author
Liam O'Flaherty
1896–1984
Raised on the Aran Islands, this fiercely independent Irish writer turned hardship, politics, and ordinary lives into fiction with unusual force. Best known for The Informer and his short stories, he wrote with grit, sympathy, and a sharp eye for conflict.
2 Audiobooks
The informer
by Liam O'Flaherty
Return of the brute
by Liam O'Flaherty
About the author
Born on Inishmore in the Aran Islands in 1896, Liam O'Flaherty became one of the most distinctive Irish novelists and short-story writers of the 20th century. Reference sources describe him as a major figure in modern Irish writing, noted for work that blends naturalism, psychological intensity, satire, and deep feeling for the endurance of ordinary people.
His fiction often drew on social struggle, rebellion, and the lives of people pushed to the edge. He is especially remembered for The Informer, along with novels such as Famine, and for a large body of short stories. Accounts of his life also note his strong political commitments and his connection to the Irish literary revival.
O'Flaherty died in Dublin in 1984. His writing still stands out for its toughness, emotional honesty, and its closeness to the landscapes and communities that shaped him.