Colm Toibin published his first book in 1985 and in the three decades since has been a central voice within popular Irish cultural and intellectual discourse. Toibin is one of the most widely-read and critically respected of Irish contemporary novelists, both in Europe and in North America, and his fictions have justly earned him an international reputation and an ever-growing popularity. His use of many literary forms; the newspaper essay, the travel book, the historical study, reviews, broadcasts, best-selling novels and short stories all attest to his crucial influence on Irish public discourse and Irish identity. Eibhear Walshe presents here the only complete study of Toibin s writing life to date, drawing on the newly-opened Colm Toibin literary archive.