Wicklow native Lucy Sweeney Byrne is one of the most scintillating voices to rise in years. Her essays, poetry and short stories have appeared in journals and magazines such as Banshee, The Dublin Review, The Stinging Fly, Litro and Grist. Her work was included in the twenty-year anthology, Stinging Fly Stories, and she was a semi-finalist for the Zone 3 Press Creative Nonfiction Book Award. She has twice received a literature bursary from the Arts Council of Ireland.
This year, Byrne will make a little piece of history with her first collection of short fiction, Paris Syndrome, which is also Banshee Press’s inaugural stand-alone book. Her debut is comprised of eleven unique stories about traveling solo as a young woman. The book has already generated an impressive early buzz, and readers are no doubt keen to snag a first edition. Her work has received much praise from her peers including Paul Murray, who said, “Harrowing and hilarious in equal measures – and often, somehow, at the same time – Paris Syndrome is an unforgettable portrait of millennial womanhood.”
Paris Syndrome | 2019 |