Sebastian Barry

Sebastian Barry(b. 1955) is an Irish novelist, playwright and poet.Graduate from Trinity College in Dublin,he made his debut in 1982 with the novel “Macker’s Garden”.His works have won numerous accolades, including Costa Book of the Year twice. He has also been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize twice: for “A Long Long Way” (2005) and “The Secret Scripture” (2008) and, most recently, longlisted for “Old God’s Time”, published in Poland under the patronage of the Conrad Festival and translated by Aga Zano.Four others of his books have also been translated into Polish: “The Secret Scripture” (2011, trans. Magdalena Słysz), “On Canaan’s Side” (2015, trans. Katarzyna Makaruk; a new translation by Krzysztof Cieślik was published earlier this year by ArtRage), “Days Without End” (2019, trans. Jędrzej Polak) and “A Thousand Moons” (2023, trans. Krzysztof Cieślik).

This year’s Conrad Festival includes a meeting with Sebastian Barry led by Magda Heydel.She will talk to the author of “Old God’s Time” about authenticity in the face of a difficult past which demands to be examined, about ties between literature and memory, and – of course – about Ireland.