he admired for their ability to weave this element into their work. Laird is also one of the post-Troubles young novelists from Belfast, who have emerged to articulate the identity of the generation whose childhoods were experienced amid some of the region's worst violence, but who also matured in an era of problematic reconciliation. Along with Robert McLiam Wilson
Robert McLiam Wilson
Robert McLiam Wilson is a Northern Irish novelist. He attended St Malachy's College and studied at University of Cambridge; however, he dropped out and, for a short time, was homeless. This period of his life profoundly affected his later life and influenced his works...
, whose novel Eureka Street was widely acclaimed, the most successful young novelists from Belfast are Glenn Patterson
Glenn Patterson
Glenn Patterson, born in Belfast in 1961, is a novelist.He attended Methodist College Belfast. He graduated from the University of East Anglia where he studied Creative Writing under Malcolm Bradbury...
, author of six novels and a collection of essays, and Colin Bateman
Colin Bateman
Colin Bateman is a novelist, screenwriter and former journalist from Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland.Born in 1962, Bateman attended Bangor Grammar School leaving at 16 to join the County Down Spectator as a "cub" reporter, then columnist and deputy editor...
, a very prolific and commercially successful author of comic novels about contemporary Belfast including Divorcing Jack.
He also cited the enduring influence of acclaimed Irish poet Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
on his life and work, tracing his love of literature back to reading some of Heaney's early work, which he claimed "seems to be written out of the same place that you live."
Published works
As of 2009, he has written two novels, Utterly Monkey and Glover's Mistake, and two prize-winning books of poems, To a Fault and On Purpose.Utterly Monkey
Utterly Monkey is a novel that questions the notion of loyalty: where our loyalties actually lie, and where perhaps they should. It was published in May 2005 by Fourth Estate, and by Harper Perennial in the US. It follows the relationship of two childhood friends from Northern Ireland.One of them, Danny, grew up to be a lawyer after attaining an education in London, while the other, Geordie, works as a labourer, and did not pursue extensive studies after school. Nick Laird has described Geordie as "more feckless than Danny," and "a kind of a drifter."
The novel also explores the endemic inter- and intrasectarian political and military conflict within Northern Ireland known as The Troubles
The Troubles
The Troubles was a period of ethno-political conflict in Northern Ireland which spilled over at various times into England, the Republic of Ireland, and mainland Europe. The duration of the Troubles is conventionally dated from the late 1960s and considered by many to have ended with the Belfast...
. When asked whether or not Americans are able to comprehend and identify with the experiences of people in Northern Ireland, Laird replied that "I think they can, but I don't think they do," and cited the "low level of discourse" that he has encountered in regard to this subject when he travels to America. http://www.wnyc.org/shows/lopate/episodes/2006/01/25
To a Fault
To a Fault is his first collection of poems, and was nominated for the Forward Prize for Best First Collection. It explores the sharp edge of relationships against social and political backdrops; 'the fault' that unites the poems lying in the paradoxes of relationships: needing to remain both in and outside; desiring the security of home but the excitement of flight. To a Fault was published by Faber and FaberFaber and Faber
Faber and Faber Limited, often abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in the UK, notable in particular for publishing a great deal of poetry and for its former editor T. S. Eliot. Faber has a rich tradition of publishing a wide range of fiction, non fiction, drama, film and music...
in January 2005.
On Purpose
On Purpose is his follow-up book of poems, published also by Faber and FaberFaber and Faber
Faber and Faber Limited, often abbreviated to Faber, is an independent publishing house in the UK, notable in particular for publishing a great deal of poetry and for its former editor T. S. Eliot. Faber has a rich tradition of publishing a wide range of fiction, non fiction, drama, film and music...
in 2007. The collection further explores the concept of relationships, loosely based on the tract The Art of War
The Art of War
The Art of War is an ancient Chinese military treatise that is attributed to Sun Tzu , a high ranking military general and strategist during the late Spring and Autumn period...
by Sun Tzu
Sun Tzu
Sun Wu , style name Changqing , better known as Sun Tzu or Sunzi , was an ancient Chinese military general, strategist and philosopher who is traditionally believed, and who is most likely, to have authored The Art of War, an influential ancient Chinese book on military strategy...
