Books That Got Me Through

Aoife Byrne

@aoifeb_dublin

11Items

right so this is less a reading list and more a survival log tbh. these are the books that talked me down off the ledge during deadline week, made the 46a bearable, or got quoted at me by a lecturer until I finally caved and read them. mix of stuff I found in Chapters, stuff my housemate shoved at me, and one I definitely bought just for the cover in Hodges Figgis. no particular order, no shame either!!

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The list

Showing 1–10 of 11

Books That Got Me Through — 10 items
Name	Title	Where I got it	My take
1Normal People by Sally Rooney	Normal People	Hodges Figgis, Dawson Street	everyone in college has an opinion on this one, mine is that it wrecked me on the 46a and I'm not over it, grand book though
2Dubliners by James Joyce	Dubliners	Trinity College library	had to read this for a module and actually loved it, The Dead still haunts me a bit, very on brand for living here
3Milkman by Anna Burns	Milkman	Books Upstairs, D'Olier Street	took me three tries to get into the rhythm of this but once it clicked I couldn't stop, deadly writing honestly
4Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan	Small Things Like These	Chapters Bookstore, Parnell Street	tiny book, absolute gut punch, read it in one sitting in a café and had to just stare at the wall after
5The Gathering by Anne Enright	The Gathering	Charlie Byrne's, Galway (bought on a day trip)	bleak enough but so, so well written, my nana would call it 'heavy' and she'd be right, worth it though
6Skippy Dies by Paul Murray	Skippy Dies	Dubray Books, Grafton Street	funny and sad in equal measure, made me laugh out loud on the Luas which is always a bit mortifying
7Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney	Conversations with Friends	Vibes and Scribes, Cork (found it there)	read this before Normal People and honestly prefer it, the messiness felt very true to being in your twenties
8Foster by Claire Keegan	Foster	The Winding Stair, Ormond Quay	so short but stays with you for ages, read it in the Winding Stair café upstairs which felt very fitting
9Paul Murray's The Bee Sting	The Bee Sting	Hodges Figgis, Dawson Street	an absolute unit of a book but every page earns its place, put my deadlines on hold for a week for this
10Actress by Anne Enright	Actress	Dubray Books, Rathmines	grabbed this from the Rathmines branch on a whim after a lecture, mother-daughter stuff done so well, quietly devastating