What's on Cillian's Bookshelf?
- The Hitchhiker's Guide... |
- The Sea |
- The Ginger Man |
- The Magus |
- The Butcher Boy |
- Mothers and Sons
Asked what three things he would want to take to a desert island, Cillian said, "My iPod, a good book that I haven't read yet, and my guitar." (In Style) We don't know what he might choose for his island solitude, but here are a few of the books that Cillian's enjoyed in the past.
Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (1979)
When asked about his must-see summer movie, Cillian replied The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. "I'm a big fan of the book, and it looks like a load of fun." (Rolling Stone)
John Banville
"I've read all his books," Cillian says of Banville (Who), the Wexford-born author who was shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1989 for The Book of Evidence. In 2005, he won the Booker for The Sea and in 2007 he was named on the long list for the Man Booker International Prize.
J.P. Donleavy's The Ginger Man (1955)
During the Divine Comedy's 2004 tour, Neil Hannon asked various celebrities to accompany his performance of the orchestral track, "The Booklovers," by reading from their favourite book. At their London show, Cillian came on stage to read excerpts from The Ginger Man by J.P. Donleavy. (Empire Online)
John Fowles' The Magus (1965)
"I love The Magus by John Fowles. It is probably my favourite. I first read it when I was a teenager while hitchhiking around France, and it had a very profound affect on me. I don't re-read books very often—just this one and Don Quixote." (Celebrity Bookshelf, Inside Entertainment, November 2005)
Patrick McCabe's The Butcher Boy (1992)
"I'd been in love with Patrick McCabe's writing for years. I think The Butcher Boy is up there with Joyce and Beckett as a seminal piece of Irish literature. I really do." (Interview)
"The Butcher Boy had a tremendous effect on me—the book and the film." (Film Ireland)
Colm Tóibín's Mothers and Sons (2006)
In January 2007, Cillian read the short story "A Song" from the book for BBC 4's "Book at Bedtime."