. The book won the Somerset Maugham Award
Somerset Maugham Award
The Somerset Maugham Award is a British literary prize given each May by the Society of Authors. It is awarded to whom they judge to be the best writer or writers under the age of thirty-five of a book published in the past year. The prize was instituted in 1947 by William Somerset Maugham and thus...
and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize
Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize
The Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize is a British literary prize established in 1963 in tribute to Geoffrey Faber, founder and first Chairman publisher Faber & Faber...
in 2008.
Glover's Mistake
Review from the New York Times
A blog called The Damp Review figures prominently in Nick Laird’s new novel. On it David Pinner, once an art student, now a teacher who dabbles in cultural criticism, writes about “whatever took his fancy. Or didn’t,” Mr. Laird writes. “He found it easier to write on disappointments. Hatreds, easier still.” At the beginning of the book David goes to an art opening for Ruth Marks, a feminist American artist who is in London on a yearlong residency. Ruth was once David’s teacher, and they strike up a friendship. But Ruth strikes up more with David’s much-younger roommate, James Glover, who plays the innocent to David’s cynic. And, as the romance between Ruth and James develops, so does David’s anger and unhappiness. Mr. Laird is also a poet, a day job he reveals in sentences like “David realized he’d been unconsciously pushing his nails into his palms, leaving little red falciform marks.” (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/16/books/16newly.html)
The Voice also has a review. (http://www.villagevoice.com/2009-07-15/books/irish-novelist-nick-laird-goes-utterly-pug/)
Recognition and prizes
To a Fault and Utterly Monkey were both long listed for the inaugural Dylan Thomas PrizeDylan Thomas Prize
The Dylan Thomas Prize is the world’s top cash prize for young writers. The annual prize, named in honor of the Welsh writer and poet Dylan Thomas, brings international prestige and a cash award of £30,000 . It is open to published writers in the English language under the age of thirty. The prize...
. To a Fault won the Jerwood Aldeburgh Prize, the Ireland Chair for Poetry Award and the Rupert and Eithne Strong Award. It was also shortlisted for the Forward Poetry Prize
Forward Poetry Prize
The Forward Poetry Prizes were created in 1991. The aim of the prizes is to extend the audience for contemporary poetry. Until the T.S. Eliot Prize remuneration was increased to £15,000 plus £1000 to each of nine runners-up, the Forward was the United Kingdom's most valuable annual poetry...
for First Collection; it was shortlisted for the Poetry Now Award
Poetry Now Award
The Poetry Now Award is an annual literary prize presented for the best single volume of poetry by an Irish poet. The €5,000 award is presented during the annual Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Poetry Now international poetry festival. The festival began in 1996 and the first Poetry Now Award was bestowed...
in 2006; and it was longlisted for the Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award
Guardian First Book Award, issued before 1999 as Guardian Fiction Prize or Guardian Fiction Award, is awarded to new writing in fiction and non-fiction.-History:...
.
Laird was also the recipient of the Rooney Prize for Irish Literature in 2005. Utterly Monkey won the Betty Trask Prize for best first novel in 2005. It was also shortlisted for the Commonwealth best first novel award, the Irish novel of the year award, and the Kerry Group Listowel Fiction prize. On Purpose won a Somerset Maugham Award and the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize in 2007.
External links
- 'It's nothing to do with me' Guardian profile/interview of Nick Laird.
- Mr and Mrs Smith Interview by the Daily Telegraph.
- Nick Laird Biography, courtesy of British Council Arts.
- Lad Lit Interview on WNYC's Leonard Lopate Show.
- John Redmond Reviews "To a Fault"
- Utterly Monkey, by Nick Laird PopMatters book review.
- "Cuttings," by Nick Laird
- Nick Laird: "The Bearhug"
- Michiko Kakutani reviews Utterly Monkey, by Nick Laird