A YOUNG author from Cork has claimed a top book prize in London for her debut novel.
Louise O’Neill’s Only Ever Yours received The Bookseller’s Young Adult Book Prize – beating nine other titles to bring it home.
The Clonakilty native beat off stiff competition from experienced authors – including Chris O’Dowd’s wife, Dawn O’Porter.
The book is a feminist dystopian tale, satirising the way young women are scrutinised for their looks.
A graduate of English from Trinity College Dublin, Louise wrote the novel after coming home from a spell living in New York City.
“When I returned from New York on September 1, 2011, I made a pact with myself that I was going to have a novel written within a year, and I finished the first draft on August 31, 2012,” she said.
Only Ever Yours has received rave reviews – with teen judge Erin Minogue calling it “an important book that everyone needs to read”.
O'Neill accepted the award at the ceremony at Foyles Charing Cross Road flagship store in London last night.
