Colm Tóibín was born in Enniscorthy in 1955. He is the author of nine novels including The Master, Brooklyn, The Testament of Mary and Nora Webster.

His work has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize three times, has won the Costa Novel Award and the Impac Award.

His most recent novel is House of Names. He has also published two collections of stories and many works of non-fiction, including New Ways to Kill Your Mother: Writers and Their Families. He lives in Dublin.